His parents were Ukrainian Jews who immigrated from Kyiv city, Ukraine in 1903. The family later moved to New York City for better jobs. Stan worked hard in school receiving straight "A's" on average and finished 6th grade close to the top of his class. Stan's major interest was in musical instruments, and he felt a need to play every instrument in his sight. He played a number of instruments before his father bought him his first saxophone at the age of 13. Even though his father also got him a clarinet, Stan instantly fell in love with the saxophone and began practicing 8 hours a day. In 1941, he was accepted into the All City High School Orchestra of New York City. This gave Stan a chance to receive a private, free tutor from the New York Philharmonic, Simon Kovar - a bassoon player. He also began to spend more time playing the saxophone. He eventually dropped out of school in order to pursue his musical career, but was later sent back to the classroom by the school system’s truancy officers.
In 1943, he was accepted into Jack Teagarden's band, and because of his youth he became Teagarden's ward. Getz also played along with Nat King Cole and Lionel Hampton. After playing for Stan Kenton, Jimmy Dorsey, and Benny Goodman, Getz was a soloist with Woody Herman from 1947 to 1949 in 'The Second Herd' and he first gained wide attention as one of the band's saxophonists, who were known collectively as 'The Four Brothers', the others being Serge Chaloff, Zoot Sims and Herbie Steward. With Herman, he had a hit with "Early Autumn" and after Getz left 'The Second Herd' he was able to launch his solo career. He would be the leader on almost all of his recording sessions after 1950.
During the early '50s, Getz broke away from the Lester Young style to form his own musical identity and he was soon among the most popular of all jazzmen. He discovered Horace Silver in 1950 and used him in his quartet for several months. After touring Sweden in 1951, he formed an exciting quintet that co-featured guitarist Jimmy Raney; their interplay on up-tempo tunes and tonal blend on ballads was quite memorable. Getz's playing helped Johnny Smith have a hit in "Moonlight in Vermont," during 1953-1954 Bob Brookmeyer made his group a quintet and, despite some drug problems during the decade, Getz was a constant poll winner. After spending 1958-1960 in Europe, the tenorman returned to the U.S. and recorded his personal favorite album, Focus, with arranger Eddie Sauter's Orchestra.
Getz became a central figure in introducing bossa nova music to the U.S. audience. Teaming with guitarist Charlie Byrd, who had just returned from a U.S. State Department tour of Brazil, Getz recorded Jazz Samba in 1962 and it became a hit. The title track was an adaptation of Antonio Carlos Jobim's "One Note Samba". Getz won the Grammy for Best Jazz Performance of 1963 for "Desafinado". As a follow-up, Getz recorded Jazz Samba Encore! with one of the originators of bossa nova, Brazilian guitarist Luiz Bonfa.
He then recorded the album Getz/Gilberto with Tom Jobim, João Gilberto and his wife, Astrud Gilberto. Their "The Girl from Ipanema" won a Grammy Award. The piece became one of the most well-known latin jazz cuts of all time. Getz/Gilberto won two Grammys (Best Album and Best Single), besting The Beatles' A Hard Day's Night, a victory for Bossa Nova and Brazilian jazz. A live album, Getz/Gilberto Vol. 2, followed, as did Getz Au Go Go, a recording made live at the Cafe Au Go Go. Unfortunately, Getz' affair with Astrud Gilberto brought an end to his musical partnership with her and her husband and he began to move away from bossa-nova and back to cool jazz. Even while still working with the Gilbertos, he recorded Nobody Else But Me an album of straightforward jazz with a new quartet including vibraphonist Gary Burton, but Verve Records, wishing to continue building the Getz brand with bossa-nova, refused to release it. It eventually came out 30 years later, after Getz had died.
In 1972, Getz recorded in the fusion idiom with Chick Corea and Stanley Clarke. This group, without Getz, went on to become the famous Return to Forever, and many of the pieces including "La Fiesta" remained in their repertoire. In this period Getz experimented with an Echoplex on his saxophone, for which critics vilified him. He eventually discarded fusion and "electric jazz", returning to acoustic jazz, while at the same time gradually de-emphasizing the Bossa Nova, opting for more esoteric and less-mainstream jazz. He had a cameo in the movie The Exterminator (1980).
Towards the end of his life the now drug-free Getz had another creative peak with a group including the pianist Kenny Barron, whom Getz described as "my musical other half".
In 1986, he was inducted into the Down Beat Jazz Hall of Fame.
Getz married Beverly Byrne, a vocalist with the Gene Krupa band, on 7 November 1946; they had three children together: Steven, David, and Beverly (who married Michael McGovern).
Getz became involved with drugs and alcohol while a teenager. In 1954, he was arrested for attempting to rob a pharmacy to get a morphine fix. As he was being processed in the prison ward of Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, Beverly gave birth to their third child one floor below.
Getz tried to escape his narcotics addiction by moving to Copenhagen. He married Swedish aristocrat Monica Silfverskiöld on 3 November 1956 and had two children with her: Pamela and Nicolas. In 1957 Swedish girlfriend Inga Torgnér gave birth to a son Peter. Stan divorced Monica in 1987.
Zoot Sims, who had known Getz since their time with Herman, once described him as 'a nice bunch of guys', as a consequence of the wide behavioural range of which Getz was capable. In the final stages of his life Getz was able to end his addictions.
Getz died of liver cancer in 1991. His body was cremated and the ashes scattered at sea, off the coast of Malibu, California.
In 1998 the 'Stan Getz Media Center and Library' at the Berklee College of Music was dedicated through a donation from the Herb Alpert Foundation.
East of the Sun (and West of the Moon
Stan Getz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We'll build a dream house of love dear
Close to the sun in the day
Near to the moon at night
We'll live in a lovely way dear
Sharing our love in the pale moonlight
Just you and I,
Love will not die,
We'll keep it that way
Up among the stars
We'll find a harmony of life to a lovely tune
East of the sun and west of the moon dear
East of the sun and west of the moon
The lyrics of "East of the Sun" describe a place where two lovers can escape to and build a dream house of love. This place is "East of the sun and west of the moon," an imaginary location that represents a perfect and distant place far away from reality. The song speaks of a utopian world where the lovers can live in a lovely way, share their love in the pale moonlight, and find harmony of life up among the stars. The line "just you and I, forever and a day" speaks to the enduring love that the couple shares, and the promise to keep that love alive.
The lyrics of "East of the Sun" offer a lot of symbolism and metaphor, but the overall message is clear: the song is about the power of love to overcome all obstacles and create a world where the only thing that matters is the connection between two people. The idea of a dream house built of love speaks to the idea that love can provide shelter, comfort, and security, even in a world that can be cruel and unpredictable. The song's romantic imagery and soaring melody create a feeling of intimacy and hope, making it an enduring classic of the jazz standards repertoire.
Line by Line Meaning
East of the sun and west of the moon
Let's escape reality and live in a dream world where anything is possible
We'll build a dream house of love dear
We'll create a perfect home where our love can thrive
Close to the sun in the day
We'll bask in the warmth and happiness of our love during the day
Near to the moon at night
We'll enjoy the romantic and peaceful atmosphere of our love at night
We'll live in a lovely way dear
We'll cherish each other and live a beautiful life together
Sharing our love in the pale moonlight
We'll express our love and share intimate moments under the soft glow of the moon
Just you and I,
We only need each other to be happy
Forever and a day
Our love will last for eternity
Love will not die,
Our love is strong and will never fade away
We'll keep it that way
We'll work to maintain and strengthen our love
Up among the stars
We'll reach new heights of happiness and love
We'll find a harmony of life to a lovely tune
We'll discover the balance of life and love, and enjoy it like a beautiful melody
East of the sun and west of the moon dear
Our love exists in a magical, dreamlike place where everything is perfect
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc., Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BROOKS BOWMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
AlbertoLuis Fernandez
A mi gusto el mejor grupo que integro el"Genial Stan Getz" en esta oportunidad lo vuelvo a comprobar interpretando este hermoso clasico del Jazz...
Major Snodgrass TheThird
I just love these West Coast pianists who back up these stars.
Caio vaz
Yeah Lou Levy, Russ Freeman! , Claude Williamson with the great Bud shank, Hampton hawes with lots of guys but with Waddell Gray was Gold, early Vince guaraldi with cal tjader
bassliner in Eb.
Russ Freeman with Chet.
Edmond Leonard
Lou Levy - one of the very best!
J. M. V.
Excelente versión de East of the Sun. Comparémosla con la del mismo Getz y Kenny Barron en uno de sus últimos discos, People Time. Aunque, sin discusión, la mejor versión de este fantástico tema es la de Paul Desmond con Jim Hall.
ytmusich
One of my favorite ,finest jazz in 1955
roomfullofidiots
sounds like a rainy morning with a cup of coffee :)
Malcom Hopkinson
Stan Getz performance and solos are beautiful and sublime, Conte Candoli trumpeter was interviewed by magazine Downbeat and he
expressed his personal disappointment that his accompanying trumpet solos had not been better ... I wrote to him and said "No way...
your solos were great... I would like to get on a plane come to Los Angeles and shake your hand..." Downbeat printed my letter...
I love these guys, play this music all the time... Malcolm in Toronto Oct 2021
Desislava Markova
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