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        Jazz sampled in hip-hop
        List
        Who Did Your Favorite Rappers Sample? ludacris-nas-8-hip-hop-tracks-sampled-jazz-musicians

        Ludacris To Nas: 8 Hip-Hop Tracks That Sampled Jazz Musicians

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        Celebrate jazz by tracing the interpretation of music from noted jazz artists through the lens of hip-hop sampling
        Brian Haack
        GRAMMYs
        May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am

        Hip-hop and jazz are inextricably linked. Each genre is built on a foundational groove with a heavy emphasis on improvisation, and subtle nods to the music and themes of preceding generations.

        With regards to hip-hop, the modern practice of sampling provides a strong connection to the more traditional roots of jazz. Since the inception of the genre, adept jazz players have often been known to quote the melodies of common jazz standards and other well-known songs as part of their improvisational toolbox. For example, Charlie Parker famously quoted Igor Stravinsky's "Rite Of Spring" in his solo on a 1947 recording "Repetition."

        Take a look back at eight of our favorite hip-hop tracks that pulled samples and influence from GRAMMY jazz royalty.

        Busta Rhymes, "Intro" | Herb Alpert, "A Taste Of Honey"

        Jazz trumpeter Herb Alpert won his first three GRAMMYs for Record Of The Year, Best Instrumental Performance, Non-Jazz and Best Instrumental Arrangement for his crossover hit "A Taste Of Honey" at the 8th GRAMMY Awards. The brass sample from the recording comprises the main instrumental riff on Busta Rhymes' "Intro," the opening track from his platinum-certified album Genesis. His track also opens with a skit recording of a motivational phone call to the Brooklyn, N.Y.-based rapper from Clive Davis.

         

        Intro

          

        A Taste Of Honey

        Nas, "Can't Forget About You" | Nat "King" Cole, "Unforgettable"

        Nat "King" Cole's rendition of Irving Gordon's "Unforgettable" has a rich GRAMMY history. Originally released in 1951, Cole revisited the tune for a fresh take on his 1961 album, The Nat King Cole Story, which garnered an Album Of The Year nomination at the 4th GRAMMY Awards. His rendition was also inducted into the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame in 2000. Producer will.i.am's sampling of Cole's "Unforgettable" gives Nas a perfect groove over which to lay down his iconic flow on "Can't Forget About You."

         

        Can't Forget About You

          

        Unforgettable

        Mobb Deep,  "Me & My Crew" | Miles Davis, "Bitches Brew"

        Though deemed unconventional at the time, eight-time GRAMMY winner Miles Davis' Bitches Brew was sonically formative for many improvisational rock and funk musicians for years to come. The 1970 album also earned Davis a GRAMMY for Best Jazz Performance — Large Group Or Soloist With Large Group at the 13th GRAMMYs. Producers Dale Hogan and Keith Spencer incorporated much of the ambience from Bitches Brew's title track when crafting the beat for "Me & My Crew" from Mobb Deep's 1993 debut album, Juvenile Hell.

         

        Me & My Crew

          

        Bitches Brew

        Ludacris, "Number One Spot" | Quincy Jones, "Soul Bossa Nova"

        The multitalented Quincy Jones has climbed to the top of the GRAMMY heap with 27 career wins. One of his early claims to fame is "Soul Bossa Nova," a swanky instrumental number released in 1962. (You may know the tune from the late-'90s Austin Powers films.) Working with Atlanta-based rapper Ludacris on 2004's The Red Light District, DJ Green Lantern sampled the main melody of Jones' samba-inspired bossa nova swing groove, while Ludacris packed his verse with inside jokes and sly nods to the off-kilter spy movies that had repurposed the song.

        Top GRAMMY Winners: Where does Quincy Jones rank?

         

        Number One Spot

          

        Soul Bossa Nova

        De La Soul, "En Focus" | Herbie Hancock, "Rockit"

        Fourteen-time GRAMMY winner Herbie Hancock took home his first golden gramophone at the 26th GRAMMY Awards for Best R&B Instrumental Performance for "Rockit" for 1983. It is widely considered the first popular song to incorporate scratching and turntablist techniques, courtesy of pioneering DJ GrandMixer D.X.T. A decade later, Long Island, N.Y.-based hip-hop trio De La Soul drew rhythmic elements from Hancock's recording for their track "En Focus" on their 1993 album, Buhloone Mindstate.

         

        Rockit

        D.J. Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince, "Time To Chill" | George Benson, "Breezin'"

        GRAMMY winner George Benson's Breezin' became a breakout success for the jazz guitarist/songwriter, including winning the GRAMMY for Best Pop Instrumental Performance at the 19th GRAMMYs. In crafting the beats for their album He's The DJ, I'm The Rapper, D.J. Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince sampled the catchy flute lines from the title track of Breezin' and repurposed it for the relaxed hook on "Time To Chill."

         

        Time to Chill

          

        Breezin' - Remastered

        MURS feat. The Grouch, "Angels" | Bob James, "Moon Tune"

        GRAMMY winners Bob James and David Sanborn collaborated for 1986's Double Vision, which netted the jazz keyboardist and saxophonist the GRAMMY for Best Jazz Fusion Performance, Vocal Or Instrumental at the 29th GRAMMY Awards. Los Angeles-based underground rappers MURS and the Grouch sampled "Moon Tune" from Double Vision on "Angels" for their 1999 album Good Music. The two lyricists take turns tag teaming their trademark relaxed-intelligentsia flows over the atmospheric bed provided by James' keyboard work.

         

        Angels

          

        Moon Tune

        Gang Starr, "Jazz Thing" | Duke Ellington, "Upper Manhattan Medical Group"

        When curating the soundtrack for his 1990 musical drama, Mo' Better Blues, director Spike Lee included a track by then-unknown underground rap duo Gang Starr called "Jazz Thing," which heavily sampled multi-GRAMMY winner Duke Ellington's 1959 tune "Upper Manhattan Medical Group." Gang Starr became an influential group in the development of the East Coast rap sound — in many ways mirroring the influence Ellington exerted on the fledgling sounds of New York jazz in his own time.

         

        Jazz Thing

          

        Upper Manhattan Medical Group

        From jazz samples to west-coast trap: What will Kendrick Lamar's new album mean for his legacy?

        Whitney Houston performs at the 29th GRAMMYs

        Whitney Houston, 29th GRAMMY Awards

        News
        GRAMMY Performances Available Via Apple Music apple-music-exclusive-watch-classic-grammy-performances

        Apple Music Exclusive: Watch Classic GRAMMY Performances

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        The Recording Academy teams with Apple Music to offer historical GRAMMY performances by Miles Davis, Marvin Gaye, Whitney Houston, Shania Twain, Kendrick Lamar, and more
        Tim McPhate
        GRAMMYs
        Nov 24, 2017 - 6:00 am

        To celebrate the GRAMMY Awards' 60th anniversary and the show's return to New York for the first time in 15 years, the Recording Academy and Apple Music are bringing fans a special video collection of exclusive GRAMMY performances and playlists that represent the illustrious history of Music's Biggest Night.

        Available exclusively via Apple Music in a dedicated GRAMMYs section, the celebratory collection features 60-plus memorable performances specifically curated across six genres: pop, rap, country, rock, R&B, and jazz. 

        The artist performances featured in the collection include Marvin Gaye, "Sexual Healing" (25th GRAMMY Awards, 1983); Whitney Houston, "Greatest Love Of All" (29th GRAMMY Awards, 1987); Run DMC, "Tougher Than Leather" (30th GRAMMY Awards, 1988); Miles Davis, "Hannibal" (32nd GRAMMY Awards, 1990); Shania Twain, "Man, I Feel Like A Woman" (41st GRAMMY Awards, 1999); Dixie Chicks, "Landslide" (45th GRAMMY Awards, 2003); Bruno Mars and Sting, "Locked Out Of Heaven" and "Walking On The Moon" (55th GRAMMY Awards, 2013); and Kendrick Lamar, "The Blacker The Berry" (58th GRAMMY Awards, 2016).

        The 60th GRAMMY Awards will take place at New York City's Madison Square Garden on Sunday, Jan. 28, 2018. The telecast will be broadcast live on CBS at 7:30–11 p.m. ET/4:30–8 p.m. PT. 

        Carrie Underwood, John Legend To Host "GRAMMYs Greatest Stories"

        George Avakian photographed in 2009

        George Avakian

        Photo: Brian To/FilmMagic

        News
        Former Academy Chair George Avakian: 1919–2017 george-avakian-producer-talent-scout-past-academy-chair-dies

        George Avakian: Producer, Talent Scout & Past Academy Chair Dies

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        Trustees Award recipient who played a role in the careers of Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and Bob Newhart has died at age 98
        Renée Fabian
        GRAMMYs
        Nov 22, 2017 - 8:01 pm

        Esteemed record producer, talent scout, manager, and past Recording Academy Chairman/President George Avakian has died, according to The New York Times. While no cause of death was given, the news was confirmed by his daughter, Anahid Avakian Gregg. He was 98 years old.

        Miles Davis Wins Best Jazz Performance — Large Group

        Born in Armavir, Russia, Avakian immigrated with his family to the United States as an infant. Growing up an avid jazz fan, he was already a published jazz critic by the time he was a sophomore at Yale University.

        Avakian's career as a producer and talent scout began in 1939 when he convinced Decca Records to let him record prominent jazz musicians on the Chicago scene, which became a six-set of recordings titled Chicago Jazz. According to critics and historians, this is considered as the first jazz album.

        Throughout his storied eight-decade-plus career with labels such as Decca, Columbia Records, Warner Bros. Records, RCA Records, and Sony Legacy, Avakian worked with the likes of Louis Armstrong, Miles Davis, Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Dave Brubeck, Sonny Rollins, Bob Newhart, Johnny Mathis, John Cage, and Ravi Shankar, among other music legends. 

        In the process, he helped cultivate influential recordings such as Armstrong's Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy (1954), Ellington's Ellington At Newport (1956), Brubeck's Brubeck Plays Brubeck (1956), and Davis' Miles Ahead (1957), and Rollins' On The Outside (1966).

        Also heralded for popularizing liner notes, he earned one career GRAMMY at the 39th GRAMMY Awards for Best Album Notes for The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings by Davis and Gil Evans. He was honored with the Recording Academy's Trustees Award in 2009 for his outstanding contributions to the music industry during his lifetime. 

        A great friend to the Academy, Avakian served as the seventh Chairman/President of the organization from 1966–1967. 

        "In a career spanning more than 40 years, George achieved several notable milestones including popularizing liner notes, helping establish long-playing albums as the industry standard, and developing the first jazz reissue series," said Recording Academy President/CEO Neil Portnow. "We have lost an integral member of our creative community. Our condolences go out to George's family, friends, and fellow collaborators."

        Recording Academy Remembers Fats Domino

        News
        Quincy Jones launches jazz video on demand channel quincy-jones-enlists-kickstarter-launches-jazz-video-demand-channel

        Quincy Jones enlists Kickstarter, launches jazz video on-demand channel

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        27-time GRAMMY winner looks to carry the legacy of jazz for "many generations to come"
        Brian Haack
        GRAMMYs
        Jul 18, 2017 - 5:31 pm
        GRAMMY.com

        Quincy Jones is truly a GRAMMY Legend.

        In addition to being one of only 15 artists in history to be honored with a GRAMMY Legend Special Merit Award, he is also one of the winningest artists in GRAMMY history.

        So it seems that just about everything Jones touches musically turns to gold. That's why we are excited about the announcement that he will be teaming with television producer and noted jazz patron Reza Ackbaraly to launch a brand-new subscription video on-demand service dedicated entirely to jazz and jazz-inspired music programming.

        Qwest TV will debut in fall 2017, and is expected to be packed with a curated, personalized selection of exclusive original content encompassing live concerts, documentaries, interviews and archival footage.

        The early plans for the network include a forward-thinking crowd-sourced pre-launch phase, which will open on Sept. 6 via Kickstarter. The first 1,500 users to sign up via the crowdfunding platform will be classed as "co-founding subscribers," and will receive a free year of premium access, as well as having a direct line of communication to the Qwest TV team to give consumer feedback, make specific feature requests, and a whole host of additional benefits only available through the Kickstarter promotion.

        Sharing his excitement over the launch of the new platform, Jones explained, "The dream of Qwest TV is to let jazz and music lovers everywhere experience these incredibly rich and diverse musical traditions in a whole new way.  …it is my hope that Qwest TV will serve to carry forth and build on the great legacy that is jazz for many generations to come."

        Keeping the sound alive: How Esperanza Spalding went from jazz bassist to Smithsonian curator

        Ella Fitzgerald

        Photo: David Redfern/Redferns

        News
        jazzy-celebration

        A Jazzy Celebration

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        The Academy honors Jazz Appreciation Month with a playlist based on music from April-born jazz musicians
        Neil Tesser
        GRAMMYs
        Dec 2, 2014 - 4:06 pm
        GRAMMY.com

        Celebrating its 11th anniversary in 2012, Jazz Appreciation Month is the brainchild of Dr. John Edward Hasse, renowned jazz author and curator of the Smithsonian Institution's division of culture and the arts. In describing the idea behind the April celebration, Hasse says, "It occurred to me that jazz's biggest challenge was not a lack of talented, but a lack of audience and appreciation."  

        With the Smithsonian Institution's backing, and the support of governmental agencies such as the National Endowment for the Arts and the U.S. Department of State, Hasse launched the first JAM in April 2001. Today, JAM is supported by more than 20 federal and nongovernmental partners, including the GRAMMY Foundation, and extends across all 50 states and to 40 countries.

        As an extension of the annual Jazz Appreciation Month, this year GRAMMY-winning artist Herbie Hancock announced the launch of International Jazz Day, which will be held each year on April 30. The aim is to bring people together from all over the world to celebrate and support understanding of the art of jazz, its roots and its impact, while highlighting its role as a means of communication. Festivities for the inaugural event begin tomorrow and will feature concerts in Paris, New Orelans and New York.

        But even if you're not in Paris, New Orleans or New York, it's pretty easy to recognize Jazz Appreciation Month — you just have to listen to the music. And if you program an hour or so of GRAMMY-winning jazz, all the better. With that, we take this angle to its logical extreme and draw our random JAM playlist from a group of jazz artists born in April. After all, no one is appreciated more than on their birthday.

        "Ritmo En El Corazon" (iTunes>)
        Ray Barretto

        Among the first congueros to play with a real jazz feel, the Nuyorican Barretto (April 29) was the main man for mainstream jazzers needing authentic Afro-Cuban percussion in the '50s and '60s. But he won his only GRAMMY in quite a different arena, joining with the great Cuban songstress Celia Cruz for the folkloric heat of Ritmo En El Corazon, which won the Best Tropical Latin Performance GRAMMY in 1989.

        "Mongo's Blues" (iTunes>)
        Michel Camilo

        Sir Michel (April 4) — who has been knighted by his native Dominican Republic — made the first album under his own name in 1985. But even before he gained attention for his flashy and fiery piano work, listeners knew his tune "Why Not?" thanks to a hot recording with lyrics by the Manhattan Transfer. Camilo honored a true hero of Latin music, percussionist Mongo Santamaria, with this composition on Live At The Blue Note, which won the Best Latin Jazz Album GRAMMY in 2003.

        "Libertad" (iTunes>)
        Caribbean Jazz Project

        The Gathering was the Caribbean Jazz Project's third album for the Concord Jazz label, and garnered them their lone GRAMMY win for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2002. Led by co-principal/flautist Dave Valentin (April 29) and GRAMMY-winning founder Dave Samuels, the album is both accessible and adventurous, evidenced by the romantic and musical themes of "Libertad."

        "Anatomy Of A Murder" (iTunes>)
        Duke Ellington

        Often considered the greatest jazzman ever, and indisputably jazz's greatest composer, Ellington (April 29) won the first three of his 11 GRAMMYs for Anatomy Of A Murder in 1959, including Best Performance By A Dance Band. When film director Otto Preminger decided that his blockbuster adaptation of the best-selling novel needed an original jazz soundtrack, he went to the source. The resulting music remains a high-water mark of jazz in film.

        "Cheek To Cheek" (iTunes>)
        Ella Fitzgerald

        The quintessential jazz singer, Fitzgerald (April 25) won 13 GRAMMYs during her career — including an impressive seven from 1958–1962. Her first two statues came in 1958, the GRAMMYs' inaugural year, for Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Irving Berlin Song Book, which included a grand arrangement of "Cheek To Cheek," and Ella Fitzgerald Sings The Duke Ellington Song Book. Symbolic of her stylistic breadth, Fitzgerald took home one GRAMMY in pop and one in jazz. 

        "A Change Is Gonna Come" (iTunes>)
        Herbie Hancock 

        Hancock (April 12) added GRAMMYs 13 and 14 to his résumé in 2010. He released his star-studded The Imagine Project that year, which spawned two GRAMMY wins for "A Change Is Gonna Come" and "Imagine" for Best Improvised Jazz Solo and Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals, respectively. The latter song features appearances by Jeff Beck, India.Arie, Pink, and Oumou Sangare, among others, and was Hancock's first GRAMMY win in the Pop Field. 

        "Miles Ahead" (iTunes>)
        Joe Henderson 

        Tenor saxophonist Henderson (April 24) was an insider's favorite — a jazz musician's jazz musician. His indelible in-and-out phrasings finally resulted in four GRAMMYs in the '90s, thanks to a series of inspired theme albums for Verve Records — including 1993's So Near, So Far (Musings For Miles), his homage to the late Miles Davis. The album itself earned Henderson one GRAMMY; his lustrous solo in "Miles Ahead" earned him another for Best Jazz Instrumental Solo.

        "God Bless The Child" (iTunes>)
        Billie Holiday

        Holiday (April 7) never won a GRAMMY. She died in 1959, barely two years after The Recording Academy was founded. But "Lady Day" has no less than six recordings in the GRAMMY Hall Of Fame, including "God Bless The Child," which was inducted in 1976. Holiday wrote the lyrics for this 1941 recording, and they still resonate today as evidenced by George Benson, Al Jarreau and R&B vocalist Jill Scott's cover that won a GRAMMY in 2006.

        "Moment To Moment" (iTunes>)
        Freddie Hubbard

        Hubbard (April 7) was brash, headstrong and exhilarating — a trumpet virtuoso in a lineage preceded by Lee Morgan, Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong. He also grabbed an early foothold on the fusion of rock and jazz that marked the Age of Aquarius, leaving his hard-bop roots in the dust to win his only GRAMMY in 1972 for Best Jazz Performance By A Group for First Light, which featured "Moment To Moment" and other bright new jazz sounds.

        "Walk On The Water" (iTunes>)
        Gerry Mulligan

        Mulligan (April 6) first made his mark as one of Miles Davis' collaborators in the creation of cool jazz, and then as an innovative and virtuosic baritone saxophonist. But what won him his only GRAMMY for Best Jazz Instrumental Performance, Big Band in 1981 were the lightly swinging arrangements written for Walk On The Water.

        "I Feel Pretty" (iTunes>)
        André Previn

        Previn (April 6) is a quadruple threat — the pianist has won awards for classical, pop, jazz, and musical show recordings. He covered the latter two bases with his 1960 album of music from one of the all-time Broadway hits, "West Side Story," which won a GRAMMY for Best Jazz Performance Solo Or Small Group. Previn was honored with a Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010. 

        "Jelly Belly"
        Mongo Santamaria

        Who is the only percussionist whose name serves as a punch line in a Mel Brooks movie?  That would be Santamaria (April 7), the Cuban-born master conguero/composer who was a forerunner in fusing Latin rhythms with soul jazz. This exemplar of jazz communication is taken from the GRAMMY-winning album Dawn, which marked the first GRAMMY nod for the then-new label Fania Records, soon to be a Latin music powerhouse. (The movie was Blazing Saddles.)  

        Which jazz artists will you celebrate this month? Drop us a comment and share some of the artists who will make your playlist.

        (Neil Tesser has broadcast, written about and helped program jazz in Chicago for more than 35 years. His work has appeared in Jazziz, USA Today, Rolling Stone, and The New York Times, and now online at Examiner.com. Tesser received a GRAMMY nomination in 1985 for Best Album Notes for The Girl From Ipanema — The Bossa Nova Years.)

         

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        Some of the content on this site expresses viewpoints and opinions that are not those of the Recording Academy. Responsibility for the accuracy of information provided in stories not written by or specifically prepared for the Academy lies with the story's original source or writer. Content on this site does not reflect an endorsement or recommendation of any artist or music by the Recording Academy.