Stan Getz

This key '60s album is one of those classic jazz sessions where just the right people got together at the right time and created a major musical watershed. Tom Jobim's bossa nova tunes have a graceful sense of swing and a wistful melancholy that fits Stan Getz's feathery tone like a hand-tailored Italian suit. Jobim also plays a lean, almost Bill Evans-style, piano on the session and is joined by Joao Gilberto, who sings and plays guitar. Since neither star spoke English, the producers had Gilberto's wife Astrud sing translated lyrics on a few cuts. A new star was born and "The Girl from Ipanema" became a lasting hit, as did the striking "Desinafinado" and "Corcovado."