It's Black History Month and what better way to celebrate it then to take a look at one of the greatest contributions to American culture by black people- Jazz.
Ok, to be honest, I know nothing about it. I hardly listen to it. All I did was watch Ken Burns's Jazz, and it blew my mind. Ok, I didn't actually watch all of it, there's a lot of episodes, but I highly recommend everybody at least watch the first episode in order to get a rundown on the roots of jazz and it's affect on our culture.
I was particularly struck by the philosophy of jazz as a form of individual expression. Jazz comes out of a truth-telling emotionality, freedom of expression inside the boundaries of musical structure. Similarly, comedy has evolved from a superficial punch-setup form to one of raw truth. In this podcast, I ramble on about the connections that I intuited between the two, all stemming from Wynton Marsalis's breakdown of the downbeat in jazz.
Also, weed.
Songs/Clips
Jazz (We've Got) - A Tribe Called Quest
West End Blues - Louis Armstrong
Standup Comedy (1964) - Richard Pryor
The Hippy Dippy Weatherman (1966) - George Carlin
