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Revision as of 09:38, 21 August 2007

Jazz rap is a fusion of alternative hip hop and jazz, developed in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Known for intellectual, often socio-political or Afrocentric lyrics and jazz beats (sometimes performed by a live band, instead of sampled), jazz rap has sells primarily to a small fan base.

History

Proto-hip hop, jazzy poet Gil Scott-Heron introduced some elements of jazz rap. In 1988, Gang Starr released his debut singles ("Words I Manifest", which samples Charlie Parker) and Stetsasonic ("Talkin' All That Jazz", which samples Lonnie Liston-Smith). In 1989, Starr's debut LP, No More Mr. Nice Guy, his tracks on the soundtrack of Mo' Better Blues and De La Soul's debut 3 Feet High and Rising further popularized the jazz rap style. De La Soul's cohorts in the Native Tongues Posse also released jazzy albums, including the Jungle Brothers' debut Straight Out the Jungle (1988, 1988 in music) and A Tribe Called Quest's debut, People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm (1990, 1990 in music).

A Tribe Called Quest's follow-up, The Low End Theory (1991), had only a modest jazz influence, but it was a critical success, earning praise from jazz bassist Ron Carter, (who played double bass on one track). Though jazz rap had achieved little mainstream success, jazz legend Miles Davis' final album (released in 1992 posthumously), Doo-Bop, was based around hip hop beats and collaborations with producer Easy Mo Bee.

Davis' ex-bandmate Herbie Hancock also returned to hip hop in the mid-nineties (after helping to kickstart the genre in the early 1980s with his single Rockit). Hancock released the album Dis Is Da Drum. Jazz musician Branford Marsalis collaborated with Gang Starr's DJ Premier on his Buckshot LeFonque project. Concurrently, Digable Planets' Reachin' (A New Refutation of Time and Space) a cohesive album of jazz rap was released. Recordings by Freestyle Fellowship and Aceyalone fuse jazz with hip hop, by including jazz elements such as unusual time signatures and scat-influenced vocals.

In early 2000, Guru's Jazzmatazz project, used live jazz musicians in the studio. Its three volumes it assembled jazz luminaries like Freddie Hubbard, Donald Byrd, Courtney Pine, Herbie Hancock, Kenny Garrett and Lonnie Liston Smith and hip hop performers such as Kool Keith, MC Solaar and Guru's Gangstarr colleague DJ Premier. The Roots, a live band that includes MC Black Thought had a modest jazz influence. English alto saxophone player and MC Soweto Kinch had a jazz-influenced debut album Conversations With The Unseen in 2003.

Notable artists and albums

Notable jazz samples

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