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Bossa Nova

RadioActive Memorial 3Day 2020

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I’m Uncle Marty on The Award Winning 3D RadioActivity number 536, as we observe part of our musical Memorial Day. On this episode, we pay tribute to the memory of the artists who have left us in the past 12 months by playing cuts from their discography.

Download or play here:
https://archive.org/download/The3dRadioactivity/3dradio_20200524-RadaMem3DayI.mp3

This presentation has focused on “Remembering” some of the great musicians who have crossed over and are now playing in a heavenly orchestra and choir. There were too many to squeeze into one show, so we will be back next time with the proverbial more. Tell me what you want to hear, by sending comments or suggestions via our Facebook page which has links to the archives of all the earlier episodes and graphics in the photo section, or by email .  Tell all your circle of best friends and family to look for us on Theacidflashback.com,   http://www.villageconnectionmagazine.com/Long Island, New York;   Denver’s MileHiRadio,  TuneIn  and InternetFM dot com, because the best FM radio is now on the Internet.

Until we meet again, as Al always says, “Rock On!”

…Uncle Marty

“It’s not true I had nothing on, I had the radio on.”

…Marilyn Monroe

 

 

Song Of The Day – “Waters Of March” by Art Garfunkel

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artgarfunkelArt Garfunkel certainly missed his calling during his post Simon & Garfunkel solo career. If ever an artist was better suited to cut a Bossa Nova album, it was Art Garfunkel who possesses a gentle, smooth voice and impressive octave range to match. Proof positive is his recording of the Antonio Carlos Jobim classic “Waters Of March” from his second solo record, 1975’s “Breakaway.”

“Waters Of March” was written by Antonio Carlos Jobim in both English and Portuguese (“Águas de Março”) and appeared on his 1973 album called “Jobim.” Although, the Bossa Nova craze was in the early 1960s, the song has since become a standard part of the repertoire, covered numerous times by the likes of Sérgio Mendes & Brasil ’77, David Byrne and Marisa Monte, Al Jarreau, John Pizzarelli, Rosemary Clooney, and dozens of others.

“Breakaway “was a high water mark for Garfunkel that generated three top 40 singles: “I Only Have Eyes For You” (US #18, UK #1), “Breakaway” (US #39) and the Simon And Garfunkel reunion duet, “My Little Town,” which peaked at #9. Further driving the popularity of the record was the Simon And Garfunkel reunion that took place on TV’s “Saturday Night Live,” which at the time was the hip epicenter of the media world.

The Richard Perry produced album was an all-star affair featuring a who’s who of backing talent including appearances by David Crosby, Graham Nash, Andrew Gold, Nicky Hopkins, Jim Keltner, Jim Gordon, Barry Beckett, Larry Knechtel, Russ Kunkel, Joe Osborne, Bill Payne, Klaus Voorman, Toni Tennille, Stephen Bishop and Leland Sklar.

Not only were the hits great, but there were quite a few non-singles that have become central to Garfunkel’s repertoire, including the Bruce Johnston penned “Disney Girls,” “99 Miles From L.A.” with lyrics by Hal David and a terrific cover of Stevie Wonder’s “I Believe (When I Fall In Love It Will Be Forever.”

Word is that Garfunkel’s voice isn’t what it used to be, so I guess a Bossa Nova album coming from him today would be too much to ask…however, I’ll bet he could still pull it off…

Song Of The Day – “Bloop Bleep” by Gary McFarland

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GaryMcFarlandGary McFarland towed the line between samba infused light jazz and orchestral mood music. He was a vibist from California who was known as much for his vibe playing as he was for his arranging and orchestrations for others.

After serving in the army where he took up trombone, trumpet and keyboards, McFarland settled on the vibes and began fronting an orchestra that backed the likes of Anita O’Day, Bill Evans and Stan Getz. He also recorded notable sessions with Bob Brookmeyer and Gary Burton.

McFarland began to make a name for himself as an artist after recording a 1963 album with Bill Evans called The Gary McFarland Orchestra/Special Guest Soloist: Bill Evans. After writing arrangements for Stan Getz’s 1964 album Big Band Bossa Nova, McFarland dove head first into the Bossa Nova craze that was sweeping the jazz world. He released several Jazz samba albums for Verve Records that were notable for his soft, wordless vocalese singing, atmospheric whistling and intimate Bossa Nova vibe on a mix of originals and covers of some of the current rock and pop hits of the day. In fact, McFarland was one of the first jazz artists of the 1960s to cover Beatles songs.

Today’s Song Of The Day comes from his 1965 Bossa Nova infused masterpiece, The In Sounds featuring the lineup of Bob Brookmeyer on trombone, Kenny Burrell and Gabor Szabo on guitar, Bob Bushnell and Richard Davis on bass, Candino on conga, Sol Gubin and Grady Tate on guitar, Willie Rodriguez and Joe Venuto on percussion, Spencer Sinatra on flute and Sadao Watanabe on flute and tenor sax. McFarland not only plays vibes and sings on the album, but he also wrote the arrangements and conducted. The album was produced by Creed Taylor and was recorded at Van Gelder Studios in Engelwood Cliffs, New Jersey over two days in August of 1965.

McFarland coos vocals about a dripping faucet on today’s Song Of The Day and manages to make it sound intimate, alluring and oh, so sensual. The album is an automatic chill pill that has the power to deposit the listener onto the beaches of Rio de Janeiro at sunset. Following this record, McFarland began to focus more on arranging and recorded several orchestral records that were both intimate and sedate to a fault.

In 1968, McFarland teamed with guitarist Gabor Szabo and vibist Cal Tjader to form the Skye Record label. The label released albums by each of the label principals, as well as titles by Lena Horne, Chuck Rainey, Grady Tate and Airto Moreira. He also released his critically lauded jazz symphony, America the Beautiful around this time.  The label lasted for two years and closed up shop after filing for bankruptcy.

McFarland’s career was cut short on November 2, 1971 after he and his friend David Burnett both ingested drinks that were laced with a fatal dose of methadone in a New York City bar. McFarland was 38 years old.