Stan Getz - Best of Two Worlds (10 tracks) +Album Reviews

Getz phones it in

rash67 | USA | 12/19/2004

(2 out of 5 stars)

"After "Getz/Gilberto" the second best selling Jazz album of all time behind "Kind of Blue", the record companies were anxious for another golden egg.

However this is one of the worst periods in Stan Getz life, the 70's. Personal problems, and he was locked in the the bitterest divorce case in history, went to the Supreme Court! Things added to his orange juice...

Joao Gilberto also has a good reason to have a grudge against Getz but it doesn't show here, he is as mellow as usual. A trooper. His singing and guitar & Heloise hold the day, while Getz pretty much phones it in. What's good on this album comes from him.

For better Getz, pick any other decade or his life. For some reason all of the Getz Columia recordings are really bass thin and harsh. This one is less so, but no exception.

See my list for many better Getz recordings."

Underrated

Evan Sarzin | Ground Zero | 09/19/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This also has been a favorite of mine for thirty years. There are flaws but also many gems. Getz may have been in a bad way but his solos flow perfectly with the music. Gilberto is a joy as always.

"

2 greats, one shows up

Jonathan M. Stone | Annapolis, MD | 07/14/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I knew a lady whom Joao stayed with her family (she was 13 at the time)during the recording of this record. She said that Joao was furious when he heard the mix. There is Joao, understated and superbly craftsmanly and self-contained, then the sax solos kick in at a level that seems twice as loud as Joao's performance, as if he were a blank pad for scribbling saxophone- a disgusting display of egotism and lack of respect. I give this 3 stars because I worship Joao, but through no fault of his own, this is his worst record."

The Hiccup

bordersj2 | Boston | 02/09/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I can't really add to the history of Getz and Gilberto that hasn't already been stated. Getz/Gilberto will always be remembered as one of the classic, most timeless Bossa Nova albums ever made. Getz and Gilberto would also go on to do loads of other terrific albums on their own or even featuring sporadically together. Some of my favorites are Getz/Bonfa and Getz/Almeida, just to name a few. Given the history, it was a little surprising that there was another album from the two icons and perhaps it shouldn't have been too surprising that the reunion sounded every bit as awkward as one would imagine it to be.

This one was not one of my favorite Bossa Nova albums because as others have said, Stan Getz was going through the motions and you can hear and feel in the music that Joao Gilberto was frustrated by the album and, admittedly, was pretty subpar (to their lofty standards) as well. This isn't to say that there wasn't any quality in the release. I did like the version of "Double Rainbow" featured here, with Miucha on vocals. I also enjoyed the beautiful guitar play in "Joao Marcello". But the music, by-in-large, is like... for lack of better words, a dying flower. A genre that wasn't so popular anymore, an artist having many problems and fading...

If you're a big fan of Bossa Nova, and a die-hard to collect anything Bossa Nova then you may want to check it out because with the three talents on display there has to be some good. But if you want something at the level of the older works, you'll be disappointed with this. The problems on this album stem from the production and mastering of the album, along with Stan's loud sax solos. While Joao was more melancholic, Stan's sax play was actually obnoxious at times, highlighting that among other things, the artists were on far different wave-lengths. Falsa Baiana loudly cuts in after an introductory sax solo and the icing on the cake? At the end of "Eu Vem Da Bahia", you can hear someone say "That felt good out here." There just wasn't a lot of time or effort put into making this a complete, polished album. Some of the songs sound every bit like the first takes they probably were.

"

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