Stan Getz - The Last
Recording (DVD-Video Concert)
Picture: C+
Sound: B- Extras: C- Concert: B
Though no one knew it at the time, saxophonist Stan Getz
performed what would be his last concert that was recorded in the aptly titles Stan
Getz – The Last Recording, which happened in 1990. He was gone a year later, but was best known
for big “crossover” hits like Desafinado in 1962 and the legendary The
Girl From Ipanema from 1964, with Astrud Gilberto on lead vocal. The latter’s sudden revival in pop culture
is amusing, leaving something to contemplate at a later date.
Neither of those Antonio Carlos Jobim compositions are in
this set, but we do get:
1) Apasionado
2) On A
Slow Boat To China
3) Soul
Eyes
4) Espanola
5) Coba
6) Seven
Steps To Heaven
7) El Cahon
8) Yours
& Mine
9) Voyage
10) Lonely Lady
11) Blood Count
12) What Is This Thing Called Love
13) People Time
14) Amourous Cat
Some of those (1, 5, 6, 14) are Getz originals, co-written
by Herb Alpert, Eddie del Barrio and for this concert, Getz and the band had a
great audience. The other five
bandmates are Kenny Barron (piano), Frank Zottoli (synthesizer), Alex Blake
(bass), Terri Lyne Carrington (drums), and Eddie del Barrio himself on
synthesizer as well. Though the box
credits the length at 93 minutes, the concert is actually a longer 103 minutes
in length, which shortchanges the content.
Hopefully, Geneon will correct this in the next batch of pressings.
The full frame 1.33 X 1 image is not bad for an old NTSC
taping, but shows its age and having watched so many 16 X 9 concerts in several
genres, had to adjust back to the “old square” as it were. The source is clean, but obviously
limited. The sound is once again a
choice between Dolby Digital 5.1 and PCM 16Bit/48kHz 2.0 Stereo, where the
Dolby has some more depth and range, but is missing out on some of the fullness
and choice detail that the PCM offers.
Though form an older recording, I wondered if DTS would have made a
difference. Likely, the answer is yes
and a historic piece like this should get that treatment sometime. The only extras are two segments of
music-accompanied crawl on Getz career and a segment dubbed “liner notes” that
could have been called liner quotes.
Still, they are good, if very basic.
This is the first of several titles from Getz on DVD-Video that we hope
to cover and are available now.
- Nicholas Sheffo
