Essential Jazz & Reggae Artists

I'll be DJing a specialty show for my campus radio station and part of my show will be how jazz/reggae/soul have become influential to many of today's artists ranging from Hip-Hop to tem idmz to Psychedelic and etc. etc. I really enjoy Jazz, but haven't dived into the deep end of the pool yet. Have pretty much just scratched on Thelonious Monk, Mingus, Coltrane, and Dolphy, would appreciate any recommendations on essential jazz albums/artists that you think I should bring onto the show.

I also need some recommendations on reggae artists as I have not delved very deeply into it either. I've got Lee Scratch Perry's Arkology, Max Romeo's War In A Babylon, Lone Ranger stuff, Pete Tosh stuff, and the Marley's.

A very weak library of the two genres and would very much like to get acquainted with more chillin artists. If anyone has any additions they think I should add, please let me know! Much 'ppreciated

this thread is sorta a bit too multipurpose for comfort

john coltrane

lee perry

BOB MARLEY

BENNY GOODMAN

Err yea, didn't want to split it up into two different threads and nothing was coming up on search. I think watmm can manage though Unless you can find some threads...

non troll answer - if you're dj'ing a specialty show, why not pick a style of music in which you are a specialist?

  On 1/7/2011 at 6:47 AM, analogue wings said:

non troll answer - if you're dj'ing a specialty show, why not pick a style of music in which you are a specialist?

non troll response - No I'm not a specialist in those 2 genres, however that is not the point of the show. From January till May I'm working my way from Jazz/Reggae/Soul to current artists. I'm covering a lot of genres, and I was also hoping to find out more music in the process. And "specialty" is rather gimmicky, its more like "let me put on house music for 2 hours because I'm a specialist."

You're really asking an impossible question cause there are so many artists and especially in Jazz, so many styles from which to choose.

I'll try it by instrument for jazz:

Piano/Keyboards

-Art Tatum

-Oscar Peterson

-George Shearing

-Thelonious Monk

-Bill Evans

-Dave Brubeck (although his most famous tune was written by his sax man, Paul Desmond)

-Herbie Hancock

-Chick Corea

-Duke Jordan

-Harry Connick jr.

-Bud Powell

Saxophone

-Charlie Parker

-Ornette Coleman

-John Coltrane

-Johnny Griffin (played with Monk on some of his best stuff imo, but his turn as band leader is well worth checking)

-Albert Ayler (but he's way out there...way way way out there)

-Michael Brecker

-Eric Dolphy

-Sonny Rollins

-Lester Young

-John Zorn

Trumpet

-Miles Davis

-Freddie Hubbard

-Dizzy Gillespie

-Louis Armstrong

-Don Cherry

-Wynton Marsalis (who some might say should not be on a list of "great jazz trumpeters" but he is important)

Other important figures include Charles Mingus (bass), Art Blakey (drums), Max Roach, (drums), Billy Cobham (drums), Jaco Pastorius (bass), Christian McBride (bass), John Pattituci (bass), Miroslav Vitous (bass), Stanley Clarke (bass), Joe Pass (guitar), Al DiMeola (guitar).

Some groups to look out for: Weather Report, Return to Forever, Modern Jazz Quartet, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Medeski, Martin & Wood, Sun Ra's Arkestra

These musicians played in a wide range of styles, they all had great albums, as well as some that were not so great. Good luck!

I can't be arsed doing reggae now.

What he said

Chen's given you a great load there.

I'd just like to add Yusef Lateef to that list.

Can't comment on Reggae I'm afraid.

Reggae (I'm sure I'll forget a few good ones):

Bob Marley

Lee Perry

Desmond Dekker

Peter Tosh

Jimmy Cliff

Dennis Brown

Big Youth

Barrington Levy

Burning Spear

Gregory Isaacs

Sly and Robbie

Toots & the Maytals

Dancehall:

Super Cat

Cutty Ranks

Elephant Man

Bounty Killer

Beenie Man

Capleton

Dub:

Agustus Pablo

King Tubby

The Congos

  On 1/7/2011 at 5:51 AM, tontonz said:

I'll be DJing a specialty show for my campus radio station and part of my show will be how jazz/reggae/soul have become influential to many of today's artists ranging from Hip-Hop to tem idmz to Psychedelic and etc. etc. I really enjoy Jazz, but haven't dived into the deep end of the pool yet. Have pretty much just scratched on Thelonious Monk, Mingus, Coltrane, and Dolphy, would appreciate any recommendations on essential jazz albums/artists that you think I should bring onto the show.

I also need some recommendations on reggae artists as I have not delved very deeply into it either. I've got Lee Scratch Perry's Arkology, Max Romeo's War In A Babylon, Lone Ranger stuff, Pete Tosh stuff, and the Marley's.

A very weak library of the two genres and would very much like to get acquainted with more chillin artists. If anyone has any additions they think I should add, please let me know! Much 'ppreciated

seriously are you trolling here?

Here are some of my faves...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5JHGi0awgchttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVpV71SVpZM&feature=&p=3BD43E05FBD7345E&index=0&playnext=1http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EuQyuTvwn1Uhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mbsiogt8SlEhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KS6bVTYRh-whttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_4Q2KyCr54

  On 1/7/2011 at 5:51 AM, tontonz said:

I also need some recommendations on reggae artists as I have not delved very deeply into it either. I've got Lee Scratch Perry's Arkology, Max Romeo's War In A Babylon, Lone Ranger stuff, Pete Tosh stuff, and the Marley's.

A very weak library of the two genres and would very much like to get acquainted with more chillin artists. If anyone has any additions they think I should add, please let me know! Much 'ppreciated

Any good show in regards to Jamaican music should be heavy on deeper cuts. You're on the right idea in regards to artists (please don't play any Marley "hits" though, I'd only look into work by the Wailers or associated artists) and they all have huge discographies. I'd check into compilations, especially Trojan, and then maybe look into aquiring older, rarer vinyl of ska, rocksteady and reggae. The former option is probably the best means of beefing up your collection. Most dub artists (Lee Scratch Perry, Scientist, King Tubby) have massive discographies that should provide plenty of tracks for your sets as well.

I live in a town with two really good Jamacian music shows, check out their playlists:

Jamaican Gold - heavier on vinyl singles of rocksteady and ska, and rare dub

When Roots Attack! - mostly dub, he plays classic dancehall as well

Good luck!

Count Basie

Duke Ellington

for some big band jazz stuff

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers have got some bangin' tracks

this one should get you some props

yeah, this should definitely be two separate threads.

reggae/dub:

jacob miller

king tubby

keith hudson

scientist

jazz:

coltrane

miles

parker

mingus

monk

lateef

roland kirk

sun ra

weldon irvine

tribe records - phil ranelin, martin belgrave, wendell harrison

so many more. fuck, i hate threads like these. now i can't stop trying to think of more

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbiaCF_qsrg

Classic!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-YNiSinlWM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=42Ia9yan5mA

Most of my favorite reggae/dub artists have been mentioned, on the jazz side, don't forget Pharaoh Sanders and Bill Evans.

Mr. Scruff and St. Germain are my favs

king tubby

medeski, martin & wood

sun ra arkestra

and maybe even throw in some old critters buggin

fuck totally forgot about these jazz cats

ornette coleman - easy suggestion but i actually haven't heard a LOT out of coleman other than Free Jazz, and his contributions to...

james blood ulmer! (check out The Tales of Captain Black, and Harmolodic Guitar with Strings, both released on DIW)

arthur blythe (check out Illusions if you can find it, possibly on vinyl only)

albert ayler (holy ghost box set is a nice, exhaustive download summing this guy up)

and on the extreme end of free jazz you can find guys like

peter brotzmann (machine gun is worth checking out)

john zorn (eh he has so much shit, but people always suggest naked city)

ken vandermark (pretty safe actually)

other modern new york jazz - tim berne, jim black (a personal favorite), chris speed - basically everything on this label, Winter & Winter, is pretty good, give or take a few releases.

  On 1/8/2011 at 4:40 AM, Fishtank said:

Mr. Scruff and St. Germain are my favs

there is absoultely nothing wrong with playing some of Marley's hits. They are great songs. As long as you don't represent all of reggae with bob marley lol.

Anyways people have mentioned most of the important reggae artists, really the trojan box sets are a fantastic introduction.

But can't forget about some of the great shit that came out in the 90s

I'm more into what happened when jazz, soul and funk met in mid seventies...

My favs...

George Duke

Roy Ayers

Lenny White

Norman Connors

Lonnie Liston Smith

Leroy Burgess

Pharaoh Sanders

Grover Washington Jr.

Gato