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Hello: I would like to thank the forum administrators for giving me the opportunity to share my knowledge and concerns with so many wonderful music lovers. Thank you for accepting me. Regards from Valencia (España)

This Onion article from back in the day is a classic: https://theonion.com/no-one-sets-out-to-be-a-smooth-jazz-musician-1819584390/ I think that the most authentically interesting about smooth jazz proper is the intersection with the contemporary trends in "urban contemporary" R&B. From a British point of view, the likes of Incognito and Sade of some sort might have been the last time that jazz of some sort was in the charts. I'm always amazed at the love for Incognito (who I never really enjoyed) among both listeners of a certain age and also younger musicians. Every Incognito fan I have ever met regards himself or herself as a "jazz" fan. Sade is obviously having a big comeback at the moment among younger listeners, although that is perhaps more ambiguous in its relation to jazz. I was also interested to find out that the Fast Show's Jazz Club sketch ("Niiiiice!") which at the time I regarded as such an attack on jazz, was in fact intended by Johnny Thomson, who regarded himself as a big jazz fan, as some sort of purificatory distancing from the excesses of critically acclaimed jazz. His own music picks can be found here, and are clearly Fuzak-aligned: https://www.theguardian.com/music/2016/nov/11/john-thomson-london-jazz-festival-fast-show-cold-feet

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February 24 Vladimir Chekasin - 1947

Before there was "smooth jazz" there was "quiet storm", which was to me a genre that was created (initially) after the music had happened rather than vice-versa. Who among us does not like us some prime Anita Baker? Or...

Kevin, my hard drive is 930 gig, and I have rarely used 300g of it. Do you think I should try downloading ubuntu onto the half that is never used?

Sounds like an awesome project! NP Great sampler, even though I have almost all of the Sonny Rollins, still a treat to hear Gary Burton and Clark Terry.

After watching that Sun Ra documentary I'm going to give a hard "nah." Too many other artists out there like Ra that have fascinating stories and deserve to have more coverage and discussion. Maybe if there was more public control of the airwaves here we'd get stuff like that but that's a lament for elsewhere. Just seems like a waste of folks' time covering ground on smooth jazz at this point. If they are included, then more interesting to me would be discussion of the labels and corporate interests involved. Along with the origin of the genre name, what ROI were these producers expecting? Why were these artists attracted to it? Maybe there's a story there, because the whole thing seems more like a business venture than an artistic pursuit. Not trying to blame the artists here because I don't know their intentions, etc. But smooth jazz has to be the top revenue earner over other jazz genres right? And it seems like it's been that way for decades now. Maybe I'm wrong about that but they have the most cruises and air play. Here's a David Benoit soundcheck from 2012. Those drums might grab you but those melodies? It's more like "soft funk" to me but that label won't move product.

Several memorable groups recorded for Windham Hill Jazz, the Denny Zeitlin Trio and Turtle Island String Quartet both come to mind. But I've yet to hear any smooth jazz that held my interest, especially Bob James and Kenny G.

This again: Thanks.

Late, NP: This was part of the Virgin Classics "budget" line back in the day. Scooped up a ton of these, as they were priced under $10, plus the repackaging sleeve art was actually really slick. Still may be around and still affordable.

Haydn's Streichquartette's are some of the most beautiful music on earth, IMO. NP: On bequest of my wife:

featuring "etc."

Most recently saw him leading the Mingus Big Band in Dec 2023

Syd Arthur – "On An On"

Willie Jones III “Next Phase” WJ3 cd

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