Gary wrote: More to the point, though, the thread is not necessarily to learn to appreciate traditional swing, but rather to educate myself about your collective opinion on neoswing.
We would all do well to remind ourselves of this, rather than pee all over your love of something.
I understand that jazz is more cerebral than rock - not necessarily by the nature of the genres themselves (as strictly defined, by their rhythms (yes?)), but rather by how they have developed - and am curious as to how you all came to appreciate it. Did you grow up with jazz? Are you music students? Did you grow up with rock (or C&W, or pop, or whatever) and immediately reject the sound? Did you like rock at first but at some point naturally gravitate toward swing and jazz?
I don't think jazz is more cerebral than rock. Jazz is a very broad category, as is rock. You have to remind yourself that jazz was considered the rock of its day -- popular, horrifyingly risque to parents, and the source of youthful corruption.
I think it is easier these days, however, to be a rock musician than a jazz musician because rock (and some neo) requires less technique to create acceptable-to-the-audience music. This is basically because fans of jazz music are much more critical of technique and feeling. You will rarely hear a rock band criticized for barely being able to play their instruments. In fact, sometimes it is a source of pride.
I grew up listening to 50s rock and roll and classical music. Then in high school I discovered 80s pop and rock overall. Then in college I discovered heavy metal, industrial, blues, and techno. Then after I graduated I began to appreciate bluegrass, jazz, and all sorts of other genres. So no, I did not grow up a jazz fan, but once I discovered it, I wanted to learn as much about it as possible. When I was in college I owned a few Charlie Parker albums and didn't really understand jazz. But at some point I discovered that I had a tape of the Count Basie Orchestra, a compilation that spanned his entire career, and I thought every single track on the tape was catchy as hell.
Then I was informed you could dance to it...
It is my responsibility, first and foremost, and above all else, not to suck.
To do this, you have to know what your audience wants. It sounds like you're on the right track though.
LindyChef wrote:
It sounds to me like you really enjoy the rock and roll beat. With that interest, I suspect you might be better off looking into the rockabilly community rather than the lindy community. Have you checked out that scene?
Way to be welcoming. :D
Gary, a few of us dislike neo intensely but most of us own it and would probably DJ it occasionally if the situation were right. As you pointed out, most of us DJ for a very different audience than you do. Our tastes have changed from when we first began dancing ... often in many wildly different directions.
In my opinion if you want to get to know swing music more, you should sit down for a listening session with someone who is fanatically enthusiastic about it (without being a dillhole). Their enthusiasm might prove contagious, at least a little bit.