[Tuberoller]

Jazz gets beat up and thrown around a lot,especially recently.I am not a jazz snob but I own a whole bunch of jazz music and have been to a lot of jazz concerts and listen to a lot of jazz and love jazz a lot and..........

Some of the music being touted as jazz today clearly does not play as jazz music.This music is being labeled as such by people who don't even listen to jazz music and know nothing about it.I hate it when some new artist comes along and sounds good singing and playing and they call it jazz.Jazz is played by jazz musicians is sung by jazz singers and listened to by jazz lovers.I turned on MTV and heard one of the hosts proclaim "a new jazz legend in the making".What? This is disgusting.I don't pretend to know much about classical music and I would be the very last person to offer opinions on it,I wish the same were true of everyone else.I had to ask one of my good friends how many jazz albums or CDs he owned after he professed a love for jazz.when he told me he only owned a few titles i thought as long as they were the real deal that's cool.When he told me he had stuff like Diana Krall,Norah Jones,and kenny G, I just laughed.i'm not saying that this not all great music,it is and i own most of it myself.I just don't think you can listen to that music and call it jazz based on limited knowledge.When I hear Herbie Hancock,Quincy Jones,Ramsey Lewis and others venture into different types of music I can interpret those pieces as the explorations of jazz masters.When Diana Krall tries to scat,I can only cringe in disgust.I do believe that jazz has many different faces and I think it can be played and interpreted in many forms.I never liked Harry Connick JR until he played a straight jazz album.When I went to see him in concert he came clean on stage and admitted that his first love is playing, not singing and promised that all his future works would showcase his strongest talent.Jazz exploration and expansion is best left to established artists who have gained the respect of thier peers and fans.I hate to hear Norah jones get bashed on jazz stations,I actually like her a lot,But she is not a jazz singer.

 

[BenG]

Quote:

Originally posted by Tuberoller I never liked Harry Connick JR until he played a straight jazz album.When I went to see him in concert he came clean on stage and admitted that his first love is playing, not singing and promised that all his future works would showcase his strongest talent.

Now that would be a smart musical move, maybe not commercially. I never cared at all for HCJR as a singer.

 

[Jeff Guidry]

I am not a jazz aficionado, but I too am wondering exactly what 'jazz' means to most people nowadays. When I hear lots of hip-hop artists using jazz loops or dance artists using jazzy female vocalists, I often hear people refer to this as 'jazz'. Well, it walks like a duck, and it quacks like a duck, but it sure don't fly or swim, and that's what makes a duck a duck. If real musicians aren't playing real music, it ain't jazz.

Now I won't argue about Diana Krall or HCJr., jazz ultimately is in the eye of the beholder, and so long as they are twiddling their own instruments and warbling their own tunes, you can call it jazz (or not) as you will.

 

[daycart1]

It used to be said that to be jazz music must "swing". (And if you have to ask what that is, you won't be able to recognize it).

I suppose now that if someone actually has some control over a good voice, then it is called "jazz" to distinguish it from pop music which is usually more a matter of marketing than musical talent.. This is a compliment to jazz, but not really accurate usage.

(Dons his flame retardant pajamas...)

 

[millerdog]

Jazz...the American contribution to music.
If you think it's jazz, it probably is.
md

 

[daycart1]

Right! I like to think of it as "American Classical Music" (as opposed to European Classical Music that might be made by Americans)

 

[lextek]

Jazz sounds best on headphones. Joe Sample, Dave Brubeck, Diana Krall, Cyrus Chesnut, Coltrane and Miles.

 

[FCJ]

Quote:

Originally posted by lextek Jazz sounds best on headphones. Joe Sample, Dave Brubeck, Diana Krall, Cyrus Chesnut, Coltrane and Miles.

Actually, it sounds best live. I've been lucky to live in the NYC area with the ability to attend many jazz events. However, you're right that, recording-wise, jazz does sound great on headphones.

Tuberoller, you're dead on as to what jazz is not. Jazz is America's Classical Music and our contribution to music, world-wide. Jazz is people's feelings, thoughts, expressions, and music being channeled through their instrument or voice. Jazz is people taking chances with their music to enlighten, communicate, and entertain. I would not ascribe any of that to anyone you list in your post, whether they are successful or not.

 

[john_jcb]

I think often times music is labeled and marketed one way or another to broaden its appeal and sell more. Often times though it is the artist expanding and growing. I wonder how many of us can tell the difference when we hear something new?

All I know is that when I hear something I either like it or not. I never buy based on what the marketeers have labeled something. If music did not grow and change it would not hold the appeal that it does..

 

[Tuberoller]

I want to make it very clear that I am by no means casting stones from a perch of ultimate knowledge or understanding.I'm just a fan and music lover.I can't imagine what the critics who panned Coltrane and said his music was not Jazz were thinking.I never want to be that near-sighted and closed minded.I always listen to music with an open mind and try to enjoy it rather than critique.while I am just a fan,I think that we as fans ultimatley decide which genre music fits into.I don't want to see Nora Jones or any other artist bashed by the establishment of a particular type of music because the music is mislabled.There are plenty of great artists around whose music fits no particualr genre and such artists are,IMHO,some of the very best talents around.My major point here is that as a Jazz fan and music lover,I hate it when non-fans tell me what Jazz is and acuse Jazz fans of being snobs.I have thousands of jazz records and CDs that I can reference should my judgement become clouded about what jazz is.