Gary McFarland

Gary McFarland (October 23, 1933 - November 3, 1971) was an influential composer, arranger, vibraphonist and vocalist, prominent on Verve and Impulse! Records during the 1960s, when he made "one of the more significant contributors to orchestral jazz". He attained a small following after working with Bill Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Johnny Hodges, John Lewis, Stan Getz, Bob Brookmeyer, and Anita O'Day.

As well as his own albums and arrangements for other musicians he composed the soundtrack to the film "13" (also known as "Eye Of The Devil"). By the end of the 1960s he was moving away from jazz towards an often wistful or melancholy style of instrumental pop, as well as producing the recordings of other artists on his Skye Records label (run in partnership with Gábor Szabó and Cal Tjader until its bankruptcy in 1970).

McFarland was considering a move into writing and arranging for film and stage when, on November 3, 1971, he was poisoned by a drink spiked with methadone in at what is currently known as the 55 Bar.

Bill Evans performed "Gary's Walz" in 1979, shortly before his own death.

As leader

 * Skye Records
 * 1968: Does The Sun Really Shine On The Moon?
 * 1968: America The Beautiful: An Account Of Its Disappearance
 * 1969: Slaves - with Grady Tate
 * 1969: Today


 * Impulse! Records
 * 1963: Point of Departure
 * 1965: Tijuana Jazz - with Clark Terry
 * 1966: Profiles Recorded Live  A-9112
 * 1966: Simpático - with Gábor Szabó
 * 1967: The October Suite - with Steve Kuhn


 * Verve Records
 * 1961: ''The Jazz Version of "How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying"
 * 1963: The Gary McFarland Orchestra: Special Guest Soloist: Bill Evans
 * 1964: Soft Samba
 * 1965: The In Sound
 * 1966: Soft Samba Strings
 * 1968: Scorpio And Other Signs


 * Other labels
 * 1966: Eye of the Devil (soundtrack)
 * 1971: Butterscotch Rum - with Peter Smith (Buddah Records)
 * 1972: Requiem for Gary McFarland (Cobblestone Records)

As producer/arranger

 * 1961: All the Sad Young Men - Anita O'Day
 * 1963: The Groovy Sound of Music - Gary Burton (RCA)
 * 1966: Waiting Game - Zoot Sims (Impulse!)
 * 1969: Genesis - Wendy and Bonnie
 * 1969: Dreams - Gábor Szabó
 * 1969: 1969 - Gábor Szabó
 * 1969: Lena & Gabor - Lena Horne and Gábor Szabó
 * 1965: Latin Shadows - Shirley Scott - (Impulse!)