[hyperpia]

I'm something of a newbie, too. so Thanks for the great info your guys list here.

[WntrMute2]

But when it comes to jazz,  I know NOTHING and never have.  ZIP.  I've heard of Miles Davis      At a thrift store yesterday I bought a cd of Peter Leitch Quartet called "Say What you Mean," brought it home and liked it.   Oh no,  this might turn into something   But where to start?   I use Pandora to learn about music that's new to me......but there's like 7 different categories just for Jazz.

A good friend of mine told me.  "Follow the sidemen"  So pick one or two albums from the list above and once you find a sound you like,  jot down the players on that album.  For instance, The Miles Davis Quintet  Miles Smiles would lead you to the phenomenal bass player Ron Carter, the incredible Herbie Hancock and the incomparable Wayne Shorter.   The Turnaround by Hank Mobley leads one to Paul Chambers, Philly Joe Jones, Herbie Hancock (again), Donald Byrd and Freddie Hubbard.   It has worked great for me. 

[JLM]

I own "Jazz for Dummies."  It came with a sample CD, a long list of recommended albums, and gives a good overview of the history/development of jazz.  The Ken Burns DVD series on jazz is another excellent reference.  I also own several of the Ken Burn CD's.  Any number of sites can be used to sample and purchase downloads or new/used CDs.

[MJK]

Many years ago I bought this book on Jazz.

The 101 Best Jazz Albums: A History of Jazz on Records by Len Lyons

You can find new and used copies on Amazon, or maybe your local library has a copy you can borrow. It breaks the history of Jazz down into different eras/styles and recommends the author's top 101 albums spanning the history of Jazz from around 1900 to about 1970 if I remember correctly.

Each chapter is an interesting read which tells you a little about what was going on at the time and who the key players were. At the end of each chapter a list of recommended recordings is included so there are 100's to choose from. Prices of Jazz CD's on e-Bay are at an all time low and almost everything is available. There are many $10-$15 dollar CD boxes from Real Gone Jazz with 6 to 10 albums of material by the top artists of the 50's and 60's that are all good.

With this book and e-Bay you could have a good collection of great Jazz recordings very quickly.

[InfernoSTi]

I would recommend picking up Patricia Barber "Modern Cool" (and/or "Companion").   

Mind you, of the great lists above, I like The Bill Evans Trio best, so keep that in mind...

John

[Rocket]

Hi Guys,

I think Ken Burns did a documentary on the history of jazz which is quite interesting.  There is phrasing that is unique to jazz compared to other genre's of music.  The 2nd and 4th beat is accented and when playing with a band a musician needs to listen to the top hat of the drummer to help keep in time.

I play trumpet in a big band and I find jazz so difficult to play but it is so much fun. Classical music is far easier.

Cheers Rod

[Doublej]

Find yourself a few streaming internet radio stations and listen. That will get you into the scene.

WBGO, WRTI and KCSM are a few of my favorites.

[Starchild]

Take a look at this link:
http://www.allaboutjazz.com/php/article_center.php?in_type=72