Is jazz popular music?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.v1i1.7Keywords:
jazz studies, popular music, record salesAbstract
This paper addresses a paradox: as a matter of cultural and musical history jazz was clearly the most significant form of twentieth-century popular music and yet within the academy ‘popular music studies’ and ‘jazz studies’ are quite distinct scholarly associations and approaches. How can we account for this? Three lines of enquiry are followed: the history of popular music studies as a scholarly field; the current status of jazz in the marketplace; the attitude of jazz musicians and writers to ‘the popular’. It is concluded that if jazz scholars regard popular music studies as irrelevant to their concerns then for that very reason popular music scholars need to take account of jazz.
References
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Martin, Peter (2005) ‘The Jazz Community as an Art World: A Sociological Perspective’, The Source 2: 5–13.
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Morgenstern, Dan (1990) ‘The Evolution of Jazz’. In David N. Baker, ed., New Perspectives on Jazz. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 45–53.
Nicholson, Stuart (2005) Is Jazz Dead? (Or Has It Moved to a New Address). New York and London: Routledge.
Parsonage, Catherine (2004) ‘The Popularity of Jazz—an Unpopular Problem: The Significance of Swing When You’re Winning’, The Source 1: 59–79.
Rubin, Rachel and Malnick, Jeffrey (2001) American Popular Music. Boston, MA: University of Massachusetts Press.
Schuller, Gunther (1990) ‘The Influence of Jazz on the History and Development of Concert Music’. In David N. Baker, ed., New Perspectives on Jazz. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 9–27.
Stanbridge, Alan (2004) ‘Burns, Baby, Burns: Jazz History as a Contested Cultural Site’, The Source 1: 81–99.
Washburne, Christopher (2004) ‘Does Kenny G Play Bad Music?’ In Christopher Washburne and Maiken Derno, eds, Bad Music. New York and London: Routledge.
Becker, Howard S. (1951) ‘The Professional Dance Musicians and his Audience’, American Journal of Sociology 57/2: 136–44.
Brennan, Matt (2007) ‘Downbeat and Rolling Stone: An Historical Comparison of American Jazz and Rock Journalism’. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Stirling (Department of Film and Media).
Cunningham, Valentine (2005) ‘Jazz and the Oxford Boys’, Journal for the Study of British Cultures 12/2: 127–53.
Cuscuna, Michael (2005) ‘Strictly on the Record: The Art of Jazz and the Recording Industry’, The Source 2: 63–70.
DeVeaux, Scott (1995) Jazz in America: Who’s Listening? National Endowment of the Arts. Carson, CA: Seven Locks Press.
Fornäs, Johan (2003) ‘Swinging Differences, Reconstructed Identities in the Early Swedish Jazz Age’. In E. Taylor Atkins, ed., Jazz Planet. Jackson Mississippi: University of Mississippi Press, 207–71.
Frith, Simon (2004) Popular Music: Critical Concepts in Media and Cultural Studies. London and New York: Routledge.
——(2005) Review of Caber Records. Edinburgh: Scottish Arts Council.
Giddins, Gary (1990) ‘The Evolution of Jazz’. In David N. Baker, ed., New Perspectives on Jazz. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 33–44.
Gottlieb, Robert (1997) Reading Jazz. London: Bloomsbury.
Horowitz, Harold (1990) ‘The American Jazz Audience’. In David N. Baker, ed., New Perspectives on Jazz. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1–8.
MacDonald, Raymond and Wilson, Graeme (2005) ‘Musical Identities of Professional Jazz Musicians: A Focus Group Investigation’, Psychology of Music 33/4: 395–417.
Mandel, Howard (2005) ‘The History, Myths, Values and Practices of Jazz Journalists’, The Source 2: 71–75.
Martin, Peter (2005) ‘The Jazz Community as an Art World: A Sociological Perspective’, The Source 2: 5–13.
McKay, George (2005) Circular Breathing: The Cultural Politics of Jazz in Britain. Durham and London: Duke University Press.
Morgenstern, Dan (1990) ‘The Evolution of Jazz’. In David N. Baker, ed., New Perspectives on Jazz. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 45–53.
Nicholson, Stuart (2005) Is Jazz Dead? (Or Has It Moved to a New Address). New York and London: Routledge.
Parsonage, Catherine (2004) ‘The Popularity of Jazz—an Unpopular Problem: The Significance of Swing When You’re Winning’, The Source 1: 59–79.
Rubin, Rachel and Malnick, Jeffrey (2001) American Popular Music. Boston, MA: University of Massachusetts Press.
Schuller, Gunther (1990) ‘The Influence of Jazz on the History and Development of Concert Music’. In David N. Baker, ed., New Perspectives on Jazz. Washington and London: Smithsonian Institution Press, 9–27.
Stanbridge, Alan (2004) ‘Burns, Baby, Burns: Jazz History as a Contested Cultural Site’, The Source 1: 81–99.
Washburne, Christopher (2004) ‘Does Kenny G Play Bad Music?’ In Christopher Washburne and Maiken Derno, eds, Bad Music. New York and London: Routledge.
Published
2007-03-01
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Frith, S. (2007). Is jazz popular music?. Jazz Research Journal, 1(1), 7-23. https://doi.org/10.1558/jazz.v1i1.7
