I don’t talk about my love for jazz enough on this blog so I figure jazz appreciation month is the perfect time to do so.
I have to admit that my knowledge is lacking. Mama Vivrant Thang was never really into jazz so it wasn’t played much around the house. She did love Kenny G though and I remember his being one of my first live performances. I also “inherited” several of his albums during my last crate digging mission.
The number of jazz albums in my collection is unusually slim. Seems strange for someone who has attended the Capital Jazz Fest (rain or shine) for five years running; for someone whose favorite Saturday night date place is an intimate spot known for its strong drinks and impromptu jazz jam sessions; and for someone who had a lead role in a college production about Charlie “Bird” Parker.
Time for my collection to reflect it.
Question is – where to start?
Jazz is like a tree which has sprouted many, many branches since the beginning of the 20th century. If I was to include the music of some of those branches like smooth jazz, acid jazz, latin jazz, or nu-jazz, I could say that my collection is indeed more reflective of my love for the genre
However, what I’m talking about is the absence of the music of the forefathers and foremothers – the artists whose music shaped and defined the genre and gave birth to the many fusions that are more popular today.
I need more Thelonious Monk, Nina Simone, John Coltrane, Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Dizzie Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, Dinah Washington, Cab Calloway, Charlie Parker, Bessie Smith, Sarah Vaughn, Billie Taylor, Billie Holiday (large black and white poster of her on my wall. Sin not to own any of her albums.)
I plan to attend a few events this month at the Smithsonian where I hope to connect with some jazz lovers and expand my knowledge. I have a few essential pieces like Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue (as Q-Tip says, “It’s like the Bible – you just have one in your house), Ken Burns Jazz : The Story of American Music collection, and a couple of coffee table books on the subject.
Pitiful.
Jazz lovers, help me out. What do you consider the essential albums any jazz lover should have in their collection? Agree or Disagree with this list or the picks on the All About Jazz Forum’s Guide to Building Your Jazz Library?
Thought I’d share just a few of the songs that have been on repeat for me this month. I’ve been having some stressful days at work lately and jazz has always had a soothing effect on me.
Miles Davis, So What Live in 1959
Nina Simone, I Want A Little Sugar In My Bowl
For those that are just getting into jazz or perhaps only have a couple of tracks here and there on your playlists, share those as well in the comments.
SONGS IN THE KEY OF LIFE 
Thanks for highlighting this. Jazz is a genre i’ve overlooked for a long time but need to get familiar with.
My only real exposure is the work of Nina Simone (whose ‘Feeling Good’ is one of my top 10 songs ever!). I’ve become familiar with some of Dinah Washingtons work through the Deborah Cox tribute album ‘Destination Moon’ but that’s about it. MUST.TRY.HARDER.
Hey V-Thang! Looking for a little “jazz-amacation”, eh? Well, here’s a few things that can help…
First (shameless plug here), you know that RIBS is as much a Jazz site as it is a classic Soul site. I love music variety (and bore easily) so I bounce all over the place with my playlists, including healthy forays into the world of Jazz. AAMOF, my theme this month is that April is ‘Sax Appeal’ month where the mixes are all songs from my favorite sax players past and present. While there are some R&B sax artists in the mix, most of what you’ll hear this month is Jazz sax from folks like John Coltrane, Stanley Turrentine, Grover Washington, Jr. (btw, those three are featured in the mix coming this Thursday), Sonny Stitt, Hank Crawford, Sonny Rollins and many others.
Second, Q-Tip is right on. Miles’ “Kind Of Blue” is the “jazz bible” and the place I always tell everybody who wants to get into Jazz to start.
Third (and I’ll wrap this up or I’ll spend all day writing this! {smile}) one suggestion I sometimes make to folks starting to get into Jazz is that they start on an instrument by instrument basis: pick an instrument and then pick the most prominent artist (opinions vary greatly here, of course) on that instrument and collect several of their works first. My own personal instrument/artist list suggestions:
1. Trumpet/Miles Davis
2. Saxophone/John Coltrane
3. Guitar/Wes Montgomery
4. Vibes/Lionel Hampton
5. Big Band/Count Basie (I know that’s not an instrument, but the Count is essential!)
6. Drums/Max Roach
7. Keyboards/Duke Ellington & Herbie Hancock
BTW, shame on Mama Vivrant Thang for this hole in your education. Oops, on second thought don’t tell her that, she might get mad at me!
so glad you posted this. i feel the same way, i should know and own more. i own kinda blue (which is perfect for driving on a sunny day), a love supreme and blue train by john coltrain, and essential nina simone (though i will say it took some time for me to really appreciate how good she was/is). i have been dragging my feet about purchasing some herbie hancock, just cause i don’t know where to start. anyway i’m looking forward to reading more
@TGrundy,
I really like that instrument approach, when you get your ears around jazz pretty securely, you learn to recognize different artists by how they play, because their identifying traits are just as distinct as vocalists. Then your tastes start to coalesce around certain styles of playing.
Since Roy Ayers and his vibraphone work is often a bridge between soul, funk and jazz, and since it’s such a warm, expressive instrument, I have to also suggest Milt Jackson, Stephon Harris, Cal Tjader and Dave Samuels.
My favorite keyboardists are Herbie Hancock, Chick Corea and Cyrus Chestnut.
Favorite drummers: Art Blakey, Max Roach, Winard Harper, Dennis Chambers.
Three jazz albums that changed my life:
Harper Brothers – Live at the Village Vanguard
John Coltrane – Giant Steps
Herbie Hancock – Headhunters
Hey there!
This was the only way I could contact you, so here goes…
My name is Alex and I work for Massive Music (a label and PR group) and we wanted to add you to our jazz blogger contacts. Unfortunately (as is the case with many bloggers) your contact info is nowhere to be found!
Please shoot me an email at alex [at] massivemusicamerica [dot] com. Sorry for the awkward post.
@wildwhuck Thanks for commenting. You own some gems. I would take DJ Stylus suggestion on the Herbie Hancock. He wouldn’t steer you wrong!
@DJStylus: Thanks. You make some really good suggestions, especially Roy Ayers. His “Mystic Voyage” album ranks as one of my all time favs. And I cannot tell you the things we used to do to his “Take All The Time You Need” back in the day {smile}
I like the “Three Jazz Albums That Changed My Life” list. Mine are:
Miles Davis – “Kind Of Blue”
George Benson – “Bad Benson” (luv his version of Brubeck’s “Take Five” on that one)
Stanley Turrentine – “Sugar”
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