AccuJazz News: Roll-Out Continues With "Modern Mainstream"

New channel alert! This week it's another addition to the "Jazz by Style", and it's all about the giants of modern jazz. Sporting an appealing, alliterative title, "Modern Mainstream" plays music that represents the major musical currents jazz has followed in the last three decades.

Upon first listening to the new channel today I heard these three tunes: one from Blue Note 7's recent album Mosaic, then a track from Joe Lovano's recent collaboration with big-band and symphony orchestra, Symphonica, then the title track from the Keith Jarrett trio's newest live disc, Yesterdays. These three selections happened to be exclusively from recent albums by giants of modern jazz, but there are also many lesser-known artists playing who fall into the "Modern Mainstream" category.

There is a lot of stylistic variation in the play list, from French harmonica stylist Olivier Ker Ourio to the young hip-hop-tinged trumpeter Maurice Brown, for example. But the common thread is that this is modern jazz that isn't too rigidly tethered to the traditions of the past and isn't too bent on being "cutting edge"either (the title of another one of our "Jazz by Style" channels). Also: no fusion.

Though I consider myself more a fan of the cutting edge, I'm surprised at how much I thoroughly enjoy listening to this channel. It very well may become one of my favorites. How can you really argue with the Blue Note 7, Joe Lovano and Keith Jarrett?

Well, go on and listen, and let me know what you think by commenting here, or via Twitter, MySpace, Facebook, or the ShoutBox on the AccuJazz home page. Suggestions for other artists? Think we wrongly put someone in the Modern Mainstream category? Let me know!