[Dixielandjazz] What gets counted as jazz - Was, "Was Jazz ever popular music?

[Steve Barbone]

Charles Suhor <csuhor at zebra.net> (polite snip)
 
> I'm not sure if we're disagreeing, either, Rocky. I just don't know
> what Ken Burns' researchers were counting as "jazz" in their report on
> record sales. In those days, as I noted earlier, innumerable
> ragtimey/pre-Mickey bands were working and recording and would almost
> surely be catalogued as jazz.

Good point as it relates from the 1920s to the 1930s. In fact, good point as
it relates to the 1990s and the 21st century. e.g.

1) Kenny G is classified, and judged by most people (who don't know any
   better), as a "Jazz" musician.

2) Kenny G. has sold over 75 million albums.

3) Therefore Kenny G is the most popular jazz artist ever.

Whoa, not so fast.

Kenny G. does not consider himself a jazz player. Never has. He considers
himself to be a player of "instrumental pop" and has said so many times.
Those quotes from him are readily available in the media. Yet many media
hacks, as well as jazz musos like Pat Metheny keep judging him and downing
him, quite unfairly, as an inept "jazz" musician.

Then again, ODJB's Margie with Palesteena on the flip side, was the largest
selling record of it's time. Back then (1920's) Jazz may have been the
largest segment of popular music. But definitely not so in the 1930s.

Then again, Duke Ellington was beyond category. He did not consider his big
band as a jazz band. The general public and media hacks are pretty much
split on that issue also. Similar questions often arise about whether or not
the big bands of Glenn Miller, Tommy Dorsey and even Stan Kenton were
playing "jazz".

Conclusions? Very difficult to define jazz. Kenny Davern liked to say it was
like asking 10 different people "What does God look like. You get 10
different answers. What is Jazz?", he'd continue, "Stupid question for which
there is no answer, only ceaseless argument."

No wonder Pop's liked answer the question "What is Jazz" when asked by a
musician: "Jazz? It's what you are."

Cheers,
Steve Barbone