Jazz Today: February 17 & 18, 1958 in New York

Feb. 17-18, 1958 “Stella by Starlight”
by Tal Farlow, Eddie Costa, Bill Takas & Jimmy Campbell at WOR Recording Studios, NYC for Verve (This is Tal Farlow)

Composed by Victor Young and ranked 10th on jazzstandards.com, this masterpiece—sung by Sinatra and performed by giants like Charlie Parker, Stan Getz, Miles Davis, and Keith Jarrett—is played with effortless brilliance by the white jazz guitar virtuoso Tal Farlow.

He tears through the guitar with a melody that moves wildly up, down, left, and right, much like a roller coaster. In the brief gap between these relentless high-speed phrases, the harmonic-infused, percussive picking at 1:08 is a bundle of humor and transcendental technique, sparking the imagination to picture him smirking at his bandmates after playing it.

The original style of Pat Martino, introduced yesterday on February 17, flows through Tal Farlow as well. They share a commonality in their high-speed picking style and the exhilarating feeling of racing forward without ever stopping.

Then there is the development where Eddie Costa’s piano intermingles, daring to cross into each other's exclusive territory to provoke and collide. Following the interplay starting at 2:13, Costa’s intense keyboard pounding from 2:30 on—a “bring it on” kind of attitude—is common in live performances but rare for a studio album of this nature. It makes you realize that the piano is also a percussion instrument, which is a unique trait of Eddie Costa, who also skillfully handles the vibraphone, an instrument with even stronger percussive qualities.

The drums also follow a dashing style in line with Tal’s guitar, with the highlight being the playful accent of the cymbal’s “chiki-chiki-chiki, ching!” at 3:18. It is likely the moment the band members felt a thrill while playing, thinking, “Not bad at all.”

If you listen closely, what I find profound is the bass, which is hidden in the shadows of these three but moves intensely with a thick sound throughout. It is a regret that I cannot find any other works by this bassist despite searching. The song’s style feels West Coast, but the fact that it was recorded in New York adds a rare, unexpected quality.

The label is Verve, and the recording location “WOR” refers to the long-established radio station based in Manhattan. It seems to have been located at 1440 Broadway, not far from Times Square, until 2005. The WOR radio station itself still exists today.

The original version of this song is the 1947 recording by Frank Sinatra. Compared to that mellow version, you can see that this performance is quite high-tempo and comical.

Finally, for those interested in a performance by Pat Martino, an evolutionary guitarist who follows in Tal’s footsteps, please enjoy it here. Although the melody line has become quite modernized 18 years after the song introduced today, you can fully appreciate the common thread of fast playing with a thick tone.