Hi everyone! Let me introduce myself. I’m 51, an amateur drummer, and a music lover.

Music has been one of my main interests since my teenage years. I grew up listening to The Beatles, CCR, Deep Purple, Iron Maiden, Jean-Michel Jarre, Vangelis, and many others, but the genre that truly captured my imagination was progressive rock, especially bands and artists like Yes, ELP, Queen, Camel, Jethro Tull, Mike Oldfield, and many more. At the same time, I developed a deep love for classical, medieval, and Renaissance music.

I never felt particularly drawn to the music of the 1990s, when grunge and the whole movement surrounding it became such a big sensation. However, there was one genre I remained almost completely immune to for decades: jazz. And the funny thing is that I always knew it was a genre of undeniable musical quality.

Partly, I had this prejudice that jazz was elevator music, the kind of music you hear in hotels and restaurants, playing quietly in the background while nobody really pays attention to it. I also found it boring, seemingly lacking a clear purpose, with melodies I could rarely recognize, and almost always instrumental.

I also associated jazz mainly with New Orleans jazz, big bands, swing, and the whole musical scene of the first half of the twentieth century.

Meanwhile, I was still fascinated by the great works of Yes and Genesis, with their rich musical landscapes and atmospheres; by Rush and their lyrics; and by Gentle Giant’s technical complexity, rhythmic richness, and harmonies. In other words, I was looking for something very different from what I thought jazz had to offer.

And so the years went by, until I turned 50. 😣 Something seems to have changed in my mind, or perhaps in the way I listen to music.

First, I rediscovered the Carpenters, this time actually paying attention to their music, and I was absolutely blown away by Karen’s voice, the production, and Richard’s arrangements. Because of the usual clichés and prejudices, I had always thought of them as a rather bland band, even though the only song I really knew was Sing.

Then, thanks to Spotify’s algorithm, I came across Chet Baker. Miles Davis followed, and there was no turning back. After that came John Coltrane, Thelonius Monk and Bill Evans. At the same time connect with the Jazz fusion of the 70s with Chick Corea, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Return to Forever, Billy Cobham among others.

Something happened to me: this music completely drew me in. I’m still a newcomer to the world of jazz, but little by little, I’m diving deeper into this vast ocean and discovering that behind something that had seemed so foreign to me for so long, there was an absolutely fascinating universe.

Sorry for such a long introduction, but since this is my first post here, I wanted to share a little summary of my musical journey and how I eventually ended up falling into the jaws of jazz.

If you find my story interesting, or if you’ve had a similar experience, I’d love to hear about it and read your stories and recommendations.

Thanks so much for taking the time to read this. Best wishes to you all!

[Thelonious Monk at Minton’s Playhouse, New York, ca. September 1947, eight years before the Gryce session; photo by William P. Gottlieb. (Public Domain, Library of Congress Gottlieb Collection, via Wikimedia Commons)]

https://jazzprofiles.com/this-day-in-jazz/

On October 15, 1955, Thelonious Monk walked into Rudy Van Gelder’s Hackensack studio and recorded three brand-new originals — “Shuffle Boil,” “Brake’s Sake” and “Gallop’s Gallop” — without a single note of it appearing under his own name. Riverside had bought out his Prestige contract the year before and expected to be the home of his music. But the date was a Signal Records session led by alto saxophonist Gigi Gryce, and Monk was nominally just the pianist. The rhythm section was the same Percy Heath and Art Blakey who had backed him on a Prestige trio record in 1954, and by Robin D. G. Kelley’s account Monk taught and directed the whole thing. Riverside’s Bill Grauer and Orrin Keepnews were unhappy, but a sideman date broke nothing in his contract. The tracks filled side two of Gryce’s Nica’s Tempo, and Riverside waited another year, until Brilliant Corners, to record Monk originals of its own.

Sources: Wikipedia — Nica's Tempo: Monk's three unrecorded compositions, Gryce billing, Kelley on Grauer/Keepnews reaction, Oct 15 & 22 1955 sessions , Wikipedia — Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington: Monk's only 1955 session of originals, Oct 15, released as Gigi Gryce Quartet , Wikipedia — List of compositions by Thelonious Monk: first recordings of Brake's Sake, Gallop's Gallop and Shuffle Boil, Oct 15 1955 , JazzLeadSheets — In a Meditating Mood: Don Sickler notes, 'October 15 was a quartet session, with Thelonious Monk on piano'

Hello all! I currently work nightshift security for a high rise, so my opening process includes turning on the TV’s, with one set to a jazz music album. Only recently though I learned it’s entirely made with AI, and while my boss doesn’t care what’s played really I certainly do. I’m an ex-musician wannnabe, so music in general is extremely special to me, and I don’t think you can call something music if there was never an emotional tie to the creation. Every note with care, every chord with feeling, usually with only one opportunity for perfection (on a live performance that is), you can hear it and it’s gone when you just have a machine do all the work for you.

So with that being said, what’s some smooth lobby jazz pieces I could use? Checked out Chaos in the CBD but wasn’t the right vibe, need something a bit less energetic.

I see this release of Cookin' Workin' Steamin' and Relaxin' on the Avid label. How is the quality? It s just €6....

Or should I choose for this (56 Prestige)? €20

Something that incapsulates cold and melancholy while still being relaxing to listen to if that makes sense

https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=pz2SND7lgq4&si=-OavB1IdoQG6zkvx

Brilliant!

Johnny Carson on snare drum with Jack Sperling, Bobby Rosengarden, Godfrey Hirsch and the whole Tonight Show band accompanying Pete as they burn up a version of "Marching 'Round the Mountain" creating a spirited second line feel. The Tonight Show, April 22, 1964. Tommy Newsom behind Pete.

I think I've found one of my new favorite pianists, I am digging more into discography but I rarely ever see him mentioned. His playing especially his comping is just so nice and refreshing.

Another October Legend...

Fela Anikulapo Kuti was born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti (15 October 1938 – 2 August 1997). From Nigeria, he created the Afrobeat genre - a derivative of Jazz, Highlife, Yoruba/African Music, Funk, etc. He was also a political activist - jailed hundreds of times for his efforts by Military Governments of the time.

I was fortunate to see him live a few times. His shows were something else! He only played unreleased compositions at his concerts. The audience interaction was also electric.

He had collaborations with Jazz artists like Lester Bowie, Roy Ayers, etc. He also met Sun Ra, Marshall Allen, John Gilmore and James Brown/band members, during their visit to Lagos. Fela liked John Coltrane's music too. He also met Ornette Coleman during his 1986 US tour in NY.

Too many favourites to remember... In no particular order, they include: Water No Get Enemy, Zombie, B.O.N.N. (Beasts of No Nation), G.O.C. (Government of Crooks) - unreleased, I.T.T. (International Thief Thief), B.B.C. (Big Blind Country) - unreleased, Roforofo Fight, Shakara, Army Arrangement, Unknown Soldier, Power Show, Palm Wine Sound, Dog Eat Dog, J.J.D., Go Slow, M.A.S.S. (Music Against Second Slavery) - unreleased, J.L.T. (Just Like That), Mistake, Mr. Grammarticalogylisationalism is The Boss, Coffin for Head of State, etc. In fact, I like all of them! :)

His later compositions are very good too. It's just that his style and focus changed. The tracks got longer in the 1980s to about 30 minutes long, and then 45 minutes or more in the 1990s. By then, you got 2 tracks in a concert. :)

- If you need nearly all his released albums in one box set. I recommend

https://www.discogs.com/release/9588173-Fela-Anikulapo-Kuti-The-Complete-Works-Of-Fela-Anikulapo-Kuti

- Details of some concerts can be found here:

https://www.setlist.fm/setlists/fela-kuti-33d690cd.html

- His tracks are still one of the most sampled by musicians in other genres too. See: https://www.whosampled.com/Fela-Kuti/

- This is also a podcast released last year. See https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/fela-kuti-fear-no-man-6240541/episodes/recent

Please let's remember the legend, with your favourites, recommendations, stories, etc.

Would anyone be interested in this? I sent it over to Bob himself. I haven't tried it on other fakebooks. Bob's book is well typeset, so my workflow worked well on it.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/18s3fzTEsiPvZbYHxgVVbwBU9t9HHZ-63/view?usp=sharing

The latest episodes of Discovering Jazz, #'s 383 and 384 are jazz recordings created out of love. Most of the selections chosen were the result of my query to r/jazz for suggestions. So thank you.. These two episodes include recordings by Horace Silver, Sun Ra, John Donaldson, John Coltrane, Lee Morgan, Wayne Shorter, Clifford Brown, Alice Coltrane, Duke Elington, Leszek Kulakowski, Reuben James, and Canadians Josh Cohen, Sharon Minemoto, and Fraser MacPherson with Christopher Gage. https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/discovering-jazz/id1287630511

Are they praised for their improvisation, just their performance or something else?

Basically, I'm a guitarist, and I've been coming to local weekly jams, where there's only one or two other guitarists. A couple of questions so I'm not rude to the other musicians:

1. I tend to be the only guitarist in the house, and there's nothing stopping me from coming up to play and then just staying there the whole night. The other week I ended up doing just that, and though nobody told me off for it, I'm not so sure it's sensible for me to stay on so long. Am I right to think that, or no? How long should I be playing?

2. What actually determines if I should call a given tune? At one point I mentioned a tune that I'd like to play, and someone just said "I wouldn't recommend calling that one" with a full stop, but as far as I'm aware it's not some famous song eg giant steps. Are there, like, unwritten rules for what kinds of songs are bad form to call, or is it probably specific to that one in particular? The tune was Good Bait, which I honestly didn't expect to be unpopular in this way...

Only recently discovered this album due to Christian McBride’s interview with John Clayton on the anniversary of Ray Brown’s birthday (Jazz Night In America). Absolutely floored! Easily one of the top 10 live albums in Jazz I’ve ever heard. The group is just swinging the blues like they were playing for themselves. And the sound is stunning. I encourage anyone who ever wants to know about Ray Brown to play this album.

Excellent album, recorded in Los Angeles, 1979. Highly recommended to Sun Ra fans.

Mountains by Emma Dayhuff

Composer, Bassist- Dr. Emma Dayhuff

Trumpet and Percussion- Corey Wilkes

Tenor Sax and Percussion- Isaiah Collier

Piano and Keys- Paul Cornish

Drums- Jonathan Pinson

Vocals- Akenya Seymour

Guitar- Andrew Renfroe

All-stars line-up, Johnathan Pinson blew my mind, he's the kind of drummer you need with Isaiah Collier in the band.

honorable mentions:

Members... Don't! by Tyshawn Sorey

Liminal by Elsa Nilsson

Drowning on Dry Land by Isaiah Keith

Transcend by Dave Douglas

I don't have the language to describe this type of jazz, but I'm looking for recommendations for soft/light/instrumental sort of songs

A few examples of what I have in mind:

Cal Tjader – Aquarius

Walter Wanderley – One of the Nicer Things

Bobbi Humphrey – Blacks & Blues

Appreciate any help!

I love jazz mixes on youtube like Coulou’s vinyl cafe and such, i have my own wee playlist I listen to.

I particularly like chilled jazz similar to in the playlist screenshotted below.

HOWVER. I am very new to the genre and unsure what artists to delve into. I’d love a vinyl with the chilled sound an adore and would love some recs!

(plz be kind reddit you were all new to ur interests at one point, im aware most of the stuff in the playlist is generic or “tiktoky”)

thanks! 💕✨