Musicians like to use the word "swing" as a delineator between good and bad music. It can apply to any genre, though, not just jazz. Nine Inch Nails swings; Marilyn Manson doesn't. Dwight Yoakam swings; Garth Brooks never did. James Taylor swings; Dan Fogelberg doesn't have a clue. True, the origins of the term are literally based in the loose, happy, sexy (yet rock solid) music of the golden age of jazz, but the verb "to swing" has come to connote something deeper and more instinctive.

Music that swings flows directly from the soul, instructed, surely, by the skill and discipline of art but unencumbered by the constraints of intellect. Music that swings reaches the listener's ears but is translated without pause to somewhere demonstrably more visceral - the heart, the feet, the loins - moving the listener to action. One cries, dances, or loves in response; to swing or be swung is not a passive experience.

Which, in a nutshell, is what is wrong with jazz today. Jazz in its prime was popular music. People lived their lives accompanied by a soundtrack of Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Billie Holiday, Glenn Miller, and Frank Sinatra. Today, jazz has become highbrow music, an intellectually longhaired pursuit, and the people have moved on to music that is more responsive to their needs - music that swings. The Duke said it best: it don't mean a thing if it ain't got that swing. Anything else is no more than pop froth or egg headed self-congratulation.

When I was younger, I struggled to discern why I responded to popular music (rock and soul) rather than jazz or classical. I used the aphorism that jazz is to classical what rock is to blues. This is a gross oversimplification, but it explains well my reaction. Jazz by that time had ceased to be an organic, folk-based art form. Much as classical music was once popular music - but had long since become the music of the privileged - jazz was co-opted by college professors and snobs. One did not dance at jazz concerts; one sat, listened, and appreciated.

On these pages, you will find the jazz that swings. Most of it was recorded at least 30 years ago, but that's just the way I see it. To true aficionados, jazz is still a living, breathing form, and I won't argue too hard. But, I know what I like, and I can't see spending life's fleeting moments on Wynton Marsalis when there are plenty of Miles Davis records to listen to. And smooth jazz? Don't get me started... Let's suffice to say that it's not really jazz, and to hear Kenny G name check John Coltrane as an "influence" makes me want to vomit prodigiously.

Truth be told, though, I am a relative jazz neophyte. As I write these pages, we will learn much together. I have a good grasp of jazz theory, but the specific proofs of this sweet science are still a bit of a mystery. I will be researching, collecting, and enjoying as I write, and I welcome you along for the adventure. Have some pointers? Drop me a line...

Randy Anthony

Take The 'A' Train...

The Jazz Bookshelf

• The History Of Jazz (Ted Gioia, 1998)
• Jazz: A History of America's Music (Geoffrey Ward & Ken Burns, 2000)
• Jazz 101: A Complete Guide to Learning and Loving Jazz (John Szwed, 2000)
• The Rough Guide To Jazz (Ian Carr, et al. 2004)
• The Penguin Guide To Jazz On CD (sixth edition, 2003)

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Jazz On The Web

• All Music Guide
• All About Jazz
• All About Jazz (from www.samedaymusic.com)
• 52nd Street
• Jazz Discography Project
• Jazz Education: A Timeline
• Jazz Review
• Ken Burns Jazz on PBS
• Jazz Folio
• NPR's Basic Jazz Record Library
• Red Hot Jazz Archive
• Google

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Feedback

Your witty comments, impertinent questions, helpful suggestions, and angry denials are altogether encouraged. Submit feedback via email; submissions will be edited and posted at my discretion.