Alan Rock's Trivia

Q:What television game show, which premiered in 1983, is a variation of the hangman game? 

A: "Wheel of Fortune" is the longest-running syndicated game show in U.S. television history.

Q:What is the city that is known as the "Birthplace of the American Baseball League?" 

A: The Republican House, a hotel in Milwaukee, became the birthplace of the American League on March 5, 1900.

Q: From the late 1950s on, the dominant popular music in the United States (and, increasingly, Europe) was rock and roll. Though much rock music was held in disdain by jazz purists, some accomplished jazz musicians began to explore integrating rock elements into their music in the late 1960s, occasionally reaching "crossover"popularity with new audiences. What name is usually to these jazz-rock efforts?

A:  Fusion. Probably the best-known pioneering fusion band was Weather Report, anchored by veteran jazz musicians Joe Zawinul (keyboards) and Wayne Shorter (saxophones). Though the music has produced its share of acknowledged masters, including Weather Report's bass guitar virtuoso Jaco Pastorius and guitarists John McLaughlin (of the Mahavishnu Orchestra), Pat Metheny, and Allan Holdsworth, it has also drawn criticism for diluting the core elements of both jazz and rock. It has been further critiqued as a gateway to the styles of smooth jazz (including Kenny G) and new age music, which are both routinely derided by jazz and rock critics alike. On the other hand, much of the best work done by jazz and rock legends Chick Corea and Jeff Beck, respectively, has been in the fusion idiom, and some of the more advanced fusion arrangements do rival those of Duke Ellington for aesthetic appeal.

Q: Another departure from the work of Parker and Gillespie was a style more closely identified with the West Coast. This jazz genre drew on the examples of Lester Young and Bix Beiderbecke, de-emphasizing blues elements in favor of crisper tones, as well as making great use of unusual, syncopated meters as opposed to more aggressive rhythms. What is this jazz style made popular by performers like Stan Getz,  Gerry Mulligan and Lee Konitz?  A: Cool Jazz Probably the most popular cool jazz tune is Dave Brubeck's "Take Five", featuring Paul Desmond on alto saxophone. This piece makes good use of a 5/4 meter, meaning the rhythm falls into alternating three and two beat clusters. Other musicians often classified as cool jazz include the Modern Jazz Quartet and Chet Baker.