A kingpin in the orchestral jazz scene of the 1960s, Gary McFarland was born in Los Angeles, California, on October 23, 1933. He began playing the vibraphone in 1955 and was soon arranging his own compositions for large bands, making his album debut in 1962 as the arranger, conductor, and vibraphone player of The Jazz Version of "How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying." It was the first of several releases for Verve Records, followed by albums like 1963's The Gary McFarland Orchestra and 1964's Soft Samba. By the decade's end, he was also producing records for artists like Gábor Szabó and scoring movies like Eye of the Dead, displaying an interest not only in jazz, but in the wider range of instrumental pop, too. He died in New York City at the age of 38, passing away on November 3, 1971.
