I Try to Introduce Jazz: Part I: The UK

I want to try to introduce you to Jazz. Of course, I don’t have a good definition of what I'm trying to introduce. Even Wikipedia largely throws its hands up and shrugs. Let’s just say: Jazz is as Jazz Does.

I could labour on about my feelings on Jazz; my history with it, and how I see the genre; but I really don’t feel like that’s a valuable service. If you ever want me to talk about jazz and my feelings about it though, definitely ask me. It’s something I find fascinating, despite being a neophyte.

A brief note before I start just dumping music on you: First and foremost, let me encourage you: When it comes to Jazz, feel absolutely free to ride the skip button. Jazz can be a pretty strong flavour at times, and while you might end up loving it after years of working towards it, it’s totally OK if you don’t get or love a piece of jazz the first time you listen to it. Myself, I have strong feelings about certain types of jazz, and I’ve discovered that some things work best live. All I really want out of you for this post dear reader is: Please, give this a try.

Since I have to start somewhere, let me start with the United Kingdom. For reasons I don’t fully understand, the UK has an incredible jazz scene, full of incredible performers making really fascinating music that bends genre often.

I've included an Apple Music playlist below; please, if you're not a subscriber, try to find the songs on Youtube or Spotify (also: I'd accept tranliterations of this podcast to Spotify if anyone wanted to provide that!). Edit: Here's a Tidal Playlist if you subscribe there. Thanks so much to Gloria for that!

I can't guarantee I won't update the playlist after posting, but hopefully that's a good fill for now.

Literally today, I also found this track, which is worth sharing, and is sufficiently new, that as near as I can tell it’s not up on streaming just yet: Emanative & Tamar Collocutor - Energy

A Random Music Post

I’ve been all weird about blogging lately, because i have a bunch of posts ideas that have been blocking me. Posts too difficult to write because I’m not able to articulate my feelings on the topics sufficiently (ugh, one of them is Twitter, of course 😒).

Anyhow: Let’s just make this a music post, to unbreak the log jam. Here’s some stuff I’ve been listening to and loving.

Gabriel Garzón-Montano

I have been loving Gabriel’s output for a few months now. Golden Wings was a huge hit for me for a couple of straight weeks, and his album Jardín is also full of great stuff. The play counts on these youtube videos are criminally low.

Official video for Gabriel Garzón-Montano's "Golden Wings" Purchase the 7" here: https://shop.gabrielgarzonmontano.com/products/golden-wings-7 Download it here: https://stonesthrow.lnk.to/goldenwings Directed by - Max Basch Director of Photography - Zach Sky Edit by - Max Basch Produced by - Ben Shapiro Production Company - Seward Park Films Color by - Kath Raisch at Company 3 Lyrics Golden wings upon my feet, On clouds I dance.

Official video of Gabriel Garzón-Montano's "Fruitflies" from his new LP, Jardín ( Stones Throw Records).

Pan Amsterdam

What a fascinating old-school rap style. Great album.

Pan Amsterdam - Plus One. Single taken from Pan Amsterdam - The Pocket Watch http://vevo.ly/QpwUXs

Devon Lamarr Organ Trio

I have watched this live performance multiple times, along with another from The True Loves. What a fun band (and the albums are great too)

http://KEXP.ORG presents Delvon Lamarr Organ Trio performing during their warm-up set, live at Little London Plane during Upstream Music Fest. Recorded May 13, 2017.

Tenderlonious

I feel like you don’t hear so much jazz flute these days, so Tenderlonious’s whole album The Shakedown is worth listening to.

The title track from the new Tenderlonious album 'The Shakedown feat The 22archestra'. Buy / stream it now: https://22amusic.bandcamp.com/ https://IDOL.lnk.to/shakedown 'The Shakedown' - is 4 minutes of straight blaxploitation style funk! Intricate percussion meanders it's way in-and-out of a deep groove, and tasteful flute interjections channelling the spirit of Bitches Brew.

Jeremy Dutcher

Jeremy Dutcher’s album Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa recently won the Polaris prize. My understanding is that he learned songs of his ancestors recorded on wax cylinders, and added music. The result is incredible. It’s worth listening to over and over again.

We are time travellers. We can speak across time to ancestors and lean on their power and knowledge. "Mehcinut" (meh-jin-nud) is out on all platforms today!

Npomawsuwinuwok, nita wot toke kmilinaniya nisuwey lintuwakon; My people, well now I want to give you all a second song; Pomok naka Poktoinskwes // Fisher & the Water Spirit: http://smarturl.it/pomok You can also order my album, "Wolastoqiyik Lintuwakonawa" http://smarturl.it/jeremydutcher Woliwon 'ciw // Thanks to; Teiya Kasahara - Soprano Brandon Miguel

Mansur Brown

I've been loving Mansur Brown's stuff lately

TriForce joins Brownswood Recordings and Gilles Peterson in the Brownswood Basement for a special session, featuring new track 'Walls' from new album, We Out Here, released 9th Feb on Brownswood Recordings. Dominic Canning - Keys Mansur Brown - Guitar Ricco Komolafe - Bass Benjamin Appiah - Drums

July-October Music.

I got very busy after June, in the mad dash to get the OMR compiler component out the door, and so I got behind on writing up music.

Of course, I didn't stop listening! So, I'll try to go through some of what I found awesome over the last few months. 

John Lee Hooker's Decoration Day: Heartbreaker of a blues song. 

Sarathy Kowar's album Day to Day is fascinating. Bhajan is :thumbsup:. 

John Scofield's jazzy take on House of the Rising sub. Fun, especially as I've been learning to play guitar, and the straight forward traditional House of the Rising sun was one of the first things I learned to pick up. 

Swedish born Snoh Allegra... well, I'm not going to write much better than this.

I have a huge appreciation for finely constructed pop music that's a little on the edge. This Banks song is right up my alley. No idea what's going on with the video, and lyrically: ? ? ?. But finely constructed pop. 

I only recently discovered Derrick Hodge as an artist on his own, but he's played on Robert Glasper's albums before, so I've almost certainly heard him play before. I actually wanted to embed his song Transitions, but Soundcloud tells me not available in Canada. Sad face. 

Stormzy: Solid modern grime. 

Rag'n'Bone Man - Human. Great, heartfelt. 

Alright. I think that's enough for this edition. I'm sure I missed an enormous amount, and will find new things. But, hopefully I'll do these more frequently and have less enormous gaps!