Saturday, December 29, 2012

Just Can't Scat

When I'm driving around town, there is a ninety-five percent chance I will be listening to the local jazz station, WJZR North Coast Radio 105.9. No matter my mood, jazz always seems to be what I want to listen to.  Just the other day I had the pleasure of listening to a jazzy rendition of "Roxanne," which made my driving experience quite enjoyable.

In all of my many car rides spent listening to jazz, I have come to truly appreciate a very unique skill that many jazz singers possess, known as scat singing. I am fairly good at making up stories when I have time to sit and think about what to write. I have never been able to make up words on the spot that sound good in song form. Lord knows I have tried to scat along to a few jazz songs while driving (alone of course). Every time I try, my scatting sounds clunky and awkward. On numerous occasions, I have even spouted out obscenities completely on accident. If I ever dreamt of being a serious jazz singer, I would have to pre-plan my scat words in order to avoid offending the audience and making a fool of myself. Scatting seems fairly easy, but after trying my hand at it, I have come realize that it must actually take a great deal of practice.

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