First off, these "
Lost Sessions" were never actually lost. The music here was supposed to be released as
the Stan Getz Quartet's first issue on A&M, and for the usual record company reasons, it was shelved instead. The tapes were in the vault and catalogs, so it's not like they were found in someone's closet. The bottom line is that
Getz, already ill at this point, still had the goods. Produced by
Herb Alpert (a genius in his own right even if his records don't always hold up), the bossas here are tough, innovative jazz tunes mainly written by
Getz's pianist,
Kenny Barron. Don't look for the gentle side of
Getz that was so beautifully displayed on his early bossa records with
Charlie Byrd and
Antonio Carlos Jobim. Instead, this is the man who had reinvented his playing technique. With a strong foil in
Barron,
Getz was free to explore his form of melodic improvisation to a fuller and wider extent, which is evident if you simply check out his solos on
Barron's "Sunshower" and "El Sueno," and
Mal Waldron's classic ballad "Soul Eyes." Interestingly, this was
Barron's date as much as it was
Getz's. His compositions and musical direction are key here, and he was trying to get deeper into and stretch the samba groove in his writing. Finding
Getz in such an adventurous space in his playing allowed for this. With a rhythm section that includes bassist
George Mraz and drummer
Victor Lewis, this disc is essential not only for fans of
Getz and
Barron, but for real jazzheads. ~ Thom Jurek