Jazz As Pure American and Pure Black Music

I always wondered why is Jazz so popular among people living in former Soviet bloc countries.

On the other hand, I met many Brits (and Americans) who not only hate Jazz but any of its paraphernalia. You just have to mention Jazz and the conversation will end right there. Maybe it’s old-fashioned today to be swinging to Jazz beats? But then there’s Latin Jazz which is phenomenal.

Maybe my experiences were subjective. But, I did encounter so many Jazz-haters. I couldn’t believe my ears: “how can anyone hate such a soulful, melodious music.”

I love Jazz because it has a hint of romance in every beat. Jazz is the rhythm of the most beautiful life.

Most of us rockers don’t hate jazz. At worst we find it rather boring. We hate jazz fans or jazzholes as we call them! See below.

Jazz is very nice music and it is often also very good music. The great Black jazz musicians like Coltrane and Miles Davis were absolutely out of this world. I mean they were in another category altogether – sort of on a higher plane.

I don’t like “jazzholes.” A lot of jazz fans are like that. They are anti-hipsters who hate rock and roll and think it is stupid and lowbrow, except that it’s not. They think they are intellectual and sophisticated, often wear suits even as young men, despise hipsters, refuse to smoke pot or do any drugs at all and instead prefer to drink alcohol, preferably the hard stuff in mixed drugs.

I always considered them to be a bunch of squares and never liked them very much. Jazz versus rock got caught up in the anti-hippie culture wars on the 1960’s-1080’s which at its mildest form simply hated rock music and pot and at its worst hated long hair and the whole nine yards.

Jazz isn’t British music. British music is rock and roll!

Jazz came out of the US and it all came from Black people. The roots were all the way back to the 20’s and it was long associated with a drug-using, mostly Black underground in big US cities like New York where the scene was big Harlem.

I have no idea why jazz is so popular in the former Soviet bloc.

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5 thoughts on “Jazz As Pure American and Pure Black Music”

  1. I have no idea why jazz is so popular in the former Soviet bloc.

    I guess it’s all about perception. Outside the Anglosphere, Jazz is viewed for what it is; an elegant form of music. You can be a hipster, druggie, stoner, anti-social and enjoy jazz.

    I think one reason Jazz is so popular in the former Soviet bloc is because it was the only exposure they had to the outside world during the Cold War. In the ’80s, Black Jazz musicians did immensely successful tours from Prague to Moscow.

    Jazz is actually viewed as cool with none of the baggage you described here. There are no jazzholes as you put it.

  2. I always considered them to be a bunch of squares and never liked them very much. Jazz versus rock got caught up in the anti-hippie culture wars on the 1960’s-1080’s which at its mildest form simply hated rock music and pot and at its worst hated long hair and the whole nine yards.

    Speaking of which you must watch this video. It rocks, man. An Aussie bogan is fighting off police officers at Singapore airport. It can’t get more anti-establishment than this.

    I witnessed this incident from a higher floor as I was transiting through Singapore (during my 2017-18 SE Asia fuck trips). Somebody took a video of course and it now has over 10 million views.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Bg5QLPkiZ8

    Singapore has very strict law enforcement. They hang you for possessing drugs. You get fined heavily for lewd behavior, cussing, spitting.

    The Aussie only got a slap in the wrist, just one night in jail before the embassy bailed him out. Still, he had some serious balls, to take on the entire law enforcement and might of another country.

    Needless to say, this man is a legend and an inspiration.

  3. Jazz was popularized in the Soviet block – cause it goes a long with black social justice causes. I mean, the Soviet Union was out to show America “wasn’t so great” – so they emphasized the segregation etc.. in America (odd since now there is so much white nationalism in Eastern Europe now).

    Anyway, with jazz, I generally don’t like to listen to it – but it’s fun to play (and often highly challenging). Well, I wouldn’t want to seem dorky shouting jazz from my car radio either.

    1. See there’s this negative perception I was talking about. You’ll find this only in the Anglosphere.

      All the countries that speak any of the Slav languages can’t have enough of Jazz music.

  4. It’s interesting how things that are thought of as uniquely American can become so popular. I’ve been reading about 50’s subcultures lately and was surprised to find out that the English Teddy Boys were into Jazz and Skiffle music before the advent of Rock. It should be noted that the UK showings of the American film Blackboard Jungle is what popularized Rock n Roll in England.

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