Acid jazz is a continuation of Jazz Fusion, combining elements of jazz, funk and hip-hop, particularly looped beats. While the beats and occasional DJ additions are from funk and hip-hop, the chord structures come straight from jazz.
Acid Jazz moved jazz away from intellectual circles of experimentation, pedantic critics, and upper class entertainment and moved it back to clubs, streets, and parties, where jazz originally began and deserves to stay. While there will always be a field of academic criticism of jazz, it isa music about feeling and freedom, and that’s how it deserves to be received. It’s vibrant, exciting, passionate, and crazy sounds expressing the thoughts and feelings of the artist as much as any painting or sculpture.
In acid jazz, the funky beats and soul style are the canvas, but everything drawn upon it is pure jazz. It’s a jazz designed for dancing and expression. Many other elements of jazz – improvisation, live band performance, few rules, - still reign.
Here are a few things you may find in acid jazz - walking bass lines, some Latin accents, retro jazz organ touches, respect for jazz tradition, soul vocals, syncopated rhythm, wah-wah effects on guitar, tight brass sections, and some vibrant improvisations.
It can be hard to distinguish acid ajzz from funk or other music. jazz is a music which bleeds at the borders, taking influences from everywhere and not fitting in neatly anywhere. For example, on itunes the group US3 is classified as Jazz, Acid Jazz, Hip-Hop, and Rap depending on the album. What a range! Find out for yourself. A few well-known acid jazz groups are:
- Jamiroquai
- Brand New Heavies
- Donald Byrd
- Incognito
- James Taylor Quartet
- Ronny Jordan
- Vibraphonic
- US3
