Jazz for aficionados

O-10, great clip; loved it. What would I call it? R&B.   Some would refer to some R&B as "soul jazz".  
You said Hank Crawford was "soul jazz".

From Wiki (if you won’t take my word for it 😉):

++Soul music (often referred to simply as soul), is a popular music genre that originated in the United States in the late 1950s and early 1960s. It combines elements of African-American gospel music, rhythm and blues and jazz.++
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Also from Wiki:

++Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated as R&B or RnB, is a genre of popular music that originated in the 1940s.++

What do both descriptions have in common? "Popular". Isn’t that what I wrote? Actually, I said "leans toward pop". But, neither would I call jazz. That’s not to say Crawford didn’t sometimes play jazz; he did. The influence of R&B players on pop and Smooth Jazz players is undeniable; which is what I wrote. Thanks for the great clip.

Just listened to my one and only Hank Crawford CD.  A twofer.  Two LPs on one CD.   'Mr Blues' and 'Mr Blues plays lady Soul'.

No need for wiki.  Some of the tune list:

On a Clear Day
Route 66
Lonely Avenue
Soul Serenade
Ain't No Way
Baby I Love You
Going Down Slow

He plays a lot of popular music.  But it's a lot more Jazzy, and enjoyable, than most of the recent posts.   His tune selection, not his playing, reminds me of Houston Person or Bernard Purdie.  

Cheers

Both of the LPs I have are on you-tube.

I always thought Smooth Jazz meant,  no quarter, eighth, or sixteenth notes allowed.

As far-fetched as it sounds, I could be wrong.

Cheers

Never heard it described that way; funny 'though.  Frankly, I'm not sure I care; I just know that the vast majority of it sucks.  About the only genre of music that I find little value in....most of the time; some of it can be pleasant.

Admittedly kinda late to the party, but wanted to weigh in on this. I understand completely what @frogman is getting at; and for the record, I would call what's in @orpheus10 's Hank Crawford youtube post some form of soul jazz. No doubt, Hank was one of the best.

Also agree with observation about his influence on David Sanborn, although I never really thought about it that way. I caught Sanborn a few years back at Yoshi's San Francisco, and if I remember correctly, he gave homage to Maceo. My wife really likes him. We also saw Gerald Albright at the same venue, as he is one of her favorite artists (good show, BTW). You get the idea. At any rate, this seems to be a discussion about derivations on a theme  ... whether it's jazz-funk, smooth jazz, new jazz, or soul jazz for that matter. To me, there's jazz and then there is everything else. With all due respect, label it what you will, but please don't call it jazz. I mean no disrespect to any of the regulars on this thread. So please forgive me if that appears a little strong.

I have been incredibly blessed to have seen/heard many of the greats in this genre - from Adderley to Zawinul. One of my very early and fondest memories was being in the audience in '71 at a concert featuring Roland Kirk, Gerald Wilson, and Lee Morgan. Along the way there's been a sampling of so-called "smooth jazz" (which I enjoy) and soul jazz, like the stuff that CTI was putting out in the 70's and 80's. When I went to those clubs/shows to see/hear Hank Crawford, George Benson (when he first started singing), Stanley Turentine, Grover Washington, Esther Phillips, Johnny Hammond, and Lonnie Smith ... it was mostly because the women I dated at the time liked "new" jazz, but they didn't care for real jazz.

What always struck me were those times when Grover, George, or Stanley played some of their old stuff - "straight ahead" jazz ... I was really diggin' it. Then the crowd would grow restless and bored. But they came alive as soon as there was something you could clap to or snap your fingers. It was during those times that I came to realize that many of those artists played that type of music because it was generally more popular and therefore, more profitable. Think of the transitions Wes Montgomery and Bird made, playing popular music with strings in order to make a living.

As far as I can tell, so very few ever had much commercial success playing straight ahead jazz. Other than Miles or perhaps Herbie, I can't think of any. That is really a shame. Over the years, many Bay Area jazz-only clubs came and went ... like Kimball's, Keystone Korner, Jazz Workshop, El Matador, Mandrakes, The Both/And; and these all came well after the Black Hawk. I loved those places. Now Yoshi's SF is the latest casualty. They featured a mix of folks like Branford, Roy Hargrove, Terence Blanchard, as well as the Yellow Jackets and Spyro Gyra. But it's hard to remain commercially viable when Diana Krall is the only artist to sell out the place.

Well, I guess that's it. I'm pretty well "ranted out". Thanks for your time; and again, pardon me for hijacking the thread and going off on a bit of a tangent. I'll go back to the sidelines now and take in the commentary. You guys keep on doing what you're doing. It's much appreciated. Happy Listening!