In Person (Vince Guaraldi album)

In Person (also known as Vince Guaraldi "In Person") is a live performance album by jazz pianist Vince Guaraldi, released in the U.S. on June 10, 1963 on Fantasy Records. It was released as a follow-up to his album Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus which featured the surprise hit song "Cast Your Fate to the Wind".[2]

In Person
Live album by
ReleasedJune 10, 1963 (1963-06-10)
RecordedDecember 4, 1962 (1962-12-04)[1]
VenueThe Trident Jazz Club, Sausalito, California[1]
Genre
Length36:21
LabelFantasy (U.S.)
Vocalion (UK)
Vince Guaraldi chronology
Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus
(1962)
In Person
(1963)
Vince Guaraldi, Bola Sete and Friends
(1963)
Singles from In Person
  1. "Zelao"
    Released: 1963

The concert was recorded live at The Trident Jazz Club in Sausalito, California, on December 4, 1962.[1]

Reception

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Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic     [2]
Five Cents Please     [1]
The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings    [3]
Record Mirror     [4]

Contemporary

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Cashbox magazine cited the single "Zelao"/"Jitterbug Waltz" from In Person as a Best Bet: "Vince Guaraldi, who scored last time out with 'Cast Your Fate to the Winds' [sic], could duplicate that success with this top-flight bossa nova follow-up stanza. The tune is a contagious, easy-going lyrical ballad with a danceable, rapidly-changing beat."[5]

In the album's liner notes, Ralph J. Gleason praised Guaraldi's performance style, noting, "What Vince has got in his playing is feeling. This is a quality that money can't buy, practice cannot make perfect and technique tends to defeat rather than enhance. Vince sings when he plays. I don't mean he grunts or hums or even makes a noise at all. I mean his fingers sing, the music sings, and he writhes and twists on the piano stool like a balancing act in the circus."[6]

The DownBeat critic agreed: "In a period when there seems to be a plethora of bland, sound-alike jazz pianists, Guaraldi is a refreshing relief. [He] has an exceptional knack for catching and projecting the spirit of a tune, for finding the essence of the piece, and bringing strength and validity to his exposition of it. This is honest piano playing, with no phoney soul, no gimmicks, no pretense. It's a rare quality to find on a record these days."[7]

Retrospective

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AllMusic critic Richard S. Ginell called In Person "a defining album for Guaraldi in his natural habitat" (a jazz club setting), adding that the album captures the musician "at his most winning."[2]

Why It Matters blogger James Stafford cited In Person as capturing "the pianist in that brief moment when he was enjoying his first great national success with 'Cast Your Fate To the Wind' but hadn’t yet been transformed into a household name by Peanuts. It’s a beautiful record, filled with blues, bebop, and bossa nova, but for sheer plaster-a-smile-on-your-face delight nothing beats his take on the Mediterranean traditional song 'Misirlou'."[8]

Track listing

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Side One
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Zelao"Sérgio Ricardo4:30
2."On Green Dolphin Street"5:53
3."Misirlou"
4:30
4."Forgive Me If I'm Late"2:41
Side Two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
5."Jitterbug Waltz"5:32
6."Outra Vez" ("Again")Antônio Carlos Jobim2:53
7."Freeway"Vince Guaraldi3:45
8."The Love of a Rose"
2:43
9."Chora Tua Tristeza" ("Cry Your Blues Away")
3:49
Total length:36:21

Personnel

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Vince Guaraldi Quintet
Additional

Release history

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Country Date Label Format Catalogue number
United States 1963 Fantasy Mono LP 3352
Stereo LP 8352
United Kingdom 1963 Vocalion Mono LP LAE-F 597
United States 1975 Fantasy Stereo LP 8352
United States 1997 Fantasy/Original Jazz Classics Stereo CD OJCCD-951-2, F-8352

References

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  1. ^ a b c d Bang, Derrick. "Vince Guaraldi on LP and CD: In Person". fivecentsplease.org. Derrick Bang, Scott McGuire. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  2. ^ a b c Ginell, Richard S.. In Person at AllMusic. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
  3. ^ Cook, Richard; Morton, Brian (2008). The Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings (9th ed.). Penguin. p. 614. ISBN 978-0-141-03401-0.
  4. ^ Jones, Peter; Jopling, Norman (30 April 1966). "Vince Guaraldi: In Person" (PDF). Record Mirror. No. 268. p. 8. Archived from the original (PDF) on 1 April 2022. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  5. ^ "Record Reviews: Best Bet" (PDF). Cashbox. June 8, 1963. p. 12. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
  6. ^ Gleason, Ralph J.; Liner notes for In Person
  7. ^ "Album Review: Vince Guaraldi — In Person". DownBeat. September 12, 1963. p. 29.
  8. ^ Stafford, James (December 25, 2017). "From The Stacks: Vince Guaraldi, In Person". wimwords.com. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
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