Live Jazz (1998)
by Yves Saint Laurent

Oh yes, my namesake! I also do play jazz music on occasion, so I didn't name myself completely after this nice little fragrance. Still, I must speak on its behalf.

This was my first YSL...the scent that introduced me to this edgy and unique house. This is one heck of a fresh fragrance. The grapefruit/mint to coriander/rhubarb evolution is just great. To this day, I have not smelled anything quite like it. Bracing and sour, like a snappy little slap in the face before a more relaxing drydown of vanilla and wood (ambergris? I don't know about that...). I highly recommend it as a summer fragrance if you're looking for a very dry, sharp citrus with distinctive notes.

This was the first colognes I ever bought and have been wearing it ever since (throughout the whole year, although I recommend it more for the summer as it is a fun, very refreshing fragrance). It never gets old no matter how many times your wear it. At first, all I get is a powerful lemon and mint (should not be overapplied, 2 sprays is enough) and then it dries down to something even better. Remember that smell the instant you start peeling a lemon or an orange? this is exactly what this cologne smells like. Lasts about 8-10 hours on my skin consistently. Most importantly you will never smell anything like it so it is very original. It is never cloying the the scent is extremely likable so I would definitely recommend it for a blind buy. You will never offend anyone unless you put on like 10 sprays. I prefer this to L'Homme and many of my other fragrances that I wear during the summer as the sweetness seems to be perfect. I can see how a scent like L'Homme can offend someone who can't stand sweet fragrances.

Extremely fresh and crisp... the quintessantial summer fragrance. Starts off with a cool mint and grapefuit blast and drys down to an herbish and vanilla thing. There is a hint of vinegar or something (like in the original Jazz) that is slightly off putting, but barely noticeable to me. Pretty unique for an aquatic.

Live Jazz starts out unpromising, with the kind of soporific, standard issue, fresh fougère opening that sets my eyelids drooping on exposure. Happily, I can report that there’s more to Live Jazz than that. Roughly fifteen minutes into the development, Live Jazz reveals an extremely odd herbaceous-aromatic accord that I might describe as basil, coriander leaves (cilantro) and clary sage. (According to the listed notes, it’s coriander, “wild reed,” mint, and rhubarb.) It’s a punch-in-the-nose olfactory maneuver that’s startling in such an otherwise ordinary context, and it rescues Live Jazz from the anonymity it threatens to adopt on first encounter. Nifty.

So long as the tart, astringent herbaceous accord persists, Live Jazz sustains interest beyond most other scents of its class. When it fades, which occurs after about two hours of wear, what remains is a fresh fougère structure in the conventional Cool Water/Green Irish Tweed manner. While the drydown is hardy distinguished, it’s far less crudely chemical than most of its sort, and hence does not ruin the overall experience of wearing Live Jazz. So while its most interesting part is framed by uninspired accords, I have to grant Live Jazz a thumbs up, especially in light of how terribly difficult it must be to achieve any kind of distinction in its tired genre.

As the name speaks, this flanker is definitely livelier, but still remains uncomplicated. Alot of similarities of the original have been retained. Just a more "pumped" edition given its fresher nature. Like Jazz, this is easily likable. It manages to avoid the generics that are idiosyncratic to fresher flankers of other scents. the woodsy notes are mainstay and constant. simple and enjoyable, best of all, it does not smell synthetic

This opens with a refreshing and invigorating citrus accord that is rounded by mint and cilantro. This aroma has sweet undertones that somewhat linger in the background though your nose may sense their presence right away. This opening accord is so refreshing that many people often associate this fragrance with summer and spring. But having worn this fragrance through out the year, during various seasons and in different climates, I believe this scent is extremely versatile. It is refreshing enough to serve as a summer fragrance, but its base and middle notes bear a fullness that would be best appreciated in winter or fall. In fact, I could see this being worn during both day and night. As many other reviewers have noted, the cilantro (rhubarb leaf, I believe) stays throughout the entire progression of the fragrance providing a herbal, green feel. Live Jazz eventually dries down to a woody musk with a hint of sweetness. All in all, Live Jazz is a delightful fragrance in that it will elicit favorable responses without offending others. One recommendation: Do not over spray! It may seem initially like the scent is too light and does not stay, but its really quite the contrary. The scent has beautiful sillage and lasts 8-10 hrs even in warm settings, but it is easily very cloying if over used.