Birth of the Cool

VINYL FORMAT. The Birth of the Cool remains one of the defining, pivotal moments in jazz. This is where the elasticity of bop was married with skillful, big-band arrangements and a relaxed, subdued mood that made it all seem easy, even at its most intricate. After all, there's a reason why this music was called cool; it has a hip, detached elegance, never getting too hot, even as the rhythms skip and jump. The virtuosity led to relaxing, stylish mood music as the end result — the very thing that came to define West Coast or "cool" jazz — but this music is so inventive, it remains alluring even after its influence has been thoroughly absorbed into the mainstream