An overlooked gem from the Verve bossa years – a session that features the sweet tenor sax work of Stan Getz, alongside some swinging bossa arrangements from the great Gary McFarland! Given the strength of Gary's own work for Verve at the time, it's no surprise that he's a perfect accompanist for Getz on the session – working with just the right amount of space to let Stan stand out from the pack, and really creating a great blend of Brazilian rhythms and some of the modder 60s styles at Verve. Gary contributed a number of originals to the session too – and titles include "Bim Bom", "Manlancolico", "Balanco No Samba", "Noite Triste", "Chega De Saudade", and "Manha De Carnival". (Jazz, Brazil) LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful dreamy album that's quite different from the classic Getz/Gilberto collaboration – but which also shares much of that set's lyrical beauty! This album was recorded live, in 1964, when Stan Getz was playing with his quartet that included Gary Burton on vibes – an incredible lineup that made for some wonderfully moody sounds! The vibes/tenor approach was a high point in Getz's career – especially as the young Burton could create these beautiful washes of sound that were a perfect counterpoint to Getz's breathy playing. And although Astrud Gilberto is thrown into the mix here to give the album a bit of bossa appeal – vocals on 6 titles that include "Corovado", "Eu E Voce", "It Might As Well Be Spring", "One Note Samba", "Only Trust Your Heart", and "The Telephone Song" – there's also 4 more tracks that are all instrumental, and which show the Getz/Burton union in all of its glory! These tracks include "6 Nix Pix Flix", "The Singing Song", "Here's That Rainy Day", and "Summertime". And for reference, the rest of the group includes Gene Cherico on bass and Joe Hunt on drums – but on 3 tracks, Chuck Israels plays bass instead of Cherico, and on a few others, Helcio Milito plays drums instead of Hunt, and Kenny Burrell joins in on guitar. (Jazz, Brazil) LP, Vinyl record album

Hardly an "encore" of the first Stan Getz Jazz Samba album – as this set's got a slightly different feel, and lots of great elements that make it really unique! This time around, Brazilian musician Luiz Bonfa is on guitar – already a skilled proponent of the bossa by the time of the record, and arguably one of the few who really got it going back home in Rio. Stan's tenor sounds wonderful – as carefully and soufully blown as on the first set, but also with some new colors and tones too. Bonfa's wife Maria Toledo sings a bit on the record – hinting at Stan's work to come with Astrud Gilberto (this album was cut right before the Getz/Gilberto collaboration) – and the record also features added work on piano and guitar from the great Antonio Carlos Jobim – more than enough proof that the album's got a pure bossa pedigree! Titles include "Menina Flor", "Ebony Samba", "Saudade Vem Correndo", "Sambalero", "Samba De Duas Notas", and "Mania De Maria". (Jazz, Brazil) LP, Vinyl record album

A rare 80s set from Astrud Gilberto – cut at a time when she was hardly doing any new recording at all! As you'll guess from the title, the album has Gilberto teaming up with German groovemaker James Last – who handles all the orchestrations for the record, and shows a surprising sensitivity towards Astrud's bossa styles in his music. Last can sometimes be a bit over the top, but he's quite subtle here – leaving lots of room for Gilberto's sweetly sensitive vocals, and the music of her core combo, which features Romero Lubambo on guitar and Dudu Da Fonseca on percussion. Paulo Jobim guests on vocals and guitar on a few tracks – and titles include "Agua De Beber", "Champagne & Caviar", "Samba Do Soho", and "Saci". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the hardest to find Astrud Gilberto records on Verve – and one of the best! Deodato, Don Sebesky, and Pat Williams did the arrangements – and the sound here is a bit different than some of the straighter Gilberto sets of the time – still very bossa-inspired, but also in a style that mixes in some great Sunshine Pop and 60s easy influences too – particularly on the tracks arranged by Williams! Tracks are all quite short, but get a heck of a lot of magic into a tiny space – and the album features some really wonderful songs that break Gilberto's pattern a bit – including versions of the Marcos Valle tracks "Crickets Sing For Anamaria" and "Chup Chup, I Got Away" – plus takes on "Windy", "Sing Me A Rainbow", "Never My Love", and "Where Are They Now?" LP, Vinyl record album

Kind of a dream combination in one little album – especially if you dig breezy bossa from the 60s! Back in 1966, Verve Records got the great idea of teaming up its (then) biggest Brazilian imports – vocalist Astrud Gilberto and organist Walter Wanderley – both of whom were selling plenty at the time! Astrud's lovely vocals are matched beautifully with the lean, rhythmic bossa grooves of Wanderley's trio – and the result is a record that's near-perfect in execution. Most of the tracks are quite short, as is the record itself – but it's a perfectly concentrated dose of the Verve bossa sound at its best, with tracks that include "Portuguese Washerwoman", "Tu Meu Delirio", "A Certain Smile", "Call Me", "Here's That Rainy Day", "A Certain Sadness", "It's A Lovely Day Today", and a vocal version of Wanderley's big hit "Summer Samba", redone here as "So Nice"! LP, Vinyl record album

One of our favorite Walter Wanderley albums ever – and a record that moves past the more familiar bossa trio style used on his hits for Verve, into groovier new territory with added players who include Dom Um Romao on drums and Marcos Valle on guitar! And not only is the lineup expanded, but the styles are too – as Wanderley moves away from the straighter bossa and samba jazz of his roots, into the world of more unusual, more complicated rhythms that were showing up in the Brazilian scene at the end of the 60s. Marcos Valle's contribution is felt strongly here – as the album includes a fantastic instrumental take on his classic "Crickets Sing For Anamaria" (aka "Os Grilos") – plus other Valle compositions that include "Ainda Mais Lindo", "Batucada", and "E Preciso Cantar". Other tracks include "Wave", "So What's New", and "O Barquinho". LP, Vinyl record album

One of those records that no home should be without – not only a pivotal album in the growth of bossa nova in the 60s – but a set that also really helped set the career of tenorist Stan Getz on fire! The real credit here might almost go to guitarist Charlie Byrd – as Byrd was a big early proponent of bossa nova rhythms, and had already been experimenting with them on his records of the time – yet also gets a key extra "umph" here in the presence of Stan's tenor – a bold, rich, soulful sound that really helps give the music a lot of direction – in ways that still resonate strongly all these many years later! Getz is completely sublime – a master of tone and timing throughout – and perfectly fit to these tunes. Rhythms are mostly from Byrd's trio, augmented with some extra percussion – and titles include the classic "Desafinado", plus "E Luxo So", "Samba Dees Days", "Samba Triste", "O Pato", "Samba De Uma Nota So", and "Baia". (Jazz, Brazil) LP, Vinyl record album

A very cool album from Verve Japan – one that features tracks by Antonio Carlos Jobim, Joao Gilberto, Walter Wanderley, and Gary McFarland – all as an introduction to 60s bossa nova! LP, Vinyl record album

Great stuff from Walter Wanderley – and a refreshing change from his work on Verve! The record's dated 1968, but we're kind of guessing that the tracks date from earlier years – although we're not sure. Most of the material's as sophisticated as anything Walter was cutting in the US at the time – and there's some great electric guitar playing on the record, which is something you don't normally hear on some of Wanderley's other organ trio albums. Titles include "Chora Tua Tristeza", "Ninho Do Nono", "Teleco-Teco No 2", "O Pato", and "Mulata Assanhada". LP, Vinyl record album

The legendary 1962 Bossa Nova concert at Carnegie Hall – and one of the first live recordings of the young bossa nova in all its glory! The concert is famous not only because it was a bit of a disaster (according to legend, just about nobody got paid!), but also because it brought together a huge amount of Brazilian talent on one stage, and premiered their music to a rabid US audience – very fresh at the time, as the big Verve boom of bossa recordings hadn't even started to take hold! The recording has a stunning live feel, and it preserves all the acoustics of Carnegie Hall, complete with lively crowd response. Oscar Castro Neves backs up most of the singers – including Sergio Ricardo, Carmen Costa, Carlos Lyra, Ana Lucia, and Chico Feitoso – and the LP has other instrumental performances by Joao Gilberto, Milton Banana, Roberto Menescal, Luiz Bonfa, and Sergio Mendes – all young bossa giants, really opening up here with their talents! The set features 15 tracks in all – and titles include "O Barquinho", "Influencia Do Jazz", "Outra Vez", "Zelao", "Nao Faz Assim", "Bossa Nova Em Nova York", and "Passarinho". LP, Vinyl record album