''Back to Balboa'' is an album by bandleader and pianist

Stan Kenton Stanley Newcomb Kenton (December 15, 1911 – August 25, 1979) was an American popular music and jazz artist. As a pianist, composer, arranger and band leader, he led an innovative and influential jazz orchestra for almost four decades. Though K ...

featuring performances recorded at the Rendezvous Ballroom in 1958 and released on the

Capitol A capitol, named after the Capitoline Hill in Rome, is usually a legislative building where a legislature meets and makes laws for its respective political entity. Specific capitols include: * United States Capitol in Washington, D.C. * Numerous ...

label.Vosbein, P
Stan Kenton Discography
accessed April 16, 2016 The liner notes for the original LP release stated: "It was late in 1957 that the Rendezvous became home base for the Kenton orchestra. Balboa offered the stimulating surroundings; the Rendezvous offered a location spot between tours and incomparable acoustical properties." "The body of sound, and the crystal clear overtones achieved in this album, is attributed to the orchestra's blowing over a block-long polished dance floor and reverberating from the great arched wooden ceiling. The effect, without the use of echo chambers or electronic magic, is one which seemingly places the listener within the walls of the pastel hall."Liner notes to Capitol LP album T995

Reception

Down Beat ' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm which it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1934 in Chi ...

critic Don Gold wrote in his July 10, 1958 review that "Kenton, in describing Holman's "Royal Blue" in the notes, terms it ''exciting, powerful, and positive.'' He could have been describing this band." Gold goes on to say: "In Perkins, Kamuca, Niehaus, Noto and Katzman, Kenton has several key soloists. Most of the charts in this LP are by Johnny Richards; at his best. Other charts, by Marty Paich and Holman, take advantage of the orchestra's capabilities, too. The vivid over-all Kenton sound is precisely executed. This is an important orchestra." The

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

review by Scott Yanow noted " The 1958 Kenton big band had several excellent soloists... Well-played if not quite essential music".

Track listing

# "The Big Chase" (

Marty Paich Martin Louis Paich (January 23, 1925 – August 12, 1995) was an American pianist, composer, arranger, record producer, music director, and conductor. As a musician and arranger he worked with jazz musicians Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Kento ...

) - 4:12 # "Rendezvous at Sunset" (

Johnny Richards Johnny Richards (born Juan Manuel Cascales, November 2, 1911 – October 7, 1968) was an American jazz arranger and composer. He was a pivotal arranger for some of the more adventurous performances by Stan Kenton's big band in the 1950s and e ...

) - 4:16 # "

Speak Low "Speak Low" (1943) is a popular song composed by Kurt Weill, with lyrics by Ogden Nash. Background It was introduced by Mary Martin and Kenny Baker in the Broadway musical '' One Touch of Venus'' (1943). The 1944 hit single was by Guy Lombardo ...

" ( Kurt Weill,

Ogden Nash Frederic Ogden Nash (August 19, 1902 – May 19, 1971) was an American poet well known for his light verse, of which he wrote over 500 pieces. With his unconventional rhyming schemes, he was declared by ''The New York Times'' the country's bes ...

) - 3:28 # "My Old Flame" ( Arthur Johnston,

Sam Coslow Sam Coslow (December 27, 1902 – April 2, 1982) was an American songwriter, singer, film producer, publisher and market analyst. Coslow was born in New York City. He began writing songs as a teenager. He contributed songs to Broadway revues, ...

) - 4:03 # " Out of This World" ( Harold Arlen, Johnny Mercer) - 5:44 # "

Begin the Beguine "Begin the Beguine" is a popular song written by Cole Porter. Porter composed the song between Kalabahi, Indonesia, and Fiji during a 1935 Pacific cruise aboard Cunard's ocean liner ''Franconia''. In October 1935, it was introduced by June Kni ...

" ( Cole Porter) - 3:43 # "

Get Out of Town "Get Out of Town" is a 1938 popular song written by Cole Porter, for his musical ''Leave It to Me!'', where it was introduced by Tamara Drasin. Notable recordings *Ginny Simms - recorded December 7, 1938 for Vocalion Records (catalog No. 4549). ...

" (Porter) - 2:38 # "Royal Blue" ( Bill Holman) - 5:52 # "

I Concentrate on You "I Concentrate on You" is a song written by Cole Porter for the 1940 film '' Broadway Melody of 1940'', where it was introduced by Douglas McPhail. Notable recordings * Franck Amsallem - ''Amsallem Sings'' (2009) * Fred Astaire - ''The Astaire St ...

" (Porter) - 3:22 # "

Beyond the Blue Horizon ''Beyond the Blue Horizon'' is a 1971 studio album by American jazz guitarist George Benson. It was his first album released by CTI Records, CTI and included organist Clarence Palmer, drummer Jack DeJohnette, bassist Ron Carter, and percussionis ...

" (

Leo Robin Leo Robin (April 6, 1900 – December 29, 1984) was an American composer, lyricist and songwriter. He is probably best known for collaborating with Ralph Rainger on the 1938 Academy Award for Best Original Song, Oscar-winning song "Thanks for t ...

, Richard A. Whiting,

W. Franke Harling W. Franke Harling (January 18, 1887 – November 22, 1958) was a composer of film scores, operas, and popular music. Life and career Born William Franke Harling in London, he was educated at the Grace Choir Church School in New York City. After w ...

) - 3:37 tracks 1 & 4 arranged by

; tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 7 and 9-14 arranged by

; track 8 arranged by Bill Holman *Recorded at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa, CA on January 20, 1958 (tracks 1, 2, 4, 8 & 9), January 21, 1958 (tracks 3, 5-7 & 10) and October 10, 1957 tracks 11-14

Personnel

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keybo ...

, conductor * Billy Catalano, Jules Chaiken, Phil Gilbert, Lee Katzman, Sam Noto -

trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...

*Jim Amlotte, Kent Larsen, Bob Fitzpatrick, Archie Le Coque -

trombone The trombone (german: Posaune, Italian, French: ''trombone'') is a musical instrument in the brass family. As with all brass instruments, sound is produced when the player's vibrating lips cause the air column inside the instrument to vibrate ...

*Ken Shroyer - bass trombone *Jim Decker, Vince De Rosa -

French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...

Lennie Niehaus Leonard Niehaus (June 1, 1929 – May 28, 2020) was an American alto saxophonist, composer and arranger on the West Coast jazz scene. He played with the Stan Kenton Orchestra and served as one of Kenton's primary staff arrangers. He also played ...

- alto saxophone *Bill Robinson - alto saxophone, baritone saxophone *

Richie Kamuca Richie Kamuca (July 23, 1930 – July 22, 1977) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist. Musical career Kamuca was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States, and, like many players associated with West Coast jazz, grew up in the East befo ...

, Bill Perkins -

tenor saxophone The tenor saxophone is a medium-sized member of the saxophone family, a group of instruments invented by Adolphe Sax in the 1840s. The tenor and the alto are the two most commonly used saxophones. The tenor is pitched in the key of B (while ...

*Steve Perlow - baritone saxophone *Red Kelly - bass *Jerry McKenzie - drums

References

{{Authority control Stan Kenton albums 1958 albums Capitol Records albums Albums conducted by Stan Kenton