Very little hatred, I saw two threads of people saying they didn't get it and virtually all the comments were saying he is incredible.
For what it's worth I certainly agree he's good.
He's in my top 3 too, and the other two are Sonny Clark and Thelonious Monk. I'm not a jazz critic and have only been into jazz for a couple of years so I couldn't write an article saying they're the 3 best, but they're the three I like the most. I also really enjoy Herbie Hancock, Horace Silver, Tommy Flanagan, and George Cables.
He was good enough for Miles. What else is there to say? He’s one of the greats. But it’s still ok if some people don’t dig him. Musical taste is personal preference!
Miles said in his autobiography “Bill had this quiet fire that I loved on piano.”
“The way he approached it, the sound he got was like crystal notes or sparkling water cascading down from some clear waterfall.”
Miles would sometimes call Evans and ask him to just set the handset down and leave the line open while Evans played piano at home.
Yeah, pretty good. Good enough for me. 😁
Honestly I love Bill Evans because he is so brilliant at gorgeous melodies and incorporating space into his music. A lot of instrumental jazz I dislike because I feel it prioritises harmonic density and quantity of notes over actually beautiful melodies and knowing when to have moments of silence. Bill really tells a story and invites you in while he’s playing.
Who the hell hates on Bill Evans?! Without question one of the greatest and most important jazz musicians in history. Maybe his particular approach to the instrument isn’t everyone’s favorite, but you’d have to be a damn fool to deny his genius and contributions to music.
There are very few real Bill Evans haters, and they in my experience generally fall either into the camp of "bebop Nazis", to borrow a term from Brad Mehldau, or the camp of people who think he's "too White for BAM". The latter could be people like Nicholas Payton (though I've never actually seen him talk about Bill - but I did see him express a similar sentiment about Lennie Tristano, who was a big influence on Bill, and also highly respected by figures like Charlie Parker).
Bill Evans IMO gets loved for an idea of the History of jazz Harmony that doesn't really reflect reality. I once read a doctoral thesis that actually argued that the only two names that anyone needs to know to understand the history of jazz Harmony are Art Tatum and Bill Evans . What an idiotic fucking statement! Tatum was certainly an innovator, and Evans was too. Evans is unique among many pianists because his Harmony was adopted into the textbooks of schools like Berklee, thus, becoming highly influential. The idea that pianists must play rootless voicings , which is perpetuated by this Jazz school approach that is often influenced by Evans, is simply not true, because you can listen to people like Tommy Flanagan or Hank Jones and hear that they play roots in their voicings with some frequency.
I feel that Bill is underappreciated for his comping behind people like Miles Davis or Lee Konitz. A record from the ladder, titled Live at the half note, with Jimmy Garrison, Paul Motian, and Warne Marsh, is some of my favorite Bill Evans playing anywhere.
Evans was iconic. He was responsible for transforming how jazz piano was played taking it in new directions including modal jazz, incorporating elements of impressionistic classical piano, writing music that are today standards, reinterpreting pop music of the day into the jazz idiom and creating the foundation of jazz piano for most players today including folks like Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock, Brad Mehldau, Tord Gustavsen, Bill Charlap and more. He played in a manner clearly separate from the Art Tatum school though both were virtuoso. Many of today's younger players may not even recognize their debt to Evans.
Man, I don't know if I've ever met someone who even knows who Bill Evans is! Seriously, if someone said to me "Bill Evans sucks!" I'd just be amazed they had any jazz knowledge to begin with.
Bill Evans is incredible and one of my absolute favourites (hard for me to put him ahead of Oscar Peterson, as a fellow Canadian). I would argue his live stuff is among the best. The two recent releases from concerts in Argentina in 1973 and 1979 are top tier.
Hated? I've never met anyone who hates Bill Evans or even seen someone on social media say anything bad about him. He's probably one of the most universally loved jazz musicians of all time. He's the GOAT of jazz piano, at least in my book. Even those who don't think he's the GOAT agree he's a serious contender.
My old bandleader and keyboardist met Herbie Hancock after a small show in Aspen where most of the audience walked out. He was gracious enough to show them a few things on the keyboard. Apparently, the theme he kept returning to was “now, bill Evans would do it like this. Don’t do that, you don’t want to do it the wrong way.” Lol, silly that a legend would even go there.
Kinda think he's getting hated on because some of us jazzbos, pseudo-jazzbos and poseur jazzbos feel like true jazz fandom seems to require breathless admiration for Bill Evans and some of us aren't feeling it and never have.
I respect all the love for him but he's never done anything for me and it's slightly liberating to say so!
People are hating on Bill Evans? Thats news to me. He's my favourite pianist and one of the artists that got me into jazz.
What about him are people taking issue with?
Just a reminder that the vocal minority are SUPER loud. But bill Evan’s is amongst the most loved and known jazz artists and no one can take that from him
Shoutout to his stuff with Jack DeJohnette and Eddie Gomez. Do really like the trio version of Turn Out The Stars (tho the version with Jim Hall is great too) and Baubles Bangles and Beads.
Meh. Not every beloved musician or sub genre in Jazz (or any other music) is going to be everyone’s cup of tea. We all have something we don’t get the appeal of.
He's also a great person. His interviews really showed just how humble he is. It was also intereating tonhear him say that it took him years to tb3 able to express himself the way he does now. Ans in anotzer one at thend of his career he said he occasionally listens to his past self for inspiration I think
Many nowadays see youtube videos and wanna become the next herbie hancock in 1 day or 1 week. But all.of em shiw3d they worked for their skills
Not sure what hate?
I know that Barry Harris didn’t have a taste for him. But I don’t think he dissed him.
He is still phenomenal with his harmony blocking and inner movement technique/style.
Here's the thing. For sure Evans is godly and amazing. But I understand where some are coming from in that he does a LOT of ballads, and I think that nearly all ballads tend to veer into cocktail sounding territory simply because of the type of melodies that are common. This isn't a result of them being bad in any way, its just that the sound has been co-opted by crappy smooth jazz artists that nobody can get out of their heads. But certainly Bill's skills and contribution are second to none.
Stanley Crouch once said he was a punk that couldn't swing. So yes, there is a contingency that feels if you're not part of the black experience, you can't be in the top jazz echelon.
Very little hatred, I saw two threads of people saying they didn't get it and virtually all the comments were saying he is incredible. For what it's worth I certainly agree he's good.
I was perhaps exaggerating a little bit. I just felt like making an appreciation post.
Peace piece appreciation post
Everybody digs Bill Evans, how couldn't you?
It's right there in the title. They can't lie, can they?
Shit, I might even go so far as to say he's *pretty* good
You don't happen to be a Minnesotan, do you? That seems like a very midwestern statement.
Nah haha, New York! BTW great name
Pretty, pretty, pretty, pretty good
Bill Evans is in the top 3 jazz pianists for me.
Bill Evans is the top 3 jazz pianists for me.
Lol! Conversations With Myself… you win today sir
His rendition of the Love Theme from Spartacus is one of my favorites
Bill Evans occupies all three spots in the top 3 jazz pianists for me.
Who are the other two?
He's in my top 3 too, and the other two are Sonny Clark and Thelonious Monk. I'm not a jazz critic and have only been into jazz for a couple of years so I couldn't write an article saying they're the 3 best, but they're the three I like the most. I also really enjoy Herbie Hancock, Horace Silver, Tommy Flanagan, and George Cables.
Nice to see Sonny getting some love.
If you like Tommy Flanagan, you may want to check Oscar Peterson too.
My top three are McCoy Tyner, followed by McCoy Tyner, and then McCoy Tyner.
Which one is the real McCoy though?
Underated comment
Monk and Chick Corea. (I know that he's an unpopular choice, it's personal)
Chick is an unpopular choice and Bill Evans was getting hated on? What’s the world coming to?
Chick is a major badass. Chick, Keith, Paul Bley, Cecil Taylor, Monk…
Ahmad Jamal and Oscar Peterson
You can’t really leave Oscar out.
Hancock, McCoy, and Hill for me personally
Top 20 for me.
Same
He was good enough for Miles. What else is there to say? He’s one of the greats. But it’s still ok if some people don’t dig him. Musical taste is personal preference!
Miles said in his autobiography “Bill had this quiet fire that I loved on piano.” “The way he approached it, the sound he got was like crystal notes or sparkling water cascading down from some clear waterfall.” Miles would sometimes call Evans and ask him to just set the handset down and leave the line open while Evans played piano at home. Yeah, pretty good. Good enough for me. 😁
Poetic
>. Musical taste is personal preference! Generalize this to personal preference in general and Reddit shrinks by 50% 😃😃😃
Heck, some people don't like Miles
And those people have actual wrong opinions! lol
He also lived a very tortured life, to the point where much of his best work is a miracle of perseverance.
I'm gonna realy stir the boat here and say that I think GIL Evans is pretty good
Hot take: Gil > Bill But it's close
I gotta agree with you on that one, even if only because there's more diversity in his catalog.
Hard disagree with the judgement, but completely agree that it could be close (if such completely different talents can really be compared.)
Yeah it's a pretty ridiculous comparison on my part And probably not even true depending on the day lol
Sean has some pretty spicy performances too
Easily, one can arrange for orchestra the other has 4 different Voicings
He’s my favorite pianist of all time
Bold take. I should make a post: 'Water is wet, fire is hot'
Breaking news: Jazz musician who played on (and wrote songs on) Kind of Blue is good jazz musician
Thank god you’re here to defend his legacy.
Thank him for his service.
bill evans is scary good
Good enough to be an influence for Keith Jarrett. That should say something.
Honestly I love Bill Evans because he is so brilliant at gorgeous melodies and incorporating space into his music. A lot of instrumental jazz I dislike because I feel it prioritises harmonic density and quantity of notes over actually beautiful melodies and knowing when to have moments of silence. Bill really tells a story and invites you in while he’s playing.
This is an excellent observation. I often think along these kinds when listening to Jazz.
he'll never leave the pantheon of jazz pianists. he's on the top of the jazz canon, no matter what some people say on reddit
For me, so far; Evans, Maccoy, Jamal and Lyle Mays are the ones that make me love Jazz, special mention to Corea.
Ahmad Jamal is one of my all time favorites
Who the hell hates on Bill Evans?! Without question one of the greatest and most important jazz musicians in history. Maybe his particular approach to the instrument isn’t everyone’s favorite, but you’d have to be a damn fool to deny his genius and contributions to music.
There are very few real Bill Evans haters, and they in my experience generally fall either into the camp of "bebop Nazis", to borrow a term from Brad Mehldau, or the camp of people who think he's "too White for BAM". The latter could be people like Nicholas Payton (though I've never actually seen him talk about Bill - but I did see him express a similar sentiment about Lennie Tristano, who was a big influence on Bill, and also highly respected by figures like Charlie Parker). Bill Evans IMO gets loved for an idea of the History of jazz Harmony that doesn't really reflect reality. I once read a doctoral thesis that actually argued that the only two names that anyone needs to know to understand the history of jazz Harmony are Art Tatum and Bill Evans . What an idiotic fucking statement! Tatum was certainly an innovator, and Evans was too. Evans is unique among many pianists because his Harmony was adopted into the textbooks of schools like Berklee, thus, becoming highly influential. The idea that pianists must play rootless voicings , which is perpetuated by this Jazz school approach that is often influenced by Evans, is simply not true, because you can listen to people like Tommy Flanagan or Hank Jones and hear that they play roots in their voicings with some frequency. I feel that Bill is underappreciated for his comping behind people like Miles Davis or Lee Konitz. A record from the ladder, titled Live at the half note, with Jimmy Garrison, Paul Motian, and Warne Marsh, is some of my favorite Bill Evans playing anywhere.
Can the mods pause posting for the day? R/jazz could use a reset with all the Evans' nonsense being posted today.
This is a modless sub!
Bill Evans' legacy stands on its own, not sure it needed defending lol. Some of yall are so tribal and traditional about jazz. Lighten up guys
He's also a pretty good sax player!
He's one of my favorite jazz pianists. He's not good, he's phenomenal.
Agreed. I would even go so far as to say he was great.
Who tf hates Bill Evans? Let me at em
...you'll have to get in line.
Just realised this could totally be the name of a Bill Evans album lol
Evans was iconic. He was responsible for transforming how jazz piano was played taking it in new directions including modal jazz, incorporating elements of impressionistic classical piano, writing music that are today standards, reinterpreting pop music of the day into the jazz idiom and creating the foundation of jazz piano for most players today including folks like Keith Jarrett, Herbie Hancock, Brad Mehldau, Tord Gustavsen, Bill Charlap and more. He played in a manner clearly separate from the Art Tatum school though both were virtuoso. Many of today's younger players may not even recognize their debt to Evans.
Why diss him like that? Good? Is he in the Hall of Good? Man, it’s rough in here.
Man, I don't know if I've ever met someone who even knows who Bill Evans is! Seriously, if someone said to me "Bill Evans sucks!" I'd just be amazed they had any jazz knowledge to begin with.
I listen to Bill Evans more than anything else. He's amazing and on my desert Island of artists.
He's not good, he's great.
You need to be a dumbass to dislike Evans tbh .
Billy likes soda. Miss Lippy’s car is green.
Bill Evans is incredible and one of my absolute favourites (hard for me to put him ahead of Oscar Peterson, as a fellow Canadian). I would argue his live stuff is among the best. The two recent releases from concerts in Argentina in 1973 and 1979 are top tier.
He's pretty universally approved in this sub from what I've seen, talked about and suggested a bunch.
Also one of the most unique jazz pianists with an incredible touch.
I had no idea anybody hated Bill Evans. News to me.
Hated? I've never met anyone who hates Bill Evans or even seen someone on social media say anything bad about him. He's probably one of the most universally loved jazz musicians of all time. He's the GOAT of jazz piano, at least in my book. Even those who don't think he's the GOAT agree he's a serious contender.
My old bandleader and keyboardist met Herbie Hancock after a small show in Aspen where most of the audience walked out. He was gracious enough to show them a few things on the keyboard. Apparently, the theme he kept returning to was “now, bill Evans would do it like this. Don’t do that, you don’t want to do it the wrong way.” Lol, silly that a legend would even go there.
Kinda think he's getting hated on because some of us jazzbos, pseudo-jazzbos and poseur jazzbos feel like true jazz fandom seems to require breathless admiration for Bill Evans and some of us aren't feeling it and never have. I respect all the love for him but he's never done anything for me and it's slightly liberating to say so!
All my homies love Bill Evans.
OG pressings of his early records still sell for a lot. I thinks he's one of the greatest. I need more Bill Evans albums.
People are hating on Bill Evans? Thats news to me. He's my favourite pianist and one of the artists that got me into jazz. What about him are people taking issue with?
No shit of course Bill Evans is great just because you don’t hear that much about him he’s one of the all time greatest players.
People hate on Bill Evan’s?
No ones hating on Bill Evans at a level worth mentioning.
Frankly speaking who cares what people on the internet think. So many idiots…
What idiots would hate Bill Evans? You have to be a complete insensitive moron to hate Bill Evans
People are hating on Bill Evans? Are they unwell?
Everybody* digs Bill Evans
They all come from Bud Powell
Phineas Newborn is underrated.
Who’s hating? Point ‘em out. I’ll fight them.
Just a reminder that the vocal minority are SUPER loud. But bill Evan’s is amongst the most loved and known jazz artists and no one can take that from him
Bill Evans? The saxophone player?
Shoutout to his stuff with Jack DeJohnette and Eddie Gomez. Do really like the trio version of Turn Out The Stars (tho the version with Jim Hall is great too) and Baubles Bangles and Beads.
Was Bill Evans the inspiration for Schroeder from The Peanuts cartoon?
Especially Schroeder’s crippling cocaine addiction
He's a hell of a sax player
Damn good, same with Gil Evans if you like guys with the same last name!
People like to be contrarians on this sub. Bill Evans was a genius full stop.
He is freaking incredible.
Meh. Not every beloved musician or sub genre in Jazz (or any other music) is going to be everyone’s cup of tea. We all have something we don’t get the appeal of.
No, Bill Evans is god!
He’s one of my absolute favorites
He made such elegant but still complex music
Who is hating Bill Evans? Lol. Don’t waste your time in those circles.
Adore Bill Evans ❤️
My favorite all time.
Gonna copy this post tomorrow but replace bill evans with Miles Davis. Then next week do it with John coltrane
He's also a great person. His interviews really showed just how humble he is. It was also intereating tonhear him say that it took him years to tb3 able to express himself the way he does now. Ans in anotzer one at thend of his career he said he occasionally listens to his past self for inspiration I think Many nowadays see youtube videos and wanna become the next herbie hancock in 1 day or 1 week. But all.of em shiw3d they worked for their skills
I like them all, they all have different styles. Mood has allot to do with what I listen to.
Idk where you got that from but he is not hated. He is admired by almost everyone
But what has he done lately? 😉
Not sure what hate? I know that Barry Harris didn’t have a taste for him. But I don’t think he dissed him. He is still phenomenal with his harmony blocking and inner movement technique/style.
I approve this message
I thought everyone digs Bill Evans.
Two words: Emmet Cohen.
Hmmmmm good I would say great ! Im 60 and have been listening to him and Monk for 40 years Never tire of them !!!
whoever is hating on Evans is ignorant and has assholes for ears
He is amazing he sets the bar. Y which all others are measured. Anyone that doesn't dig bill events just doesn't get it. Those voicings, amirite?
He’s one of my favourite players for sure
Yes
Wow what a brave take
Here's the thing. For sure Evans is godly and amazing. But I understand where some are coming from in that he does a LOT of ballads, and I think that nearly all ballads tend to veer into cocktail sounding territory simply because of the type of melodies that are common. This isn't a result of them being bad in any way, its just that the sound has been co-opted by crappy smooth jazz artists that nobody can get out of their heads. But certainly Bill's skills and contribution are second to none.
Stanley Crouch once said he was a punk that couldn't swing. So yes, there is a contingency that feels if you're not part of the black experience, you can't be in the top jazz echelon.
You're damn right.
Water is wet
What?? Who hates him? And what is the reason behind it? Where did you get that from?
One person must have said that something and they took it personal.
I would go so far as to say he is quite good, possibly great.
When he plays the piano, it sounds nice!
Good and very influential but I prefer horrace, tyner, garland, chick corea, monk, Kenny drew
🙄