Lots of times i`ve have seen orgers saying that new jack swing is funky .

On the other hand i have seen some funk

fans complaining about their favorite bands

like Midnight Star,Bar Keys and many other funk

bands going new jack.

For me personally i do like some

of the new jack swing

and i do find some of itg funky like Remember The Time by Michael

but i do find new jack sound to be to clean

and sanitized and very limited.

seems like everybodythat went new jack swing lost their indentity except Cameo maybe.

I never really liked New Jack Swing and most of those songs sound horribly dated now.

It is rooted in funk. Funk begat new jack swing.

SoulAlive said:

Is New Jack Swing funky?

No. Next question.

Funky...hmmm...It certainly WAS funky! The first example of NJS that I can recall off the top of my head was Johnny Kemp's anthemic, "Just Got Paid." I found NJS 2b a tad too tinny and noisy (at times;) Too much treble and not enuff bass. There were also elements of it that possessed crashy-sounding sonics if that makes sense; a good example of this would be Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative" or Janet Jackson's "State Of The World" or "The Knowledge;" her output was mo' BETTA tho! Also, hit recordings from Teddy Riley/Gene Griffin, especially those of the band, Guy. One of my favorite NJS songs, however is "Ain't No Cookin' " by Stephanie Mills (written & produced by Gene Griffin.) Momma KILLED that jam with all her hyper-vocal riffs and adlibs! Otherwise, it was more like a "flavor of the day" kind of sound, as was Jam & Lewis' work with The S.O.S. Band (1983-1986). I can't really put my finger on it, but let it suffice 2 say that it was popular, busy, noisy and thin. If anyone got close to the NJS sound in the decades that followed, I'd say Rich Harrison, as a producer, was very warm. He turned up the percussion and gave it a more full-bodied sound. Correct me if I'm wrong or if anyone disagrees. Happy Holidays and much LUV! <3

[Edited 12/18/18 18:11pm]

S2DG said:

I think swung notes have more in common with jazz. Funk was designed to hit on the one - that's what Papa's brand new bag was. I'm not sure that ALWAYS happens in New Jack Swing, especially where a perfect drum machine is in place, but it depends on the programmer.

whitechocolatebrotha said:

Rich Harrison, as a producer, was very warm

he sampled funk

New Jack Swing is supposed to be a mix of things anyway (gospel, funk, R&B, hip hop)

Source: inventor Teddy Riley

Cinny said:

New Jack Swing is supposed to be a mix of things anyway (gospel, funk, R&B, hip hop)

Source: inventor Teddy Riley

Sorry, I guess it is funk then...WTF do I know?

I don't know why I still care about categories of music any more.

I love music, either I feel it and I like it or I don't feel it so I don't like it. Country, Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues, Classical, all of it falls into this category for me.

With that said, I love New Jack Swing and listen to those bands on a regular basis.

MotownSubdivision said:

I'd never describe new jack swing as "clean" sounding or sanitized.

Well, New Jack Swing was kind of the definition of sanitized... it's what happens when you mechanize and sanitize the elements of funk for a more pop audience. When you strip it of all the human elements that make funk great - the imperfections, the personality...

Not all New Jack Swing is awful, but a lot of it is/was soulless, mechanized and clean. Putting a crackle track on it or sampling a crackly track doesn't make something dirty.

S2DG said:

Cinny said:

New Jack Swing is supposed to be a mix of things anyway (gospel, funk, R&B, hip hop)

Source: inventor Teddy Riley

Sorry, I guess it is funk then...WTF do I know?

I don't know why I still care about categories of music any more.

I love music, either I feel it and I like it or I don't feel it so I don't like it. Country, Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues, Classical, all of it falls into this category for me.

With that said, I love New Jack Swing and listen to those bands on a regular basis.

Well what I mean is, it isn't the purest form of any of those genres. So hardline funkers might not find it funky enough, gospel listeners might find it too vulgar (soulful vocal be damned), too smooth for the hip hoppers, too hard for the quietstorm set.

Cinny said:

S2DG said:

Sorry, I guess it is funk then...WTF do I know?

I don't know why I still care about categories of music any more.

I love music, either I feel it and I like it or I don't feel it so I don't like it. Country, Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues, Classical, all of it falls into this category for me.

With that said, I love New Jack Swing and listen to those bands on a regular basis.

Well what I mean is, it isn't the purest form of any of those genres. So hardline funkers might not find it funky enough, gospel listeners might find it too vulgar (soulful vocal be damned), too smooth for the hip hoppers, too hard for the quietstorm set.

The categories are so ridiculously picked apart and reduced to bones, Cinny! OMG...I went on Amazon the other night just 2 have a peek at what might be coming out in Jan '19. I typed in R&B, but THEN, was met with all the effin' categories that didn't even make sense: Classic R&B, Classic Soul, Neo-Soul, Hip Hop Soul, etc...GOD! It was AGONIZING! Like Billboard back in the day; there was (when I was growin' up), Soul LP's. Then those became Black LP's and then Soul & R&B LP's, and then "Hip Hop & R&B" LP's. SO TIRED of the labels, and micro-labels of the same genre of music that was MUSIC!!! LOL! Happy HOLLA DAZE!!!! <3

Cinny said:

S2DG said:

Sorry, I guess it is funk then...WTF do I know?

I don't know why I still care about categories of music any more.

I love music, either I feel it and I like it or I don't feel it so I don't like it. Country, Hip Hop, Jazz, Blues, Classical, all of it falls into this category for me.

With that said, I love New Jack Swing and listen to those bands on a regular basis.

Well what I mean is, it isn't the purest form of any of those genres. So hardline funkers might not find it funky enough, gospel listeners might find it too vulgar (soulful vocal be damned), too smooth for the hip hoppers, too hard for the quietstorm set.

After I thought about what you said I understood where you were coming from.

Guilty of being a hardline funker but then I came around to what I posted here.

Like human beings, art and everything else, music is a mixing pot of cultures, ideas and everything that has come before. That's what makes it so beautiful and is exactly why I love most music.

I'm done with titles and genres. It's a limiting mind set that has done more harm than good.

Thanks for helping me see that.

I've always found new jack swing to be absolute shite. When I think of funk, I remember Chic, Earth Wind and Fire, The Blackbyrds, they were FUNK to the core. Now Teddy Riley, Johnny Gil and other acts cannot be compared to the real funksters. To each his own I suppose

I wasn't really a fan of it,either There are a few New Jack Swing songs that I like ("Groove Me" by Guy,"Right And Hype" by Abstrac) but I found most of it to be boring and formulaic.This era (late 80s) had me longing for the "real R&B" from the early 80s.

kanamit said:

I've always found new jack swing to be absolute shit

Got some New Jack from 1972 4 ya!

HrdwcH said: