Favorite Jazz /Jazz Fusion

[CL82]

For Fusion I'm going with

 

[Scud49]

Herbie Hancock - such, mellow, classic jazz:

 

[Scud49]

Weather Report - Black Market, IIRC this was the jazz album of the year back in '76:

 

[Scud49]

Joni , Pat Metheny, and the late great, Jaco Pastorius doing "Coyote" live from the Shadows and Light Tour back in 1979:

 

[Alydar]

Pat Metheny

 

[JordyG]

From the man who taught the world how a musician should dress, speak, play and act on and off stage. He not only changed how jazz instruments were played, but how a popular singer should interpret a lyric. The most important popular and jazz artist of the 20th Century. Here with a little sauce on his lips.

 

[JordyG]

Everyone seems to go for Giant Steps, which is an improvisational tour de force. But this is my fave.

 

[JordyG]

So beautiful, so perfect. A one time collaboration. However soon we'll finally get to hear the entire session. Can't wait.

 

[JordyG]

The greatest jazz singer today, and at her most vulnerable, intimate moment.

 

[JordyG]

The most influential pianist today. Such beauty. Such harmonies. Such space. Such touch. The very night after these sessions his great young bassist died in a car crash. He never found another comparable voice. Thankfully we still have this document.

 

[JordyG]

My current fave. I saw him 2 years ago at Mezzrow with Fred Hersh in a duet. I'm going to see him again at The Jazz Standard in a few days. Along with Joe Lovano the most copied of today's horn players. He's clearly informed by past giants (Sonny, Trane and Colman Hawkins) as well as R&B and pop. He just never seems to play the same phrase twice. Incredible.

 

[Bronx23]

The greatest jazz singer today, and at her most vulnerable, intimate moment.

Never heard her before! Thanks Jordy! She's very, very good and I now will keep an eye or ear out for her.
Bronx23

 

[Scud49]

Brian Auger's Oblivion Express doing the great Wes Montgomery tune Bumpin' on Sunset:

 

[JordyG]

Never heard her before! Thanks Jordy! She's very, very good and I now will keep an eye or ear out for her.
Bronx23

I've seen her twice at the Village Vanguard. A place that never, beyond Betty Carter, has vocalists. She has another album coming out, this after "Dreams And Daggers" was just released late last year. She's been the featured vocalist in an all star band called Artemis which consists of Renee Rosnes (Potter's wife), Ingrid Jensen (!), Anat Cohen (!), Melissa Aldana (!), Noriko Ueda, and Allison Miller. The band was at Newport on the 5th. I'm waiting for them to play NYC. As a live performer there is just nothing and no one quite like her. Perhaps ever. Her sense of timing, her interpretive abilities and her sense of drama are jaw dropping. Combine Garland, Nancy Wilson, Ella and Sarah, and you have an idea. If you get a chance to see her live don't hesitate.

 

[MSGRET]

How about this one.

 

[MSGRET]

Or this one.

 

[MSGRET]

Maybe these two.

 

[Sifaka]

Love jazz...fusion not so much, but here’s a couple of my favorites. Oscar Peterson to start...

How neat that Oscar begins with a Bill Evans tune, Waltz for Debbie.
If you like Oscar and Bill, and how could one not enjoy them, then check out Tommy Flanagan. He spent years as accompanist for Ella.

Tommy Flanagan - Solo Piano Montreux Jazz Festival 1981

 

[Sifaka]

Don't know what genre this might fit, but it sure has jazz elements, it cooks, and....well, just listen and enjoy!

 

[Scud49]

Some real smooth jazz from Grover Washington and Idris Muhammad - Loran's Dance:

 

[Bigboote]

I first heard this (the second movement, "Steel band") on WLIB ("The only station in the nation with a Caribbean education") when I was in high school. I've never stopped loving it. As you might expect from Ralph MacDonald, it has great percussion throughout.

 

[Bigboote]

Scud, that Herbie Hancock piece with Freddie Hubbard is SOOOO smooth. In case you're not familiar with it, they did a couple of albums (with the aforementioned Ron Carter; Jack DeJonette and Eric Gale, possibly another person) just called "In concert" vols. 1 and 2 in the early 70's on CTI Records that are uneven but really have their moments

I was going to post something from Thrust -- here's a much later live version that's really cool. The original is quite different with Bennie Maupin on alto flute.

 

[Bigboote]

Here's a kind of another sort of fusion. Yusef Lateef incorporated some middle eastern influences to his music before it was fashionable. This one's from 1957:

 

[Bigboote]

Jordy opened the door to Louis Armstrong. This is one of my top-five of his (along with Big Butter and Egg Man from Way Out West):

 

[Bigboote]

Okay, last one. Django Reinhardt and Stephane Grapelli. I first heard this around 1984 -- my father had all sorts of Benny Goodman stuff, but nothing by Django, so I didn't discover him till I was in my 20's. I still can't get over how good this is.