Ry Cooder - Jazz (1978)

Ry Cooder is an American musician, best known for his skill as a slide guitarist and his interest in American roots music.

For album number seven, Ry Cooder decided to focus on one theme - jazz. However his approach to the genre was typically idiosyncratic, approaching it in the same way his previous albums had approached American folk and blues music - bypassing any popular modern views of what the genre was to reach back into its dusty and forgotten roots. It wasn't modern jazz, but the ragtime, string-band and vaudeville music of the early 20th century. Even then it wasn't merely a homage, but his own unique take on the genre - never before had bottleneck slide guitar been used in a jazz ensemble. Most of the music was instrumental, but it did feature a few vocal cuts, most notably his fantastic take on Bert Williams' "Nobody", which sees him backed by the vocal quartet of Jimmy Adams, Bill Johnson, Simon Pico Payne and Cliff Givens.
Cooder supported the album's release with a concert at Carnegie Hall, featuring a full jazz orchestra and tap dancers.

Show Time (1977) <|> Bop Till You Drop (1979)
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