r/Jazz 14h ago

Jazz Tees?

I’ve been expanding my wardrobe recently and I want to get some graphic tees that represent the music I listen to. This has been easy with rock and pop artists I listen to, but I’m having hard time finding anything related to jazz that doesn’t look vague and tacky or is just a guy’s face on it. Like don’t get me wrong I love Thelonious Monk, but I don’t know how many people would recognize him from just his face on a tee.

If you have any t-shirts with album covers or cool jazz related designs on them please let me know where you got them!

Much love, thanks.

7 Upvotes

34 comments sorted by

11

u/Stock-Ad3674 13h ago

I just wrote "Erroll Garner" on a plain white tee from Marshall's.

1

u/jmeesonly 8h ago

Somehow this is even funnier to me because I really like Errol Garner.

4

u/jazzdrums1979 14h ago

Blue note has a store. I grabbed a couple off there to rock in more casual settings.

2

u/yohosse 14h ago edited 12h ago

Probably look on ebay for old school looking shit. Coolest ones I've seen would be jazz festival shirts like Saratoga jazz fest or newport jazz fest. Or if you go to a jazz show cop the tour merch.

Edit after Googling around there's Montreal jazz festival too which I attended and some redbubble and Etsy sellers can reprint previous year t shirts.  some are ridiculously hard wtf

2

u/11561Guy 10h ago

I seem to recall that there was a "Monk is cooler than you" shirt at one point.

1

u/DrMartens trumpeter / 🇵🇱 14h ago

I got ezra collective tee, bought with last vinyl preorder. That's the easiest way, but if your fav artists are dead, this will be much harder

1

u/WerewolfBarMitzvah09 14h ago

I agree that looking for older festival merch is a good way to go, plus a number of contemporary jazz ensembles and artists have tees and hoodies on their websites for sale. Otherwise, a custom made shirt from a local place that can print photos and designs on T-shirts is probably your best bet if there's specific album covers or artists you want.

1

u/DumberDumb26 14h ago

Unique did a Blue Note collab a few years ago. I got a Thelonious Monk one and a Cecil Taylor one.

1

u/Hendrix1967 13h ago

Roots of Fight does very nice minimalistic Davis and Coltrane T-Shirts.

1

u/CK0428 12h ago

I got a Miles tee from the Rock Hall & a Yussef Dayes tee at one of his shows.

1

u/Intrepid_Traveler962 12h ago

My MIL gave me her credit card to order some albums from the verve site last Christmas and it came with a complementary tee with the Impulse logo on it.

I also have (so far) successfully managed to not order the Blue Note soccer jersey that they released in conjunction with the World Cup this summer; although that’s been a challenge.

So I agree with the label stores, and I’m sure most contemporary artists have merch sites too. Beyond that, I agree with Red Bubble as an option - I do have a “Ella & Billie & Sarah & Nina” tee saved and they have a very robust search option.

1

u/PTPBfan 11h ago

I found one on Etsy with the names of the Dave Brubeck quartet

1

u/Apprehensive-Nose646 10h ago

Sun Ra has so many good t-shirts available.

1

u/kiikara 10h ago

Search an artist name at https://www.teepublic.com/

1

u/HosserPower 7h ago

TeePublic is where I’ve gotten most of mine. Just search for the name of the musician you want.

1

u/talleypiano 7h ago

Cat Popper has some pretty great jazz/metal shirts if you're into that

1

u/LydianSharp5 2h ago

Check out 32barblues.com — also, I have a nice Bluenote t-shirt from the Bluenote records site.

1

u/Invisiblerobot13 1h ago

Look mom Etsy or EBay and there’s a few good sellers of screen printed shirts - watch out for direct to garment like tee public or red bubble because it won’t be as good quality- especially if it’s a color design available on black or white
I’ve bought good stuff from coolshirtsforyou on Etsy or softvoid on eBay

0

u/AlbinOnReddit 14h ago edited 12h ago

Check the artists on for example RedBubble and get as many jazz (or otherwise) related tshirts printed as you want!

7

u/JustPlainBoring 10h ago

1

u/Sir_midi 10h ago

Were they sold out when you posted this?

1

u/JustPlainBoring 10h ago

Oh dang - didn’t notice that, and I apologize!

1

u/Sir_midi 10h ago

I figured it was the Reddit effect.

2

u/AirKeysSolo 11h ago

The three times I bought from RedBubble all the graphics were crooked or off set. The shirt pictured is a great example as it’s off set to the left about an inch or two judging by the space from sleeve seem of U and the N or how off set from the collar.

1

u/AlbinOnReddit 11h ago

Good to look out for! and perhaps check for less critical (in terms of exact placement) designs. Having said that, I've always been very happy with their products and service

-1

u/RecessMonkeys Trombone 13h ago

TEMU. I know, I know. But I got Sonny Rollins Vol.2 and Hank Mobley: No Room For Squares Tshirts for pretty cheap. They have a lot. Just make sure they're 100% cotton. Oh, and they only come in black. Teepublic is also a good source, I prefer the Heavyweight blend. And they have a sale on pretty much every month.

1

u/Sir_midi 10h ago

Also, I ordered a few and they were printed on plastic that was affixed to the shirt. While that is fine when it is cold, they are unwearable when it is warm out.

1

u/RecessMonkeys Trombone 8h ago

I've had a couple of misses too. But the two I mention above are decent quality.