Birth of the Cool
Guy Barker continues to explore the history of jazz, charting the emergence of a modal style of playing and the importance of Miles Davis.
Guy Barker continues to explore the history of jazz, focusing on the turning points and pivotal events that have shaped the genre, and discovering some great stories and larger-than-life characters along the way. Episode seven, Birth Of The Cool, charts the emergence of a modal style of playing and the importance of Miles Davis.
Miles Davis' series of recordings released as Birth Of The Cool remains one of the defining, pivotal moments in jazz. Miles was seeking a more relaxed alternative to bebop and began to experiment with a new group, the nonet, which recorded in 1949. Featuring unusual instrumentation and several notable musicians such as Gerry Mulligan and Lee Konitz, the music marked a major development in post-bebop jazz.
Miles' work in the 1950s led to one of jazz's most important new elements: the modal style. This was a new approach to harmony in which chord changes were far less frequent, thereby encouraging far more melodic improvisation based on a specific scale or key, as heard in jazz's biggest selling album of all time, Kind Of Blue. Jazz musicians on the West Coast began to develop this more relaxed style, playing without the ferocity of bebop, which became known as the "Cool School". Gerry Mulligan and Chet Baker formed the first piano-less quartet creating a sparse and utterly beautiful texture to their jazz.
Guy Barker looks at the rise of Cool Jazz with contributions from jazz legends Dave Brubeck, Jimmy Cobb, Gunther Schuller, Chico Hamilton, Bill Crow, John Surman, and jazz authorities Lewis Porter, Ted Gioia, Dan Morgenstern and Loren Schoenberg. There further archive contributions from Gil Evans* (1912-1988) and Gerry Mulligan (1927-1996).
Last on
Music Played
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Gerry Mulligan
Limelight
- COMPLETE RECORDINGS GERRY MULLIGAN - CHET BAKER QUARTET.
- LIONHILL JAZZ.
- LHJ10356.
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Miles Davis & Tadd Dameron
ORNITHOLOGY
- IN PARIS INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL DE JAZZ.
- COLUMBIA.
- 485257 2.
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Dave Brubeck, Eugene Wright, Joe Morello & Paul Desmond
The Trolley Song
- Greatest Hits.
- CBS.
- CDCBS-32046(1).
-
Shorty Rogers
PIROUETTE
- West Coast Sounds.
- Fresh Sound.
- 22-31.
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Gerry Mulligan
WESTWOOD WALK
- THE ESSENTIAL COLLECTION; THE ORIGINAL QUARTET AND THE TENTETTE.
- AVID ENTERTAINMENT.
- AVC886.
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Miles Davis
Godchild
- The Complete Birth of the Cool.
- Capitol Records.
- 7243 4-94550 2 3.
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Gerry Mulligan
Walking Shoes
- THE ESSENTIAL COLLECTION; THE ORIGINAL QUARTET AND THE TENTETTE.
- AVID ENTERTAINMENT.
- AVC886.
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Red Nichols and His Five Pennies
Eccentric
- FEELIN' NO PAIN.
- AFFINITY.
- AFS1038.
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Red Nichols
IDA, SWEET AS APPLE CIDER
- FEELIN' NO PAIN.
- AFFINITY.
- AFS1038.
-
Frankie Trumbauer
Mississippi Mud
- Twenty Jazz Classics.
- EMI.
- CDMFP6163.
-
Dave Brubeck Band
Bossa Nova USA
- Columbia Jazz Legacy.
- Columbia.
- 88697-13375 2.
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Miles Davis & Band
Boplicity
- The Complete Birth of the Cool.
- Capitol Records.
- 7243 4-94550 2 3.
-
Miles Davis
So What
- Highlights from the Plugged Nickel.
- Columbia/Legacy.
- 4814-342.
-
Miles Davis
FLAMENCO SKETCHES
- Kind of Blue.
- CBS.
- CDCBS-62066.
-
Miles Davis
All Blues
- Kind of Blue.
- CBS.
- CDCBS-62066.
-
Miles Davis
SUMMERTIME
- THE BEST OF GERSHWIN.
- SONY CLASSICAL.
- SM2K-60661.
-
Stan Getz
DESAFINADO
- 'ROUND MIDNIGHT (VARIOUS ARTISTS).
- POLYGRAM.
- 516-471 2.
-
Dave Brubeck
Bluette
- CBS : 32DP787.
- CBS.
- 32DP787.
-
Chet Baker
TIME AFTER TIME
- CHET BAKER SINGS.
- BLUE NOTE.
- CDP-7929322.
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Gerry Mulligan Quartet
Nights at the Turntable
- Gerry Mulligan - Jeru.
- Proper.
- P-1481.
-
Arnold Fishkind, Denzil Best, Lee Konitz, Sal Mosca & Warne Marsh
Fishin' Around
- Subconscious-Lee.
- Prestige.
- CDP-840012(1).
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Woody Herman and His Orchestra
EARLY AUTUMN
- KEEPER OF THE FLAME.
- CAPITOL.
- CDP-798453 2.
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Miles Davis
MOON DREAMS
- THE BIRTH OF THE COOL: THE COMPLETE BIRTH OF THE COOL.
- CAPITOL JAZZ.
- B0000-5614M.
-
Claude Thornhill & His Orchestra
Where or When
- BEST OF BIG BANDS - CLAUDE THORNHILL.
- COLUMBIA.
- CK-46152.
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Claude Thornhill & His Orchestra
SNOWFALL
- BIG BAND THEMES REMEMBER THEM?.
- JASMINE.
- JASCD-423.
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Claude Thornhill
Yardbird Suite
- Claude Thornhill & His Orchestra.
- Fresh Sound Records.
- FSR CD-365.
-
Miles Davis
Rocker
- Birth of the Cool.
- Capitol.
- 7243 5-3011727.
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Bobby Militello, Dave Brubeck, Guy Barker, Michael Moore & The 成人论坛 Big Band
Take Five
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Massive Attack
Live With Me (feat. Terry Callier)
- VIrgin.
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Symarip
Skinhead Moonstomp
- Select.
Broadcasts
- Wed 17 Nov 2010 22:00成人论坛 Radio 2
- Thu 25 Feb 2016 22:00成人论坛 Radio 2
- Sat 11 May 2019 04:00成人论坛 Radio 6 Music
- Tue 13 Oct 2020 01:00成人论坛 Radio 6 Music
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