Jazz is dead...oh, wait. I mean Rock is dead...yeah, that's it...or do I mean Blues? Right! It's Blues that is dead.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Phenomenon of Smooth Jazz
- Thread starter ElectroVibe
- Start date
Interesting. I don’t listen to smooth jazz radio but I guess I shouldn’t be surprised by the inclusion. Sade has never struck me as being at all “smooth jazz” though. I suppose that for some people the “loungy” aspect of some of the tunes - coupled with the saxophone - could spell “smooth jazz”. I wonder if George Michael’s “Careless Whisper” also receives airplay on smooth jazz stations.
i'm pretty sure i listen to just about everything --- i listen to smooth jazz when i really don't want to listen that much!
Rock is dead? Here's three minutes of your life you'll never get back...Jazz is dead...oh, wait. I mean Rock is dead...yeah, that's it...or do I mean Blues? Right! It's Blues that is dead.
Hmmm... more into .. what might be called ... fusion and / or contemporary, depending on the artist
- Spyro Gyra
- Rippingtons
- Lee Ritenour
- Grover Washington Jr.
- Jeff Lorber
- Yellowjackets
- Dotsero
... and here is a new discovery, Garo Tavitjan, 'Spectrum of Choices' ... so very nice...
- Spyro Gyra
- Rippingtons
- Lee Ritenour
- Grover Washington Jr.
- Jeff Lorber
- Yellowjackets
- Dotsero
... and here is a new discovery, Garo Tavitjan, 'Spectrum of Choices' ... so very nice...
WBGO .org
WDCB.org
A) No, not me, but I'd be interested in hearing some proof to back up your claim. Standing by.
B) You are talking about two different genres.
Last edited:
Our only smooth jazz station on terrestrial radio just flipped format this year to a hip indie pop and rock format. Stuff my teenage kids like.
I grew up on flugel icon Chuck Mangione's music. Some of it is great! Check out the bass playing on "Hide and Seek." And Chuck's solo is anything but smooth.
I grew up on flugel icon Chuck Mangione's music. Some of it is great! Check out the bass playing on "Hide and Seek." And Chuck's solo is anything but smooth.
Just an FYI:
For those who like more traditional Jazz,
check out KCSM, 91.1 FM or KCSM.org for streaming radio. It is listener-supported, commercial free radio broadcast from the San Francisco Bay Area. Their DJ's play a wide variety of genres.
For those who like more traditional Jazz,
check out KCSM, 91.1 FM or KCSM.org for streaming radio. It is listener-supported, commercial free radio broadcast from the San Francisco Bay Area. Their DJ's play a wide variety of genres.
Plenty of Jazz is formulaic as well.
As in;
(optional Into) Head, Solo,solo,solo,solo,solo,solo,solo,solo(etc.) Head , (optionaloutro); often tunes based on rhythm, blues and ii,V,I...and show tunes in general that may or may not employ these hermonic Cliche' s (often do)
Last edited:
I'm just going with Wynton Marsalis on this one; I don't have his pedigree, education and talent to defend that opinion as thoroughly as he could. Suffice it to say, while it draws on elements of the distinctly Black American mid 20th century art form called jazz, "smooth jazz" lacks most of the defining elements of what I (and Wynton) consider jazz.
At the end of the day, for people who like that sort of thing, that's the sort of thing they like, so no judgement from me. It's hard to argue with enduring commercial success.
It's not my bag, but i imagine some of the Latin jazz i like and make could get pigeon-holed as smooth jazz or easy listening. I still try to keep an edge on it, but I'm definitely not blazing trails by any stretch, so I probably misuse the term jazz myself by Wynton's definitions.
Smooth jazz is a good introduction to real jazz. I discovered 40 years ago by listening to Spyro Gira and the likes. Then I discovered that Marcus, Will Lee and Anthony Jackson sometimes played on these records. Then I found out that Marcus is playing with Miles.
so yeah, I went from elevator music to the real thing. Opened up everything for me.
That said, I can’t stand smooth jazz anymore
so yeah, I went from elevator music to the real thing. Opened up everything for me.
That said, I can’t stand smooth jazz anymore
@Esteban Garcia, i don't disagree with you or wynton so much --- i just might not agree on all counts --- but it's neither here nor there for me: it's some kind of music that i can steal ideas from... so i assume it has some value!
Smooth jazz began in the 80’s IMO. Before that it was jazz-funk or soul-jazz or r&b mixed with jazz. Think Tom Scott or the crusaders or George benson. Good stuff I listen to daily and love and wouldn’t classify as smooth jazz.
For me it went downhill when in the 80’s they added the corny and cheesy digital synths and still today that dominates the timbres. That was the start of smooth jazz. That stacked piano with strings patch, the crappy digital emulate of percussion elements (chimes especially), the midi keyboard horns, the synth pads layered behind everything, the terrible sampled drums which sound like the person has never programmed drums (or heard good sounding drum samples!) before, the digital synth orchestra patches, the oh so sugary sweet melodies, and lastly the endless and I mean endless covers of 60’s and 70’s soul and actual jazz songs but “smoothified” aka adding those crappy elements I mentioned before. It’s now a genre of its own and I despise most of it.
For me it went downhill when in the 80’s they added the corny and cheesy digital synths and still today that dominates the timbres. That was the start of smooth jazz. That stacked piano with strings patch, the crappy digital emulate of percussion elements (chimes especially), the midi keyboard horns, the synth pads layered behind everything, the terrible sampled drums which sound like the person has never programmed drums (or heard good sounding drum samples!) before, the digital synth orchestra patches, the oh so sugary sweet melodies, and lastly the endless and I mean endless covers of 60’s and 70’s soul and actual jazz songs but “smoothified” aka adding those crappy elements I mentioned before. It’s now a genre of its own and I despise most of it.
So true!
google the concert schedules of the cats who play it:
- george benson
- dave koz
- david sanborn
- boney james
- gerald albright
- richard elliot
- candy dulfer
- chuck mangione
- mindi abair
- norah jones
- sade
- yada yada
and in their time: grover washington, george duke, chuck loeb, al jarreau, joe sample, yada yada
LA's 88.1 is also pretty good. I listen to it regularly. They don't stick to just one list of songs and play on repeat. They'll actually chose their own songs and seem to be supported by CSULB and listener donations.
KJazz 88.1 | America's Jazz and Blues Station
Miles Davis and Bud Powell are so far removed from Bix Beiderbecke and Fats Waller, it hardly makes sense to call them both “Jazz”, yet we still do.
Piling artists like Weather Report and Kenny G into that same definition becomes ever more ludicrous.
So yeah, what the heck is “Jazz” to begin with?
Piling artists like Weather Report and Kenny G into that same definition becomes ever more ludicrous.
So yeah, what the heck is “Jazz” to begin with?
It's funny, I've long disliked stereotypical smooth jazz. But I'm a big fan of Cory Wong, and while most of his work is more funk/R&B-driven, some of his more recent material goes into what he calls smooth jazz territory.
He's taken a lighthearted approach to it, which definitely makes it easier to like. He pursued Dave Koz via social media, eventually getting him to play on a couple of his tracks. And they have since collaborated more, most recently on a full album.
Faux hucksterism in this first clip.
The Koz Nod...
And a recent track.
He's taken a lighthearted approach to it, which definitely makes it easier to like. He pursued Dave Koz via social media, eventually getting him to play on a couple of his tracks. And they have since collaborated more, most recently on a full album.
Faux hucksterism in this first clip.
The Koz Nod...
And a recent track.
