Manha da Carnival and Samba de Orfeu – 1969

Barney Kessel

Some beautiful and swinging guitar playing from Kessel

One of the top bop-oriented guitarists to emerge during the late 1940s, Barney Kessel (1923-2004) was a pacesetter during the 1950s, spending a year touring with the Oscar Peterson Trio and then recording a series of excellent albums for the Contemporary label.

In addition to bop and straight ahead jazz, Kessel enjoyed playing Brazilian tunes as he shows on this live performance from 1969.

Accompanied by bassist Larry Ridley and drummer Don Lamond, Kessel at first caresses the melody of “Manha de Carnaval (Morning Of The Carnival)” and then cooks on “Samba de Orfeu,” sounding in top form throughout.

-Scott Yanow