+- Music Discussion (https://www.music-discussion.com)
+-- Forum: Music Discussion (https://www.music-discussion.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=4)
+--- Forum: Jazz/Big Band/Easy Listening/Soft Rock (https://www.music-discussion.com/forumdisplay.php?fid=13)
+--- Thread: Looking for Specific Type of Jazz (/showthread.php?tid=4310)
Pages:
1
2
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - Humblyden - 30-12-2010
Hey everyone!
I'm going to come right out and say that I Googled for a music discussion board because I have a very specific question that I didn't know how else I could get answered.
I'm a bit of a music fanatic and I'm constantly scouring any and every source available for new music to listen to. My taste is evolving constantly and recently I've started getting into jazz. That tradition is, however, of course immense, and so it's hard to know where to start. I've been enjoying a few artists almost randomly (Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Curtis Fuller), trying to get an intellectual foot in to make sense of it all.
There's one specific type of jazz sound, though, that I've been hearing here and there but I'm having trouble connecting it to a specific genre or even artist. One thing that opened my eyes to jazz in general was Andrew Bird, whose first two albums Thrills ('98) and Oh! The Grandeur ('99) have this kind of unhinged, uninhibited sound to them (notably "Minor Stab", "Candy Shop", "Beware"). I really loved that sound (as a blues fan I come from a place of liking a certain kind of rawness and grittiness), but I've been having trouble finding it in other types of music. One place I found it was in the song "Ev'rybody Wants to be a Cat" from the movie Aristocats - especially the end part is this crazy unleashing of sound. I've heard some similarities to it in some gypsy jazz, and also in some New Orleans jazz, but it's all a little too neat.
I have a suspicion that what I'm looking for is a bit of a modern phenomenon, a specific type of emotional expression that wasn't very prevalent in the earlier parts of the 20th century, but I was hoping somebody would know of a genre or artist or movement that had this type of sound. The best way I can describe it is to give you the examples above, and say that it's unhinged, almost reckless, often fast-paced and simultaneously joyous and kind of desperate.
It's not much to go on but I would be so grateful for any kind of pointers. Thank you very much!
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - JazzyRandy - 31-12-2010
I listen to a lot of Jazz and I've never heard of Andrew Bird. That made sense when I looked him up and saw him listed as Pop/Rock/Alternative and not as a Jazz musician. It says he was a member of the Squirrel Nut Zippers, who were often described as "swingy/jazzy pop", but were definitely not a Jazz band.
Not that this makes him unworthy of listening to, but he's not jazz. If his music is really what you're looking for, I'm not sure if you're looking for Jazz recommendations. I'd recommend some rock/pop music that featured a relatively large band that focused on actual instruments with a couple of horns/woodwinds and no keyboards/synths. Unfortunately, that's not a type of music I'm very familiar with, so I'm probably of little help. But I'll give it a shot.
I'd start with the Squirrel Nut Zippers. I enjoyed a couple of their albums. If you haven't heard him, you should probably also check out Brian Setzer's work and the Cherry Poppin' Daddies. Those are all bands that feature a swinging sound that's often misconstrued as being jazz. You might also be interested in bands that feature a heavy dollop of New Orleans music: Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and/or Lavay Smith And Her Red Hot Skillet Lickers.
Lastly, on the more jazzy side of things, I'd recommend: Trombone Shorty, The Royal Crown Revue, or further afield (and less likely to be what you're seeking) Stanton Moore and Galactic. The last two make music with the New Orleans sound but are further away from a swing dynamic and nearer to a groove-oriented sound.
Maybe some members with more of an interest in the type of music produced by Setzer, Bird, or the Zippers will be more useful.
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - Humblyden - 31-12-2010
I apologize, I realize I was misleading by mentioning Bird and a Disney movie song as entry points, but I don't really mean Andrew Bird's music in general - he's an indie artist (and his first two albums are indie albums with occasional jazz and swing influences). It was confusing to mention him as an entry point, I only meant it was the first artist I listened to that had even minor elements of it (kids these days do it kind of backwards, you know :wink
. The details of it that struck me are the way he sometimes uses his violin in this noisy, scratchy, reckless-feeling way, and so I wanted to know if there were any older, more proper jazz bands who had this feel about them too. But I'm going to move away from these references and try something new. As I'm listening for reference points, stuff like Bunk Johnson and George Lewis actually sounds pretty close to what I want, as does Django Reinhardt... maybe I've answered my own question
mile: I guess what I'm saying is some sort of mix of gypsy jazz and Dixieland/New Orleans and as I'm saying it I realize it sounds kind of dumb. Maybe I should just go and listen to those artists. I'd still be grateful if somebody does have something more for me to go on, though, even though I've been very clumsy about explaining. As I'm new to this massive heritage I'd greatly appreciate any advice.
Thank you so much again! Those suggestions are very interesting, I'm very fond of the Squirrel Nut Zippers and a few of the other swing revival bands you mentioned, and I'll look into the others too.
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - Tiggi - 31-12-2010
Randy is probably best placed to provide any Jazz pointers, as the sites resident Jazz hipster.
I'm aware of Django, but don't know of anyone similar, unless the Jazz Fiddle of Stephane Grapelli is the sort of thing you're looking for. Django & Stephane played together many years ago, and some of SG's work has a definite gypsy feel.
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - Humblyden - 31-12-2010
^Oh yeah, thanks, that's really great advice!
I guess I'd found some things kind of like what I was looking for - little bits here and there like Reinhardt, Lewis, Johnson, Sidney Bechet - but I suppose I wanted to know if there was something even wilder, sort of like early Elvis Presley was considered rockabilly but if you dig deeper there was artists like Johnny Burnette who took things to a wilder level that didn't necessarily fly so well with the general public. You guys' help combined with some browsing on AllMusic.com's jazz entries certainly helped me further along, so thank you! And if you've got something else to mention I'm all ears too.
Thanks again!
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - JazzyRandy - 31-12-2010
No need to apologize, Humblyden. It's always a pleasure to see anyone exploring Jazz. Unfortunately, I'm afraid that with the names mentioned (Django, Bunk Johnson, George Lewis) I'm going to be of no help. I don't listen to any of those musicians, and I can't provide any RIYLs (recommend-if-you-like artists) in regards to them. I sampled a tiny bit of Django before, but I never liked him the way so many others do. I have heard a little more of Bechet, but it wasn't really my thing; part of the problem is the poor recording quality of that period -- but that's more of a me-problem and not an indictment on the music.
Keep us/me posted on your Jazz journey. It's always interesting to read the path one takes through Jazz!
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - Humblyden - 31-12-2010
Thanks a lot, both JazzyRandy and Tiggi! I'm usually not one for message boards (have had some bad experiences), but people here seem unusually friendly - I'll seriously consider introducing myself and maybe post a little around here.
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - Tiggi - 01-01-2011
You'd be very welcome to hang around, Humbly.
We pride ourselves on being a welcoming, inclusive site, so your experience should never be anything but pleasurable...
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - JTRiff - 02-04-2011
FWIW- during the Rheihart era in Europe, over here was Fats Waller, Art Tatum, and the blues at its highest level of popularity.
Guys like George Benson talk about this era, and later attempts to capture the piano players of that era, like Waller, who rocked the piano like nobody has ever been able to approach on a guitar. So there is stuff hiding back there. Have you listened to all 300 of Fats' hacks at the blues n' jazz? I have and can't find a bad one. Moughty impressive, heavy Dixie, swing, blues, lots crazy wild fun playing and inside viper jokes. Stride piano was and is the bomb.
Looking for Specific Type of Jazz - euphonasia - 03-04-2011
Have you checked out "Slavic Soul Party?"