Verve Records

Verve on vinyl: Ella, Bird and “The Girl from Ipanema”

In short: Verve was founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the man behind “Jazz at the Philharmonic”. Ella Fitzgerald’s famous “Songbooks” came out here, recordings by Charlie Parker and Oscar Peterson – and in 1964 “Getz/Gilberto” with “The Girl from Ipanema”, which took bossa nova around the world. The Vinyl Room currently has 72 Verve records, above all jazz from the fifties and sixties.

From our stock

Verve first pressings

Bebop & swing

Bossa nova & Latin jazz

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→ Bebop · Latin jazz · Jazz on vinyl · How to spot a first pressing

What makes Verve special?

Norman Granz brought the big names of jazz to his label: Ella Fitzgerald, Oscar Peterson, Stan Getz, Billie Holiday. His recordings with Charlie Parker from the years before – in our stock, for example, “Charlie Parker Plays Cole Porter” and “Now’s The Time” – are also part of the Verve catalogue.

In 1961 Granz sold to MGM, and producer Creed Taylor gave Verve a new sound: Wes Montgomery, Jimmy Smith, Bill Evans and above all “Getz/Gilberto” with Stan Getz, João Gilberto and Antonio Carlos Jobim. And then there’s a surprise: the debut of The Velvet Underground & Nico, with Andy Warhol’s banana, also came out on Verve in 1967.

Our range runs from Japanese and German editions of the classics to new Verve records such as Arooj Aftab’s “Vulture Prince”.

FAQ

Who founded Verve Records? Norman Granz, in Los Angeles in 1956.

Did “Getz/Gilberto” come out on Verve? Yes, in 1964 – with “The Girl from Ipanema”, sung by Astrud Gilberto.

Was The Velvet Underground on Verve? Yes, the debut “The Velvet Underground & Nico” came out on Verve in 1967.

What music do you have on Verve? Mostly jazz – bebop, swing, vocals, bossa nova and Latin jazz –, 72 records in all.