Good Jazz Album

'Jazz' is like saying you need a 'Rock' album... could be REM, could be Elvis, could be NIN, could be Skynard... WAY too vague

Here are a couple names to look at:

Charles Mingus
Miles Davis
Dave Holland
John Coltrane

 

If you're looking for big ensemble stuff, check out the Glenn Miller Orchestra and just about any Duke Ellington.

 

Buddy Rich BigBand
GRP AllStar BigBand

Find some BigBand stuff

 

Miles and Coltrane
+1

Dizzy Gillespie(spelling) and Charlie Parker.

I totaly agree with JH its to wide to narrow it down to a few people i would say its the biggest genres.

 

Man. Anyway, I agree with James Hart's reply.
Jazz has differing genres/sub-genres & different eras/periods.
What sounded "normal" in Louis Armstrong's day may not sound so "normal" during the 1960s. Pick up Mark Gridley's Jazz Styles...good intro.

Now, something with "a whole brass section"(sounds like you want a Big Band thing) that's recent-
Dave Holland Big Band-Overtime

The GRP All-Star things are cool, too. Younger players playin' in an older style. IIRC, their albums are filled with both Jazz Standards & Jazz Classics.

 

While Harry Connick Jr. has a reputation as only a crooner, he's an amazingly versatile jazz musician. Check out his albums, "Come By Me", "to love you", "Red Light Blue Light". Wynton Marsalis is also worth checking out.

 

OT: George Porter Jr has frequented his CDs too.

 

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy is also a great modern swing band. I saw them live and met the bassist after the show.

 

If push came to shove, I would call BBVD a Jump Blues band(along with The Brian Setzer Orchestra, Cherry Poppin' Daddies, etc)...that doesn't mean they don't swing.

 

Pick up a collection of songs by Duke Ellington. Wow!!!!!

 

On that topic, you could learn a thing from those basslines. Royal Crown Revue also. And at least with Royal Crown Revue, they play a lot of standards. They're version of "Salt Peanuts" is awesome.

 

'The Birthday Concert' by Jaco Pastorius covers a lot of - ahem - basses - and should open your eyes to the highest level of soloing possible from the likes of Michael Brecker and Bob Mintzer - 'Invitation' is the other Jaco big band album that is worth grabbing.

Maybe pick up a decent compilation album too - check out Duke Ellington, Mingus and Count Basie for your 'standard' jazz brass/big band sound - after that the sky's the limit.

My one and only bit of advice when listening to jazz is - keep you ears and your mind open - litsen to stuff yourself before making up your mind - as some people can be incredibly opionated about stuff that they happen not to like - if you like it - for whatever reason - then fine, it's just your taste - beside there's simply too much stuff out there to acknowledge or listen to it all - take it slow and enjoy the music.

Cheers

M

 

Coltranecoltranecoltranecoltranecoltranecoltrane

 

my favorite big band is still Stan Kenton's Orchestra. There's a lot of albums by him. I personally enjoy Live at Sunset Ridge

-jimbo

 

Yeah, but...
Which album?
Which period?
I mean, I wouldn't start poor ol' timidbassist out with Ascension, Stellar Regions, Meditations, Interstellar Space, or even Transition...would you?
Then again, something like Coltrane Plays The Blues, Ballads, or his album with Johnny Hartman, though all excellent material, may not give someone a decent enough picture.
What album would be suitable for a Jazz/Coltrane noob, anyway? Giant Steps, Crescent, Impressions, A Love Supreme, "The Blue Album"...Milestones, Kind Of Blue, etc?

 

Exactly Jim! I wouldn't necessarily recommend Coltrane to most novice jazz listeners as it's easy to hear the 'wrong' period of Trane and come a way with a bad impression - I thinkone of the best starting points is either his stuff with Miles - Kind Of Blue etc - or Blue Trane...A Love Supreme is for when you're ready to hit the stratosphere

 

That happened to me. I give my uncle his props for hipping me to a lot when I was Jazz noob...nevertheless, he dropped a bomb on me in '75 or so with a snippet of Coltrane's Ascension(I think).
Anyway, that hurt for a long, long while. I finally made myself get into 'Trane about '95 or so. Coltrane is now, by far, my favourite musician.

...and A Love Supreme is almost 'tame' when compared to Ascension.

 

almost?

How 'bout "Giant Steps"?

I have the 12" LP record recently reissued of "Blue Trane". Sounds incredible and the cover is great wall art.