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.
These Foolish Things
Stan Getz Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh! Will you never set me free?
The ties that bound us
Are still around us
There's no escape that I can see
And still those little things remain
That bring me happiness or pain
An airline ticket to romantic places
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you
A tinkling piano in the next apartment
Those stumbling words that told you what my heart meant
A fair ground's painted swings
These foolish things remind me of you
You came you saw you conquer'd me
When you did that to me
I knew somehow this had to be
The winds of March that make my heart a dancer
A telephone that rings but who's to answer?
Oh, how the ghost of you clings!
These foolish things remind me of you
First daffodils and long excited cables
And candle lights on little corner tables
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you
The park at evening when the bell has sounded
The "Ile de France" with all the gulls around it
The beauty that is Spring's
These foolish things remind me of you
How strange how sweet to find you still
These things are dear to me
They seem to bring you near to me
The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations
Silk stockings thrown aside dance invitations
Oh, how the ghost of you clings!
These foolish things remind me of you
Gardenia perfume ling'ring on a pillow
Wild strawb'ries only seven francs a kilo
And still my heart has wings
These foolish things remind me of you
The smile of Garbo and the scent of roses
The waiters whistling as the last bar closes
The song that Crosby sings
These foolish things remind me of you
How strange how sweet to find you still
These things are dear to me
They seem to bring you near to me
The scent of smould'ring leaves, the wail of steamers
Two lovers on the street who walk like dreamers
Oh, how the ghost of you clings!
These foolish things remind me of you
The lyrics of "These Foolish Things" by Stan Getz reflect the pain and nostalgia of a lover who can't seem to let go of the memories of a past relationship. The first two lines of the song express the singer's frustration at being unable to move on from their former lover. They feel bound to this person, unable to escape the ties that still exist between them. Even though the relationship may be over, the little things that remind them of their ex continue to bring both happiness and pain.
The singer then goes on to list specific things that trigger memories of their former lover. A cigarette with lipstick, an airline ticket to a romantic destination, the sound of a piano playing in the next apartment, and the painted swings at a fairground all bring back memories for the singer. Other things the singer mentions include the first daffodils of spring, a candlelit table, the park at night, and the song that Bing Crosby sings. Each of these things reminds the singer of their ex, and they can't help but be moved by the memories they evoke.
Despite the pain caused by these memories, the singer finds comfort in them. They express a sense of sweetness and wonder at the fact that even though the relationship is over, they still feel close to their former lover through these little reminders. The scent of smouldering leaves and the sound of two lovers walking together like dreamers remind the singer of the love they once shared. The song ends with the haunting refrain, "oh, how the ghost of you clings!" which captures the bittersweet nostalgia that permeates the entire lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh! Will you never let me be?
Will you never allow me to move on from our past relationship?
Oh! Will you never set me free?
Will you never give me the freedom to forget you and your memories?
The ties that bound us
The connections and memories that we shared when we were together
Are still around us
The memories and feelings still exist and have an impact on me even today
There's no escape that I can see
I am unable to get away from the memories and feelings that I have for you
And still those little things remain
Several small details related to our past relationship still exist
That bring me happiness or pain
These small details remind me of both the happy and the painful moments we shared together
A cigarette that bears a lipstick's traces
A cigarette that still has your lipstick stains on it
An airline ticket to romantic places
A ticket to a place where we created romantic memories together
And still my heart has wings
My heart is still fluttery with emotions that I have for you
These foolish things remind me of you
All these things, however trivial they may seem, remind me of nobody but you
A tinkling piano in the next apartment
The sound of the piano from the apartment next door that we heard together
Those stumbling words that told you what my heart meant
Words I said that revealed my true feelings for you even though I fell short with my words
A fair ground's painted swings
The swings at the fairground where we spent time together
You came you saw you conquer'd me
You entered my life and took over my heart, winning me over completely
When you did that to me
When you stole my heart and made me fall deeply for you
I knew somehow this had to be
I realized that this was meant to be, that we were meant to be together
The winds of March that make my heart a dancer
The spring winds that put me in a romantic and hopeful mood
A telephone that rings but who's to answer?
A phone call that I am too afraid to answer because I am not sure if it will be you or not
The park at evening when the bell has sounded
A park in the evening with a bell that tolls, reminding me of the moments we shared together there
The "Ile de France" with all the gulls around it
The beauty of the French Island, surrounded by seagulls, which made us fall more in love with each other
The beauty that is Spring's
The beauty of springtime and the romantic atmosphere it brings with it
How strange how sweet to find you still
It seems strange but sweet to me that I still have feelings for you
These things are dear to me
All these seemingly small things are special and important to me
They seem to bring you near to me
All these things remind me of you and make me feel like you are still close to me
The sigh of midnight trains in empty stations
The sound of trains at midnight, reminding me of the moments we spent together in train stations
Silk stockings thrown aside dance invitations
The memories of us dancing in the silky stockings we wore when we were together
Gardenia perfume lingering on a pillow
The scent of gardenia perfume that reminds me of the times we spent together in bed
Wild strawberries only seven francs a kilo
Our shared memories of the times we spent at the market, buying strawberries together
The smile of Garbo and the scent of roses
The beauty and elegance of the iconic actress, Garbo, and waking up to the sweet scent of roses
The waiters whistling as the last bar closes
Reminiscing the moments we spent together in bars with waiters whistling as they close it
The song that Crosby sings
The melody of the songs that sing to me about you and our love story
The scent of smould'ring leaves, the wail of steamers
The memory of us sitting by a fire with the smell of burning leaves while listening to the sound of steamers passing by
Two lovers on the street who walk like dreamers
Seeing two lovers on the street reliving the vibe that we once had
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Harry Link, Holt Marvell, Jack Strachey
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind