Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 – January 2, 1977) was an American jazz pianist and composer known for his swing playing and ballads. His best-known composition, the ballad “Misty”, has become a jazz standard. Scott Yanow of Allmusic calls him “one of the most distinctive of all pianists” and a “brilliant virtuoso.” He received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6363 Hollywood Blvd. His live album, Concert by the Sea,[10] first released in 1955, sold over a million copies by 1958 and Scott Yanow’s opinion is: “this is the album that made such a strong impression that Garner was considered immortal from then on.”(b wikipedia)
One of the more criticized omissions of Ken Burns’ ambitious documentary on Jazz was not even mentioning Erroll Garner among the most influential Jazz pianists ever. The omission may not seem accidental. For many critics, Garner’s own unpretentious and happy music seemed more akin with popular piano music than with Jazz. The extraordinary popularity Garner achieved during his career helped to propagate this idea, which nevertheless is thoroughly unacceptable when judging Garner’s work on a strictly musical basis.
The live performance heard here, recorded in Turin, Italy, on May 9, 1971, shows Garner in a late phase of his extended career, playing in one of his most usual formats, the classic Jazz trio of piano, bass and drums plus a conga drummer. The same group is heard on a studio session recorded a few months later in New York, on December 2, 1971 (the album was titled Gemini). As a curiosity, Garner plays harpsichord on two tunes from this studio session, ‘When a Gipsy Makes His Violin Cry’ and ‘Tea for Two’. (by Gambit)
This superb and very well-recorded concert, from May of ’71, is at long last available here in the states, and will prove to be a real treat for anybody acquainted with the genius of Mr. Garner. Erroll, heavily into the Latin groove at this time, swings his *** off here with his stellar quartet, on several very different versions of Misty and on other timeless standards. This dazzling concert is intelligently paired with the Gemini album, a brilliant, high energy studio date also from the early 70’s, recorded with the same sideman. Great, great music–don’t miss this one. A treasure from one of jazz’s greatest gaints. (by Jazz Pianist)
Personnel:
Erroll Garner (piano)
Jose Mangual (percussion)
Ernest McCarty(bass)
Jimmie Smith (drums)
Tracklist:
01. The Shadow of Your Smile (Mandel/Webster) 4.42
02. The Girl From Ipanema (Jobim/Gimbel/Moraes) 5.41
03. Misty (Garner) 4.24
04. There Will Never Be Another You (Jacobs/Tinturin) 2.47
05. Misty #2 (Garner) 2.17
06. Variations on “Misty” (Garner) 1.40
07. Yesterday (Lennon/McCartney) 5.19
08. I’ll Remember April (DePaul/Johnston/Raye) 4.06
09. Tell It Like It Is (Garner) 4.38
10. How High the Moon? (Hamilton/Lewis) 5.07
11. It Could Happen To You (Burke/Van Heusen) 3.48
12. Gemini (Garner) 4.04
13. When A Gipsy Makes His Violin Cry (Deutch/Winegar/Smith/Rogan) 6.24
14. Tea For Two(Caesar/Youmans) 5.27
15. Something (Harrison) 1.51
16. Eldorado (Garner) 5.49
17. These Foolish Things (Link/Marvell/Strachey) 7.00
Erroll Louis Garner (June 15, 1921 – January 2, 1977)
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