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Overview

During the late 1960s and into the 1970s, there were many approaches to labeling jazz. These include jazz-rock, soul-jazz, jazz-funk or funky jazz, jazz-rock fusion, or the generic or all-encompassing term fusion. Moreover, there were different opinions as to the initial trailblazers that inspired these approaches to jazz.

Be ready to:

Identify several musicians who recorded and performed with Miles Davis who went on to form successful groups.

List the constituent sections of Birds of Fire by John McLaughlin's Mahavishnu Orchestra.

Identify several artists in soul-jazz.

Compare and contrast differences between jazz-rock and fusion with smooth jazz.

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Well-Known Jazz Fusion Performers and Their Song's Tendency Towards Soul-Jazz, Jazz-Funk, or Both

ARTIST	SOUL-JAZZ FEATURES	JAZZ-FUNK FEATURES
George Benson	" Big Fat Lady♫ ," (1966) The organ playing gospel harmonies; The use of the honking saxophone (01:30) at times similar to rhythm and blues; Improvisational organ solo similar to gospel singers (starting at 02:19); The guitar and saxophone playing in unison from the beginning to 00:40, reminiscent of soul music vocalists.
George Duke		Back to Where We Never Left♫," (1976) Syncopated groves throughout the song; The use of synthesizers; The effects and syncopated electric bass; Synchronization between electric bass and kick drum.
Herbie Hancock	" Maiden Voyage♫," (1965) The use of all acoustic instruments, piano, bass, drums, brass and trumpet, and saxophone instruments; The use of specific tonal centers that produce a reflective emotion; The use of saxophone, trumpet, and piano solos emphasizing solo virtuosity; The use of embellishing and chromatic chords; The use of dynamics such as legato and staccato notes, volume, sparse and thick texture (i.e., at times only a few instruments play, while at other times all six members are playing).	" Watermelon Man♫," (1973) Consists of several syncopated groves throughout the song; The use of synthesizers; Scratch guitar sound; Syncopated electric bass; Synchronization between electric bass and kick drum. " Chameleon♫," (1973) Same as above with these additions: Staying mainly on one harmonic groove except for a bridge (at 03:20); Synthesized and syncopated electric bass; Brass and woodwind riffs on second song; Extended synthesized keyboard solo with different sound effects.
Ramsey Lewis	" Wade in the Water♫," (1966) The use of all acoustic instruments, piano, bass, drums, brass, and woodwind instruments; The use of less embellished chords (such as augmented and diminished and raised and lowered pitches within major and minor chords); As a spiritual song, it uses more straightforward harmonies than in funk-jazz.
Jimmy Smith	" Midnight Special♫," (1961) The use of all acoustic instruments, organ, saxophone, guitar, bass, and drums; The use of the twelve-bar blues progression; I-IV-V with flat seventh blues chords/harmony; The song begins with the organ playing the main melody from 00:00 to 00:33, then the saxophone enters with the main melody: the organ plays an improvisational solo from 02:41 to 05:52.

Wynton Marsalis

Jazz music is America's past and its potential, summed up and sanctified and accessible to anybody who learns to listen to, feel, and understand it. The music can connect us to our earlier selves and to our better selves-to-come. It can remind us of where we fit on the time line of human achievement, an ultimate value of art.

Mahalia Jackson

Gospel music is nothing but singing of good tidings-spreading the good news. It will last as long as any music because it is sung straight from the human heart.