I’ll be the first to admit, jazz is a daunting genre. With such a storied history and an audience of mostly academic fans it can feel very much like a distant and hard to understand, just meant for people who listen to NPR and who eat pizza with a knife and fork, but what if I were to tell you that jazz is for everyone and that if you were to open up that ear drum of yours will beat alongside these beautiful songs like Miles Teller in Whiplash.

> MORE: JCCC Hosts the Winterlude Jazz Festival

“But I don’t like jazz and didn’t care for the movie Whiplash.” I hear you cry out, incorrectly. Whiplash is a modern masterpiece and jazz comes in all sorts of forms in which I am certain you will find one you love. Don’t believe me? Well take my metaphorical hand and let me, a complete novice and the furthest thing from an expert in the field of jazz, take you on a small trip through three selected songs- and I’d like to see you stand by your stubborn beliefs afterwards, pal. (Oh, and I do recommend you listen along with me.) 

Song For Leon by Nitai Hershkovits

The quickest way to adjust to the temperature of a pool isn’t by touching your toes slowly in the water, no, it’s by jumping right in. This song feels like summer to me, it has a warm feeling to it, not the kind that sunburns, but rather the kind that matches the smell of chlorine. There is this notion that jazz as a genre requires a sort of homework or pre existing knowledge. “I can’t listen to this, I haven’t an education on the new wave movement nor its performer or his inspiration nor there’s.” I like this song and more importantly I haven’t a clue of who Nitai Hershkovits is. That’s because to like or enjoy something doesn’t mean you’ve to be an expert or do anything. On a sunny day the only thing you need at a pool is sunscreen and a swimsuit, jump in the pool and you might be surprised by just how nice the water is. 

The Lion by Yellowjackets (feat. Raul Midón)

Closing my eyes to this song I have a clear image in my head. I am a Mii (like the video game characters in Wii Sports), I have a permanent smile on my face and am walking around my perfect polygon world passing my Nintendogs on the way to play some calm games. The sky is plain blue, the grass green and I am out and about playing sports like those elderly people in medicine ads. I feel many ruin jazz for themselves cause they are sitting there trying to uncover some hidden truth or meaning behind why the trumpet is doing that, people are chained to this idea of there being a right or wrong way to listen to a song and few genres suffer as much as jazz, as if you have to come in an expert or connoisseur to understand it. I mean, you don’t see people in fine suits with glasses of fine wine trying to explain the complexity of “My Humps” by the Black Eyed Peas, so why think you need to do the same for songs like this. Personally I recommend you let go of trying to listen to it, and actually just listen to it. Come and join me on my little Mii island, and chill out with some tennis and bowling, and simply enjoy jazz. 

Reading Rainbow by Thomas Marriott (feat. Orrin Evans, Robert Hurst, & Mark Whitfield Jr)

I’m almost certain you’ve heard the original version of this song in the hums of PBS kids around the country. It’s nostalgic, it’s happy, it’s nice and relaxing. My final jazz lesson for the day is to just have fun and enjoy yourself, jazz is only as bad as the songs you force yourself to listen to. Personally I’d recommend checking out Apple Music’s Jazz Currents playlist or any of the other equivalents for the cooler music streaming apps. Back in middle school our library teacher had a rule, if you don’t like a book in five minutes of reading then don’t read it. Force consumption ain’t ever going to lead to enjoyment. These playlists are great because they give you a nice large list of songs to taste- skipping the songs you don’t like or aren’t enjoying will lead you to uncovering your favorites all the faster. Jazz is an old and wide genre so no matter what there is jazz made just for you, waiting for you to listen to it. Go out my dear explorer, go out and listen to jazz. Might be surprised by what you find.