Jazz Listening Guide

So, after my last series of blogs on jazz, I thought I should do two things: tell you why I like jazz, and give you a list of some jazz tunes to check to see if you like them.
 
In my last blog, I tried to answer the question, “Why don’t people like jazz?” So, why do I LIKE (love?) jazz? I could say a lot about this, but in a nutshell, I like jazz because it’s happy, energetic, interesting, beautiful, and cool. 
 
Here’s a list of FUN jazz tunes to get you started.

1. I can’t think of a better way to get started than Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong singing Gershwin’s “Let’s Call the Whole Thing Off.” Try not to smile!

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J2oEmPP5dTM

1. In one of my earlier jazz blogs, I mentioned the Kids from the Sant Andreu Jazz Band in Barcelona. Here they are: a bunch of kids from Spain (joined by a couple adults—one who does a great Louis Armstrong impression) performing “Basin Street Blues” and reminding me why jazz is so fun.

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2AV6-qLjnvA

1. The video quality of this next one is poor, but since “fun” is the theme, this one is over-the-top. My favorite big band leader, Woody Herman, presides over the pandemonium that is “Your Father’s Mustache.”

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ft8X0wXZOhY

1. Trumpeter Clifford Brown is my all-time favorite jazz artist. Max Roach is one of my favorite drummers. Here they are with an energetic rendition of “Blues Walk.”

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIANyO3jdA8

1. Jazz doesn’t have to be swing. Here’s the group Weather Report, with the legendary Jaco Pastorius on bass, playing their feel-good hit “Birdland.” Ah, the ‘70s…

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqashW66D7o

1. Let’s go back to Barcelona and watch the most adorable little girl ever show you that kids can enjoy (and play!) jazz. The song is “When You’re Smiling,” and that’s little Elsa Armengou singing.

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtO651CqhGY

1. Piano virtuoso Oscar Peterson takes a lovely Richard Rogers ballad, “My Romance,” and turns it into a swinging bonanza of improvisation. 

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G1OdKc5es5g

1. Count Basie gives us the very definition of swing with “One O’Clock Jump,” from a cheesy old movie. Gotta love it!

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXq7eb_HJ7w

1. “Mercy, Mercy, Mercy,” written by Joe Zawinul (the same guys who wrote “Birdland”), has become a jazz standard. You can choose the soulful Cannonball Adderly version (the original), or the hard-driving big band version with the immortal Buddy Rich on drums.

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4rXEKtC8iY
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8WAvTmJuKk

1. Bossa Nova is one of the many sub-genres of jazz. It’s the musical embodiment of relaxing on a beach in paradise. I can’t resist going back to the Sant Andreu kids one more time with a two-for-the-price-of-one deal. The first is my favorite, Rita Payes (who’s only about 16 here), with “Flor de Lis.” The second has Rita backing up Alba Armengou (Elsa’s sister) on “Aguas de Marco,” with the smoothest sax solo ever, courtesy of Joel Frahm. These two songs are the very definition of JOY!

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WMTMp8EM1VI
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EazJHMFvQ3s

1. It’s time for the “National Anthem” of jazz. No, not Glenn Miller’s “In the Mood,” though that’s about as popular as they get. It’s Benny Goodman’s “Sing, Sing, Sing,” appearing in partial form from another old movie. Fun facts: The song was written by Louis Prima, aka “King Louie” from The Jungle Book. The video features Gene Krupa on drums and Harry James on trumpet (it’s James’ “It’s Been A Long, Long Time” that’s featured at the end of the movie Avengers: Endgame). Jazz nerd trivia.

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mJ4dpNal_k

1. No list of jazz would be complete without Duke Ellington. Here’s his “Take the ‘A’ Train” (actually written by Billy Strayhorn). Since jazz is always changing and always fresh, I thought I’d stick with that idea by including a clip of Wynton Marsalis joined by young players for a new interpretation of this classic, complete with tap dancing!

 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFs7cyPmzxk
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