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Jazz


Balthazar

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So I've been listening to a lot of jazz lately. It's one of my overlooked music genres, but I'm really loving what I've heard so far. Needless to say I've barely been scratching the surface, but I find that starting out with the most common stuff and then digging down and to the peripheries is the best way to attack a genre thats new to you.

So far I've been checking out Charles Mingus, Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman, Cannonball Adderley, Herbie Hancock, McCoy Tyner, Grant Green and Weather Report and I've got a lot of Coltrane albums that I will be listening to in the next few days.

Also, I've noted some of the jazz musicians that's mentioned on Quasimotos Jazz Cats, Part 1. More recommendations would be great!

So far, this is my favorite albums of the genre:

1. Grant Green - Idle Moments




2. Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady




3. Ornette Coleman - The Shape of Jazz to Come




4. Eric Dolphy - Out to Lunch




5. Weather Report - Heavy Weather

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Thanks for the thread bro, I love some of the more frenetic and funky jazz out there but just haven't explored it too deeply. I appreciate the reccomendations!
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I love jazz......... Check out.....

Old School (Style):
Miles Davis - duh! How'd you miss him?
Stanley Clarke
Marcus Roberts
Winton Marsalis
David Sanborn
Billy Cobham
Michael Moore
Jaco Pastorius
Woody Herman

Newer Artists:
Phillipe Saissise (spelling? 'cuz I can't find the disc right this minute)
Victor Wooten
Bipolar
Cassiopeia (Japanese supergroup no longer together but still amazing body of work)
Allen Tousaint

On vocals:
Billy Holiday, of course!
Ella Fitzgerald
Cassandra Wilson
Diana Krall

Oh, and check out www.allaboutjazz.com for more.....

'Rani
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QUOTE (BohoWildChild @ May 16 2009, 10:30 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Miles Davis - duh! How'd you miss him?


Forgot to mention him (impressive, him being almost as famous as Coltrane and all), but I've got a lot of his albums on my computer, will give him a listen soon. Thanks for the recommendations! Especially the newer stuff, where I am completely lost.
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Victor Wooten's a show of hands is amazing. Just V and his bass, some of the tracks get a little cheesy but its kinda expected. Also if you are into really weird jazz check out Miles Davis' Panthalassa. It is one of the most out there jazz cd, dubbed by Bill laswell who does some great sound work.
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are you primarily listening to instrumental ? ? ?

there are plenty of vocalists as she started to list..

For piano one of the greatest of all time is without a doubt Erroll Garner... some of his recordings are so old and they still give goosebumps...

Also, Duke Ellington may have done as much for music in general as Frank Sinatra did for the modern vocal artist/album format....

hes undeniably a king.. take a look... its still in the instrumental genre.. mostly though everyone wanted to work with him because he even composed some of the 'jazz standards' in the middle of recording sessions. Edited by beachkidcb
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An excellent topic! I could be minorly biased as I am a sax player and most of my gigs are jazz gigs. As such, most of the stuff I listen to has saxophone but nonetheless. Also... if you think Wynton or Sanborn is old school ya gotta dig deeper.

Older-
Lester Young
Charlie Parker
Eddie "Lockjaw" Davis
Ben Webster
Dexter Gordon
Sonny Rollins
Coleman Hawkins
Cannonball Adderley
Sonny Stitt
Art Pepper
Gene Ammons
JJ Johnson
Freddie Hubbard
Clark Terry
Gerry Mulligan
Dizzy Gillespie
Horace Silver & the Jazz Messengers(all lineups)
Louis Armstrong
Stan Getz
Pepper Adams
Phil Woods
Thelonius Monk
Stanley Turrentine

Surely too many were missed in that list but its a good start.

Modern jazz-
John Coltrane. You could start and end modern jazz right there, but..
Wayne Shorter
Steve Grossman
Elvin Jones
Miles Davis
Pharoah Sanders
Kenny Garrett
Chris Potter
Joshua Redman
Scott Hamilton
Mark Turner
Bob Sheppard
The Yellowjackets
Marc Russo
Bob Mintzer
Michael Brecker
Bob Malach
Mike Stern
Steps Ahead
Denis Diblasio
Steve Gadd
Ronnie Cuber
Herbie Hancock
Roy Hargrove
Jaco
Ornette Coleman
Thad Jones/Mel Lewis orchestra
Buddy Rich
Stan Kenton
Terence Blanchard
Charles Lloyd
and more.

If you want a good primer on what different directions in modern jazz are all about check out urge2burge. Tons of downloadable high quality live recordings.

Also - I think its really hard to "get it" starting with stuff like Dolphy, Coleman, Trane, Mingus. So if you listen to that and you don't get it, don't get too alienated. Theres plenty more out there before and after that. Edited by maestroelite
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That's quite the list, guess I'll be occupied for the years to come. Thanks, really appreciate it, and props for playing the saxophone!

Two more reccomendations from me:

Mulatu Astatke (probably known to everyone who's seen Broken Flowers. Ethopian Jazz.)
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers - Moanin' (Sampled to death, some might say. This might be my 2# pick so far, right below the Grant Green-album i mentioned)
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QUOTE (Balthazar @ May 20 2009, 01:10 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
That's quite the list, guess I'll be occupied for the years to come. Thanks, really appreciate it, and props for playing the saxophone!

Two more reccomendations from me:

Mulatu Astatke (probably known to everyone who's seen Broken Flowers. Ethopian Jazz.)
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers - Moanin' (Sampled to death, some might say. This might be my 2# pick so far, right below the Grant Green-album i mentioned)


I have to tell this story......

Many years ago, I was at the NAMM show which for those who don't know is for music industry manufacturers. An after party was held across the way in the Hilton Hotel in the lounge with a jazz trio that included a friend of mine, a terrific jazz drummer by the name of Kris Berry. Kris is really one of the best jazz drummers around and is always in demand. Things were going well, the music was great, and then in walked this elderly black man who sat down to listen. Kris recognized him immediately although I didn't until he shook my hand and introduced himself as Art Blakey. The trio asked him to sit in and Kris made hiimself comfortable on the couch with me while Art took over his kit. About 8 bars into the song I leaned over and whispered to Kris..... "That man is making you look bad on your own kit." Blakey was that good, absolutely amazing and the best drum work I'll ever be lucky enough to hear in person. Kris was in awe. So was the audience and the rest of the trio.

'Rani
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QUOTE (maestroelite @ May 20 2009, 04:57 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
Oh wow, Art Blakey.. that would be incredible. This video always makes me smile.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPgcQydWWeE


There aren't any words in the English language to describe what it felt like sitting 6 feet from the kit and watching him play. He was so incredibly relaxed and instinctual about his playing. He was one of those rare musicians where music was completely integrated at a molecular level into who he was. It was like it oozed out of his skin. I've never seen anything like it and although I know a great many amazing musicians, no one else I've ever come across has that exact kind of magic.

'Rani
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QUOTE (BohoWildChild @ May 20 2009, 06:15 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>
[

There aren't any words in the English language to describe what it felt like sitting 6 feet from the kit and watching him play. He was so incredibly relaxed and instinctual about his playing. He was one of those rare musicians where music was completely integrated at a molecular level into who he was. It was like it oozed out of his skin. I've never seen anything like it and although I know a great many amazing musicians, no one else I've ever come across has that exact kind of magic.

'Rani



Thats what makes jazz, jazz the improvisational format and its fluidity. YOU HAVE TO FEEL IT, or you cant jazz baby!
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I actually filled in a couple board-op shifts for a jazz show on the local NPR affiliate back in college... So much fun...

Their music library was godly, and I wish I would have had the foresight to rip some of their discs while i was working

I frequently go on slacker or pandora and just type in the names of some of my favorite artists, and end up finding more and more I really dig...

Like Medeski Martin and Wood... They're really good too, although some might not classify them as full out jazz... they're good...
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  • 2 weeks later...
While recording a Bunny Brurnel Record at Chick Corea's Mad Hatter Studio, I had the pleasure of watching "Meat Loaf Live" in the lounge with Bunny, Mike Stern, Billy Childs . They were all transfixed, and talked about how much fun it would be and how they wanted to be in his live band. Then I had to go next door, where L7 was dealining with the news of Kurt Cobain's suicide.

All in all, a very strange day. Billy's album had just shown up on the jazz charts, and Mike hit #2. And the they wanted to play backup for Meat Loaf.
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Favorites:

NO PARTICULAR ORDER

Charlie Parker
Miles Davis
Maynard Ferguson
Brian Setzer Orchestra
Buddy Rich Big Band
Charles Mingus
Chick Corea
Clifford Brown
Count Bassie
Dave Brubeck
Dizzy Gillespie
Jaco Pastorius
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  • 4 weeks later...
Ok, so my friends are telling me that "jazz isn't entertaining or upbeat music...its for old people"... So, I want to make 1 mixtape to prove to them that jazz is infact upbeat and fun, and damn good music...

This is where I need your help. I have a couple songs that I'm thinking of putting on the disc, but want some input...Here's what I came up with so far, please tell me what you would add, subtract, or change:

Jaco Pastorius - Soul Intro/The Chicken
Weather Report - Birdland
Herbie Hancock - Chameleon
Medeski, Martin, and Wood - Amber Girls
Pat Metheny Group - (It's Just) Talk
Dave Brubeck Quartet - Take Five
Charles Mingus - Tijuana Gift Shop
Maynard Ferguson - MacArthur Park

Subtotal Running Time 51:39

Two songs I pulled from AAJ's website:

Tea - Ibiza
Al Orkesta - House of the Marriage

Total with those three songs 1:06:53

Help me HF...you're my only hope!
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