jazztalk.net

Picking up on Blue Train's tagline (and a Duke Ellington quote), what's "the other kind" of music for you?

is this a brawl?

not much use for rap, country (except hank), most pop, opera (though i have played in a couple), and can't stand 'amazing grace'.

randalljazz wrote:is this a brawl?

Not my intention....though I'm not likely to be the guy to jump in to stop a brawl.

I just wanted to explore. Lots of people use and accept the premise of the Ellington quote, but I suspect there isn't a lot of agreement on what it "means" (where the alluded to dividing lines are), even among those of us who share common love for that ill-defined thing named "jazz".

I think there's a distinction between music that doesn't float one's boat and "the other kind" (bad music)

I don't really relate to Opera or Rap, but I wouldn't say all or even most of it is bad musically. In fact I think most Opera is probably excellent musically.


I think I'd chose death metal with singers who sound like possessed dogs barking. And some commercial country (soppy pop with cowboy hats and or putridly cliched lyrics) is awful. Some (purer forms) of country Music absolutely wonderful.

It should also be mentioned that in the famed quote "There are two kinds of music. Good music, and the other kind, " Duke was suggesting that there is good and bad music in all musical genres, not that some genres are good and some bad. Similarly he was saying one shouldn't judge music by it's genre.

Scott Dolan wrote:I've been starting to get an ear for Opera in recent years. It will never be one of my favorite styles, but I can appreciate the talent and intensity of Opera singers.

If I had to choose one example of the phenomenon you describe, opera would be it. I have no taste for it, but it's undoubtedly not BAD music. It's legitimate art that provokes an emotional reaction from me. Like late-period Billie, the reaction happens to be "ouch".

steve(thelil) wrote:It should also be mentioned that in the famed quote "There are two kinds of music. Good music, and the other kind, " Duke was suggesting that there is good and bad music in all musical genres, not that some genres are good and some bad. Similarly he was saying one shouldn't judge music by it's genre.

That's how I always understood it to mean. I am all over with genres and sub-genres. It's basically what we learned from Pops.


To answer the question.

Most of what ends up on the Billboard list, MTV (or, other video music channels.), the vast majority of Grammy winners (Pick a category and you can pick a better list in each one). It's like the Oscars.

steve(thelil) wrote:It should also be mentioned that in the famed quote "There are two kinds of music. Good music, and the other kind, " Duke was suggesting that there is good and bad music in all musical genres, not that some genres are good and some bad. Similarly he was saying one shouldn't judge music by it's genre.

Agreed.

Whatever's playing in the next apartment.

Shit kick, Hawaiian, Bluegrass, Reggae (booring!), most pop, whatever they call this thumpa thumpa shit they play these days and Kurt Elling.

A. Kingstone wrote:Whatever's playing in the next apartment.

....or at my office.
Those in charge in charge of the tuner at the most tone deaf collection of MFers I've ever run into....nothing short of BRUTAL, and on top of that they put the volume too loud.