Is There Life After Bebop?
Zen Delta attempts to smooth troubled jazz waters!
A Listen Up! column by Zen Delta
You can do all the denying you like, but ‘smooth jazz’ is an important force in music to be reckoned with today, and can not simply be dimissed by ‘real jazz buffs’ as the ‘Kenny G’ crowd either, because it simply ain’t so…smooth jazz involves a number of very gifted jazz stars and we even have our own smooth jazz radio station at Breeze 98.5FM here in Bangkok, so we should at least be paying attention to the genre.
Here’s a dictionary definition meantime:
Smooth jazz
Stylistic origins : 1960s/1970s in the United States
Cultural origins : Jazz R&B Funk Pop music Jazz fusion
Typical instruments : Guitar, saxophone, bass guitar, piano, trumpet, drums, synthesizers.
Mainstream popularity : Moderate, from 1970s to present
Smooth jazz is generally described as a genre of music that utilizes instruments (and, at times, improvisation) traditionally associated with jazz and stylistic influences drawn from, among other sources, funk, pop and R&B. Since the late 1980s, it has become highly successful as a radio format; you can tune in to a “smooth jazz”-themed station nearly everywhere in the United States. Despite its apparently large following, there has been something of a backlash against the genre, mostly from jazz purists who consider its recordings bland and overly commercial.
“Smooth jazz” is a controversial term. Some jazz lovers contest that smooth jazz is, in actuality, not jazz of any kind, regarding it as a misleading marketing buzzword that represents an attempt to hijack the ostensible prestige of jazz in order to sell what is really a form of “elevator music”. Recurring accusations charge smooth jazz with offering a watered-down sound whose aim is to appeal to a larger, more mainstream, middle class white (though, notably, radio demographics have indicated that middle- and upper-middle class African Americans constitute what may be a larger percentage of smooth jazz listenership) audience.
Others contend that smooth jazz is indeed a viable subgenre, positing that attempts to maintain jazz music as a kind of museum exhibit are narrowminded, presenting over a century’s continued cross-pollination between jazz and R&B as evidence. Furthermore, they point out that the music of such widely respected musicians as Pat Metheny, David Sanborn, Marcus Miller and others are often classified as smooth jazz, and that many of these artists are capable of perfoming well in multiple styles.
Especially intense vitriol has been directed toward saxophonist Kenny G, whose hit singles dominated smooth jazz radio in the early 1990s. His detractors claim that his music is uninspired and boring and often extrapolate these opinions to others in the smooth jazz sphere. Enthusiasts of the smooth jazz style however, argue that G’s music is no longer representative.
Smooth jazz as it is known today first emerged in the mid- to late-1970s, pioneered by such artists as Grover Washington Jr., Spyro Gyra and Pieces of a Dream, stemming from a number of extant styles including jazz fusion. Unlike that form, however, smooth jazz tends to emphasize melody and deemphasize improvisation.
The genre’s roots can be traced as far back as late 1960s, when, teamed with famed record producer Creed Taylor, guitarist Wes Montgomery made three records (1967’s A Day in the Life and Down Here on the Ground and 1968’s Road Song) consisting of instrumental versions of familiar pop songs such as “Eleanor Rigby”, “I Say a Little Prayer for You” and “Scarborough Fair”. Aimed as much at pop audiences as at jazz fans, these sessions are often cited as important early smooth jazz.
The average smooth jazz track is on the “downtempo” (most widely-played tracks are in the 90-105 BPM range) side, layering a lead, melody-playing instrument (saxophones are the most popular, with guitars a close second) over a backdrop that tends to consist of programmed rhythms and various pads and/or samples. (Though much of what is played under the banner of the “smooth jazz” radio format contains vocals, this is not usually the case for music recorded with the intent of categorization as smooth jazz. Rather, the stations in question pull their vocal tracks from the work of artists like Simply Red or Luther Vandross, who are normally considered “soul” or “R&B”.)
Smooth jazz as a radio format has its roots in the construction of what were once called “beautiful music” stations, which generally played fifteen-minute sets consisting of instrumentals bookending a vocal song or two. “Smooth jazz” has gone on to be recognized as a successful radio format, first emerging in name in the mid- to late-1980s (often, they would be transitioned from existing “new age” stations) and subsequently spreading into most radio markets within the United States and many without. Currently prominent smooth jazz stations include Seattle’s KWJZ, Denver’s KJCD, Los Angeles’ KTWV and New York’s CD101.9 which has currently been featuring Chill Music. Bangkok’s biggest and best is Breeze FM 98.5
The popularity of smooth jazz in major American radio markets has led to a proliferation of station-sponsored music festivals around the country where a number of the genre’s performers play shows on the same stage throughout a day. They are usually held at high-profile locations such as resort hotels or wineries.
The groups or recording artists that rise to the top of the smooth jazz charts tend to play their instruments in a distinctively melodic fashion such that they are recognizable within just a few measures; this category includes names like saxophonist David Sanborn and guitarists Craig Chaquico and Peter White. Some performers, such as Dave Koz, attain fame via their numerous collaborations with many other of the genre’s big names.
While the world of smooth jazz has thus far been relatively male-dominated, the successful female performers — Keiko Matsui, Joyce Cooling, Mindi Abair, Candy Dulfer, Sade and Anita Baker, for example, tend to be very much so.
A popular recent development is urban jazz, which incorporates aspects of hip-hop. This style is aimed at audiences who would normally listen to urban contemporary radio stations that play a mix of hip-hop and R&B. Among the musicians who frequently perform urban jazz are Dave Koz, Boney James, Paul Jackson Jr., and former NBA player-turned-bassist Wayman Tisdale.
Another nascent trend involves the fusion of smooth jazz and electronica, the results of which are similar to what has, among electronica enthusiasts, come to be called “chill out”. Radio stations such as New York’s CD101.9 and DJs such as Rafe Gomez have pioneered the usage of playlists that blend tracks from both genres.
Smooth jazz albums generally considered to be genre-defining:
- Tourist in Paradise by The Rippingtons
- Double Vision by Bob James and David Sanborn
- Rise by Herb Alpert
- Morning Dance by Spyro Gyra
- Breezin’ by George Benson
- Feels So Good by Chuck Mangione
- Festival by Lee Ritenour
- Fourplay by Fourplay
- Rapture by Anita Baker
- Winelight by Grover Washington, Jr.
Some of the bigger smooth jazz-producing record labels include GRP, Heads Up, Higher Octave, Instinct, N-Coded Music, Narada Productions, Native Language, Peak, Shanachie and Windham Hill.
And for the entire universe of smooth jazz musicians currently on the web, please visit www.smoothjazzlinks.com/.
Editor’s note: As always, we welcome our readers comments. I ention this because we have finally got our ‘comment spam’ under control. We use to get 400 plus spam comments a day. So, if you have tried commenting before and your comment fell through the cracks, please try again.