West Coast Jazz [Original recording remastered]

Stan Getz | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (April 27, 1999)
• Original Release Date: 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Polygram Records
• ASIN: B00000HYIH
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #33,478 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Getz Goes West, April 21, 2001

By 

Michael B. Richman (Portland, Maine USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: West Coast Jazz (Audio CD)

Before he became a household name as the frontman for the Bossa Nova craze of the early 1960s, Stan Getz was one of the leading tenor saxophonists of the 1950s. In August 1955, Getz recorded "West Coast Jazz" in Los Angeles with four other relocated Easterners -- trumpeter Conte Candoli, pianist Lou Levy, bassist Leroy Vinnegar and drummer Shelly Manne. Despite the fact that this was not your typical "West Coast" session -- the playing was anything but cool or syrupy smooth -- these musicians, along with the Clifford Brown-Max Roach Group, would become synonymous with a harder L.A. bop sound that would become the new left coast standard. "West Coast Jazz" features great versions of Miles Davis' "Four," Dizzy Gillespie's "A Night in Tunisia" and Gershwin's "Summertime" among other cuts. This remastered Verve disc also boasts five songs not included on the original LP issue, two alternate takes, and a sumptuous gatefold digipak with extensive liner notes. For anyone who loves Getz albums like "The Steamer" or "Award Winner," or Shelly Manne's "At The Blackhawk" volumes, "West Coast Jazz" is where this sound all started.

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Oh, that tone! That sweet, sweet tone!, January 5, 2006

By 

llooc "llooc" (CT, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: West Coast Jazz (Audio CD)

I've shied away from Stan Getz in the past because I've always associated him with bossa nova, and I get no listening pleasure from that style whatsoever.

So it was by sheer luck, and my good fortune, that I was driving around a few months ago without a CD, searching through the radio looking for something good. I stopped when I heard some swinging jazz coming through a station. Not big band swing, but more of a smooth and smoky sound, straddling the line between bop and swing without being precisely one or the other. At the end of the track, I was quite surprised to hear the announcer tell me that that was from Stan Getz's "The Steamer". When I got home, I hopped online and sampled more tracks from that album. Good stuff - so I went out and bought the whole album, and have been loving it ever since. "The Steamer" was good enough that I knew it wouldn't be the last Getz I'd get.

After that, I read up a little more on Getz, and discovered that there was a lot more to him than The Girl From Ipanema. Since I had to go to Tower to exchange an unwanted DVD gift, I went thumbing through the racks to see if anything jumped out at me. His "West Coast Jazz" caught my eye, since it was mid 50's pre-bossa nova, and a full CD of over 70 minutes. Plus, it had covers of Miles Davis's Four, Dizzie Gillespie's A Night In Tunisia, and Horace Silver's Split Kick. Seemed like a no-brainer.

Where have I been? Why has this sax tone been hiding from me? What I heard on "The Steamer" continues here. Sweet without being cloyingly so, cool without sounding pretentious. The trumpet on its own is not that harsh, but Getz's tenor sax is so smooth that when the trumpet comes in, the contrast is that much more evident in its sharpness. Pick your favorite cliche - baby's bottom, silk, satin - Getz is smoother than all of 'em.

And the rest of the band who fills out the quintet is absolutely perfect. It's Conte Candoli's trumpet and Lou Levy's piano that are the other prominent instruments here, with the bass and drums holding down the rhythm with consummate professionalism. I don't listen to the Woody Herman Band (maybe I should), but that band's members who appear behind Getz support him perfectly. Nobody's stepping on anybody's toes. With more than half of the songs over six minutes there's plenty of time for charismatic phrasing all around.

No need to go song by song; I've only gone through this a few times, but every track can stand on its own. I've already loaded this into my computer at work so I won't be without it.

The only thing that would make this more complete would be if it were sold with a martini with two olives.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another West Coast Jazz classic!, March 31, 2005

By 

rash67 (USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: West Coast Jazz (Audio CD)

Stan Getz, who died more than a decade ago, continues to be amazingly prolific!

Verve has triumphed yet again digging another West Coast Jazz Classic out of the vaults and cleaning it up with a 20-bit remix.

Sparkling, complex, a mix of up-tempo and ballad arrangements. This late 50's CD sounds a lot like Stan's 80's work. Best tunes include "East of the Sun and West of the Moon", "Suddenly It's Spring", "Of Thee I Sing" and "Handful of Stars".

Similar to "Award Winner" and "The Steamer" - all recorded at the same time. Buy all three. Jazz's greatest saxophonist may be gone, but his legacy continues to astonish. Stan Levy, Getz drummer is quoted as saying "He (Stan) had no limits; he could play anything. The horn was an extention of his head. There were no barriers, the music just came out".

So come hear Jazz's most beautiful sax sounds come pouring out of him like a bubbling happy waterfall. Warm, and up-beat. For best results, listen on vacuum tube equipment, as it was originally recorded.

by MY tough rating system, a clear four to five stars for a great classic. Getz albums keep vanishing, the originals at least, not the best of's. Get it while you can, you won't be disappointed.

His mellow music is a balm for a harsh world.