What passes for jazz vocals these days is pitiful

[mAJA rIOS]

Edited January 26, 2017 by mAJA rIOS
Im not going to name names but the eorse sone singers sing in chicago area, the more gigs they get.. They have small voices, no soul, dont swing, fo mostly ballads in a sing sobg vouce with no originality if sound or content. Jazz is a style not a song

[JSngry]

Be specific in your grievance, please!

[sonnymax]

"What passes for jazz vocals these days is pitiful"

Funny, I feel the same way about newbies who begin by criticizing others.  

[JSngry]

uhhh...this is no newbie...

 

[clifford_thornton]

I have a feeling that the contemporary vocalists I enjoy wouldn't help the original poster's point.

[kh1958]

This is attributable to the laryngitis plague which enveloped the jazz world in 1987. No cure has ever been found.

[sonnymax]

5 hours ago, JSngry said:

uhhh...this is no newbie...

 

What am I missing? 3 posts. "Newbie" designation under OP's name. 

[JSngry]

Newbie to the board, but not to the music. Not in any way.

[Dmitry]

One doesn't have to be a genius. Just google the name.

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=maja+rios

[sonnymax]

1 hour ago, Dmitry said:

One doesn't have to be a genius. Just google the name.

https://www.google.com/webhp?sourceid=chrome-instant&ion=1&espv=2&ie=UTF-8#q=maja+rios

No need to be insulting. I'm aware of who Ms. Rios is. My point was that it seems odd and a bit off-putting to introduce yourself to a new community by disparaging others. 

[JSngry]

Not necessarily off-putting. Fiesty, perhaps! Which is why I was after specifics...and I might very well agree with her....too many lounge/cabaret/pop singers thinking they're "jazz" just because of the songs they sing. It's an epidemic, I tell you.

[Dmitry]

2 hours ago, sonnymax said:

No need to be insulting. I'm aware of who Ms. Rios is. My point was that it seems odd and a bit off-putting to introduce yourself to a new community by disparaging others. 

How was I insulting?

Edited January 26, 2017 by Dmitry

[Hot Ptah]

This is not a large, formal corporation where you have to pay your dues for a long time before you can speak out. If a new member wants to raise a strong point, I say good for them.

I have noticed that there are some current vocalists who sing in what I think of as Manhattan Transfer-lite. It is a corny, lightly swinging, cutesy style which drives me up a wall. Compared to the true artistry of jazz vocalists who were around in the 1970s when I started going to jazz concerts regularly, these singers are less than a pale imitation of what used to be.

[page]

I don't agree with the original statement. I know a fair amount jazz vocalists I highly admire.
Fay Claassen f.e. to name just one.

[CJ Shearn]

I don't agree with the original statement either, I think Thana Alexa, Gretchen Parlato, Beata Pater are all vocalists who challenge the OP's contention.  I checked out Ms. Rios on YT, she has a  wide range of material, from traditional ("Lover Man") to contemporary (Blackbyrds "Walking In Rhythm") but maybe starting a thread with such a statement is just discussion fodder? I don't think its the best way to introduce yourself on a forum either

[jlhoots]

2 hours ago, JSngry said:

Not necessarily off-putting. Fiesty, perhaps! Which is why I was after specifics...and I might very well agree with her....too many lounge/cabaret/pop singers thinking they're "jazz" just because of the songs they sing. It's an epidemic, I tell you.

I kind of agree with her too.

[page]

Yeah, not everyone who sings jazz is a jazz vocalist for sure. However, there are still very talented ones around. I just focus on those myself.

[clifford_thornton]

How about Kristin Slipp? I really like her work, surely the op would not.

[mjazzg]

such an intro is a good way of raising your profile at the very least

I'm tempted to mention stones and glass houses having listened to this

 

[Big Beat Steve]

Is it only me or how come the intro of that clip reminds me of Barry White??

Edited January 26, 2017 by Big Beat Steve

[Dmitry]

Strong Jeanne Lee influence on this cut.

 

3 hours ago, mjazzg said:

such an intro is a good way of raising your profile at the very least

I'm tempted to mention stones and glass houses having listened to this

 

People pay good money to hear MUCH worse than this. 

Edited January 26, 2017 by Dmitry

[paul secor]

From what I've heard here, I wouldn't buy any of Ms. Rios' recordings, but I agree that there are a lot of lame singers out there. Perhaps we need a thread entitled contemporary jazz singers who aren't pitiful.

I should also say that I don't have a problem with anyone who is new to these forums speaking their mind. As far as I know, there's not a waiting period here where you have to walk on eggshells so as not to offend anyone.

[CJ Shearn]

The issue I have with the opinion is that jazz vocals must be locked into one thing, granted there are singers I've heard singing jazz that are just bad, Ken Greves comes immediately to mind, for example, I wouldn't buy Ms. Rios' albums either, but definitely an interesting entrance

[mAJA rIOS]

11 hours ago, sonnymax said:

"What passes for jazz vocals these days is pitiful"

Funny, I feel the same way about newbies who begin by criticizing others.  

Not a newbie honey

I was referring to mostly local singers who have made the art form stagnant. It needs a shot in the arm...not just old standards..I do pieces of the , Jazz pie, blues, r&b, etc all which are part of jazz...i bring soul to the table and that was my point... The great singers of old brought soul to the table like lady day, little Jimmy scott, water phillips, Dakota staton, etc who sings like that anymore?

Ester phillips,    

[kinuta]

Although I generally agree about the incomparability of Sarah, Ella, Billie, Dinah and Carmen, Cecile McLorin Salvant and Rene Marie sound pretty good to me