Smooth Jazz
The fusion of the late 1970s eventually gave way to the critically derided but commercially successful genre of smooth jazz. Kenny G was the leading man of smooth jazz. He first came to the public's attention as the saxophonist Kenny Gorelick of The Jeff Lorber Fusion before he abbreviated his name and broke out on his own to dominate the jazz charts with flowing, comfortable, and safe recordings that defined the smooth jazz sound. The enormous popularity of smooth jazz led many listeners to identify it as the sound of jazz itself, as it became the most visible public face of jazz in the 1980s and 1990s.
The term “smooth jazz” describes the commercially successful, though critically mocked, jazz genre that emerged in the 1970s, became the best-selling jazz style by the 1980s, and the fastest-growing radio format in the 1990s. The smooth jazz sound is melodic and predictable, typically employing the diatonic harmonic progressions and simple formal structures of pop music. The primary difference between smooth jazz and pop is replacing the pop music vocal part in smooth jazz with a saxophone, guitar, or other lead instrument (such as Kenny G on saxophone in Babyface’s song " Everytime I Close My Eyes ,” 1996). Smooth jazz replaces the virtuosic solos typically heard in traditional jazz by ornamented melody variations that seldom stray far from their original contour and usually employ a steady medium-tempo funk or rock rhythm in 4/4 (common meter). Occasionally, a ballad will incorporate a slower tempo and blues or soul rhythm (listen to " Irresistible Bliss ," 1999 with Chris Botti on trumpet). Faster tempos, uncommon meters, or swing rhythms rarely make an appearance. Characteristic instrumentation includes a standard rhythm section of drums, electric bass, electric guitar, and electric keyboards. A solo instrument (usually saxophone or guitar) is typically assigned the role of stating the melody and providing solo variations (listen to " Blues Bird ," 1992 with Larry Carlton on guitar).
Smooth jazz also embraces modern musical and recording technology. For example, it employs synthesizers, digital sampling, multitracked string and brass sections, digital reverb and delay, and compression to "sweeten" the recorded sound and achieve a uniform consistency free from surprise, distortion, and dissonance (listen to " Creepin" 1998 with Gerald Albright on saxophone).