Jazz In Paris

by Ken DrydenStan Getz leads a piano-less quartet at the Salle Pleyel in 1966, with veteran drummer Roy Haynes and two talented musicians still in their twenties at the time, bassist Steve Swallow and vibraphonist Gary Burton. The tenor saxophonist's always-lush tone is beautifully complemented by his musicians' sensitive accompaniment, especially on the lovely ballad "When the World Was Young." Burton is doubly showcased by Getz in the vibraphonist's tricky "Singing Song" and also dazzling the audience with his already well-developed four-mallet technique in a show-stopping solo interpretation of Rodgers & Hammerstein's "Edelweiss" (from The Sound of Music). Getz doesn't disappoint his French audience's desire for bossa nova, beginning the set with a smooth rendition of "Manha de Carnaval," but his memorable performance of "On Green Dolphin Street" and a hard-charging arrangement of Frank Loesser's "The Knight Rides Again" (both of which feature Haynes to good measure) leave the most lasting impressions of his abilities at this point in his long career. Finally reissued on CD in Verve's excellent Jazz in Paris series in 2002, this disc should be purchased without delay.