ABSTRACT
After considering this menu, there is no wonder that listeners, critics, journalists, and promoters were more confused than ever by the “jazz” label. Following the deaths of Albert Ayler, John Coltrane, and Eric Dolphy, and the retirement of Miles Davis in the mid 1970s, the jazz world was at a loss for a single guiding force. As there was no single beacon to light the way, the music that was practiced throughout the final decades of the 20th century moved in many different directions simultaneously, with no single trend or leader outstanding. This chapter presents the electric mix of trends and artists who contributed significantly to the jazz tradition during the 1970s and 1980s. Chapter 14, which follows, will examine the trends in acoustic jazz during this same period.
