J***zz....

Sideshow Bob wrote a good jazz primer that was posted on both the Zerogain and Pink Fish fora - it would be worthwhile tracking that down. There's a Penguin Jazz discography which rates albums and identifies those that are (in their opinion) must haves.

Simon

I have a Rough Guide of the 100 greatest jazz albums (in their view). Good for browsing and ideas. There is also stuff on the BBC website.

I have a book called 'Jazz Hound' which includes artist biographies, an abridged discography and rates each album. I think this is still available and it even has a free CD. I have found it invaluable in building my collection especially with prolific artists such as Duke Ellington. The great thing about Jazz is that everyone seems to play on each others albums so from Davies you can get to Coltrane etc etc.

I started from a similar position about 2 yrs ago. Amazon recommendations and 'customers who bought this also bought...' were helpful. Slideshow Bob's tome is well worth the time it'll take you to read. Post the albums you like on here and see what others suggest - you'll get some valuable pointers.

Meanwhile, try Cantaloupe Island by Herbie Hancock

Steve.

It's a grand old team to play for...

I can only advise to forget about the so called highlights and just go into a well sorted shop like Plexus in Delft. Listen to a few albums and buy one or two that sound pleasant (or weird) enough. When you still like them after having played them at home a few times, have a closer look at the names of the people playing on them and see if you can find another record where they are on.

Take it slowly, step by step and try to avoid the slick, the obvious and the popular.

For a start you could try if you like John Coltrane. His live stuff is absolutely amazing.
I still remember when I first heard 'India' on the radio. Lost forever as they say.

Willem

Thanks for the kind comments. Verbose post can be found here

-- Ian

Hi Martijn,

Since discovering Miles' "Kind of Blue" a couple of years ago, I have also found exploring the wide circle of musicians he associated with very rewarding.

However, like in classical music, I think it is important to try to support current performers, so I have high hopes for the New York Times' Best Jazz CDs of 2004 list here Number 1 on that list is on its way from Amazon along with number 1 on the classical music list here We'll see how I like the Lovano CD. Actually, on reflection, it may make more sense to listen to the jazz CDs at my local music shop to make sure that they are of my taste. I have found that not all of John Coltrane's (or Miles' for that matter) albums move me like "Kind of Blue". OTOH, everything by Bill Evans I have bought I love.

BTW, Best of Culture lists the NY Times' take on the years best movies, books, and more, including the links above.

You could also check out Wes Phillip's review of JVC jazz XRCDs here On the strength of his review, I bought all of the 10 CDs listed and all are winners.

Norman

Hi Martijn,

Frankly, I'm a bit on the road you're on. I'm trying to discover some good jazz as well, with mixed results still. I just don;t know where to start looking. Same with classical though, and I'm trying to find my way into that too.

By the way Willem, where do you live? Plexus is Delft isn't known to anybody . PT me if you're willing to share. There don;t seem to be that many Naimees here in the lower lands.

Regards!
KEvin

Martijn,

Take these Top 100 list with a grain of salt, but here's an online list which has some good picks.

jazz list

I'll throw out these recommondations too because, well, why not....

Charles Mingus -- 'Blues and Roots' and/or 'Ah Um'
Ahmad Jamal -- 'The Awakening'
The Quintet (also under Charlie Parker or Dizzy Gillespie) -- 'Live at Massey Hall'
Wynton Kelly Trio-Wes Montgomery -- 'Smokin at the Half Note'
John Coltrane -- 'My Favorite Things'

This is a varied sampling, but one which I think can't really miss. Jazz is a wonderful path to be on. Be sure to check Sideshowbob's incredible link - he could copyright it - for a much more thorough listing.

daniel

quote:

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Originally posted by Lo Fi Si:
There's a Penguin Jazz discography which rates albums and identifies those that are (in their opinion) must haves.

Simon

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Is this the "Penguin guide to jazz on cd"? Does it contain a 'hotlist' as well, apart from reviews?

[This message was edited by Martijn on Fri 07 January 2005 at 9:09.]

Wonderfull people, thanks very much, you're really very helpful.

Kevin, check out another recent thread, called 'Classical novice... help'. Actually what has been said there, can (and has been) said here as well. I think the best you can do is to go to a shop that rents cd's (or become member of a public library - a lot of them have cd's as well) and bring various kinds of classical cd's home and have a good listen to them. Just take something out of each genre (chamber orchestra, solo piano, oratoria's, symphonies, etc.) from each period or from a number of great composers. Personally I think you can't go wrong with most of Bach's music, but take a broader look as well.

Another good idea is to listen to our Radio 4 (www.radio4.nl, 'programmagids'), especially to programmes like 'de klassieken' (9.00-12.00), 'viertakt' (16.00-18.00) and 'muziek aan tafel' (18.00-19.30) (these programmes broadcast various kind of relatively short pieces and afterwards you can check out their websites for a playlist - then buy what you seem to like; use the Penguin guide for good performances).

Good luck,

Martijn

[QUOTE]Originally posted by ccr:
I have a Rough Guide of the 100 greatest jazz albums (in their view). Good for browsing and ideas. ]QUOTE]

Is this 'The Rough Guide to Jazz'? Does it contain a 'hotlist', apart from the alphabeticals?

[This message was edited by Martijn on Fri 07 January 2005 at 9:08.]

quote:

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Originally posted by Martijn:

Is this the "Penguin guide to jazz on cd"? Does it contain a 'hotlist' as well, apart from reviews?

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Yes, thats the one. No it doesn't have a separate hot list but the "Hot List" items are marked (with crowns instead of stars) so are easy to spot.

Simon

I have found radio (with a decent informed presenter) to be a useful way into Jazz. BBC Radio Scotland used to have an excellent show called Bebop to HipHop that I enjoyed while living there.

There is quite a lot of Jazz available on streaming radio over the web. They also display the artist and song title as they play, which is useful. Here are two meta sites that list the radio stations by genre. The 128k bit streaming rates are usually fine for casual listening:
http://www.shoutcast.com/directory/index.phtml?sgenre=Jazz

http://www.digitalradiotech.co.uk/broadband_internet_radio.htm

Nick

[This message was edited by Nick_S on Fri 07 January 2005 at 13:18.]

One of the greatest things about Miles is the evolution of his musical style throughout his career, from the traditional style of "kind of blue" throught the funk of "bitches brew" and the pop/fusion that included covers of Michael Jackson and Cindy Lauper tunes on "you're under arrest." If you look at the various musicians that have played with him on these differnt recording and then follow their subsequent careers, you will discover an interesting "family tree." In the more modern genre, for instance, John Scoffield has played with Miles. He has also played with Mark Johnson, a bassist who previously accompanied Bill Evans in the latest iteration of his piano trio. On the work Johnson did with Scoffied, guitarist Bill Frissel and drummer Peter Erskine was also involved. Erskine was formerly in Weather Report with many other great players, and was also in Steps Ahead, a fusion band that also featured bassist Daryl Jones (who also tours with the Rolling Stones). Jones has worked previously with Miles Davis and with Branford Marsalis when he was in Sting's first solo band. Maybe you are starting to get the picture of the incestuous jazz world, but this is the sort of thing Woodface and Willem were talking about.

-Mike

Martijn
There is a Rough Guide to Jazz I believe but the book I have is a pocket sized book that lists their top 100 only.

Sorry guys, Jazz is not in books...

CCR, Can you give me the exact title and author then, and maybe the isbn number? Thanks,

Martijn

quote:

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Originally posted by willem:
Sorry guys, Jazz is not in books...

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I was already wondering how to get the Penguide guide in my cdp...

I have a book that has been helpful:
The Jazz cd Listener's Guide / Howard J. Blumenthal. The publisher is: Billboard Books,1515 Broadway, New York, NY 10036
It is an easy guide to 900 of the best jazz cds by over 100 of the best artists.
The one cd I think you should have: Jazz at the Pawnshop.
Regards,
Haim

Jazz: 100 Essential CDs - The Rough Guide, Digby Fairweather & Brian Priestly, ISBN: 1858287324