Jazz Recommendations

[zabu of nΩd]

I've been meaning to explore jazz music for a while now, but haven't ever really gotten around to it. I've also realised that I don't really know where to start. If anyone here has some reasonable familiarity with jazz, I'd like to know what would be some good starting musicians/albums.

I'm particularly interested in John Coltrane, after reading the following about him on Wikipedia:

Throughout his career Coltrane's music took on an increasingly spiritual dimension that would color his legacy. His conception of expression in jazz became increasingly mystical, gnostic and cathartic.

Thanks for any recs! And if anyone else finds this thread useful, feel free to use it as a general jazz recommendations thread.

 

[Vimana]

Ray Charles
Stevie Wonder
Louis Armstrong

 

[Einherjar86]

If you want to branch away from traditional jazz, check out Bela Fleck and the Flecktones. Crazy banjo and funky jazz.

 

[username345]

Coltrane would be a good start.

Also, get Miles Davis's Kind of Blue. Best jazz album ever in my (and a lot of other peoples') opinion.

Sun Ra is also good, Atlantis is my favourite of his out of what I've heard.

You could also try Bohren & der Club of Gore. They combine jazz with dark ambient. I only have Sunset Mission, it's pretty good.

For something really manic try John Zorn. Naked City fuses jazz with brief grindcore sections. It's really great though, honest.

 

[The Ozzman]

I need to get into more Jazz myself, but here are some of my recs:

Jaco Pastorius - S/T. Quite possibly the best bass player of all time
Weather Report - Heavy Weather
Diana Krall - Anything by her. She's more of a vocalist than an instrumentalist (even though she plays the piano as well) but she is damn good and she is a guilty pleasure of mine.

 

[zabu of nΩd]

Awesome. Thanks, gents - that should keep me busy.

Anyone have a specific album by Coltrane that's good to start on?

 

[panzerfaust666]

Coltrane-Giant steps
charles mingus-mingus ah um
Myles Davis-Kind of Blue,Sketches of Spain
Brecker Brothers-whatever!
George Benson-Breezin'
Dave Holland quintet are great to
anything by joe pass to

 

[John Silver the Second]

Coltrane - A love supreme, Giant Steps, My Favourite Things
Thelonious Monk Quartet With John Coltrane - At Carnegie Hall
Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers - A night in Tunisia
Miles Davis - Kind of Blue, Sketches of Spain

 

[blood_drunk]

I need to get into more Jazz myself, but here are some of my recs:

Jaco Pastorius - S/T. Quite possibly the best bass player of all time
Weather Report - Heavy Weather
Diana Krall - Anything by her. She's more of a vocalist than an instrumentalist (even though she plays the piano as well) but she is damn good and she is a guilty pleasure of mine.

Of course, Jaco is a god and his work with weather report is huge, but i like the album "black market" too.

In jazz-fusion, i recommend you John Mclaughlin, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Pat Metheny and of course solo works from Billy Cobham.

Fusion is a huge music style to explore

 

[username345]

Of course, Jaco is a god and his work with weather report is huge, but i like the album "black market" too.

In jazz-fusion, i recommend you John Mclaughlin, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Pat Metheny and of course solo works from Billy Cobham.

Fusion is a huge music style to explore

Ah how did I forget The Mahavishnu Orchestra? Birds of Fire is a masterpiece. Billy Cobham is my favourite drummer.

 

[Matt]

If you want awesome jazz organ, check out Tony DiFrancesco and Jack McDuff's It's About Time.

 

[Vimana]

Very talented Gypsy Jazz guitarist.

 

[panzerfaust666]

django reinhardt ftw. he is incredible

 

[NinjaGeek]

If you're into more energetic jazz I'd highly recommend

Dizzy Gillespie

Peter Thomas

 

[razoredge]

Joe Pass

I guess it depends on what instruments you are most into but if its guitar

Joe Pass and Django

Fusions a whole nother beast with a broad spectrum of sounds and styles. We have a fusion thred somewhere that mentions many great players and colaborations. In my opinion the origioanl stuff from the early - mid 70's was the best for its raw energy and more experimental ways.

 

[blood_drunk]

Tommy Bolin was such a great fusion guitarist.. He plaid on the solo albums of billy cobham

what a great line-up

 

[razoredge]

I think he was just on Spectrum. Also did some work for Alphonse Mouzon which was really nice. Then a few fusion songs of his own on his two solo albums. Jan Hammer had a big influence on him during the recording of Spectrum, but he had previously been in a local Colorado fusion/progressive band origionally but I've yet to hear any of that music. There was a couple of progressive tunes with a touch of fusion during his stay with the James Gang as well. He had his own thing going on which was pretty diverse and according to "legend" was quickly adaptable.

 

[Thoth-Amon]

Awesome. Thanks, gents - that should keep me busy.

Anyone have a specific album by Coltrane that's good to start on?

if you are going to get into jazz the first albums you should buy are these:

Miles Davis- Kind of Blue
John Coltrane- A Love Supreme
Dave Brubeck Quartet- Time Out

If you want more Coltrane some of his other albums you should get are: My Favorite Things; Giant Steps and the avant-garde Ascension.

 

[challenge_everything]

Most of the essentials have been said.

I'm listening to Bohren and der Club of Gore Black Earth at the moment and it is absolutely intoxicating. It's like the funeral doom of jazz. Another good one in that style, for anyone who cares, is the Esbjorn Svensson Trio's Viaticum, although that's more upbeat.

For early hot jazz, any compilation of Dizzy Gillespie, Charlie Parker and Thelonius Monk is a pretty safe bet.

Then Coltrane and Miles Davis. Giant Steps is my favourite jazz album ever, and Kind of Blue is not far behind.

The real tough listening experimental jazz comes in the form of Davis' Bitches Brew, which I am not a huge fan of, but it's massively influential, and Ornette Coleman's Free Jazz and The Shape of Jazz to Come, which I like but can't listen to very often.

And fusion. Mahavishnu Orchestra and Return to Forever are great, Weather Report bore me, except Jaco Pastorius' solo albums kick massive ass, although more big band traditional jazz than fusion. Between Nothingness and Eternity is my fav. Mahavishnu album because McLaughlin plays with more feel.

Seriously Black Earth is giving me chills at the moment

 

[challenge_everything]

Shit I forgot Herbie Hancock too

@ vihris-gari:

Miles Davis once asked John Coltrane why his solos went on so long (sometimes he played for an hour) and he replied "it took that long to get it all in". This guy played from his soul