We said we'd give you a new channel every week and we're stickin' to it. This week's new channel is called "Decade: Pre-1940." It joins the other decade channels devoted to the '50s and '60s, and begins a chronological roll-out of new decade channels that will bring us all the way up to the present day.
For jazz fans who don't know much about what happened before bebop, the new channel is an essential education. The play list includes a variety of early jazz styles. Freewheeling New Orleans jazz by Jelly Roll Morton, raucous big band swing by Duke Ellington, and French gypsy jazz by Django Reinhardt all have a place on the channel.
I'm surprised at how much I really enjoy listening to this music. I think most jazz musicians and listeners are very bebop-centric in their perception of jazz history (just go to a local jam session if you don't believe me). There was so much great, important music being made before bop, and your understanding of jazz will expand considerably by hearing it.
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