Big Band Bossa Nova (Acoustic Sounds)

Released in 1962 on Verve, Big Band Bossa Nova continued Stan Getz’s early-1960s engagement with Brazilian music in a large-ensemble format. Produced by Creed Taylor and arranged and conducted by Gary McFarland, the album places Getz’s tenor saxophone within orchestrated settings that combine brass and woodwind writing with the rhythmic qualities of samba and bossa nova. Recorded in August 1962 at Columbia’s 30th Street Studio in New York, the session featured studio musicians including guitarist Jim Hall, trumpeter Doc Severinsen, bassist Tommy Williams, and drummer Johnny Rae.

 The repertoire draws on Brazilian compositions, like Luiz Bonfá’s “Manhã de Carnaval” (“Morning of the Carnival”) and Antônio Carlos Jobim and Vinícius de Moraes’ “Chega de Saudade” (“No More Blues”) alongside material by McFarland (“Balanço no Samba,” or “Street Dance”), and more. Issued in the period following Jazz Samba (1962) and preceding Jazz Samba Encore! (1963) and Getz/Gilberto (1964), the album forms part of Getz’s landmark sequence of Verve releases which played a key role in introducing North American audiences to boss nova.  

Verve’s Acoustic Sounds Series features transfers from analog tapes and remastered 180-gram vinyl in deluxe gatefold packaging.