And all that jazz... - Music - Forums : Best Ever Albums

bobbyb5

Gender: Male
Location: New York

Btw, i even really like the kind of jazz singers that also sang pop. I guess this was more common back in the past than it is now where it seems like none of them do, but at one time most of them did. Anybody I've ever talked to who is really into jazz seems to hate this kind of thing. Jazz fans seem kind of snobby, if you ask me. Or maybe not, maybe it's just the Hipster kind who are like that. And to be honest, I even like the old Hollywood Jazz that you used to see in old Hollywood musicals. People like Bing Crosby or Judy Garland who sang both jazz songs and pop songs. That show biz- y kind of jazz. I rather like that kind of shit.

PurpleHazel

bobbyb5 wrote:

I don't really know anything about jazz, and I really haven't tried to get into it yet, but I noticed that all the Jazz albums I see on BEA are the very serious types like Miles Davis John Coltrane Etc. But the kind of jazz I like is all the old shit. I mean like thirties and forties vocalists. What are some good old-time Jazz vocalists like that? I only know the more obvious ones that everybody's heard of . These are the ones that I own albums by so you should be able to tell what kind of taste I have:

Ella Fitzgerald
Louis Armstrong
Anita O'Day
Billy Eckstine
Peggy Lee
Billie Holiday

Actually you seem to know quite a bit about vocal jazz. There actually aren't all that many major jazz vocalists compared to instrumentalists. It's true that most serious jazz fans are mostly into the modern instrumental jazz of the fifties and sixties. Also music recorded in the thirties and forties is at a disadvantage on here, because it's before the LP album era.

I'm very knowledgeable about jazz, but don't know vocal jazz all that well. I love Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong, but I'm not into scat singing that much (unless Louie's doing it). Dinah Washington's one of my favorites -- of course she sang both jazz and R&B. I like Abbey Lincoln -- her early stuff is traditional jazz, but the lyrics on Max Roach's We Insist! Freedom Now Suite are political, and in one section she wordlessly shrieks.

Have you heard the John Coltrane-Johnny Hartman album? It's one of the most famous jazz vocal records. I like the contemporary jazz singer Cassandra Wilson a lot, but she's only recorded only a few albums that could be considered traditional at all.

I don't consider a lot of the crooners/cabaret-type singers like Sinatra, Bing Crosby or a lot of the singing in old movies to be jazz. Not saying they're bad or anything, just not jazz to me.

Have you met any jazz fans who are snobs? I haven't. Hipsters nowadays are more likely to be into alt-rock or roots music.

bobbyb5

Gender: Male
Location: New York

PurpleHazel wrote:

bobbyb5 wrote:

I don't really know anything about jazz, and I really haven't tried to get into it yet, but I noticed that all the Jazz albums I see on BEA are the very serious types like Miles Davis John Coltrane Etc. But the kind of jazz I like is all the old shit. I mean like thirties and forties vocalists. What are some good old-time Jazz vocalists like that? I only know the more obvious ones that everybody's heard of . These are the ones that I own albums by so you should be able to tell what kind of taste I have:

Ella Fitzgerald
Louis Armstrong
Anita O'Day
Billy Eckstine
Peggy Lee
Billie Holiday

Actually you seem to know quite a bit about vocal jazz. There actually aren't all that many major jazz vocalists compared to instrumentalists. It's true that most serious jazz fans are mostly into the modern instrumental jazz of the fifties and sixties. Also music recorded in the thirties and forties is at a disadvantage on here, because it's before the LP album era.

I'm very knowledgeable about jazz, but don't know vocal jazz all that well. I love Billie Holiday and Louis Armstrong, but I'm not into scat singing that much (unless Louie's doing it). Dinah Washington's one of my favorites -- of course she sang both jazz and R&B. I like Abbey Lincoln -- her early stuff is traditional jazz, but the lyrics on Max Roach's We Insist! Freedom Now Suite are political, and in one section she wordlessly shrieks.

Have you heard the John Coltrane-Johnny Hartman album? It's one of the most famous jazz vocal records. I like the contemporary jazz singer Cassandra Wilson a lot, but she's only recorded only a few albums that could be considered traditional at all.

I don't consider a lot of the crooners/cabaret-type singers like Sinatra, Bing Crosby or a lot of the singing in old movies to be jazz. Not saying they're bad or anything, just not jazz to me.

Have you met any jazz fans who are snobs? I haven't. Hipsters nowadays are more likely to be into alt-rock or roots music.

Yeah I keep hearing about Johnny Hartman and that's one I don't think I ever even heard the name before so I can't wait to check him out. I didn't much care for Cassandra Wilson. That's the kind of stuff you really got to be into jazz to enjoy, I'm just not that far into it yet. And I also didn't think the crooners were jazz until I found out that they actually have a good reputation among people who like vocal jazz. Theres very few of them I like though. I hate Frank Sinatra . Yes, I DO know Jazz fans who are snobs, but I didn't mean snobs as people, I meant snobs as music fans. They only think jazz from the sixties on is good and they just miss dismiss all the earlier stuff, and they're always telling you what's real and what isn't. And they hate every other kind of music. They tell you that no other kind of music is worthwhile. Actually, now that I think about it, maybe they ARE snobs as people too. Heh heh.

CharlieBarley

Gender: Male
Age: 48
Location: Mount Olympus

Ella Fitzgerald is my favourite female vocalist of all time. Closely followed by Etta James, although I don't know which genre Etta falls into. I like everything Ella F did, especially the Cole Porter Songbook, the Gershwin songbook and her stuff with Louis Armstrong. Although my favourite album of hers, if I am honest, is probably:

Ella Wishes You A Swinging Christmas by...Fitzgerald

Its just totally awesome.

I've tried to get into jazz. I like some of Miles Davis, I watched Miles Ahead, the film of Davis's life. Coltrane is good too. Mingus I find more difficult. But if I'm in a Starbucks having a coffee, and they're playing a jazz album in the background I generally enjoy it. Does that make me a Luddite? Lol.

PurpleHazel

Stover75 wrote:

Closely followed by Etta James, although I don't know which genre Etta falls into.

Great, but definitely R&B.

Quote:

Mingus I find more difficult.

When I first got into jazz, Mingus wasn't generally as well-known and admired as Miles, Coltrane and Monk (he was always one of my favorites). His rep has risen since -- I'm not sure when that happened. Some of his albums are more accessible than others. Mingus Au Um and Blues & Roots have strong gospel and blues elements.

CharlieBarley

Gender: Male
Age: 48
Location: Mount Olympus

PurpleHazel wrote:

Great, but definitely R&B.

Quote:

Mingus I find more difficult.

When I first got into jazz, Mingus wasn't generally as well-known and admired as Miles, Coltrane and Monk (he was always one of my favorites). His rep has risen since -- I'm not sure when that happened. Some of his albums are more accessible than others. Mingus Au Um and Blues & Roots have strong gospel and blues elements.

Cool will have to check those Mingus albums out deffo haven't heard Blues and Roots, can't remember if Mingus Ah Um was one of the two albums of his I heard. Its always good to keep an open mind. Thelonius Monk I haven't heard yet.

I love the jazz version of Whiter Shade of Pale by King Curtis played at the start of my favourite British film "Withnail & I" I have that track on mp3. More stuff like that would be good. Plus I love Astrud Gilberto singing The Girl From Ipanema, already mentioned. I could get into jazz if I persevere with it.

I like that quote by Quincy Jones about Kind of Blue:

"Kind of Blue is like my orange juice. I listen to it every morning" Or something like that.