Jazz? Blues? Gospel? What genre is this and where can I find more of it?

[QMT]

There used to be a type of music often heard on synthesizer and arranger keyboard demos in the 80's and 90's.

It sounds like a blend of Blues, Gospel and Jazz. Here's a good example of what I'm talking about: https://soundcloud.com/russell-zhang%2Fyamaha-psr-740-demo
Have you come across other tunes that sound like this? What genre is it? How do we go about analyzing/learning its chord progressions?

Thanks!

 

[QMT]

Here's another example with a heavier Blues flavor: https://soundcloud.com/russell-zhang%2Fwhale-song
It reminds me of Bonnie Raitt's "Love Sneakin' Up On You". But I haven't heard many other tunes with similar harmony signature.

 

[anotherscott]

I'd put it in the funk genre. Smooth funk?

 

[QMT]

I'd put it in the funk genre. Smooth funk?

Thanks Scott.

While the latter piece can be labeled "Funk" rhythm-wise, what intrigues me most about both pieces is their non-conventional harmony. They don't sound like strict Jazz or Blues and displays a Gospel flavor.

I can confidently produce a typical Funk piece with Pop/Soul/Blues harmony, but I won't even know where to start harmony-wise on these two pieces. Especially the chord progressions towards the end of both.

 

[MiddleC]

Any idea if those clips we're made strictly with a keyboard and voices?

 

[QMT]

Any idea if those clips we're made strictly with a keyboard and voices?

They are both Yamaha demo midi songs that conform to XG voice tables. The first can be heard on several late 90's Yamaha arranger keyboards like PSR-8000 and PSR-740; the second might be from Yamaha's W5/W7 keyboards.

 

[MiddleC]

@QMT, thanks for the response.

The capability of the keyboard to facilitate a complete piece of music like that is what I'm hoping to learn enough to take advantage of.

 

[QMT]

@QMT, thanks for the response.

The capability of the keyboard to facilitate a complete piece of music like that is what I'm hoping to learn enough to take advantage of.

Yes MiddleC, that's exactly why I got into the world of MIDI and synthesizers back in the 90's. Those demo songs convinced me that I don't need the hassle of forming a band to create the kind of music I liked.

Here's a tune I wrote back in 2005 on just one Roland XP-30 (except the drum track done by a friend on a XV-5080 with SRX Card):

https://soundcloud.com/russell-zhang%2Fromance-of-the-fall
Nowadays the level of realism and expression we can pull out of software and hardware synths are mind-blowing. We live in the best times for one-man-bands!

 

[MiddleC]

Love it!

 

[QMT]

Love it!

Glad you enjoyed it, MiddleC.