LPCDreissues: Looking forward to the past

When Vince Guaraldi (1928-1976) and Bola Sete (1923-1987) first recorded, a potent Pan-American musical team was born. The moustachioed San Francisco-based pianist-composer, best known for his 1963 crossover hit "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" and soundtracks for several Peanuts TV and movie projects, was an early convert to, and fine interpreter of, bossa nova. Sete, the superb Brazilian guitarist, was among the first from his country to bring its gorgeous melodies and softly swaying rhythms to America. Backed by simpatico bass and drums, the duo made three albums; this set joins their first and third, the latter a live date from 1966. Spotlighting Sete's deft, spidery lines, Guaraldi's solos, with their hallmark "bent" notes, a sublime repertoire ranging from pop and rock to jazz and bossas (including the "Black Orpheus Suite" that served as their centerpiece), Vince & Bola is an outstanding jazz-samba collaboration.
Track listing:Casaba, Mambossa, Star Song, Moon Rays, Days of Wine and Roses, El Matador, I'm a Loser, Nobody Else, More (theme from Mondo Cane), O Morro Não Tem Vez (Somewhere in the Hills), Black Orpheus Suite, People