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Scott LaFaro Discography: 1959


Table of Contents

 1959 ??.??  The Broadway Bit  Marty Paich
 1959 03.??  The Stan Kenton Orchestra in Concert  Stan Kenton [1997 CD]
 1959 03.02  Latinsville  Victor Feldman
 1959 05.21  Gypsy  Herb Geller
 1959 10.28  Dedications  Tony Scott [1989 CD]
 1959 10.28  Sung Heroes  Tony Scott [1989 CD]
 1959 12.28  Portrait in Jazz  Bill Evans

 


 

 

The Broadway Bit. The Modern Touch of Marty Paich. [Burbank, CA:] Warner Brothers, 1959. Warner WB 1296 [and] WS 1296. 1 sound disc ; analog, 33 1/3 rpm, stereo ; 12 in. Recorded on various dates in 1959 in Los Angeles. Note: OCLC Record #22 690 389 EXH 19901114.

Performers:

Program:

Also issued by Warner Bros.WS 1296 and Discovery DS 844 as The New York Scene.

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Special note of appreciation to Mr. Royston 'Roy' Edwards, who sent me a cassette recording of At Ukiah and a color copy of that CD's liner notes in January 2000 when at the time I did not have this CD and had some difficulty locating a copy since it is now out of print. Roy also has visited Barrie Kolstein's shop, Baldwin, NY (on Long Island) to play the LaFaro-Prescott bass which Barrie repaired over a decade ago.  Here's a snapshot of Roy in Barrie Kolstein's shop with Scott's bass:

 

 

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The Stan Kenton Orchestra in Concert. [Compact Disc]  Burbank, CA: Hindsight Records, 1997.  Hindsight HCD-612. 1 sound disc : digital ; 4 and 3/4 in.  Produced and compiled by Bob Edmonson. Digital remastering and restoration [by] Joe Sidore. Liner notes [by] Dr. Herb Wong. Design [by] Mario Levesque.  Executive producer, Tom Gramuglia.  Original recording made March 1959.

Performers:

Program:

  1. Theme and Variations (Bill Holman)
  2. Fearless Finlay (Bill Holman)
  3. I Concentrate on You (Cole porter)
  4. My Old Flame (Sam Coslow and Arthur Johnston)
  5. Intermission Riff (Stan Kenton)
  6. La Suerte de Los Tontos (from Cuban Fire -- Johnny Richards)
  7. Bernie's Tune (Bernie Miller)
  8. Street Scene (Alfred Newman)
  9. Out of This World (Cole Porter)

From liner notes by Dr. Herb Wong:

"The main edition of this band was organized in mid-year 1958. This March 1959 concert appearance on the West Coast was part of a long string of road gigs across the country. Just a month before, the band recorded the very excellent "Live" At the Las Vegas Tropicana, and with the exception of a few players, the personnel was intact. The new faces included trumpeter Rolf Ericson, trombonist Jimmy Knepper, John Bonnie on tenor, bassist Scott LaFaro, and Latin percussionist Mike Pacheco was an add on.

"Before LaFaro joined Kenton, he played with Sonny Rollins and Harold Land in San Francisco. And it was after his stint with Kenton in early 1959 that LaFaro became a pivotal member of the Bill Evans Trio in New York later in the year. "Scotty was a giant of a player," say Amlotte.  "Bassists no longer played time as we knew it then. Scotty had a wild sound and I liked it a lot," notes Niehaus. Bass players were liberated from four beats to the bar and were playing triplets. Trujillo remembers, "We had bass and tenor sessions. Scotty was an incredible player." Listen to him on 'Bernie's Tune'. Mike Pacheco (who shines brightly on the Johnny Richards charts) adds, "Scotty was heavily amplified when he soloed . . . he was impressive."

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Latinsville!. Victor Feldman. An Unusual Meeting of Jazz Stars and Authentic Afro-Cuban Rhythms. Los Angeles: Contemporary Records, [c1960] Contemporary S-9005. 1 sound disc : analog, 33 1/3 rpm, mono ; 12 in. Recorded March 2, 3, 20 and May 4, 1959. Sound by Roy DuNann. Produced by Lester Koenig. Program notes by Leonard Feather, dated May 17, 1960.

Performers:

Program:

Side 1

Side 2

Poinciana, Spain, Woody'n You, and Cuban Love Song were recorded 2 March 1959, with Feldman, Candoli, Rosolino, Benton, Guaraldi, LaFaro, Levey, Bobo, Perazza, and Santamaria.

The Gypsy and In a Little Spanish Town were recorded 3 March 1959 with same players as on the 2 March session minus Rosolino and Levey.

South of the Border, Flying Down to Rio, and Lady of Spain were recorded 20 March 1959 with same players as on the 3 March session except Al McKibbon, bass, replaced LaFaro.

She's a Latin From Manhattan, Cuban Pete and Fiesta were recorded 4 May 1959 with Feldman, vibes; Andy Thomas, piano; Tony Reyes, bass; Frank Guerrero, timbales; and Ramon Rivera, congas.

Note: Program notes do not mention any thing about Scott LaFaro or his performance.

See the Latinsville! 2003 CD re-release, for additional performers and program material which does include some fine playing by LaFaro and drummer Nick Martinis.

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Gypsy. Herb Geller & His All Stars. New York: Atco Records, Division of Atlantic Recording Corp. [n.d.] Atco High Fidelity 33-109. 1 sound disc : analog, 33 1/3 rpm, stereo ; 12 in. Selections from the musical Gypsy with music by Jule Styne and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim. Recording engineers, Tom Dowd and Phil Lehle. Supervision by Nesuhi Ertegun. Program notes by Joe Muranyi.

Recording date (probably late 1959) to be determined.

Performers:

Program:

Side One

Side Two

“The musical Gypsy opened in New York on May 21, 1959.” (notes)

From Leonard Feather's program notes:

“Another youngster who contributes much more than what one would expect is string bassist Scott LaFaro. Scott's only 23, yet his playing sings with the authority of an old professional like Milt Hinton or Oscar Pettiford.

He's appeared with Chet Baker, Sonny Stitt, Art Farmer, Sonny Rollins, and Stan Kenton during the course of his short career --–mostly on the West Coast. He's studied the clarinet, but is largely self taught on the bass.

He's featured on `Cow Song', a melody sung in Gypsy by `Dainty June and her Farmboys' – a vaudeville act, naturally enough. Scott's version of the melody and his improvisations upon it mark him as a jazz musician of considerable talent. That he has a sense of humor is apparent in the way he slips in a few “moos” between the end of the first statement of the melody and his beginning improvisations.”

Scott's accuracy of pitch, fine rhythmic sense and creative way with a jazz line portend great things for his future in jazz.”

The absence of a piano on `You'll Never Get Away From Me' and `Little Lamb' emphasizes the work of the bass and drums that then make up the rhythm section. The lack of the vertical sound of the chords from the piano gives the music a horizontal, moving quality that lets one hear every clean nuance of the rhythm laid down by Elvin Jones' drums and LaFaro's bass. . . .”

Note: OCLC record #12 875 943 BGU 19851205.

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Dedications  Tony Scott. [Compact Disc] Featuring Bill Evans, Scott LaFaro, Paul Motian, Juan Sastre [and] Shinichi Yuize. Hamburg, Western Germany: Core Records (a Division of Line Music GmbH) ; 1989. Core COCD 9.00803 O. 1 sound disc ; analog to digital , 4 and 3/4 in. Compiled and coordinated by Arne Schumacher. Digitally remastered and prepared for Compact Disc by Ralf Linder. Cover and liner photos from Archive Tony Scott except [trademark HK] by Hannes Kalsov. Produced by Tony Scott. All compositions by Tony Scott. Published by Tonimo Music. Tony Scott. [Compact Disc] Featuring Bill Evans, Scott LaFaro, Paul Motian, Juan Sastre [and] Shinichi Yuize. Hamburg, Western Germany: Core Records (a Division of Line Music GmbH) ; 1989. Core COCD 9.00803 O. 1 sound disc ; analog to digital , 4 and 3/4 in. Compiled and coordinated by Arne Schumacher. Digitally remastered and prepared for Compact Disc by Ralf Linder. Cover and liner photos from Archive Tony Scott except [trademark HK] by Hannes Kalsov. Produced by Tony Scott. All compositions by Tony Scott. Published by Tonimo Music.

Performers:

Tony Scott, clarinet & piano (5), clarinet & baritone sax (6), guitar (12)

Program:

“Recorded October 28 & 29, 1959 at Great Northern Pine Studio, New York City except: Track 4 recorded ca. 1958); Track 8 recorded live June 9, 1957 in Ljubjana, Yugoslavia; Tracks 10 & 11 recorded ca. 1960 in Japan.” (program booklet)

“Most of the material [on] this CD was released on vinyl in the early Eighties under the title `Sung Heroes' . . .”

Note: This CD is similar to the CD Sung Heroes (see below).

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Sung Heroes  Tony Scott. [Compact Disc] Featuring Bill Evans, Scott LaFaro, Paul Motian. [S.l.:] Sunnyside Communications, Inc., 1989. SSC-1015-D. 1 sound disc ; analog to digital , 4 and 3/4 in. Produced by Tony Scott. Recorded in New York at Fine Studio, October 28-29, 1959. Master tape prepared by A. T. MacDonald, March 1986. Executive production by Ray Passmann and Francois Zalacain. Notes by Burt Korall.

Performers:

Program:

Tracks 1, 4, 5: Scott (clarinet), Evans, LaFaro, Motian

Tracks 6, 7: Scott (clarinet) and Evans

Track 3: Scott (piano), LaFaro, Motian

Track 2: Scott (clarinet and baritone saxophone)

Track 8: Scott (guitar)

Track 9: Scott (clarinet) and Sastre

Note: This CD is similar to the CD Dedications (see above).

Excerpt from program notes:

“`We were at the beginning of something,' drummer Paul Motian says. `The dates with Tony brought Bill and Scott and me together for the first time. Not long after the sessions, we were performing as a trio. Tony really was responsible for that edition of the Bill Evans trio. ... A few months later when we played the Sutherland Lounge in Chicago ... things really came together. One night during that engagement, Bill played Monk's “Round Midnight” so beautifully that Scott responded in a way that I can still hear. Those two guys brought tears to my eyes.'”

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Portrait in Jazz  Bill Evans Trio. New York: Riverside Records, Bill Grauer Productions, Inc., 1959. Riverside Stereophonic RLP 1162 [and RS 9315]. 1 sound disc : analog, 33 1/3 rpm, stereo ; 12 in. Recorded December 28, 1959 in New York. Produced, and notes written by Orrin Keepnews. Back liner photo by Lawrence N. Shustak. Engineer, Jack Higgins, Reeves Sound Studios. Bill Evans Trio. New York: Riverside Records, Bill Grauer Productions, Inc., 1959. Riverside Stereophonic RLP 1162 [and RS 9315]. 1 sound disc : analog, 33 1/3 rpm, stereo ; 12 in. Recorded December 28, 1959 in New York. Produced, and notes written by Orrin Keepnews. Back liner photo by Lawrence N. Shustak. Engineer, Jack Higgins, Reeves Sound Studios.

Performers:

Program:

Side 1

Side 2

Note: Released also as monophonic RLP 12-315.

Note: OCLC Record #20 464 088 BBH JNA 19891010

Alternate: #12 615 762 CSO AZS 19850930

Excerpts from liner notes:

[Following Keepnews' discussion of Bill Evans's rise to stardom amongst the jazz listening public in 1959] “Equally impressive was the rapid success of the trio that Bill Formed late in 1959 and took on cross-country tour early in [1960].”

“The other members of Evans' present trio offer him effective, close-knit and most understanding support, which is not always limited to the conventional rhythmic backing. Worthy of particular attention in this respect is `Autumn Leaves', in which Evans and the remarkable young bassist, Scott LaFaro, point towards an innovation close to Bill's heart. He has noted that `I'm hoping the trio will grow in the direction of simultaneous improvisation rather than just one guy blowing followed by another guy blowing. If the bass player, for example, hears an idea that he wants to answer, why should he just keeping playing a background?'”

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Last revised:  2005-09-30
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