Is improvisational jazz to impressionism art as smooth jazz is to realism art?

Thank you all for sharing your thoughts and insights on this thread. I wrote the OP piece last night after many bourbons and a cigar enjoying being down at Auburn’s  campus with the anticipation of going into a stadium to see a college football game for the first time in 2 years!  So I’m glad that the post made sense to some and apologies to those whom it didn’t. I do enjoy other music like the classic rock I grew up with in the 60’s and especially 70’s (Led Zep and Steely Dan especially).  I also listened to a lot of Funk & Soul back in the 70’s which may have laid the groundwork for my later in life Jazz enjoyment.  I do like some of Stanley Clark, Dave Brubeck, and definitely love the Miles led Kind of Blue album!I’ve found that as I got into my late 50’s and early 60’s, i can only “take” small doses of “cacophony”.  That said, I like the advice, many of you provided, to try a little harder dig deeper into improv jazz to appreciate the artists skill and interplay for what it is and don’t focus on lack of melody.  
@bdp24, you suggested J. S. Bach. That reminded me of the music appreciation class i took in college. Our professor told us at the beginning of the semester that our final exam would consist of him dropping the needle on any song on any record of 10 or more classical music composers and we would have to name the composer and the piece. I spent untold hours that semester in the library listening to cassette tape recordings of all the pieces that might be on the exam. I should reconnect with that genre. One last thought, going back to my “cacophony” complaint; i know i need better resolving speakers than what i have today. I have a feeling that hearing a better separation of instruments and notes could help open the aperture to broader jazz & genre enjoyment. 

@edcyn, i love your observation “If the music speaks to me on an emotional level I'll listen to it no matter how noisy, crooked or straight it might be. For me it's the art not the science that counts.”  To me, that hits the nail on the head. 
@stuartk, you are a deep thinker, who tries to see things from an others perspective, which i love. Thank you for you insights.  

I don’t mind those who feel compelled to make fun of my enjoyment of the smooth jazz genre. We are each individuals who have been shaped by how our parents raised us and then by the life and environment we have lived in after we left the nest. If my musical enjoyment is considered “paint by numbers” by some then that’s their prerogative to judge me.  I do feel however that judging others based on our own personal experiences and norms is kind of selfish and a seems to be a source of some of the problems our society currently faces. Why cant we just get along? I wont judge you and you dont judge me; deal?
One last thought, and this may be the most important. My lovely wife of 41 years enjoys the smooth jazz artists I’ve discovered and will spend time with me in my mancave enjoying early morning coffee and smooth jazz. This is the only time she’ll come sit and listen to music with me. That is a treasure no critic can critique. 

@marklings, i was about to take umbrage to your ‘if its not impro than its not jazz” comment. But i first went to the Musical Dictionary and found this under the heading What is Jazz:
“Jazz also inspired the development of “smooth jazz,” which is a form of pop music that has some similarities with jazz. Smooth jazz uses many of the same instruments as jazz – saxophones, pianos, double basses, etc. – but musically it’s quite different. Smooth jazz has little or no improvisation and limited poylphony, which are the defining features of jazz. It also has much simpler rhythms. If you listen to the drums in a smooth jazz song, you’ll notice that the beat is very straightforward. Critics find this boring, while fans of smooth jazz find it easier to listen to. But they agree that smooth jazz is musically distinct from “real” jazz.”

i think there is room for both of us to enjoy the form of jazz that gets our toes tapping. 

@facten; thank you for your list of favorite smooth jazz artists. I recognize and also many on your list, but am more excited to check out those i don’t recognize and suspect i’ll find some new artists to enjoy!

@stuartk; i’m curious to hear the answer to your John McLaughlin also.

@4afsanakhan:

My OP post was intended to be a commentary on my own reflection of how i appear to be “wired” and the similarities between the attributes of visual and audio art that i seek out and enjoy versus the similarities of the characteristics of visual and audio art that i dont seek out or enjoy.  I floated that thought to see if others had similar or different observations and experiences.