Horns and smooth jazz

[petercintn]

As the title says, I'm looking for some smooth horn music but as a mostly progressive rock guy I have no idea where to start.  Then this very helpful and nice board popped into my mind.  I don't want any brash or stuff so busy it clouds the subtlies (sp?) in the music if that makes any sense.  It dosn't even have to be jazz, just good mellow wind instruments.

Thanks for any sugestions.  Pete.

 

[Grainger49]

Peter,

First, welcome to my corner and thanks for allowing me to have your musical thread moved.

Are you looking for soft relaxing Jazz; the kind I would sip Bourbon and water to?  A few artists come to mind, but I wouldn't think they go with progressive rock.  

Try old Herbie Mann, flutist, early 60s.  See the Almost Free LPs thread for one worth the shipping, but not clean.  Some all instrumental Stan Getz, sax player.  I'll look at some of the albums I have and put them in here.  He was with the Dave Bruebeck Quartet but I like his solo work much better.  

There is a possibility that the smooth, rather than manic, Chick Corea would appeal to you (I do like Chick Corea but have to be in the mood).  And I would also recommend early Quincy Jones.  There is one of those in the "Almost Free" thread too.

 

[intojazz]

Hey Pete,
I used to listen to mostly classic rock and in the last several years have been checking out a lot of Jazz recordings. It's pretty much all I listen to these days. I've developed a passion for straight ahead Jazz that was cut in the 50's & 60's. Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, Bill Evans and the like. I enjoy big band, bebop, modal and some vocalists. Tenor sax, piano and a muted trumpet are what I usually listen too. Here are some more examples of smooth Jazz artists you may enjoy:
Paul Hardcastle, Roy Hargrove (best flugal horn), Foreplay, Russ Freeman, Harvey Mason and many others. Again I prefer more straight ahead stuff but have found these artists very enjoyable at times.  
Check out Pandora and create a station or two and just see what comes along. Have fun,
John

 

[petercintn]

Thanks guys.

Yeah, I bend the rules about musical taste.  I like Neil young and King Crimson equally.  I was listen to Wearing the Inside Out off the Division Bell by Pink Floyd and the opening of that song has the sound I'm looking for over all.  I'm finding that in my mid fiftys I'm mellowing out quite a bit.  I have plenty of stringed classical stuff, I love a violin concerto, Mendelssohn is my fav.  I refuse to be stuffed in any box and since I started this hi-fi quest a couple of years ago my taste have been expanding.  I just wish I had more money.  I sure have plenty of time!

 

[petercintn]

I PMed backed.  I like King Crimson, Porcupine Tree, Alan Parsons, Tangerine Dream, Dead Can Dance to name some off the top of my head and some more heavy prog like Tool but it's not relevent to this discussion is it?

 

[Wanderer]

Sounds like what you are looking for is what gets termed "Cool" jazz and perhaps "West Coast" jazz.   You might try doing internet searches on those terms.  

Names like:

Modern Jazz Quartet, Lee Konitz, Paul Desmond, Lennie Tristano, Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan,  Chet Baker, Bill Evans, the arranger/conductor Gil Evans.  

Some muscians moved from style to style. For instance when John Coltrane recorded with Milt Jackson (of Modern Jazz Quartet) on the "Bags and Trane" session the results lean toward "cool" but Coltrane is mostly known for more aggressive and progressive stlyes.

The name "Cool" comes from the Miles Davis 1948 sessions with his nonetet that got packaged as the LP "Birth of the Cool". Davis did some later work in what can be viewed as "Cool" style like,
"Kind of Blue" and "Porgy and Bess" but much of his work is anything but as he explored "Hard Bop" and "Fusion" as well.    

When the term "Smooth Jazz" gets used I think of current muscians like Kenny G. who I find a style of background "elevator music" or "on hold music" but that's me - horses for courses and all that.      

 

 

[intojazz]

Hey Kevin,
Sounds like you're a jazz fan?

 

[btrancho]

Modern Jazz Quartet, Lee Konitz, Paul Desmond, Lennie Tristano, Dave Brubeck, Gerry Mulligan,  Chet Baker, Bill Evans, the arranger/conductor Gil Evans.

I'd add Art Pepper to Kevin's recommendations.  The remastered Modern Art  was the album that introduced me to his work but he has a large and generally excellent discography.

 

[Wanderer]

Most of my LP/CD collection is Baroque through early Romantic "classical" music with bits running from minimalists to Prog rock through English "String Bands" to Joni Mitchell.

I have always liked some jazz and listened to/purchased  Weather Report "fusion" back when they started recording in the 1970s.  About a decade ago I decided to get serious and do some homework on Jazz and it's evolution. Read JAZZ IN SHORT MEASURES by Lewis Rosengarten among others.  

Luckly for me there is a great used record store nearby, "Last Vestage", with a decent Jazz section and rational prices.  So I have developed a passable starter LP collection. A "fan" for sure but with more enthusiasm then experiance.          

 

[Grainger49]

I like John's Pandora suggestion.  It is free and a good way to find similar music.

Just about every artist I own under the heading of Jazz has been mentioned.  However, Traffic's The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys, title song, is definitely Jazz and fits in with all that were mentioned.

 

[matthewmckay]

you should check out Chuck Mangione too if you are into brass.. dude is the french horn master.

jazz, funk, easy listening... great music to unwind to.

 

[howardnair]

red garland - cant see for lookin
getz/gilberto--*****

cannonball adderly --somethin else--*****
sugar hill-music of duke ellington and billy strayhorn--*****
miles davis-*****
cookin with miles
relaxin with miles
steamin with miles
workin with miles
kinda blue
duke ellington 1958 newport jazz fest
stream these stations for more--jazz 24 [ which is in seattle]
and wyoming jazz kuwl  or 90.1 wyoming jazz [same station]

 

[howardnair]

i think i ran out of room-cannonball adderly's -somethin else[ miles davis plays on this album]has a stunning rendition of autumn leaves-10 mins long--the whole album is great as is miles davis kinda blue and the sugarhill ellington /strayhorn-which features javon jackson on sax-it is a chesky records production--getz/gilberto features the ever famous girl from ipanema and the work of carlos jobim ,guitarist jaos gilberto and stan getz on sax-gilberto's wife astrud sings the girl from ipanema-all of the miles davis listed albums are also excellent-someone mentioned modern jazz quartet that is a yes for sure-duke ellington's indigos with johnny hodges is also amazing-not to be confused with ellington's mood indigo which also is good--johnny hodges on prelude to a kiss-well can't say enough--

howie

 

[petercintn]

Wow! Thanks for all the info, guys.  BTW Grainger, I love the 'Low Spark of High Heeled Boys' album, never thought of it as jazz though.  Well, it's my payday for the month and I'm headed to the big city, "think Barney having to go to Raleigh from Mayberry", I live in nowhwereville and love it but I've got a 25 mile trip to get to Cookeville and it ain't no Raleigh!  I'll write down most of these and see what I can find at the record store.

Hey Wanderer, I really don't know what I'm looking for, I may end up liking a more progressive style, but I'll start out with the smooth stuff as long as it's articulated.  I like the Mahavishnu Orchestra & John McLaughin, have 4 albums by them, but I don't know where to put their music, Prog Rock or Prog Jazz.

 

[Grainger49]

An hour and a half from Cookeville we have two long lasting LP shops.  First is Raven Records.  I've been buying from Jay since the mid to late 80s.  Then there is Lost And Found Records.  Maria is a joy to buy from and both places have a stock of a thousand LPs.

 

[Wanderer]

Hey Wanderer, I really don't know what I'm looking for, I may end up liking a more progressive style, but I'll start out with the smooth stuff as long as it's articulated.  I like the Mahavishnu Orchestra & John McLaughin, have 4 albums by them, but I don't know where to put their music, Prog Rock or Prog Jazz.

I'd tend to put Mahavishnu McLaughin in the "Fusion" camp but the local Record Store puts him in "Rock". Classification is just a tool and one should not get hung up on it anyway. You might like him in a more acoustic setting on the 1970 album "My Goals Beyond", some Indian tinged "world fusion" and some jazz standards as well. (no horns though so maybe OT)

If you like "fusion" my faves on LP are Miles Davis "In a Silent Way", The first self titled Weather Report album and the later Weather Report album "Heavy Weather".       

"Jazz" is a pretty big toy shop.

 

[cvandyke]

One of my favorites that fits this is Dexter Gordon "Ballards." Note that it is a collection. As a bonus, you get an absolutely fabulous photograph on the cover.

Whoops, make that "Ballads" probably completely unlike the Seattle neighborhood.

 

[Doc B]

One of my favorites that fits this is Dexter Gordon "Ballards." Note that it is a collection. As a bonus, you get an absolutely fabulous photograph on the cover.

"Ballards"? Was it recorded in Seattle? ;^)>

 

[petercintn]

The weather has grounded me.  My son in law is in the basement at his work cause the sirens went off in Cookeville.  But... at Fred's, the local dime store, I found a cd that has Chet Baker, Lee Koniz, Paul Desmond, Bob Mizer and others so I'll get a decent sample of artist for just 6 bucks.  Grainger, thanks for the info, but I haven't had a record player in, well I can't remember.  I sure can't afford to get one anytime soon, and proberly will never get one again, I put everything I have on a harddrive and 75 ohm cable it out to a DAC.

Looks like some rotation just east of me, gonna be a bad day for some folks here.

 

[Grainger49]

Peter,

I forgot to mention McKays used CDs and The Disk Exchange.  Both great places to try new music in Knoxville.