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I just got a couple of really cheap mp3 players (1 gig), and I decided to fill one with some really cool instrumental jazz, mostly '50s & '60s stuff. So I've got Martin Denny, Dave Brubeck, Henry Mancini, along with a few others, on there so far, and the player is about half full. Any suggestions for other artists to look for? My goal is to make this player so cool that it freezes. So hep a cat out, will ya?  :lookingup:

Love that stuff, but I also like the vocalists (ANITA O'DAY or JUNE CHRISTY for instance).  For just instrumentals, you're only scratching the surface; try MODERN JAZZ QUARTET albums  Django or Fontessa  MILES DAVIS is always good, look for recordings CHET BAKER "Walkin' Shoes" ART BLAKEY "Doodlin..."  For more out-there, definitely cool, try CHARLES MINGUS, DIZZY GILLESPIE, THELONIOUS MONK, JOHN COLTRANE QUARTET...   Let us know what you choose.   Since you're doing MARTIN DENNY (who I would not consider "Ultra-Cool Jazz") you could certainly handle SERGIO MENDES & BRASIL 66 (I'd recommend their album Look Around...) which is BOSSA NOVA and still COOL. 

Martin Denny not ultra cool? Blasphemy!  :tongueout:

Thanks for the suggestions. Some I've got (Coltrane, Davis), some I'd already planned on getting some more of (Gillespie, Monk). I also have some Antonio Carlos Jobim, which I love, but I haven't decided yet if it fits the overall sound I'm going for. I will look into the others you mention. I'm basically going for the sound many would consider "cheesy," but it's got an undeniable cool to it as well. Monk, Davis, Gillespie, etc., are definitely more mainstream cool, or rather "cool" in a different, more serious, way, but Denny, Arthur Lyman, and a few others represent a "bachelor pad" cool that is wonderful fun to listen to. I'm not a bachelor anymore, but I still love the sound.

"Ultra Cool" or "Cool School" is indicative of a particular movement in Jazz starting in the late '40s, and dominating '50s Jazz.  For Exotica, try: HUGO WINTERHALTER, PEREZ PRADO, BERT KAEMPFERT, ROBERT MAXWELL, ROGER WILLIAMS, PERCY FAITH...

Okay; I can't say I'm any manner of jazz expert, and the many, many movements are beyond my ken. If I mislabeled what I was looking for; sorry. I will look into those you listed and see what I can find. Again, thanks.

Hey, Derf, no problem.  I love all kinds of music, but Cool School Jazz is one of my favorites.  I know what you mean about "movements" (I get dizzy with the differentiation in Pop and Rock now) but Cool School (as I call it) was the next major progression of Jazz after Swing (I include "Be Bop" and "Hard Bop" in "Cool School".)  You did also allude to "Hep cats..."  :teddyr: 

So, you've got MARTIN DENNY's "Quiet Village" and ART LYMAN's "Yellow Bird" ?  If so, you'll like PEREZ PRADO's "Patricia" or "Cherry Pink Apple Blossom White" or "Why Wait", BERT KAEMPFERT's "Wonderland By Night..."  I think I get what you're going for.     

Thought of somebody perfect for your mix: CAL TJADER look for his album Soul Sauce !!

I know Be-bop and even Hard Bop (at least the terms, if not all the specifics, but I've never seen them grouped under "Ultra Cool." Oh, well, I learned something new. And my project isn't really very strict; Dave Brubeck doesn't really fit into the same category as Martin Denny. I've also included some Herb Alpert, some Dixieland, and some other stuff that isn't really the same "sound." I guess it's more about whether it hits me a certain way as to whether I include it. And that somehow seems right, considering that jazz is about breaking with convention. I got some Cal Tjader; I didn't find the Soul Sauce album, but I did get several cuts from it as part of a "Jazz Masters" album. I'm still looking for some of the others listed. Thanks again, and karma for your help!

I wouldn't take me too seriously, I'm no musicologist, but "Cool School" would be the term, "Ultra Cool" in relation to Jazz, for me a fan of many types of Jazz, can only mean "Cool School..." I think sometimes called "West Coast Cool..." and I shouldn't lump Be Bop in with it... let's just say y'know it when y'hear it!   :smile:

Oh!  Wanted to point out that when I saw "Ultra Cool Jazz" and DAVE BRUBECK mentioned, I automatically thought of "Cool School..."

Hey Derf, I'd classify most of what you're looking for more as "lounge," "bachelor pad," and/or "exotica" rather than "cool jazz" (though some of it is definitely cool jazz).  I agree with AHD's suggestions: the guy knows his stuff.  Especially Miles (the "Birth of the Cool" sessions) and Chet Baker.  Too bad Jobim isn't within the sound your looking for: I'd definitely add the Jobim/Getz collaborations as well as any bossa nova I could get my hands on if I were making this mix.  For stuff in the same style I think you're looking for I might add:

Esquivel - SPACE AGE BACHELOR PAD MUSIC (sample: Sentimental Journey (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=50:39fqxzyjldae~T))
Les Baxter - THE EXOTIC MOODS OF LES BAXTER (sample: Temple of Gold (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=50:gcfrxzukldte~T))
Bill Evans - EXPLORATIONS (sample: Beautiful Love (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=50:dzftxcwkldte~T))
John Barry (James Bond composer) - THE FILM MUSIC OF JOHN BARRY (sample: The Ipcress File (http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=50:jpftxqyrldje~T))

Maybe I'm off base, but if this is what you're going for I can give you more...

:thumbup: Thanks, REV., definitely LOUNGE music Derf is looking for...  You may have noticed that I also used the term EXOTICA but didn't think of LES BAXTER.  Good suggestions! 

Yeah, for the most part it is the lounge/exotica sound I'm looking for in this particular instance. When I asked, I was using "Ultra-cool" as a simple descriptor rather than a classification; I had not heard the term used as a label for a certain "school" of jazz. And I stand by that descriptor, as Denny is most certainly cool. As I said, though, the whole project is fluid, so many of the "Cool School" artists may well fit, depending on what day I listen to them. I'm kind of looking for some things I haven't heard yet to mix in with the stuff I'm familiar with, and that's my main reason to ask here. I figured there'd almost have to be a jazz fan or two on the board who could give me some suggestions, and that has most assuredly happened.

I wanted instrumentals on this player in particular because the vocal jazz pieces I have go fine on my main player, where I've got a little of everything. The instrumentals are for when I want to do some specific activities, during which vocals would serve to distract.

And Rev., I just said I hadn't decided yet whether Jobim fit; I certainly haven't ruled him out yet, and yes, his teaming with Getz is wonderful stuff. I will look into your suggestions as well; I've got some very good leads so far. Thanks! (and karma)