Author Topic: Jazz Recommendation Thread (Read 24986 times)

mouser · « **on:** September 26, 2013, 12:51 AM »

I'm not a huge jazz person but over the years I've run into some stuff that I really love.. I'm hoping to get more recommendations from those who are real jazz aficionados.

Anyone is welcome to post about their own tastes, but I'd also love to have some recommendations for music in the same vein as my favorites below:

John Coltrane - Blue Train album (my favorite of all)
Chet Baker - I fall in love too easily (incredible)
Count Basie - Kansas City Six album (love it)
Kenny Dorham - Quiet Kenny album (love it)

ps.
I've linked to the youtube pages just because that's the easiest way to listen -- i don't care about the videos.

Giampy · « **Reply #1 on:** September 26, 2013, 06:50 AM »

I am not expert at jazz, but I wish to mention "Jazz at the pawnshop". It's very famous among audiophiles. They say that album is very well recorded. However I don't remember how they judge it with regard to artistic side.

Tracks from "Jazz at the pawnshop" are present in Youtube, of course.

Tuxman · « **Reply #2 on:** September 26, 2013, 07:52 AM »

Herbie Hancock, "Chameleon".

http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=rgQegqw9IrI

edit: And if you like Coltrane, you might want to dig into Zeuhl, like Magma's "Mekanïk Destruktïw Kommandöh":
http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=61cIieQOdac

40hz · « **Reply #3 on:** September 26, 2013, 08:38 AM »

When it comes to the mainstream, there are just so many great performances and artists that I wonder where to begin.

However...if you're into real avant, I think Carla Bley's huge 1972 opus Escalator Over the Hill is well worth a listen. IMHO it's one of the few experimental jazz+ compositions from that era that has held up even after 40 long years. (Check out Wikipedia for details. Also, last I looked most of it (it runs about 2 hours total) could still be heard on YouTube.)

We need to get SuperboyAC in on this discussion. He's a jazzer.

Vurbal · « **Reply #4 on:** September 26, 2013, 09:12 AM »

It's hard for me to judge what other people hear in music since my perception is (literally) quite different, but based on those tracks I'd definitely recommend Kind of Blue by Miles Davis. And my personal favorite from Coltrane is A Love Supreme, although that may be more avant garde than you're looking for. You might also want to check out some Thelonious Monk.

Perhaps further away from your tastes, or maybe not, would be the Dave Brubeck Quartet. My dad was a huge jazz lover and I'll never forget the day he introduced me to their album Time Out. Blue Rondo a la Turk is still one of my favorite songs of all time.

superboyac · « **Reply #5 on:** September 26, 2013, 09:14 AM »

Well, since you have Basie on there...you must know I'm a little obsessed with him. Here's a double-piano combo with oscar peterson:
http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=ZENl2u79hTU
(I'm learning that one currently).

Another track with similar personnel is this one with Oscar Peterson and Joe Pass:
http://www.youtube.c.../watch?v=y34I-NfHkVg

Here's another one in a similar vein plus a showoff horn player:
http://youtu.be/5n450NHhpbI

MilesAhead · « **Reply #6 on:** September 26, 2013, 11:42 AM »

I don't think I've run into any "Live at the Village Vanguard" release for any jazz artist that was bad listening. John Coltrane is no exception. It's probably more difficult to find an album of his that sucks. But I would recommend any versions of "Favorite Things" as it's a good example of Coltrane taking a pop piece and converting it to "sheets of sound." Supposedly Miles Davis asked Trane one time why he did such long solos. Trane answered to the effect "Because I can't figure out how to stop the solo. I can't think how I should finish it." To which Miles replied "Take the horn out cha' mouth."

I'm not a big band enthusiast.. but likewise it's tough to find things bad by Duke Ellington. He's considered the greatest jazz composer. There's an "Ellington and Coltrane" album that's quite good.

And of course there's Miles Davis. The thing with Miles is that he spans many styles. When he first came on the scene he got to sit in with Dizzy Gillespie's group in Harlem. Dizzy played so fast Miles just couldn't keep up. It may be as a reaction to this that he adopted the emphasis on "using space." One of his quotes is "Don't play what's there. Play what's not there." The CDs Cookin', Relaxin' etc. from the 50s are among the best of his work of that period. Kind of Blue and other works of the 60s. Then he got into more avante garde or free form stuff like Bitches Brew, Pangea, even using a Whah whah peddle on the trumpet in the late 60's and early 70s. I especially like the album Water Babies.. all the tunes written by Wayne Shorter. In fact Wayne is a good listen. 60s classics like Speak No Evil will never go out of style. He and Joe Zawinul(who wrote Mercy Mercy Mercy which broke through to the top 40) founded Weather Report... fusion at its best.

My technique was sort of "spider web" and I recommend it. If you have an album you like a great deal, look at the personnel. Find albums by each of those and try to sample them. The various quintets and other groups of Miles Davis is a good place to start. Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Paul Chambers, Wynton Kelly, Bill Evans, Joe Zawinul.. I just never heard any bad albums by any of those guys.

Then when you find an album of one of the Miles "side men" that you like very much.. continue the process. Almost like a recursive algorithm. It just keeps fanning out.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #7 on:** September 26, 2013, 11:54 AM »

I'm not a huge jazz person but over the years I've run into some stuff that I really love.. I'm hoping to get more recommendations from those who are real jazz aficionados.

Anyone is welcome to post about their own tastes, but I'd also love to have some recommendations for music in the same vein as my favorites below:

John Coltrane - Blue Train album (my favorite of all)
Chet Baker - I fall in love too easily (incredible)
Count Basie - Kansas City Six album (love it)
Kenny Dorham - Quiet Kenny album (love it)

ps.
I've linked to the youtube pages just because that's the easiest way to listen -- i don't care about the videos.

-mouser (September 26, 2013, 12:51 AM)

A few specifics ..
Kenny Dorham
Afro Cuban - very good
Whistle Stop is also good... but it's kind of in an old fashioned style

Chet Baker
In New York is good. Generally it's a good omen for 50s and 60s (and some later) jazz albums if they are
Original Jazz Classics, Prestige or Blue Note label.
There's lots of Chet Baker stuff. Too much to sift through here. But I'd generally stay away from stuff with "stings" in the title unless you plan on being stuck in an elevator soon.

I don't know much about Count Basie. But if you want to sample some big band stuff I'd vote for Oliver Nelson. The Blues and the Abstract Truth stands out.

superboyac · « **Reply #8 on:** September 26, 2013, 12:46 PM »

My technique was sort of "spider web" and I recommend it. If you have an album you like a great deal, look at the personnel. Find albums by each of those and try to sample them. The various quintets and other groups of Miles Davis is a good place to start. Wayne Shorter, Herbie Hancock, Paul Chambers, Wynton Kelly, Bill Evans, Joe Zawinul.. I just never heard any bad albums by any of those guys.

Then when you find an album of one of the Miles "side men" that you like very much.. continue the process. Almost like a recursive algorithm. It just keeps fanning out.
-MilesAhead (September 26, 2013, 11:42 AM)

I second this. THis is how I found all my favorite stuff.

40hz · « **Reply #9 on:** September 26, 2013, 01:38 PM »

+1 w/Miles on the spiderweb strategy. It works well for the listener since (like SB) that's how I discovered who I liked.

I understand that's also the way a lot of those performers first learned about each other and decided who they wanted to work with. No web back then, and very few "real jazz stations" on the airwaves either. So LPs were how you stayed on top of the genre back in the day. Talk to an old jazz musician and he can quote you chapter and verse on who played with who, when, where, and on which albums.

--------------------

As far as mainstream jazzers go, I'd strongly recommend listening to just about anything by Thelonious Monk. Brilliant improvisational madness.

Monk was one of the early practitioners of a style that eventually evolved into a style generally known as: Bebop. Other notables in the bebop style were Dizzy Gillespie

and Charlie Parker

, both of whom are well worth listening to.

tsaint · « **Reply #10 on:** September 26, 2013, 05:46 PM »

How about Miles Davis/Gil Evans collaborations.
Or Bill Evans - he was one of the best.

xtabber · « **Reply #11 on:** September 26, 2013, 08:25 PM »

As far as mainstream jazzers go, I'd strongly recommend listening to just about anything by Thelonious Monk. Brilliant improvisational madness.
Monk was one of the early practitioners of a style that eventually evolved into a style generally known as: Bebop. Other notables in the bebop style were Dizzy Gillespie and Charlie Parker , both of whom are well worth listening to.
-40hz (September 26, 2013, 01:38 PM)

Strongly agree!

I recorded a lot of live Jazz in the 1960's (including some at the Village Vanguard) and although I haven't done sound recording work since then, am still a big Jazz fan. I probably have about a thousand Jazz CDs, including about 40 Mosaic sets.

Given the kind of albums mentioned, here are 10 of the greatest (IMHO) Jazz albums that might appeal.

Miles Davis – Kind of Blue
Cannonball Adderley – Somethin’ Else
Jim Hall – Concierto
Thelonious Monk Quartet – Monk’s Dream
Modern Jazz Quartet – The Complete Last Concert
Gil Evans Orchestra – Out of the Cool
Shelly Manne and his Men – At the Blackhawk, Vol. 1
Lee Morgan – The Sidewinder
Oliver Nelson – The Blues and the Abstract Truth
Duke Ellington – Money Jungle

For a taste of the excitement that the Bebop movement brought to Jazz, listen to "Jazz at Massey Hall - The Quintet," a bootleg recording (by Mingus) of a live concert in Toronto featuring Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Bud Powell, Max Roach and Charles Mingus, that many call the greatest Jazz concert ever.

Be warned that Jazz is addictive! If you like these, you won't be able to stop there.

tsaint · « **Reply #12 on:** September 26, 2013, 09:22 PM »

+1 for Concierto and Out of the Cool .... or is that +2 then?

tsaint · « **Reply #13 on:** September 26, 2013, 11:20 PM »

Miles Davis - A Tribute to Jack Johnson

Edvard · « **Reply #14 on:** September 27, 2013, 01:02 AM »

My taste in jazz has two feet: One foot in the canonical (Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, Dave Brubeck, Wes Montgomery, Vince Guaraldi), the other in the "suspected to be clinically insane" avant-garde (Sun Ra, John Zorn, Peter Brotzmann, Skerik, Bill Laswell).
The listed musicians are by no means a complete list, just what I could throw off the top of my head that haven't been mentioned before.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #15 on:** September 27, 2013, 09:19 AM »

+1 for Lee Morgan

There are many fine releases but my favorite is Live at the Lighthouse

More than any other CD I listened to of his, this has a "modern" or "experimental" feel. It's a 3 disc set. Not a dud in the pack.

edit: another good source are groups led by Art Blakey. Like Miles, many "side men" went from his band to become powers in their own right.

mouser · « **Reply #16 on:** September 27, 2013, 12:00 PM »

Wow, I never expected to see such a great outpouring of suggestions -- great stuff.
I will be following up on all of the recommendations.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #17 on:** September 27, 2013, 01:17 PM »

Another resource I should have mentioned: AllMusic

A good search engine and many entries in the discographies have audio samples.

Lutz_ · « **Reply #18 on:** September 30, 2013, 02:37 AM »

Talking about Chet Baker - this is a wonderful album - the last great concert:
http://www.allaboutj...d=14396#.UkkpV6fNV5M

Edvard · « **Reply #19 on:** October 01, 2013, 08:20 PM »

Bobby Hutcherson on the vibes... bliss.

This whole album is just awesome.

40hz · « **Reply #20 on:** October 04, 2013, 02:12 PM »

Can't believe I forgot to recommend this: Dave Holland's latest group Prism. (Dave Holland: bass; Craig Taborn: piano, Fender Rhodes; Kevin Eubanks: guitar; Eric Harland: drums.)

Awesome stuff in a more modern style - which I usually don't like. But I really like Prism.

Dave Holland needs no introduction to the jazz world. He's THE bassist's bassist.

MilesAhead · « **Reply #21 on:** October 04, 2013, 02:48 PM »

Seems to be some good deals on some of the "Postcards" series of jazz CDs. I especially like Ralph Simon and Chip White

At less than $10 it's tough to go wrong. And the sound quality on these are excellent. I think I had 6 of the series.

tomos · « **Reply #22 on:** October 04, 2013, 03:44 PM »

^they both sound great Miles

Prism sounds very good too - all those videos were blocked here:

but I found this really nice live one (Dave Holland Prism - Evolution - Garana Jazz Fest 2012).
edit// I'm on replay there^ 40

MilesAhead · « **Reply #23 on:** October 05, 2013, 10:14 AM »

Yeah, the Chip White is one of my favorites. I love Excuse me now tune the most.

rpruyn · « **Reply #24 on:** December 10, 2013, 05:07 AM »

Ah! I spy something I can help with. Get over here!

Last year, I was stuck with the same problem: I knew some classics, but had no idea in which direction to go next. So I've been asking for advice and doing lots and lots of listening.
I've already seen ton of great recommendations above, and I can really second the spiderweb strategy. For me, that was merely the beginning: all great artists evolve and a lot of the albums most of the 'greats' made do not appeal to me.
Lee Morgan is a good example: I'm in love with The Procrastinator, but I can't really get into The Sidewinder, one of his more famous albums. Live at the Lighthouse I haven't even heard yet (it's next on my list!), but Grant Green's Live at the Lighthouse I love and own. And Morgan is not an extreme example: he was tragically killed at a young age, whereas artists like Coltrane, Hancock and Davis have been evolving throughout each decade.

Anyway, without further ado, here are some of my recommendations. I really mention specific albums that are personal favorites, and I've added a short description. I hope you like some of them or discover great ones through the spiderweb strategy. Good luck!

Yusef Lateef - Eastern Sounds (Lateef is an amazing multi-instrumentalist, who plays the saxophone flute and hobo among other things. With this album, he incorporated Indian music into jazz, and I still listen to the result on a weekly basis)
Idris Muhammad - Power of Soul (New Orleans drummer converted to islam and responsible for an amazing string of collaborations and groovy albums. This is one of those spiderweb albums, because it features Bob James (Nautilus anyone?), Grover Washington Jr. and Randy Brecker)
Grant Green - Live at the Lighthouse (Grant Green is one of my favorite artists, and this is one of his most compelling live(ly) performances. The album cover speaks volumes about the music.
Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers - Moanin (Art Blakey has been running his own private jazz academy for decades, with tons of talented musicians passing through the ranks of the Jazz Messengers. Moanin' is merely an example; there are tons and tons of great albums by this group)
Cannonball Adderley & Bill Evans - Know what I mean? (Simply so pretty that it makes you want to cry. Cannonball was a powerhouse, but toned it down a bit to match Evans' playing style on this classic album)