Jazz rock

Jazz rock is the combination of jazz and rock, as you might expect. It emerged from rock musicians bringing in ideas from jazz - certain chords and chord progressions, different instrumentation and, most notably, improvisation - and mostly incorporating that into rock structures. There are roughly two types of jazz rock:

• Jazz Rock, the form of Art Rock
• Jazz Rock, the form of Progressive Rock

What is Jazz Rock

Broadly speaking, jazz rock is pop rock music which incorporates elements of jazz:

• Chords associated with jazz are used
• Chord progressions are often derived from jazz, and other jazz ideas are used to change how songs are written (for example the modal approach to composition comes to rock via jazz)
• A broader range of instruments is often used, with jazz rock bands incorporating horns and sometimes jazz-associated instruments such as the vibraphone
• On the prog rock side of the spectrum, there is an emphasis on improvisation which didn't exist in rock music before that.

Jazz Rock is Not Jazz Fusion

We have something to get out of the way: jazz rock is not jazz fusion.

	Jazz Fusion	Art Rock Jazz Rock	Prog Rock Jazz Rock
Composition	Pieces roughly conform to bop composition, using head sheets, or sometimes diverge quite greatly; there are rarely lyrics because there are rarely vocalists	Art rock jazz rock songs deviate little from pop rock composition but rely on jazz chords; lyrics are not usually any different from regular art rock lyrics	Prog rock jazz rock songs are often focused mostly on the soloing but just resemble longer rock songs; if there are lyrics, they are usually no different from art rock lyrics
Arrangement and Instrumentation	Performers are usually playing traditional jazz instruments but with amplification and sometimes effects; pianos are often replaced by more contemporary keyboards; bass is often replaced by bass guitar; guitar is often incorporated	Traditional jazz instruments (horns, normally) are often incorporated but not always	One or more traditional jazz instruments may get a solo, but often these bands incorporate jazz soloing without jazz instruments
Production	Fusion sometimes differs greatly from traditional jazz, making use of rock overdubs and editing techniques, though not all fusion bands do this	Roughly similar to art rock	Different pieces are sometimes stitched into songs a la prog rock, but usually the listener does not notice.

Who are the major Jazz Rock Artists?

• Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames (1961-66)
• The Graham Bond Organisation (1964-67; 1969-70)
• The Blues Project (1965-1968; 1970-73)
• The Grateful Dead (1965-1995)
• Manfred Mann (1966 only)
• Cream (1966-68)

The History of Jazz Rock

The first ever jazz rock performance will likely forever be unknown. Before jazz rock records existed, rock bands were improvising and taking inspiration from jazz just like before the first fusion records were released jazz musicians were taking inspiration from rock and roll. In fact, before there was a clear separation between rock and roll and jazz, the two genres were intimately related. Rock and roll has Western Swing as one of its components, and Western Swing is a fusion of country and swing, a popularization of big band jazz.

Jazz rock probably began to emerge in the R&B scenes in the UK, in London and Liverpool. Georgie Fame and the Blue Flames are sometimes credited with being the first jazz rock group, in part because of future jazz guitarist John McLaughlin's presence in 1962 and 1963. However, it's the Graham Bond Organisation, which McLaughlin joined after, which is usually considered to be the first jazz rock band, releasing their debut album in March 1965. There was likely jazz rock made well before The Sound of '65 was released, but we have yet to find any on record. Alexis Korner's Blues Incorporated, featured members of the Graham Bond Organisation and other musicians, and their sound might have sometimes moved into early jazz rock territory.

The Graham Bond Organisation includes two musicians, Ginger Baker, who had apprenticed with a jazz drummer, and trained cellist Jack Bruce, now on bass, who would play an essential role in the evolution of jazz rock in the UK and the world, in their group Cream, in their solo careers, and in other endeavours.

Meanwhile, in New York city, Danny Kalb had participated in a record called The Blues Project by paying to have two songs featured on it. He soon formed a band called the Danny Kalb Quartet. Sometime in 1965 they became The Blues Project. They played blues songs full of improvisation. However, for their live debut, recorded primarily in November 1965, they were required to shorten the songs to standard lengths.

At some point in November in 1965, Ken Kesey hired a local band, the Warlocks, to play the firs of his "Acid Tests." The band members took LSD for the first time and it apparently opened their minds. It's not clear exactly when the Warlocks began integrating extended improvisations into their shows, but it was sometime in late 1965. There was already an established band named the Warlocks so these Warlocks soon changed their name to the Grateful Dead.

As 1966 began, jazz rock existed, but it wasn't very well known and wasn't very well defined. In 1966, members of the Graham Bond Organisation would begin to bring jazz rock to the masses and the Blues Project would get more representative music on tape.

Graham Bond had substance abuse problems and the band was constantly in conflict because of this and also the relationship between Baker and Bruce. Bruce had been fired in August of 1965 and joined John Mayall's Bluesbreakers briefly, where he first met Eric Clapton. Baker soon left the Organisation too and the Graham Bond Organisation would only release a single before Bond "went solo" prior to his death in 1974.

After the Bluesbreakers, Jack Bruce was hired by Manfred Mann long enough for them to record Instrumental Asylum, an EP of jazz rock covers of pop rock songs, which leaned heavily into jazz instrumentation, featuring horns and vibraphone.

After Bruce's departure from Manfred Mann, he and Baker began talking about a new band which they wanted Eric Clapton of the Bluesbreakers to join. When he prevaricated, Baker and Bruce put out a press release and Cream was born. Cream would arguably due more to popularize jazz improvisation in rock music than anyone outside of the Grateful Dead (who were not yet signed at this point).

Cream debuted in July 1966. Their second single, "I Feel Free," already introduced jazz ideas into their blues rock, in this case featuring Bruce's wordless vocals. But with Cream it was the live shows which really mattered. With all three band members highly adept at their instruments, their live shows began to include extended jazz-inspired improvisations, including drum solos which could last 10 minutes. Cream's four albums were all big hits in the UK and three of the four were big hits in the US and they had two top 10 hit singles in the US. That meant that people went to see their shows. Unlike the Blues Project, who no one was aware of, and the Dead, who had yet to become the band people followed around the United States, people saw Cream improvise on stage. (Also, they began including live tracks on their studio albums.) The Blues Project and the Dead were improvising their solos before Cream, but Cream did it in front of way more people during this period. By the time they broke up they were one of the biggest bands in the UK and numerous people, including many future rock stars, had been exposed to the idea of jazz improvisation in rock music.

Where Did Jazz Rock Originate?

Weirdly, jazz rock probably first emerged in the UK, though jazz rock began to emerge very soon after in the US. Jazz rock was an easier possibility in the UK because the British didn't have such hard and fast rules about American genres; British R&B bands would often have horn sections and those bands would often play older jazz, such as big band tunes, as part of their repertoire. British jazz musicians often needed R&B gigs to help pay the bills and often moonlighted in the R&B bands.

In the US, musicians rarely crossed over, so it was American rock bands interested in improvising on stage which helped created jazz rock, both in New York City and the Bay Area.