Jazz didn't die, it was marketed: the truth about smooth jazz
We examine jazz's transition to smooth jazz in the 80s: conspiracy or just a record-label sales strategy to move more units?
English · Original discussion in Spanish · Published
Jazz didn't die, it was marketed: the truth about smooth jazz
Why did jazz go from the complexity of bebop to the irrelevance of smooth jazz in the 1980s? Far from being a lab conspiracy, the transition was a commercial purge orchestrated by record labels that needed a radio-friendly product for mass consumption.
The industry against the artist
In the forum we have dissected how figures like Bobby Hutcherson, a post-bop great, ended up adapting their sound to market demands. While traditional jazz demanded active listening and cultural background, smooth jazz was designed to be the perfect background music: relaxing, predictable and, above all, profitable. There was no secret institute, just a balance sheet dictating that funk and pop sold better than the avant-garde.
The straight-ahead holdouts
Not everyone gave in to pressure from the labels. Musicians of the caliber of Art Blakey, Dexter Relleniton or Sonny Rollins kept their artistic integrity, rejecting the electric, commercial sound. For them, jazz was a form of spiritual expression, not merchandise for the Quiet Storm format. The reality is that the general public never sought depth, only comfort, and the industry simply gave them what they asked for.
The question that remains is whether today, in the full age of the algorithm, there is any space left for music that refuses to be digested effortlessly. Is it possible to maintain artistic purity when the system rewards accessible mediocrity?
Related debates in the forum
Why did jazz go from the complexity of bebop to the irrelevance of smooth jazz in the 1980s? Far from being a lab conspiracy, the transition was a commercial purge orchestrated by record labels that needed a radio-friendly product for mass consumption.
The industry against the artist
In the forum we have dissected how figures like Bobby Hutcherson, a post-bop great, ended up adapting their sound to market demands. While traditional jazz demanded active listening and cultural background, smooth jazz was designed to be the perfect background music: relaxing, predictable and, above all, profitable. There was no secret institute, just a balance sheet dictating that funk and pop sold better than the avant-garde.
The straight-ahead holdouts
Not everyone gave in to pressure from the labels. Musicians of the caliber of Art Blakey, Dexter Relleniton or Sonny Rollins kept their artistic integrity, rejecting the electric, commercial sound. For them, jazz was a form of spiritual expression, not merchandise for the Quiet Storm format. The reality is that the general public never sought depth, only comfort, and the industry simply gave them what they asked for.
The question that remains is whether today, in the full age of the algorithm, there is any space left for music that refuses to be digested effortlessly. Is it possible to maintain artistic purity when the system rewards accessible mediocrity?
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Summary of a discussion on Burbuja.info - Foro de economía, actualidad y política., translated from Spanish and reviewed before publication. Read the full discussion (8 replies).
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