What are the 'Jazz standards'

[Dad3353]

... and the winner is...

Some great stuff there (and from only one 'standard'; think of all the myriads of others there are out there..!).
Sarah Vaughan, for the sheer restrained beauty of the voice; puts to shame just about all of these modern 'r&b' pop 'singers'.
Joe Pass for the exuberant humour and over-the-top 'flashiness'; a flagrant abuse of his undeniable talent. 'Alf Garnett jazz'; who'd 'ave thought it, eh..? Cheeky blighter..!
This NHOP, though..!

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5JNRkEkx6HQ[/media]

What a monster..! A lesson for those whose drummer says that one can only play drums loudly, or a guitarist who can't get 'tone' without cranking his stack (Oh err, Matron..!). Sublime authority, bags of tone, sober musicality, virtuoso mastering of the instrument and arrangement. Wonderful stuff.

Long live the 'standards' if that's what can be done with 'em, I say. One doesn't have to play them (nor even like the genre, if indeed 'genre' there be...), but there's so much to learn, and enjoy learning, from these. There's not enough time in a dozen lifetimes to absorb 1% of what's out there. Giddy stuff.
Thanks for posting those, and long live rock'n'roll.

Edited September 29, 2015 by Dad3353

[Hector]

[quote name='TrevorR' timestamp='1443474758' post='2875135']
Exactly...here are a few examples that show the variation you can get from one standard/tune... Stella By starlight
[/quote]

This is my current favourite version, from Robert Glasper:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-VY-zs2eiY

[bassace]

Steve, that's a great resource and not just for 'starters'

[Mykesbass]

[quote name='Maude' timestamp='1443464333' post='2874980']
You'll have to excuse my ignorance here as this genre is most certainly not my cup of tea.
Are these songs generally looked at in the same light as all the 'rock cover band' standards that all pub audiences love but most folks on here recoil at the very mention of, dakota, sex on fire, mustang sally etc?
The way the Jazz standards have been described above makes them seem like they're the same old same old that every other jazz band churns out.
Not looking to cause trouble, genuinely interested in how they are regarded.
[/quote]

It is actually a very good point you raise, and I don't think it should cause any trouble. The biggest difference, IMO is that the standards are songs written by songwriters for general consumption. These were sold as sheet music - topline, chords and lyrics - sometimes a more involved piano arrangement. Sales of sheet music made up the first pop charts, so it was very much encouraged by the publishers for as many performers to perform their own version of the song. The big change came once the Beatles made it essential that bands wrote their own material. From then on, the final recorded version of the song, rather than the bare bones of the written sheet music became the template for others to copy, which is where I feel the difference between a Standard and a Cover lies.

Sorry about the ramble

[Pukie]

Thank you all very much for the really helpful replies.

#1 Jazz Album now downloaded - but I am having trouble listening to it without thinking about John Thompson on the Fast Show.

Thanks for introducing me to the world of 'Real' books I'd never heard of them before. That all looks too serious for me though, I just wanted to play a few 'essential' tunes. Anyway now I have a list and some on-line resources to get me started.

[Dad3353]

[sharedmedia=core:attachments:167485]

[skywalker]

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1443522929' post='2875439']
Steve, that's a great resource and not just for 'starters'
[/quote]

Hi Roger

Long time no see, how are you these days??. I have been in France for 4 years now where there is a massive shortage of bass players in all genres so I get to play all sorts of stuff that I never tried before. Oh... and sometimes the sun shines.


Steve