"sleazy detective jazz"?

noise · 12-14-2009, 03:18 PM

there is a very specific kind of music i associate with vague memories from my childhood in the early 80s of staying up late and watching sleazy detective films. it is slow and syrupy, and is very heavy on the sax.

this kind of music brings up images of rainy cities and late-night clandestine meetings under the streetlights. i associate it with the smoke-filled offices of grumbling dectives who invariably wore khaki dusters and wide-brimmed hats.

here are a few examples that come close to what i'm talking about. if you know of more music of this style, please let me know.

thanks!

jackhammer · 12-14-2009, 04:21 PM

I did a compilation a while back with just this sort of music and I thought I had it stored on my megaupload account but alas

Here's some tunes:

Not quite full of sax but here are a couple of comps you may enjoy

http://www.musicbanter.com/general-m...tml#post623193

EDIT: It's on my Mediafire:enjoy!
http://www.mediafire.com/?fzsm11dqsm5

Dieselboy · 12-14-2009, 07:49 PM

Very nice topic, as I enjoy this type of stuff as well, but don't know too much of it.

One album that sorta does fit this topic for me though:

Chick Corea - Time Warp

Some of the songs have more piano than sax, but a few like Terrain and Arndok's Grave really have some sleazy detective sounding sax.
Unfortunately, none of these songs are on Youtube it looks like, which kinda shocks me as good as this album is, but /shrug.

I'll be interested to see what other people put in here too.

LoathsomePete · 12-14-2009, 08:33 PM

Bohren & Der Club of Gore do fit this sound at times. Incredibly slow and minimalistic, yet it does feature heavy on the sax at times. Definitely something that would make Tex Murphy proud.

noise · 12-14-2009, 11:53 PM

jackhammer - thanks for the comp! grabbing it now.

dieselboy - my 10 second search didn't show 'time warp' but i found a lot of other albums by chick corea. will have a look.

loathesomepete - found several albums. where should i start?

thanks everyone!

LoathsomePete · 12-15-2009, 12:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by noise

jackhammer - thanks for the comp! grabbing it now.

dieselboy - my 10 second search didn't show 'time warp' but i found a lot of other albums by chick corea. will have a look.

loathesomepete - found several albums. where should i start?

thanks everyone!

Black Earth is the best one to start with, I'll send it your way.

noise · 12-15-2009, 12:22 AM

got it, thanks

Gavin B. · 12-16-2009, 10:24 AM

You call it sleazy detective, I call it jazz noir. Noir is French for the word "black" and film noir is a term used by film critics to describe a very particular genre of movies that appeared in the late 40s, 50s and early 60s. Film noirs were usually filmed in black and white. The noir had dark existential themes and the usual topic was crime and punishment. Many film noirs had bluesy jazz soundtrack that often featured a saxaphone or trumpet. The Postman Rings Twice and Double Indemnity were early examples of film noir.

The first jazz noir piece I ever heard was Harlem Nocturne which has been done hundreds of time by hundreds of jazz bands. The song was written in 1939 by jazz composer Earle Hagen and ended up being the theme song for the 1950s television show Mike Hammer. His moody music was decades ahead of other music written for movies. Hagen was probably the first great modern soundtrack composer and he was a prolific writer of film and television soundtracks. This version of Harlem Nocturne is performed by the Johnny Nocturne Band led by saxaphonist John Firmin.

Goodbye Pork Pie Hat from the 1959 Charles Mingus album Mingus Ah Um in another jazz noir piece. It's a classic.

Henry Mancini's ultra cool lounge jazz score to the Peter Gunn television show is another example of the jazz noir subgenre.

John Barry's soundtracks to the James Bond movies were an evolved product of jazz noir. The embedded Shirley Bassey song Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a great example of the closely related jazz noir crossover to the spy movie soundtrack. Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was orginally intended be the main vocal song on soundtrack of the Bond movie Thuderball but it was pulled at the last minute for a medicore Tom Jones song with the name Thunderball. The embedded video below is the original edit of the opening of Thunderball with the Bassey song. It's a thrilling song and with the exception of Garbage's The World Is Not Enough, it's my favorite song composed for a Bond film.

You find some of the best jazz noir pieces in collection of 50s and 60s television soundtracks to dectective shows like the Naked City, 77 Sunset Strip, and M-Squad.

The album above, White Heat, is a fine collection of jazz noir by a group of anonymous soundtrack players. The Ultra-Lounge series has a collection of jazz noir called Crime Scene which is Vol. 7 of the Ultra Lounge issues. The soundtrack to the movie Body Heat is a modern day classic in the jazz noir subgenre. All of these albums are available for either as MP3 downloads or as compact disks at Amazon.

noise · 12-16-2009, 01:39 PM

thanks Gavin, you really set me going in the right direction.

can't find White Heat - you have a link?

but i got the Crime Scene compilation. it's absolutely fantastic! really enjoying it a lot

~edit~
these Ultra Lounge discs are awesome. i'm grabbing the whole series. what fun

Gavin B. · 12-16-2009, 03:55 PM

Link to White Heat at Amazon

The album is out of issue on cd and scalpers are asking an outrageous price of $38.69 for a new copy, but you can download the album for $9.99 or purchase a used copy of it starting @ $3.20 if you check out the page closely.

12-14-2009, 03:18 PM	#1 (permalink)
noise thirsty ears Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Boulder Posts: 742	"sleazy detective jazz"? there is a very specific kind of music i associate with vague memories from my childhood in the early 80s of staying up late and watching sleazy detective films. it is slow and syrupy, and is very heavy on the sax. this kind of music brings up images of rainy cities and late-night clandestine meetings under the streetlights. i associate it with the smoke-filled offices of grumbling dectives who invariably wore khaki dusters and wide-brimmed hats. here are a few examples that come close to what i'm talking about. if you know of more music of this style, please let me know. thanks! __________________ my flac collection

12-14-2009, 04:21 PM	#2 (permalink)
jackhammer Ba and Be. Join Date: May 2007 Location: This Is England Posts: 17,331	I did a compilation a while back with just this sort of music and I thought I had it stored on my megaupload account but alas Here's some tunes: Not quite full of sax but here are a couple of comps you may enjoy http://www.musicbanter.com/general-m...tml#post623193 EDIT: It's on my Mediafire:enjoy! http://www.mediafire.com/?fzsm11dqsm5 __________________ It be my music and film collection. “A cynic by experience, a romantic by inclination and now a hero by necessity.”

12-14-2009, 08:33 PM	#4 (permalink)
LoathsomePete Cardboard Box Realtor Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Hobb's End Posts: 7,648	Bohren & Der Club of Gore do fit this sound at times. Incredibly slow and minimalistic, yet it does feature heavy on the sax at times. Definitely something that would make Tex Murphy proud. __________________ Last.FM 101 Albums That May Not Change Your Life, But I Really Like And You Might Too

12-14-2009, 11:53 PM	#5 (permalink)
noise thirsty ears Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Boulder Posts: 742	jackhammer - thanks for the comp! grabbing it now. dieselboy - my 10 second search didn't show 'time warp' but i found a lot of other albums by chick corea. will have a look. loathesomepete - found several albums. where should i start? thanks everyone! __________________ my flac collection

12-15-2009, 12:22 AM	#7 (permalink)
noise thirsty ears Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Boulder Posts: 742	got it, thanks __________________ my flac collection

12-14-2009, 07:49 PM	#3 (permalink)
Dieselboy Music Addict Join Date: Mar 2009 Posts: 608	Very nice topic, as I enjoy this type of stuff as well, but don't know too much of it. One album that sorta does fit this topic for me though: Chick Corea - Time Warp Some of the songs have more piano than sax, but a few like Terrain and Arndok's Grave really have some sleazy detective sounding sax. Unfortunately, none of these songs are on Youtube it looks like, which kinda shocks me as good as this album is, but /shrug. I'll be interested to see what other people put in here too.

12-16-2009, 10:24 AM	#8 (permalink)
Gavin B. Model Worker Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,248	You call it sleazy detective, I call it jazz noir. Noir is French for the word "black" and film noir is a term used by film critics to describe a very particular genre of movies that appeared in the late 40s, 50s and early 60s. Film noirs were usually filmed in black and white. The noir had dark existential themes and the usual topic was crime and punishment. Many film noirs had bluesy jazz soundtrack that often featured a saxaphone or trumpet. The Postman Rings Twice and Double Indemnity were early examples of film noir. The first jazz noir piece I ever heard was Harlem Nocturne which has been done hundreds of time by hundreds of jazz bands. The song was written in 1939 by jazz composer Earle Hagen and ended up being the theme song for the 1950s television show Mike Hammer. His moody music was decades ahead of other music written for movies. Hagen was probably the first great modern soundtrack composer and he was a prolific writer of film and television soundtracks. This version of Harlem Nocturne is performed by the Johnny Nocturne Band led by saxaphonist John Firmin. Goodbye Pork Pie Hat from the 1959 Charles Mingus album Mingus Ah Um in another jazz noir piece. It's a classic. Henry Mancini's ultra cool lounge jazz score to the Peter Gunn television show is another example of the jazz noir subgenre. John Barry's soundtracks to the James Bond movies were an evolved product of jazz noir. The embedded Shirley Bassey song Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang is a great example of the closely related jazz noir crossover to the spy movie soundtrack. Mr. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang was orginally intended be the main vocal song on soundtrack of the Bond movie Thuderball but it was pulled at the last minute for a medicore Tom Jones song with the name Thunderball. The embedded video below is the original edit of the opening of Thunderball with the Bassey song. It's a thrilling song and with the exception of Garbage's The World Is Not Enough, it's my favorite song composed for a Bond film. You find some of the best jazz noir pieces in collection of 50s and 60s television soundtracks to dectective shows like the Naked City, 77 Sunset Strip, and M-Squad. The album above, White Heat, is a fine collection of jazz noir by a group of anonymous soundtrack players. The Ultra-Lounge series has a collection of jazz noir called Crime Scene which is Vol. 7 of the Ultra Lounge issues. The soundtrack to the movie Body Heat is a modern day classic in the jazz noir subgenre. All of these albums are available for either as MP3 downloads or as compact disks at Amazon.

12-16-2009, 01:39 PM	#9 (permalink)
noise thirsty ears Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Boulder Posts: 742	thanks Gavin, you really set me going in the right direction. can't find White Heat - you have a link? but i got the Crime Scene compilation. it's absolutely fantastic! really enjoying it a lot ~edit~ these Ultra Lounge discs are awesome. i'm grabbing the whole series. what fun __________________ my flac collection Last edited by noise; 12-16-2009 at 02:09 PM.

12-16-2009, 03:55 PM	#10 (permalink)
Gavin B. Model Worker Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,248	Link to White Heat at Amazon The album is out of issue on cd and scalpers are asking an outrageous price of $38.69 for a new copy, but you can download the album for $9.99 or purchase a used copy of it starting @ $3.20 if you check out the page closely.