Is jazz an acquired taste?

kennier

I love the blues, the chicago style especially but anything that's not too basic and is driven by the guitar is my thing. The Hendrix Blues album is pretty much my ideal listening. Thing is, when I'm listening to the blues, I can kind of feel where the wave is going if you know what I mean. It just feels right. Jazz on the other hand is a bit of a mystery to me. Some of it sounds pretty slick but TBH I mostly have no idea of where the guitarist is going....it kinda sounds random at times but it can't be (or can it ). I've started listening to primarily guitar focussed jazz as the sax, etc doesn't do it for me at the moment. So I suppose the question is, is it an acquired taste or is it a love at first hear thing?

Doctor J

Jazz takes a bit of work for me too. Being a bass man I usually listen to what the drums and bass are doing, which is why I'd take some Ohm or Mahavishnu Orchestra over any Coltrane or Davis. I just can't chill and listen to the brass, it's like I almost stop hearing it.

Weather Report are worth checking out, for non guitar stuff that keeps me interested, definitely have a listen to some Esbjorn Svennsson Trio too.

John

It's not something you can just switch on and like. For years I couldn't stand jazz. Just recently I think my ears are able to withstand jazz. I listened to Miles Davis's A Kind of Blue the other day and I loved it. I've started listening to free jazz, particularly stuff on the piano. It's not easy listening and it doesn't pretend to be. Most people hate jazz. Some people will eventually get into it but it's not like hearing a song by Hendrix and falling in love with the sound instantly.

For non-guitar/non-sax jazz that's quite mellow and easy to get into I recommend anything by Oscar Peterson or Stephane Grappelli or any combination of the two.

Fusion251

kennier wrote:

I love the blues, the chicago style especially but anything that's not too basic and is driven by the guitar is my thing. The Hendrix Blues album is pretty much my ideal listening. Thing is, when I'm listening to the blues, I can kind of feel where the wave is going if you know what I mean. It just feels right. Jazz on the other hand is a bit of a mystery to me. Some of it sounds pretty slick but TBH I mostly have no idea of where the guitarist is going....it kinda sounds random at times but it can't be (or can it ). I've started listening to primarily guitar focussed jazz as the sax, etc doesn't do it for me at the moment. So I suppose the question is, is it an acquired taste or is it a love at first hear thing?

Yep Jazz is an aquired taste!
But if you're interested in listening to Jazz then the best place to start is Miles Davis - Kind of Blue is very easy listening as was said above, if you want to listen to some Jazz Guitar take a listen to Pat Martino who is primarily a Bebop Guitarist he plays some nice standards etc - Live at Yoshi's and Strings are two great albums from him. George Benson is another great guitarist who is alot more accessible then some of the more contemporary guitarists, nice lines, very clear crisp sound...and of course Wes Montgomery you need to listen to him, he's one of the best Jazz guitarists ever, he played completely by ear and you'll find he's much easier to listen to! The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery is a good album to start with.

Don't listen to John Coltrane. I love him and listen to him all the time, but for a Jazz beginner he'll melt your head....

Blue Trane by Coltrane is a good starter album and of course he plays on Kind of Blue with Miles.

Fusion
:cool:

mike65

You'd be nuts as said to start with Coltrane or indeed Davis in difficult mode. Start with the old classics and that includes the "cheesy" stuff like Glen Miller
plus the sublime work of Cole Porter as sung by Ella Fitzgerald, Billy Holliday, Louis Armstong.

After you've trained your ears to the tempos and moods of Jazz then you can go deep mining for Be-bop, hard bop and fusion just beware of 'noodling' jazz at its worst.

Mike.

kennier

Thanks for all the suggestions/recommendations. I'll look a few of them up. I suppose my forray into jazz was kick-started by this (he's a regular on the gear page). I think it's 50/50 between listening to the composition and watching the player's skill...

Fusion251

kennier wrote:

Thanks for all the suggestions/recommendations. I'll look a few of them up. I suppose my forray into jazz was kick-started by this (he's a regular on the gear page). I think it's 50/50 between listening to the composition and watching the player's skill...

That's some nice playing, take a listen to Jim Hall and Lewis Stewart if you're looking for that style of Jazz man. That's Donna Lee written by Miles Davis, stolen by Charlie Parker the bast'd....Parker is also someone to listen to if you're into the Be Bop he's the King!

Fusion
:cool:

Bert Fever

kennier wrote:

I love the blues, the chicago style especially but anything that's not too basic and is driven by the guitar is my thing. The Hendrix Blues album is pretty much my ideal listening. Thing is, when I'm listening to the blues, I can kind of feel where the wave is going if you know what I mean. It just feels right. Jazz on the other hand is a bit of a mystery to me. Some of it sounds pretty slick but TBH I mostly have no idea of where the guitarist is going....it kinda sounds random at times but it can't be (or can it ). I've started listening to primarily guitar focussed jazz as the sax, etc doesn't do it for me at the moment. So I suppose the question is, is it an acquired taste or is it a love at first hear thing?

Most jazz is based around simple chord changes, it's what the great musicians do with them that counts.

You can play the "correct" notes in jazz and still sound rubbish.

Dan Druff

yes its aquired but damn good

JMArr

kennier wrote:

Thanks for all the suggestions/recommendations. I'll look a few of them up. I suppose my forray into jazz was kick-started by this (he's a regular on the gear page). I think it's 50/50 between listening to the composition and watching the player's skill...

:eek: :eek: :eek: wow
Jazz guitar looks so hard ...I mean where do you start?
He's a great player but a bit too 'busy' in my humble opinion ...I'd prefer more distinct tasty phrases and some more space.

Sleepy

I'm not so sure that it's something you always have to acquire a taste for...

The first time I heard Miles Davis was like falling in love for the first time. Now, granted my father would have played light jazz (Billy Holliday, Louis Armstong etc.) in the house when I was a kid so maybe I was just brought up with the rhythms and grooves as part of my frame of reference but I'd never really experienced Jazz before that first listen to Davis in an apartment in Paris with a girl who at the time was the love of my life... though, in retrospect, maybe the surroundings helped just a little