Jazz Jamaica
Encyclopedia
Jazz Jamaica is a jazz/reggae music group formed by musician Gary Crosby
in London.
and the largely improvisational nature of jazz
, original Jazz Warrior, jazz double bassist, and nephew of veteran Jamaica
n guitarist Ernest Ranglin
, Gary Crosby
conceived a fusion of mento
, ska
, reggae
and jazz
styles in playing classic and modern jazz standards alongside Jamaican folksongs. To achieve this, he gathered together a group of musicians drawn from the jazz and reggae circuits, to form Jazz Jamaica.
Since its realisation, Crosby developed the Jazz Jamaica concept by introducing more young jazz musicians, so increasing the size of the pool of 'Jazz Jamaicans', and enabling him to extend the boundaries of the music played. Crosby and his musicians are exponents of this musical fusion known as skazz
, which has earned global appreciation.
In March 1999, Crosby expanded the core lineup of Jazz Jamaica to formal big band status by adding a number of guest soloists including Denys Baptiste
, Andy Sheppard
, Soweto Kinch
, Juliet Roberts
, Orphy Robinson
, Guy Barker
, Kevin Robinson, Ashley Slater
, Annie Whitehead
, and Alex Wilson, resulting in the Jazz Jamaica All Stars, a 20-piece band featuring featuring vocals, five saxophones, four trumpets, and four trombones with a rhythm section of double bass, piano, drums, guitar and percussion.
In 2002, Jazz Jamaica won the best band award at the BBC
Jazz Awards.
In 2004, Jazz Jamaica collaborated with Hugh Masakela, and a choir of young people for a performance at the Barbican Centre
as part of the City of London Festival
marking South Africa
’s 10th anniversary of democracy.
In 2005, they released Motorcity Roots, an album of reworked Motown songs, and toured the UK and Europe in support.
Jazz Jamaica were described by The Independent
as "one of the UK's leading "good-time" bands".
Gary Crosby (bassist)
Gary Crosby OBE is a jazz double bassist, music arranger, educator and Executive Artistic Director of...
in London.
History
In 1991, inspired by the rhythms of traditional Jamaican musicMusic of Jamaica
The music of Jamaica includes Jamaican folk music and many popular genres, such as mento, ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub music, dancehall, reggae fusion and related styles. Jamaica's music culture is a fusion of elements from the United States , Africa, and neighboring Caribbean islands such as...
and the largely improvisational nature of jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, original Jazz Warrior, jazz double bassist, and nephew of veteran Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n guitarist Ernest Ranglin
Ernest Ranglin
Ernest Ranglin O.D. is a Jamaican guitarist and composer. Best known for his session work at the famed Studio One, Ranglin helped give birth to the ska genre in the late 1950s...
, Gary Crosby
Gary Crosby (bassist)
Gary Crosby OBE is a jazz double bassist, music arranger, educator and Executive Artistic Director of...
conceived a fusion of mento
Mento
Mento is a style of Jamaican folk music that predates and has greatly influenced ska and reggae music. It has its roots in calypso and other Jamaican folk music. Mento typically features acoustic instruments, such as acoustic guitar, banjo, hand drums, and the rhumba box — a large mbira in the...
, ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
, reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
and jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
styles in playing classic and modern jazz standards alongside Jamaican folksongs. To achieve this, he gathered together a group of musicians drawn from the jazz and reggae circuits, to form Jazz Jamaica.
Since its realisation, Crosby developed the Jazz Jamaica concept by introducing more young jazz musicians, so increasing the size of the pool of 'Jazz Jamaicans', and enabling him to extend the boundaries of the music played. Crosby and his musicians are exponents of this musical fusion known as skazz
Ska jazz
Ska jazz is a music genre derived by combining the melodic content of jazz with the rhythmic and harmonic content of ska.Ska jazz is considered a subgenre of third wave ska, but lacks the punk rock influence present in much of third wave ska, though jazz was a significant influence on ska itself...
, which has earned global appreciation.
In March 1999, Crosby expanded the core lineup of Jazz Jamaica to formal big band status by adding a number of guest soloists including Denys Baptiste
Denys Baptiste
Denys Baptiste is a jazz musician from London, England. A graduate of Tomorrow’s Warriors, Baptiste plays tenor and soprano saxophone in addition to composing....
, Andy Sheppard
Andy Sheppard
Andy Sheppard is a British jazz saxophonist and composer. He has been awarded several prizes at the British Jazz Awards, and has worked with some notable figures in contemporary jazz, including Gil Evans, Carla Bley, George Russell and Steve Swallow.-Biography:Sheppard was born in Warminster,...
, Soweto Kinch
Soweto Kinch
Soweto Kinch is a British jazz alto saxophonist and rapper.Born in London, England to a Barbadian father, who is a playwright, and British-Jamaican mother, who is an actress, Kinch began playing saxophone at the age of nine after learning clarinet at Allfarthing Primary School, Wandsworth, SW London...
, Juliet Roberts
Juliet Roberts
Juliet Roberts is a British jazz, rock and house music singer of Grenadian descent.-Career:She originally recorded as Julie Roberts in 1982, and performed on the 1983 Top 10 hit single, "It's Over" by the Funkmasters...
, Orphy Robinson
Orphy Robinson
Orphy Robinson is an award-winning Vibraphonist. Robinson, a multi-instrumentalist, also plays the saxophone,trumpet, drums, piano, marimba and steel pans . Orphy has written music for television, film, theater, opera and contemporary classical music...
, Guy Barker
Guy Barker
Guy Barker is an English jazz trumpeter and composer. Barker was born in Chiswick, London, the son of an actress and a stuntman. He started playing the trumpet at the age of twelve, and within a year had joined the National Youth Jazz Orchestra...
, Kevin Robinson, Ashley Slater
Ashley Slater
Ashley Slater is a UK based trombone player and best known for his work with Norman Cook in the band Freak Power. He was born in Schefferville, Canada in 1961...
, Annie Whitehead
Annie Whitehead
Annie Whitehead is an English jazz trombone player.-Career:Annie learned trombone at school; at 14 she was already busy playing with brass bands, local dance groups and the Manchester Youth Jazz Orchestra and began her professional career at sixteen. Among her initial influences were Miles Davis,...
, and Alex Wilson, resulting in the Jazz Jamaica All Stars, a 20-piece band featuring featuring vocals, five saxophones, four trumpets, and four trombones with a rhythm section of double bass, piano, drums, guitar and percussion.
In 2002, Jazz Jamaica won the best band award at the BBC
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
Jazz Awards.
In 2004, Jazz Jamaica collaborated with Hugh Masakela, and a choir of young people for a performance at the Barbican Centre
Barbican Centre
The Barbican Centre is the largest performing arts centre in Europe. Located in the City of London, England, the Centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhibitions. It also houses a library, three restaurants, and a conservatory...
as part of the City of London Festival
City of London Festival
The City of London Festival is an annual arts festival that takes place in the City of London, England, over two to three weeks in June and July. The Festival is strongly geared towards classical music, but also offers a programme that includes jazz, world music, opera, film screenings, lectures...
marking South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
’s 10th anniversary of democracy.
In 2005, they released Motorcity Roots, an album of reworked Motown songs, and toured the UK and Europe in support.
Jazz Jamaica were described by The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
as "one of the UK's leading "good-time" bands".
Albums
- SkaravanSkaravan- Track listing :# Barbados# Don Cosmic# Skaravan# Ramblin'# Nubia# Bridge view# You're so delightful# The peanut vendor# Green island# Africa...
(1993) Skazz, reissued (1996) Hannibal - Double Barrel (2002) Hannibal
- Massive (2004) Dune
- Motorcity Roots (2005) Dune