# Smooth Jazz **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 16, 2015, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850 "2015-02-16T20:25:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/1 "2015-02-16T20:25:19Z")
Using the criteria presented at [Wikipedia – Smooth\_jazz](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smooth_jazz), along with your own definition and/or examples, try to identify your favorite Top Ten examples (with YouTube (or other) links) of the genre, either specific recordings or artists who specialize in the category. Also, how do you rank Smooth Jazz among your favorite types of music. Do you have a favorite radio station for listening to Smooth Jazz? ---
**Author:** ![gotpasswords](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c57346/32.png) [@gotpasswords](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gotpasswords)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/2 "2015-02-16T21:02:13Z")
IIRC, the San Francisco area pretty well abandoned the auditory form of Comic Sans a few years ago when KKSF changed formats. ---
**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/3 "2015-02-16T21:12:11Z")
It was a popular staple in the satellite-generic radio station market. May still be. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/4 "2015-02-16T21:15:47Z")
David Benoit and Acoustic Alchemy are two names that jump up in my mind. For a more pop version, Kenny G? I prefer more of a fusion sound for my Jazz. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/5 "2015-02-16T21:20:16Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > David Benoit and Acoustic Alchemy are two names that jump up in my mind. > > For a more pop version, Kenny G? > > I prefer more of a fusion sound for my Jazz. Well, shucks. I should have read your wiki link, avoided redundancy. [Not sure where I would classify one of my 80s faves](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UthpgAwGP-k) ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/6 "2015-02-16T21:25:37Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > For a more pop version, Kenny G? At the risk of thread-shitting: [“Kenny G is not jazz. He is the Anti-jazz.”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HnggdQWc8U) ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/7 "2015-02-16T21:26:59Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > [Not sure where I would classify one of my 80s faves](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UthpgAwGP-k) Very nice! Thanks. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/8 "2015-02-16T21:29:17Z")
🙂 > [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > At the risk of thread-shitting: [“Kenny G is not jazz. He is the Anti-jazz.”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HnggdQWc8U) Agreed! Best to get that out of the way right up front. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/9 "2015-02-16T21:31:34Z")
> [@Thudlow\_Boink](#): > > At the risk of thread-shitting: [“Kenny G is not jazz. He is the Anti-jazz.”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HnggdQWc8U) I don’t care for or against him. As background music for an art exhibit with wine and cheese tasting, he’s okay. For actual listening, K[irk Whalum](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrwNJFT8Gt8) isn’t a bad choice. I’m sure he probably counts as Smooth Jazz. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/10 "2015-02-16T21:33:06Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > David Benoit and Acoustic Alchemy are two names that jump up in my mind. > > For a more pop version, Kenny G? > > I prefer more of a fusion sound for my Jazz. I used to like Dave Benoit and Fourplay. Lee Ritenour would be in the same category. I think Acoustic Alchemy is usually in the “New Age” section at the music store, along with Ottmar Liebert. I don’t listen to any of them now, other than Benoit’s Christmas album, which is very good. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/11 "2015-02-16T21:36:34Z")
Yeah! Lots of crossover is what I recall. New Age, Fusion, etc… Even sounds like Enya and Basia get mixed in in my head. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/12 "2015-02-16T21:40:22Z")
Would all the “Magic 104 FM” radio stations of the 80s- 90s count? Houston had KMGQ or KMJQ ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/13 "2015-02-16T21:47:32Z")
Smooth Jazz is indeed too broad (and thus almost meaningless) as a category. But there are very few categories that either don’t overlap with other named genres or sub-genres, or are so specific that they only include a very few example participants. On top of that, at least in my own evaluation, almost every good Smooth Jazz musician or group has plenty of Non-Smooth recordings to keep from beiong pigeon-holed as Just Smooth. That’s the main point of this thread: to try to identify those sounds that people actually like hearing in spite of the vague label to the music. My best example would be George Shearing and his various “bags” over time. I’ve been a fan as long as I can remember and have accepted the various flavors his music took on. ---
**Author:** ![Grey\_area](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c5a1d2/32.png) [@Grey\_area](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey_area)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/14 "2015-02-16T21:48:09Z")
To sort of add to the pile-on… You might wanna try cool jazz instead. It’s what smooth jazz wishes/tries/pretends to be. Here are two classic (and very accessible) cool jazz tracks to get you started [Miles Davis - Blue in Green](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pz_eGZ8U5kY) [Bill Evans Trio - Nardis](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxzeDpBvxv4) ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/15 "2015-02-16T21:51:34Z")
> [@AncientHumanoid](#): > > Would all the “Magic 104 FM” radio stations of the 80s- 90s count? > > Houston had KMGQ or KMJQ I remember a local FM radio station during the 80s that played orchestral stuff that might have been considered [“easy listening”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easy_listening) or “orchestral pop” or [“beautiful music”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beautiful_music). I’m not sure where the line between such music and smooth jazz would go, but for one thing (at least judging by the Wikipedia article) smooth jazz tends to feature solo performers. ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 9:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/16 "2015-02-16T21:54:09Z")
The only album I remember clearly was Bob James/David Sanborn, with this pretty song “Maputo” on it. A college friend had it so it would have been later 80s. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/17 "2015-02-16T22:11:43Z")
Sticking strictly within the confines of smooth jazz, maybe [Candy Dulfer and Dave Stewart’s “Lily Was Here”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XhSx8uKdD5o)? Smooth jazz drives me crazy, but that song, for whatever reason, I can actually enjoy. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 16, 2015, 10:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/18 "2015-02-16T22:16:49Z")
For a partial list of those musicians who may be (at times anyway) in the Smooth Jazz camp see [List of smooth jazz musicians](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_smooth_jazz_musicians) If you have some favorites in that list please say so, if you will. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2015, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/19 "2015-02-17T02:26:34Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > For a partial list of those musicians who may be (at times anyway) in the Smooth Jazz camp see [List of smooth jazz musicians](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_smooth_jazz_musicians) > > If you have some favorites in that list please say so, if you will. I would quarrel with the inclusion of at least three of the trumpet players on that list. ---
**Author:** ![GreenElf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9de053/32.png) [@GreenElf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreenElf)\ **Post date:** [February 17, 2015, 3:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850/20 "2015-02-17T03:17:21Z")
An approximate top 10 would be: David Sanborn Stanley Turrentine Grover Washington Jr. Pat Metheny Lee Ritenour David Benoit Bob James Herb Alpert Chuck Mangione Spyro Gyra I generally prefer their earlier albums. I rank smooth jazz below popular, classical, folk, trad jazz, fusion, and prog music, and rank it above metal, hip-hop, industrial, dance, disco, polka, march, kenny g and country. I wouldn’t classify the Marsalis clan or Astrud Gilberto as smooth jazz though bossa nova can be considered a precursor. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/smooth-jazz/712850.md?page=2)