In March 1954, a year before his death, Charlie Parker recorded a Cole Porter songbook album for Norman Granz's new 12-inch Verve label. Charlie Parker Plays Cole Porter would be Bird's final release.
On March 31, 1954, Parker recorded I Get a Kick Out of You. There were two complete takes, one with Jerome Darr on guitar and the other with Darr sitting out. The take Granz used as the master was the one without Darr, probably because Darr's solo was so halting and unsure. But the Darr track was included as "Take 2" on the original Verve release.
I've always loved the Darr version best, precisely because his solo was halting and unsure. Sometimes imperfections are more interesting than flawlessness. The group on this session included Charlie Parker (as), Walter Bishop, Jr. (p), Jerome Darr (g), Teddy Kotick (b) and Roy Haynes (d).
Here's Take 2 of I Get a Kick Out of You with Darr's guitar solo...
And here's the master with Darr sitting out...
