Skip to main content

You make this possible. Support our independent, nonprofit newsroom today.

Give Now

Nirvana, Radiohead Songs On Their Way To Becoming Jazz Standards

Untitled
Enlarge Icon
Flickr Photo/lxmith

Robert Glasper doesn’t want to be confined by musical genres. He’s a talented jazz musician, but he’s tired of replaying the old standards from the 1950s and 60s.

Instead, he’s turned to complicated modern pop songs that inspired him as a kid. “Jazz takes from its surroundings and makes something new," he explains. "It’s like a casserole.” Glaser hopes to turn a few of those pop songs into jazz standards, much like John Coltrane did with the once underappreciated Julie Andrews song, “My Favorite Things.”

Other Stories from KUOW Presents, Tuesday, March 5:

Why you can trust KUOW