Black Entertainment : No Black People on Jazz Album Covers

Destee

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Jan 22, 2001
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Mr.Lifson, I think you miss the point of the Chronicle's article in that the lack of African Americans on the Yoshi's CD reinforces the belief among many that Kenny G, Harry Connick Jr, Brian Setzer, Diana Krall and Bebel Gilberto are the faces of jazz in the 21st Century. Let's put a little historic context into this discussion. For years record producers would not put images of African American artists on album covers over concerns that whites would not buy the album. This practice ended when Miles Davis insisted on not only having his face and body shown on covers, but his girlfriends as well, who were Black and beautiful.

Click Here For The Entire Article

Family ... did yall know this, that no Black People were allowed to be on the covers of their Jazz albums?

Did you know that Miles Davis insisted ??!!! Big Ups to our Ancestor Miles ... :toast:

Wow ... i didn't know.

Just sharing.

:heart:

Destee
 
Destee said:
Mr.Lifson, I think you miss the point of the Chronicle's article in that the lack of African Americans on the Yoshi's CD reinforces the belief among many that Kenny G, Harry Connick Jr, Brian Setzer, Diana Krall and Bebel Gilberto are the faces of jazz in the 21st Century. Let's put a little historic context into this discussion. For years record producers would not put images of African American artists on album covers over concerns that whites would not buy the album. This practice ended when Miles Davis insisted on not only having his face and body shown on covers, but his girlfriends as well, who were Black and beautiful.

Click Here For The Entire Article

Family ... did yall know this, that no Black People were allowed to be on the covers of their Jazz albums?

Did you know that Miles Davis insisted ??!!! Big Ups to our Ancestor Miles ... :toast:

Wow ... i didn't know.

Just sharing.

:heart:

Destee

Im not sure how true this is. Perhaps it was the policy of some companies but there were many artists who recorded prior to Miles Davis who WERE featured on their album covers. Duke Ellington, Dizzy Gillespie, Nat King Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong, in fact, most recording artists of the Swing era. And prior to that you can find old collectables with portraits of Jelly Roll Morton, King Joe Oliver,Scott Joplin, Bubk Johnson, Errol Garner, etc.

Perhaps this was a policy of Columbia Records that Miles got changed, but for sure Blue Note recording artists' album designs were mostly photographical.
 
Being from the old school jazz crowd, yes I did know about that. In fact Miles Davis was very vocal about everything black. He even said once that he didn't like white jazz musicians because they couldn't keep time with the music. He loved black women and married Cicely Tyson. He was an artist all black people who want to know about their musical roots should study. His album ******* Brew was cutting edge and changed music.

There are more whites being promoted in Jazz, because they are the one's studying music and learning to play instruments. We can't really complain about it because our kids prefer rap and hip hop, many never heard of jazz music.

I recently met a white jazz guitarist from the Netherlands, he's very famous there, he was coming here to play in a jazz club in LA. How many black folks listen to jazz in LA with it's large black population? A few day's later I met Stanley Jordan a famous black jazz guitarist, how many black folks know about him? He said that most black jazz musicians spend most of their time in europe, because that is the only place they can get an audience and make a living. We have basically turned jazz music over to white musicians, but they all know where it started.

Many of the white jazz musicians of the past had to pay Duke, Miles, Bryd etc. to write music for them, and they owned the copyrights. It's universal now, just like most black music, so we don't dominant it anymore.
 
mrron said:
Being from the old school jazz crowd, yes I did know about that. In fact Miles Davis was very vocal about everything black. He even said once that he didn't like white jazz musicians because they couldn't keep time with the music. He loved black women and married Cicely Tyson. He was an artist all black people who want to know about their musical roots should study. His album ******* Brew was cutting edge and changed music.

There are more whites being promoted in Jazz, because they are the one's studying music and learning to play instruments. We can't really complain about it because our kids prefer rap and hip hop, many never heard of jazz music.

I recently met a white jazz guitarist from the Netherlands, he's very famous there, he was coming here to play in a jazz club in LA. How many black folks listen to jazz in LA with it's large black population? A few day's later I met Stanley Jordan a famous black jazz guitarist, how many black folks know about him? He said that most black jazz musicians spend most of their time in europe, because that is the only place they can get an audience and make a living. We have basically turned jazz music over to white musicians, but they all know where it started.

Many of the white jazz musicians of the past had to pay Duke, Miles, Bryd etc. to write music for them, and they owned the copyrights. It's universal now, just like most black music, so we don't dominant it anymore.

So, do you agree with the statement that "No black people were allowed to be on the covers of their Jazz albums"?

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Miles Davis is perhaps the single most influence on my own involvement with the jazz community, however, many of my Elder teachers, starting with trumpeter/composer/bandleader Gerald Wilson, all pointed to Duke.

And I am speaking "thematically".

Duke actually paved the way for Miles as both recorded for Columbia, and Duke WAS "allowed to be on the cover of his jazz albums".
 
I never played close attention to this before reading the article..

First, I did a quick browse of my own library to verify this. When it hit me... I don't have any original albums. I have the CDs that were produced and released in post- early 90's.

I have no idea about what the original album artwork looked like. Wow!

The albums covers and CD covers are not necessarily the same. The CDs produced containing digitally remastered renditions quite possible have a different cover than the original album.

VERY INTERESTING.

So, to answer your question. No, I didn't know.

Thanks for sharing.
 

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