And when I was finished,this came into my head.



I'd be almost willing to bet money that more households in the black community have Jay-Z & Nelly records than Charles Mingus or Coltrane records,hopefully I'm wrong,but if I'm not,what an example you're setting for your children.
See,it worries me that in the future,there will no more INSTRUMENTALISTS,because all the future children(especially the black ones)will all want to be rappers when they grow up,because for whatever reason they'll grow up ONLY hearing rap.Of course,they're not going to want to be drummers,cause they never heard a drum solo,not going to want to be trumpeters,cause they were never exposed to Miles,or never experienced an acoustic bass solo.
And don't even get me started on all the brothers & sisters who slept on Jimi!


I can see it now- its 2020,some elementary school kid says "I want to be a bassist,like Mingus & Ron Carter",another kid says "What the heck is a Mingus?",the first kid says "Charles Mingus-the great musician/bandleader/composer/thinker." And the other kid says "Nobody plays instruments anymore,that's cornball,everybody raps now.".
Hey,it could happen!

Sorry,but I'm not going to waste good money supporting common thugs who are participating in the destruction of black music & music in general.The reason I am focusing on jazz musicians in this essay,is cause last night,I spent hours listening to a program dedicated to Coltrane on a wonderful public radio station,and thinking about how many people will grow up and may live to be 100,and may never hear Alabama,but can recite the words to some 50 cent "song".


And if you wanna call me "bouche" or a snob because I'd rather listen to jazz then rap,then you obviously don't get what I'm saying,anyway!

Don't worry about the music. It'll be there. Perhaps rap is a necessary step in the evolution. The music has always been a reflection of the people so I'd be more concerned with the people.

Guess this went over your heads.

gypsyfire said:

O.K. that's not true. I'm a young African-American from the 'hood, but I play guitar and I'm studying Jazz and I play Rock/Funk. I know of some others from around my may that play instruments. I mean, yeah, the many outweigh the few, but it sounds like you're saying that no one from my generation (or simply the hip-hop generation) wants to honor the legacy of Jazz, Blues, etc.

Also, if you listen to Hip-Hop now, some acts are picking up instruments and playing live. In fact, many hip-hop acts go out on tour with a backing band. I saw Outkast a couple of years ago and they had 2 guitarists, for example. Or what about The Roots? They're supposedly the best live Hip-Hop act and they use live instruments. Plus you hear a lot more acoustc guitars in rap songs and stuff, so they're not out of touch with music itself.

But I do hear what you're saying. Back then, Funk & R&B groups had instrumentalists as well as singers, but how many cats from this generation do you see doing that? Hopefully I'll be one of the few to bring it back. Also I think there should be some more appreciation for Jazz among the future genereations. But that's why there's music education. But then again, music education isn't financailly supported enough, unfortunately, which is ultimately why you even make this sort of complaint.

gypsyfire said:

Feeling you.

I love "Alabama" too.

I'm sure "SOME" people felt that way about classical music too.

gypsyfire said:

Jay Z and Nelly's music will crumble to dust and be blown away by a sneeze - Coltrane, Mingus, Miles, Monk, Bird, Dizzy, Duke Ellington, Satchmo ... they're here for the duration.

NWF said:

I'm impressed,and yes I know about some hip-hop acts using live instruments.(The Roots,etc.)

I am feelin ya on this one. Many rappers give credit to the Jazz masters, but the fail to explain the importance. I go to a lot of Jazz clubs in the US and I see very few young black people there. The audiences at nightclubs where DJs play old jazz and soul as well as funk is more than 90 percent white. It saddens me. I have DJed all-black-clubs in the past and been called names because I played old music instead of Brandy, etc. Hip Hop currently has the largest impact on black music, the rappers really need to take responsibility and educate.

Btw, Coltrane makes me cry too..

Don't worry! my dad influenced me and i hope to influnce my daughter and everything honestly made prevails but i still listen to hip-hop, funk, jazz all in equal measure. What does worry me is when some people are completely narrow minded to any other kind of music, i've met too many prince fans who only listen to prince, thats bizarre when you think of how many influences he's had and the different kinds of music he's produced (just check out question 7 on timefan's thread survey). my question is do you think more fans would enjoy 'n.e.w.s' if it was another madhouse album?. By the way there's nothing better than 'A love supreme' first thing on a sunday morning

There is currently (Ok, not in the charts, but still) a clear comeback to instruments in black music, even in rap BTW (Neptunes, Andre 3000 to some extent): Questlove, C.Chesnut, D'Angelo, R.Saadiq, just to name a few, are clear and successful examples.

So the bottom line is: don't worry, great music will never die!

PS: Coltrane, Jimi, Prince = my 3 favorite artists of all time, Coltrane also made me cry a few times (I remember at least one version of Naima)