Jazz

Influence and Popular Music

Music 162 – Alek Gayton

Welcome, we’ll get started soon! Enjoy some James Brown

in the meantime :)
 Why is this Important?

•  Jazz is America’s oldest musical art forms

–  Big Band Swing was America’s “pop” music in 30s and 40s

•  Can trace many musical scenes and connections.

•  Can’t compete with other popular genres.

•  JAZZ IS NOT ELEVATOR MUSIC OR WAITING ROOM MUSIC!!!

–  OR purely intellectual art music
–  Is Kenny G pop music or jazz?
 Jazz in the 1940-1950s

•  After WWII, big bands declined in popularity

•  Regional expansion leads to new musical genres and communities

–  R&B, Soul, Folk, Country, Rock and Roll

•  Rock and Roll and R&B became the promenade popular music in
United States

•  Jazz would head into a period of artistic expansion known as “bebop”

–  Quick tempos, complex harmony, not for dancing
–  Small group focus
–  Notable artists: Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker, Thelonious Monk, Bud Powell, John
Coltrane, Sonny Rollins
 Cool Jazz
•  In response to the complexity of bebop, some jazz musicians pioneered in
development of “cool jazz”

•  A more relaxed, relatable and melodic style

–  Slower tempos
–  More breath
–  Lesson complex harmonies

•  Dave Brubeck Quintet – Time Out – 1959

–  Sold a million albums
–  Ranked #2 on billboard charts
–  Featured accessible tunes that were relatable

•  Miles Davis Quintet – Kind of Blue – 1959

–  Considered the greatest jazz album of all time
–  Received universal praise
 Miles Davis
•  St. Louis Trumpet player, composer,
band leader

•  Member of Charlie Parker’s band

•  Had a great eye for talent and

innovation

•  Would continuously push the limits

of jazz for the next 40 years
–  Would lead some of the greatest jazz
ensembles of all time
 Jazz Fusion
•  Miles and others saw the appeal and reaction to rock and roll and r&b

•  Would mark a shift in popular music, combining different genres including

rock and roll, funk and r&b with improvisation of jazz

•  Use of electric guitar and bass, electric piano, synthesizers, multiple

drummers, percussion

•  “Pharaoh’s Dance” Miles Davis Bitches Brew – 1968

–  Combined elements of rock and jazz improvisation
–  Song structures were “loose” based off jams
–  Top selling album of all time

•  “ Chameleon” Herbie Hancock Headhunters – 1973

–  Leaned more of elements of funk
–  Bass and drum relationship
–  Incorporated more synths
 How did Jazz influence Pop?
•  Rhythm -
–  Polyrhythms
–  Syncopation
–  Complex rhythms of bebop

•  Harmony -
–  Use of “Jazz Harmony” (extended chords and color)
–  II V I chord progressions and turnarounds (Tin Pan Alley)
–  More chords!!

•  Form –
–  12 bar blues and 32 bar AABA

•  Improvisation -
–  Improvisation became important element in pop and rock genres
 Influence Continued
•  Jazz musicians had always worked with pop acts since the 40s

–  Extensive musical ability and knowledge

–  Artists like Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Motown’s “Funk Brothers”
–  Notable British rock musicians were also highly inspired by jazz players.

•  Paired well with the changing musical landscape. I

–  Increased collaborations

•  By the 1960s and 1970s Jazz composers and musicians were used on iconic
records.
–  Sonny Rollins (Saxophone) : Rolling Stones
–  Herbie Hancock (Keyboards): Stevie Wonder
–  Branford Marsalis (Saxophone): Sting
–  Kamasi Washington (Saxophone): Flying Lotus and Kendrick Lamar
 The Horn Sections
•  By the 1960s many funk, r&b, soul bands had full
horn sections
–  Saxophones, Trumpets, Trombones
–  Created lots of power
–  Extended “solo” sections
–  Allowed more room for arrangers

•  Horn sections pared well with developments in

R&B, Rock and Soul genres.

•  Many of these players were professional jazz

musicians.

•  Played a big role on records of this decade

–  Defined the sound of pop music
 Earth Wind and Fire
•  One of the defining groups of the decade

•  Lead by Marice White, drummer and composer from

Chicago

•  Utilized musicians from the Chicago jazz community.

–  Made up the Phenix Horn section.
–  A sound that would defy the decade in pop and
disco.

•  Arranger and songwriter Charles Stepney shaped the

bands sound.
–  Use of big horn and vocal arrangements.

•  Can’t Hide Love

–  What role does the horns serve?
–  Role of improvisation?
–  Timbre?
 Joni Mitchell
•  Was struggling to find the sensitivity and
subtleties from the rock studio musicians.
Encouraged to hired jazz musicians.

•  Her mix of singer songwriter, folk and jazz would

popularize Folk Jazz.

•  Hejira and Don Juan's Reckless Daughter

(1976,1977) saw the beginning of her
collaborations with jazz musicians.

•  Shadows of Light – “Free Man in Paris” -1979

–  Pat Metheny, pianist Lyle Mays, drummer Don
Ellis, bassist Jaco Pastorius, saxophonist
Michael Brecker
–  Does this sound like jazz?
–  Musical Contribution?
 Stevie Wonder
•  One of the most successful artists of the 1970s
winning eight Grammies

•  In part was Wonder’s brilliant use of jazz

harmonies into contemporary soul and pop music
–  Constructed music in a fashion that mirrored Tin Pan
Alley tunes of the 30s
–  Uses AABA pop forms and common jazz progressions

•  His biggest album Songs in the Key of Life would

feature a dedication to jazz legend Duke Ellington.
“Sir Duke”

•  “As” Songs in the Key of Life – 1976

–  Featured jazz pianist Herbie Hancock
–  Great example of Wonder’s use of harmony, melody and
improvisation
 Quincy Jones
•  Seattle Native

•  Hired by Lionel Hampton at 19 years old.

•  Would be hired by promenade jazz musicians of the time. As both performer and musical
director.

•  Quincy knew the importance of pop music as an entity.

•  During his golden period he would produce for George Benson, Donna Summer, Chaka Khan,
Michael Jackson, James Ingram, Patti Austin and the single We are the World.

•  Coming off huge success with Off the Wall, Thriller would redefine popular music.

•  Quincy brought in old school big band methods of arranging to modern pop albums.
–  Harmony?
–  Orchestration?
–  Ensemble Sound?