The Shape Of Jazz To Come

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M4sEcIHG0Yc By definition, if the album is part of the fucking Library of Congress but not on the list, then I'm putting a pin in the Robert Dimery voodoo doll, because how the hell was this not on the original list. And yes, that includes "Sesame Street: All-Time Platinum Favorites" which is also in the Library of Congress. That is actually true, you are free to fact check. It's free jazz/avantgarde jazz/soundscapes from the elephant torture chamber. It won't be for everyone, but I think this is more my kind of jazz than that smooth stuff. Not sure why. Like, I very barely understand what the hell is going on here. Some parts of this sound like I'm listening to a random note generator, until he randomly pulls out the saxophone Konami code and plays the coolest shit ever for 10 seconds, before reality falls apart again. 4/5. Also somebody should put "The Shape Of Punk To Come" on this list as well. That's a good ass album.

I’d bet anything this was added by the guy who wrote the awesome, informative review on Spy vs. Spy! Listening to some actual Coleman makes the chaos of the latter record a bit more understandable, as he seems to enjoy these squirrelly, abstract melodic runs that seem to zig and zag at will around the track. It’s bold and a little wild, even by Jazz standards, and definitely feels like a shot in the arm – the LP’s title promises the future and the album certainly delivers on that aim.

Great free jazz album. It was included in the Rolling Stone list of the 500 greatest albums of all time and National Recording Registry. "Lonely Woman" is one of my all time favorite jazz compositions.

Was this really not in the official edition of the book?? A necessary correction if so! Ornette Coleman has become one of my favourite artists. Though I think he went on to make better records, from the first melody of ”Lonely Woman” you know this is a special musical document. A true jazz classic, which is something that deserves much more representation on this list

Top notch share. Important, fascinating, like nothing I've ever heard. Lonely Woman evoked moods I didn't even know were a thing. Can be a bit assaultive in places, but wow, this is one amazing album. Definitely should have been on the main list. Thank you user 360, this is one I did need to hear before I die.

Huh, I guess Ornette Coleman didn't make the original list, did he? That feels wrong to me, and I've never connected much with Coleman myself. It's been a good 10 years since I last heard this album, and it's sitting better with me today than it has in the past. I guess listening to 1001+ disparate albums will do that to a person. This is cool as hell. Strident, energetic and madly creative. Structurally unmoored to the point where I might not feel like engaging with it all the time. Still, there's enough control to the chaos that it's never really tiring or hard on the ears. Just straight up in his groove, front to back. I would happily trade this with any number of albums from the original list. Fave Songs: Peace, Lonely Woman, Eventually, Focus on Sanity

Can’t say this is a record I come back to that often but its impact on the jazz scene is undeniable. It’s not as noisy as I remembered and actually has some really touching soft moments. There’s nothing too overbearing or squawky, and while the improv does get very free in places it all still follows that familiar bebop structure. Coleman’s sax runs are just insanely fluent and seem to transcend the boundaries of melody, harmony, rhythm, and space-time. Inimitable playing paired with a groundbreaking singular vision, Ornette Coleman I respect your game

First and foremost, if the recommender meant to offer this as a direct rejoinder to it being excluded from list proper (and to protest John Zorn’s purported tribute), then full marks. One doesn’t get a ton of emotion out of it, which the elite critics seem to emphasize – with the all the austerity and angularity – but agree it’s more accessible than its reputation suggests. And not far from West Coast dryness, either. And if not emotional, then fully engaging, especially “Lonely Woman” and “Chronology.” And love how geeky-school-teacher-y and preacher-ly, even clerical, he looks on the cover. This would be a beyond-worthy – and actually tremendous – addition to the list proper, replacing Zorn’s entry would be perfect poetic justice and a huge improvement – the thing itself, as it were.

This groundbreaking album is probably not an easy listen for people not versed in free jazz (a style which Coleman foretold here, as explained by the album's title). *Somethin' Else* sure is an easier listen in comparison. But in the right mood, I can "dig" the passion and technique here harnessed by Coleman, Cherry, Haden and Higgins. Besides, this is the sort of omission that prevented me from taking the original list seriously when it comes to jazz. Like, the book included John Zorn's bizarro tribute to Ornette but not one single record by the jazz master himself? Ridiculous. And that tribute album isn't even John Zorn's best work (by far) either... Twice ridiculous, then. Apart from that, I have nothing really specific to add to the review currently topping this section. It's just a perfect take, including that reference to the Refused album -- which actually made me discover the existence of *The Shape Of Jazz To Come*. Which reminds me... No one has added *The Shape Of Punk To Come* in the list yet, right? I have one simple question: when, goddamnit?!? 3.5/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums, rounded up to 4. 8.5/10 for more general purposes (5 + 3.5). ---- Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ----- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 39 (including this one) Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 46 Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 94 ---- Émile, as-tu lu ma dernière réponse sous la review de "Chet" ?

OK! Finally an album that's actually important to the history and story of music in here - these kinds of "missing from the list" albums are what I want to see (hear). Crucial: this is most definitely NOT John Zorn's interpretation of Ornette in case anyone is triggered from that original entry. It's some hilariously high-test bullshit that THAT goddamn album (Spy v Spy if you want to wound yourselves again) was in the 1001 and this was not.... what the actual living f.... an egregious miss!! The start of free jazz right here - throwing away conventional form and previous assumptions on modality and melodic structure - even Coleman's contemporaries were like "dude, wtf..." with this. Funny in retrospect since to modern ears it's not all that outlandish at all. 1959 tho. Whether you like jazz (and I do but this can be a challenging one especially for early jazz) or not this IS an album you should hear before you die. 8/10 4 stars.

Not bad

I listened to this with my 11 year old nephew-in-law who thought it was “pretty good” which surprised me… I don’t think he’s been exposed to much jazz in his life. I guess that you don’t need a lot of exposure to appreciate some pretty wild jazz. This project has lead me to really enjoy jazz as well. I enjoyed having this playing today quite a lot. A few times it got so wild I thought maybe a horse was in distress, but even that I found interesting and enjoyable. Excellent selection!

Ornette Coleman coming on the scene and tearing jazz a new asshole is one of my favorite things.

Classic ! The original list is strangely lacking in jazz. This is a must for any jazz fan. 5 stars.

Top notch jazz. I'm glad I listened to it. Edited review. I had misread something and thought this was some late 90s release of top notch jazz from someone who'd been playing for decades. Turns out it's from 1959 and someone relatively new to the scene - and that turns it from being top notch to something beyond. It is amazing. Extraordinary. Remarkable.

should have been on the original list

This is a great Jazz album full of genius musicianship. Enjoyable, provoking, energetic and complete. Very nice.

I hadn’t heard of this group but they had good songs and great songs!

A glaring omission from the original list. But hey, there was so much rando electronica that they just had to include. If you are going to title an album “The Shape of Jazz to Come” you’d better deliver. And boy does this

One of the best jazz albums of all time. Unique and original quality from start to finish. I’ll never be smart enough to understand what’s going on here, but I can certainly enjoy it. Love it a lot. 5/5

10/10 it’s nearly impossible for me to pick a favorite jazz musician, but jesus christ Ornette fucking Coleman comes pretty goddamn close to #1

Lovely little number

So fucking jazzy. Are you listening to jazz? YES

It’s jazz!

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Congeniality

I consider myself pretty clueless when it comes to jazz, which also certainly merits a whole 1001 essential albums list of its own. So it comes to whether I connect to a particular album or not. I definitely connected with this one, but I don't have anything smart to say about it.

Chill and beautiful!

I don’t know. I like this album. It’s good. But it’s not as avant as I’d expected. When I see avant-garde or free tags on jazz, I expect craziness. This music is a bit safer. I will say this, though, there's something in this music that extends beyond America's borders. Can't quite put my finger on it. I think it's the way the bass rhythms interact.

This is great. Need more of this on the list. What more is there to say? This is some fantastic jazz music. My personal rating: 4/5 My rating relative to the list: 4/5 Should this have been included on the original list? Yes. Could always use more jazz.

If you asked me what Jazz album is missing from the list I’d say this one. Even more ridiculous that spy vs spy is on the list. Saying that personally it’s not a jazz album I really connect with I find it a bit hard work and complex, I prefer the more accessible bebop jazz. But you can’t argue enough the importance of this album.

For me, jazz was one of the standout genres from the original project and I loved every time I got a new jazz album. This one was also fantastic with a lot of character and story telling.

I listened to this after a hardcore album, hoping for smooth jazz. I needed something... calming. This was not that. Bebop is still good, though. "Eventually" and "Lonely Woman" felt all over the place. It wasn't until "Peace" that things kinda settled down (for Bebop, at least). Top tracks: "Focus On Sanity," "Peace," "Congeniality," "Chronology"

This is one of those albums that are more influential over time than it is good. Very early free jazz back from a time when jazz was highly considered. Overall I thought this was okay but it wasn’t the kind of jazz I seek out when wanting jazz. 6.1/10

I feel like I’ve heard of this album before but I don’t know anything about it so it just sounds like normal ass jazz to me.

I know he knows what he's doing, but this is a bit hard on the ears. 3/5, but only because there's technical skill involved.

This is jazz allright. Not all that bad

There were a lot of notes that I didn't catch in this one. I've always been a fan of the bass in jazz. It's the glue that holds this house together. The glory always goes to the sax or trumpet player, but it should be for the bass player.

Avant-garde jazz, free jazz. Ni fu ni fa.

I'm not a big jazz guy but this is a pretty good way to start a Friday. 3 stars.

Jazz became a good shape, like a circle

Great drum and bass. Very acceptable horn work

So free. So jazz. 6/10

Meh. First two songs were upbeat and a little spastic. By the third song Peace, he/they seemed to take the foot off the gas and cruise. I think I prefer the latter, but still a bit too chill for me. Background music and not much else.

Not even gonna pretend I like this one 1 But I guess it's pretty interesting that you never know which frequency will come next. Including silence. Congeniality is pretty good. Chronology pretty good too. Ok it picks up 3 I take back what I said about Chronology. 2

I kind of get excited when i see a jazz recommendation on the list, thinking i may finally find that breakthrough that grows my appreciation of the style. Then typically a few minutes in, it becomes apparent i still don't get jazz. It doesn't start too bad, but Eventually was my stark reminder that some jazz just doesn't work for me. With the speed saxophone, i can't tell if he's having a spasm or playing notes correctly... its just a shrill burst after burst. Focus on Sanity also is too challenging of a listen for me. Glad to move on.

I’m not sure what’s worse — enduring 38 minutes and 13 seconds of nerve-wracking trumpet noodling, or being stuck in a group chat where everyone insists on replying “haha” to everything. Either way, it’s a slow descent into madness. My ears felt personally attacked. I’ve come to accept that my internal audio system was never calibrated for jazz — and frankly, I’m okay with that. Some things are better left un-tuned.

Every tune literally sounded identical

Melded into any other jazz album.

The Shape of Jazz to Come isn't really my preferred style of jazz, it's a bit too experimental and staccato and fragmented, not a smoother refined experience, but there are bits to like. The last two tracks are the best, Congeniality and Chronology, and it's fairly short overall, but a 2/5 because it doesn't hit the mark where I want it to.

Yes I do fear jazz

Great musicianship but jazz isn't my bag I'm afraid.

It's jazz. Some are good some are ... Jazz

Who remembers that spy Vs spy album that was a wild ride but shit. Yeah it's that guy again, it's more coherent than spy but it's still unlistenable to me. I think it's for people who really "get" music and you know what I'm fine not being that kinda guy

Pretty good for jazz. I’m bad at recognizing good jazz because it’s not something that I necessarily look forward to hearing, but was good for what it was.

Jazz? Jizz.

jazz sucks so much, seriously...

I’ve tried. I’ve tried and I’ve failed. I hate jazz.

As genre that was covered by the original list

Jazz is horrible