Distancing itself from its predecessors Plastic Soda and Hisscivilization, it is mostly sung in Portuguese and returns to the more "accessible" psychedelia of his 1997 debut A Sétima Efervescência, in sonority terms.

Early versions of "A Marchinha Psicótica de Dr. Soup" and "As Mesmas Coisas" appeared in the soundtrack of the 2006 animated film Wood & Stock: Sexo, Orégano e Rock'n'Roll.

Stewart Mason of AllMusic gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars, describing it as a "double-album-length potted history/reconstruction of the most vibrant era in Brazilian music – roughly from the birth of bossa nova through the petering out of Tropicália, or the late '50s through the early '70s".

[6] Bruno Yutaka Saito of Folha de S.Paulo also spoke favorably of the album, comparing its "eclectic" sonority to the works of Caetano Veloso, Roberto Carlos and Stereolab.

[8] La Cumbuca included Uma Tarde na Fruteira in 198th place in its list of the Top 200 Brazilian Albums of the 2000s.