This July pop culture saw the deaths of Connie Francis, Anne Burrell, Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Ozzy Osbourne, Hulk Hogan and Chuck Mangione. Depending on your age and viewing or listening preferences, these people may have influenced you at different levels. As a Gen Xer, the music and presence of Ozzy was omnipresent in my teenage years, and I think I vaguely remember one of my brothers having a Hulk Hogan wrestling doll in the 1980s, but I felt the most sad about Chuck Mangione. There were no vinyl Ozzy records beside our apartment complex stereo system growing up, but I distinctly remember the cover of the 1977 jazz album Feels So Good. The soothing flugelhorn played by Mangione is immediately identifiable on the album’s title track that reached No. 4 on the U.S. charts and the top of the Billboard adult contemporary chart. It was also frequently referenced on the animated television comedy King of the Hill, on which Mangione had a recurring voice role as himself.
His Grammy-winning “Children of Sanchez” is a sweeping jazz-orchestral work, blending jazz improvisation with cinematic scope and choral vocals. Mangione composed and performed “Give it All You Got,” which was the theme song for the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid when the “Miracle on Ice” USA Hockey Team won the Gold.
Mangione’s blend of jazz, pop, and orchestral elements, often known as smooth jazz or jazz fusion was more accessible to mainstream audiences on the radio as it became popular in the 1970s and early-80s. The catchy hooks and soft-rock crossover stylings of this jazz fusion is evident in some of his fellow artists’ work, like “Rise” by Herb Alpert, “Breezin” by George Benson, “Angela” (the theme from Taxi) by Bob James, “Morning Dance” by Spiro Gyra and “Songbird” by Kenny G. This genre of instrumental soft rock adult contemporary jazz fusion is very soothing.
Jazz has been linked to potential physical benefits such as lower blood pressure and reduced pain perception, according to Riddle Village. The New Orleans Musicians' Clinic adds that listening to jazz may expand blood vessels by up to 30 percent, which could contribute to these effects. Studies suggest that listening to jazz can be as effective as other methods in reducing stress and anxiety, potentially influencing the release of cortisol, the stress hormone, and boosting feel-good chemicals in the brain. The calming effects of jazz are sometimes attributed to its ability to slow the heart rate and promote a sense of tranquility.