So I've been feeling a bit under the weather as of late (one of Derek Brown's famous semi-annual colds!). However, as it's not too severe I'm trying hard not to let it slow me down. Last night I still made it to the Underground Wonderbar for their fusion jam despite my sore throat (although trying to talk to people during all the amped music probably didn't do wonders for my throat).
A few nights ago I tried out a different jam session, which I've heard is THE jam in town. My verdict: yeah, it kinda is THE jam in town, if you're in to a specific type of jam. What I mean by "THE jam," is that it's where most of the hard-core straight-ahead beboppers hang (sorry for all the jazz jargon there).
For a little Jam Session 101, all gigging jazz musicians are expected to know a bunch of tunes, called standards. For very low key jams, often in smaller towns, jazz musicians might have a fake book that has many of these tunes in them. At most of the jams I've been to here in Chicago, no music is used, so it's expected that you have them mostly memorized. However, often they have music stands out in case you need to use a book occasionally. However, at this particular club, when it was time for the later jam, they specifically take down the stands. This lets you know, you better know your stuff!
On this specific day of the week, there are two jams. I played at the first one, no problem. I called a few tunes, we played them, it was great. But when 9:30 rolled around, I'll admit I definitely hesitated to add my name to the list (yeah, at some clubs, there are so many musicians, you have to sign up in advance, like at an open mic). I knew all these musicians would be the cream of the crop.
However, after thinking about how I was letting myself (and you, my fellow blog readers) down, I thought to myself, Hey, if I make myself look bad, it'll just make a better blog, right? So I signed up.
I got called up with a bunch of trumpet players (seriously, there were at least ten there that night!) and we agreed on a tune. It went fine. Trying to find a second tune we could all play, I suggested the classic "Take the A-Trane." I've done this tune a lot in my previous town and I like soloing over it. However, one of the more veteran players started grimacing and said, We are NOT playing Take the A-Trane. Well, I guess my suggestion was a little to elementary. But heck, I still love playing other elementary tunes like "Blue Bossa" or "Girl From Ipanema." I mean, this is jazz; we can stretch out or change up any tune we like, right?
But this holier-than-thou attitude definitely exists in jazz circles. There are certain tunes that are hip to play, and there are others that aren't. And it doesn't matter if you play the same hip tunes every single night, just don't touch the unhip ones.
Maybe, however, this is one of the reasons why jazz has lost most of its popular appeal. Back in the 1930's and 40's jazz was actually the pop music of the day. Yes, it was definitely more commercial than today's jazz, and maybe the solos weren't as long or groundbreaking. But then ultra-complex and virtuosic bebop came along in the mid 40's, and jazz was forever split between the hip modern musicians and the "moldy figs" who preferred the music the way it used to be. It also marked the beginning of the decline of jazz's popularity.
Now I don't want to say which kind of jazz is better (I actually lean more towards jazz-rock fusion myself), but maybe in order to keep jazz alive we need to be more open-minded about our music and what tunes other jazz musicians might like. Maybe it's okay to like simple, popular tunes. (Ask me later about my ipod playlist. Hardcore jazz guys would GAG if they knew what I listened to for fun. But that's another story...)
I've been very impressed with how nice most of the Chicago musicians are. There hasn't been nearly as much of the competitive attitude I thought I would find in a city like this. And there were other musicians in this particular session that I know would have liked to have played "Take the A-Trane." It's just that usually the more negative attitude overpowers others.
So, if you want to hear absolute burnin' players, doing lots of modern bebop with very extended solos, yes, this jam was THE place to be. And I'll definitely be back there from time to time. After all, don't get me wrong, there is definitely a place for this style of music. And I am in absolute awe of the ability of some of these musicians. That being said, if you're maybe looking for a little more variety in your jazz styles (maybe some latin, a little bit of funk, or even some old fashioned, singable show-tunes), you might keep looking elsewhere.
And don't worry, I'll be keeping my eyes and ears open...
A few nights ago I tried out a different jam session, which I've heard is THE jam in town. My verdict: yeah, it kinda is THE jam in town, if you're in to a specific type of jam. What I mean by "THE jam," is that it's where most of the hard-core straight-ahead beboppers hang (sorry for all the jazz jargon there).
For a little Jam Session 101, all gigging jazz musicians are expected to know a bunch of tunes, called standards. For very low key jams, often in smaller towns, jazz musicians might have a fake book that has many of these tunes in them. At most of the jams I've been to here in Chicago, no music is used, so it's expected that you have them mostly memorized. However, often they have music stands out in case you need to use a book occasionally. However, at this particular club, when it was time for the later jam, they specifically take down the stands. This lets you know, you better know your stuff!
On this specific day of the week, there are two jams. I played at the first one, no problem. I called a few tunes, we played them, it was great. But when 9:30 rolled around, I'll admit I definitely hesitated to add my name to the list (yeah, at some clubs, there are so many musicians, you have to sign up in advance, like at an open mic). I knew all these musicians would be the cream of the crop.
However, after thinking about how I was letting myself (and you, my fellow blog readers) down, I thought to myself, Hey, if I make myself look bad, it'll just make a better blog, right? So I signed up.
I got called up with a bunch of trumpet players (seriously, there were at least ten there that night!) and we agreed on a tune. It went fine. Trying to find a second tune we could all play, I suggested the classic "Take the A-Trane." I've done this tune a lot in my previous town and I like soloing over it. However, one of the more veteran players started grimacing and said, We are NOT playing Take the A-Trane. Well, I guess my suggestion was a little to elementary. But heck, I still love playing other elementary tunes like "Blue Bossa" or "Girl From Ipanema." I mean, this is jazz; we can stretch out or change up any tune we like, right?
But this holier-than-thou attitude definitely exists in jazz circles. There are certain tunes that are hip to play, and there are others that aren't. And it doesn't matter if you play the same hip tunes every single night, just don't touch the unhip ones.
Maybe, however, this is one of the reasons why jazz has lost most of its popular appeal. Back in the 1930's and 40's jazz was actually the pop music of the day. Yes, it was definitely more commercial than today's jazz, and maybe the solos weren't as long or groundbreaking. But then ultra-complex and virtuosic bebop came along in the mid 40's, and jazz was forever split between the hip modern musicians and the "moldy figs" who preferred the music the way it used to be. It also marked the beginning of the decline of jazz's popularity.
Now I don't want to say which kind of jazz is better (I actually lean more towards jazz-rock fusion myself), but maybe in order to keep jazz alive we need to be more open-minded about our music and what tunes other jazz musicians might like. Maybe it's okay to like simple, popular tunes. (Ask me later about my ipod playlist. Hardcore jazz guys would GAG if they knew what I listened to for fun. But that's another story...)
I've been very impressed with how nice most of the Chicago musicians are. There hasn't been nearly as much of the competitive attitude I thought I would find in a city like this. And there were other musicians in this particular session that I know would have liked to have played "Take the A-Trane." It's just that usually the more negative attitude overpowers others.
So, if you want to hear absolute burnin' players, doing lots of modern bebop with very extended solos, yes, this jam was THE place to be. And I'll definitely be back there from time to time. After all, don't get me wrong, there is definitely a place for this style of music. And I am in absolute awe of the ability of some of these musicians. That being said, if you're maybe looking for a little more variety in your jazz styles (maybe some latin, a little bit of funk, or even some old fashioned, singable show-tunes), you might keep looking elsewhere.
And don't worry, I'll be keeping my eyes and ears open...