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''Winter in America'' is a studio album by American recording artist Gil Scott-Heron and musician Brian Jackson, released in May 1974 on Strata-East Records. They recorded the album during September to October 1973 at D&B Sound Studio in Silver Spring, Maryland. While Jackson's piano-based arrangements were rooted in jazz and the blues, their stripped-down production for the album resulted in a reliance on more traditional African and R&B sounds. The subject matter on ''Winter in American'' deals with the African-American community and inner city in the 1970s. The album serves as Scott-Heron's and Jackson's debut release for Strata-East Records, following a dispute with their former label and departure. It proved to be their sole release for the independent jazz label. Upon its release, ''Winter in America'' featured limited distribution in the United States and quickly became rare in print. However, with promotional help from its only single "The Bottle", it obtained considerably larger commercial success than Scott-Heron's and Jackson's previous work. The album debuted at number six on ''Billboard''s Top Jazz Albums chart and ultimately sold over 300,000 copies in the United States. While it was critically overlooked upon its release, ''Winter in America'' earned retrospective acclaim from several writers and music critics as Scott-Heron's and Jackson's greatest work together. Along with its critical recognition, it has been noted by several critics for its influence on derivative music forms such as neo soul and hip hop music, as many artists of the genres have been influenced by Scott-Heron's and Jackson's lyrical and musical approach on the album. On March 10, 1998, ''Winter in America'' was reissued on compact disc for the first time in the United States through Scott-Heron's Rumal-Gia Records. == Background == After leaving his former label Flying Dutchman Records, Gil Scott-Heron signed with the New York City jazz-based Strata-East label in early 1973, accompanied by jazz keyboardist and songwriter Brian Jackson, with whom he had worked with on his previous studio albums, ''Pieces of a Man'' (1971) and ''Free Will'' (1972).〔 While some sources allege this may have been over financial or creative differences,〔Jean-Critin (2001), p. 2.〕 Scott-Heron maintained the switch was due to producer Bob Thiele's unwillingness to give Jackson co-billing.〔Maycock, James. "(Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson: Brothers in Arms )". ''Mojo'': 2003.〕 By the time of their move to Strata-East, Scott-Heron and Jackson had achieved underground notice among R&B and soul music listeners, particularly for the political and social nature of their music's themes, as well as Scott-Heron's emphasis on African-American culture and social plight in his compositions.〔Holden, Stephen. (Review: ''The First Minute of a New Day'' ). ''Rolling Stone''. Retrieved on September 13, 2008.〕 Their musical fusion of jazz, blues, soul and spoken word styles helped them earn some notice among less-mainstream black music listeners at the time.〔Scott-Heron (1998), pp. 1–3.〕 Social circumstances and musical events preceded Scott-Heron's and Jackson's signing with Strata-East. After the decline of popularity in traditional jazz forms and the civil rights struggle, which had sought racial equality during the late 1950s and 1960s, black pride and Afrocentric sentiment by many black Americans emerged.〔Staff. "(Black Nationalism )". ''The New Encyclopaedia Britannica'': 256. 1987.〕 During 1970 to 1974, the Black Panthers organization had been neutralized and pan-Africanism came into vogue.〔Geesling, Don. (An American Griot: Gil Scott-Heron Interview ). ''The Brooklyn Rail''. Retrieved on December 21, 2008.〕 Following the free jazz and avant-garde breakthroughs of Ornette Coleman and John Coltrane, a creative stasis among most jazz musicians set in during the decade that led to an eclecticism where no style or conception of jazz maintained a zeitgeist among players.〔Staff. "(John Coltrane )". ''The New Encyclopaedia Britannica'': 1987.〕〔Staff. "(Free Jazz: The Explorations of Ornette Coleman )". ''The New Encyclopaedia Britannica'': 1987.〕 However, jazz fusion had gained mainstream notice for its stylistic adoption of rock and funk music, despite being the subject of controversy in jazz purist circles.〔Columnist. (Genre: Fusion ). Allmusic. Retrieved on November 4, 2008.〕 Highlighted by the works of Roy Ayers, Herbie Hancock, and Donald Byrd, jazz-funk also emerged in response to the growing popularity of funk, leading to a trend of funk rhythms among jazz musicians formerly of the hard bop tradition as an attempt to reconnect with their African-American audience.〔Columnist. (Genre: Jazz-Funk ). Allmusic. Retrieved on December 22, 2008.〕 This factored into the popularity of Scott-Heron's and Jackson's work in the black underground scene, with the former obtaining a reputation as a "street poet", while his work with Jackson served as an early recording of jazz poetry.〔〔Dedina, Nick. (About: Gil Scott-Heron ). Rhapsody. Retrieved on March 20, 2009.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Winter in America」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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