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Will LaymanAbout Will Layman Will Layman is a writer, teacher and musician living in the Washington, DC area. He is a contributor to National Public Radio and frequently appears as a guest on WNYC’s “Soundcheck” as a jazz critic. He is a regular contributor to YankeePotRoast.org, McSweeney’s Internet Tendency and several other web publications. Features
Great City, a Great City’s Music: The Vancouver International Jazz FestivalOur jazz critic Will Layman spent a full week soaking up the music -- and the city -- offered by what may be North America's finest jazz festival. [3 September 2009] The Best Jazz of 2008More than ever, the best jazz is coming from small labels, and more than ever the best draws a decent slice from the dynamics of rock and pop music without itself being a commercial venture. [17 December 2008] Kind of Blue Revisited: The 50th Anniversary of the Greatest (Jazz) Album of All TimeA staple of modern music for nearly 50 years, Kind of Blue is near-impossible to hear with fresh ears. But perhaps that is precisely why it needs some re-examining. [3 December 2008] Singer-(Song)Writer: An Interview with Juilana HatfieldThe talented, iconic rock star is laying it all on the line: both in terms of her personal life (in the form a bristling, tell-all memoir) and in terms of her career (with a self-financed new album). In a candid, biting new interview, Hatfield talks about what drove her to such a do-or-die proposition. [5 August 2008] The Best Jazz of 2007In spite of the perception of jazz as an increasingly niche market, the year's best show a style of music that remains ever youthful in its exploration of new territories, expanding its diversity and range of expression. [11 December 2007] A Desire to Make Sound: The Arrival of Creative Guitar God Nels ClineThe jazz guitarist -- with Wilco, his trios, or anyone else -- opens up a conversation about how to keep this music living. [14 August 2007] The Unconscious Realm: An Interview With Medeski, Martin & Wood Drummer Billy MartinWith the release of Mago, an album of duets with bandmate John Medeski, Billy Martin continues to pursue a personal vision of music without many boundaries, a pop-jazz-avant-garde combination that barely acknowledges the market while still sounding irresistible. [27 June 2007] Fountains of Wayne: Too Smart to Be a Rock Band, Too Smart to Be Anything ElseA self-aware songwriter, Adam Schlesinger still finds a way inside everyone else's head. PopMatters talks to the ingenius popsters about their new album and more. [16 April 2007] Best Jazz of 2006Will Layman's list of the year's best jazz records, a hearty baker's dozen, includes iconoclasts, eccentrics, avant-gardists, and some downright swingers. [11 December 2006] Metheny / Mehldau—On the RecordWith the release of their first collaboration, jazz musicians Pat Metheny and Brad Mehldau talk to PopMatters. [30 November 2006] Weather Report: Partly Sunny, Then Showers—Looking Back on the Fusion SupergroupA new box set encapsulating the jazz group's career causes our jazz critic to reassess his love-hate relationship with Weather Report. [27 September 2006] A Lazarus Taxon: the Definition of “Tortoise” Continues to Change Before Our EyesTortoise have reached the stage where they are the remixers of their own legacy -- by creating their own prism (in the form of A Lazarus Taxon) with which to bend their sound. [1 January 1995] Thriving Away From the Straight LineIf Scientology is all you know about Chick Corea, you are missing out on one of the best pianists in jazz history. Here he talks with PopMatters about his eclectic career, his most recent record and his passion for improvisation. Columns
Is there Virtue in Virtuosity?Two recent releases by leading saxophonists Chris Potter and James Carter raise the question of the utility—or the misuses—of virtuosity in jazz. [22 October 2009] (more Jazz Today) Jazz Cellist Peggy Lee’s ‘Fever’Peggy Lee—the cellist, not the late singer—is nevertheless all about singing of a sort. She talks to PopMatters about creativity and collaboration in the beautiful city of Vancouver. [16 September 2009] (more Jazz Today) Hip-notized by a Male Billie HolidayDiscovering the first collection of duets between popular singer Tony Bennett and jazz pianist Bill Evans popped my top and buttered my bread. [20 August 2009] (more Jazz Today) Jennifer Lee: The Bay Area Diana KrallJennifer Lee is not the typical, seductive jazz singer in a little black dress, holding a martini and giving you a late night wink. But she is a heck of a singer and musician, and she's ready to be heard. [22 July 2009] (more Jazz Today) Great Vibrations: An Interview with Gary BurtonOur jazz critic talks to Gary Burton about his reunion with Pat Metheny, about starting a "gentle" jazz-rock group, and that no one seems to know what a "vibraphone" really is. [11 June 2009] (more Jazz Today) Some Sing with SwingWith spring comes a rush of jazz vocalists and some of them can actually sing. Others ... not so much. [15 May 2009] (more Jazz Today) Long Live Blossom DearieBlossom's music exuded a sparkling kind of elegance and quick wit. Hers was the kind of jazz you could imagine in the really good Woody Allen movies. She was the Dorothy Parker of jazz. [10 April 2009] (more Jazz Today) Songlines: Small Is BeautifulSonglines has its finger on the pulse of the most important improvised music being made in North America these days. [19 March 2009] (more Jazz Today) Ravi Coltrane: The Son Also RisesTenor saxophonist Ravi Coltrane manages to look backward without seeming stale, and manages to deflect his sound off of his father's without either outright rejection or pale imitation. [19 February 2009] (more Jazz Today) Middleman: Joshua Redman and Jazz’s Vanishing Division"The position of not taking a side has endured." Joshua Redman talks about the hoary division between tradition and innovation, the spatial approach to doubled rhythm sections, and jazz's academic antidote. [23 January 2009] (more Jazz Today) No Piano No ProblemTwo new albums by piano-less quartets offer big doses of fun -- urgent rhythms, slabs of blues feeling, melody and invention with hardly any limit -- but also provide thrill-rides of surprise. [18 December 2008] (more Jazz Today) R.I.P. Smooth Jazz, Round TwoSmooth Jazz truly is the music of the gesture. It is music of the pose. It is music -- maybe particularly when it is made by a skillful musician -- that hints at real music without being real music. [6 November 2008] (more Jazz Today) Selling the MelodyFrom the lips of Melody Gardot -- heard in her swinging Cole Porter for an automobile -- there's another tentacle of jazz pushing forward, finding its way into our ears. [9 October 2008] (more Jazz Today) Looking Back at BrubeckDave Brubeck has been incredibly popular, neither simplistic nor crass, yet critics have never much liked his music. What if you listen to him -- to his long career -- with fresh ears? [21 August 2008] (more Jazz Today) Double StandardsWhat does it say about our time and place that our two boldest -- maybe best -- jazz singers, Patricia Barber and Cassandra Wilson, are returning to singing standards again? [17 July 2008] (more Jazz Today) Something Old, Something New, Something Borrowed, Something BlueEven today there are distinctive characteristics to American and European jazz styles. Which strain of music is most forward-looking? Which suggests the most promising vanguard for a music that seems to lose listeners even as its creativity expands? [27 June 2008] (more Jazz Today) Tangled Up in Blue Note"Blue Note" means there's a certain sound to a record, a style that is tight and sharp and funky but also adventurous. If jazz is music to shout about, Blue Note records may be the most shout-worthy of all time. [29 May 2008] (more Jazz Today) R.I.P. Smooth Jazz, 1985-2008?With two of the US' major "smooth jazz" radio stations defunct to the fickleness of format change, the time to mourn the cheesy sub-genre is now. But what made Smooth Jazz not really jazz at all? [17 April 2008] (more Jazz Today) The Gap: Charles LloydSaxophonist Charles Lloyd enjoyed periods of critical acclaim, popular celebration, eccentric withdrawal, and general trivialization. He was easy to ignore if you came of jazz fan age after 1970, and that's a shame. [11 March 2008] (more Jazz Today) The Gap: Bix BeiderbeckeIt's never too late to get hip to a good thing. I've finally opened my ears to '20s-era Bix Biederbecke. [31 January 2008] (more Jazz Today) The Gap: Paul BleyPaul Bley seems to be that rare jazz musician who has made a romance with the avant-garde seem easy on the ears. [3 January 2008] (more Jazz Today) A Laughing Dilemma, RevealedJazz and its fans have grown all too serious. The genre could use a clown prince or two. [15 November 2007] (more Jazz Today) Bass ReflectionsRecently, two most idiosyncratic jazz bass players, Miroslav Vitous and Eberhard Weber, released riveting, odd, ambitious recordings, suggesting the importance of the bass tradition to the larger history of the music. [17 October 2007] (more Jazz Today) Swept off My Feet by “Newcomer” James CarneyCurrent musicians like Brad Mehldau or Greg Osby are the equivalents of Albert Pujols or Mariano Rivera: future legends that walk among us today. Now you're on notice: James Carney may just be a master in the making. [20 September 2007] (more Jazz Today) A Critic’s Grab-BagThe most rewarding work as a critic is not in evaluating the flow of big menu items from established artists, but in sampling the little dishes that come along -- like this quartet of obscure, interesting stuff from 2007's first half. [10 August 2007] (more Jazz Today) Playing Pop in the Jazz/Soul ShadowLayman shares Thai food with the band, and discusses the wonderfully uncategorizable music of The Jen Chapin Trio. [22 May 2007] (more Jazz Today) The Little Label That Could: An Interview With Cryptogramophone’s Jeff Gauthier"I want every album I produce to take the listener on a journey, perhaps to places they've never been before." Cryptogramophone Records founder Gauthier talks L.A. jazz, musical community, and embracing change. [13 April 2007] (more Jazz Today) Celebrating John Coltrane, PersonallySpurred on by a couple of anniversaries, a new podcast "Traneumentary", and plenty of memory, Layman reflects on the music and meaning of John Coltrane. [9 March 2007] (more Jazz Today) How an Unremarkably Wonderful Work Is the Most Successful Jazz Album, EverHow can it be, in fact, that Vince Guaraldi's A Charlie Brown Christmas is perhaps the only universally adored record in jazz history -- the Sgt. Pepper's of improvised music? [21 December 2006] (more Jazz Today) A Reluctant ‘Jazz’ Hero: An Interview with Trumpeter, Composer, and Arranger Steven BernsteinThe prolific trumpeter talks shirking musical definitions, finding challenging middle ground between 'fake jazz' and 'real musicianship', touring with They Might Be Giants, and turning down Jay-Z. [2 November 2006] (more Jazz Today) Reviews
Matt Wilson Quartet: That’s Gonna Leave a MarkA bouncing, joyous offering from a jazz drummer chock-a-block with wit. [10 November 2009] 
Rhonda Vincent: Destination LifeThe full-throated bluegrass singer in her first studio outing with her wonderful touring band. [2 November 2009] 
Vijay Iyer Trio: HistoricityA stellar jazz trio + a wide-ranging repertoire = a great record. [26 October 2009] 
Robert Glasper: Double BookedThe new generation jazz pianist leads his trio and an expanded group on twin programs with twin results. [13 October 2009] 
Fred Hersch: Fred Hersch Plays JobimThe exceptional jazz artist takes on the bossa nova master as a solo pianist. 
The Monterey Quartet: Live at the 2007 Monterey Jazz FestivalA supergroup quartet plays with authority, speed, and imagination. And just a little tedium. [7 October 2009] 
Medeski, Martin and Wood: Radiolarians IIIThe third disc in a trilogy by the groove-mad trio, proving that they heed no boundaries. [6 October 2009] 
The Apples in Stereo: #1 Hits ExplosionSuper-catchy indie-pop "greatest hits" from the Elephant 6 pioneers. [5 October 2009] 
Eldar Djangirov: VirtueThe precocious pianist makes his eighth (!) album, and a thriller, but mars it with a synth patch that accomplishes nothing. [1 October 2009] 
The Jazz Book: From Ragtime to the 21st Century by Joachim-Ernst Berendt and Gunther HuesmannThis digs every jazz style it can name, and it smiles on tomorrow. It's a Big Tent view of jazz, and it mostly succeeds in making a believer of the reader. [29 September 2009] 
Stefon Harris and Blackout: UrbanusA young jazz master of the vibes makes a weirdly sold-out record. [17 September 2009] 
Billie Holiday: The Life and Artistry of Lady DayAlmost 50 years later, Holiday's sad and partly triumphant story is still ours to trivialize, as exemplified here. Sad. [7 September 2009] 
Mark O’Connor: Americana Symphony, Hot Swing Trio Live in New York, String Quartets Nos. 2 & 3The brilliant but comforting polymath fiddler, hitting on all cylinders in 2009. [4 September 2009] 
James Carney Group: Ways and MeansThe second brilliant outing from this composer and pianist, demonstrating how jazz can point forward with its history intact. [2 September 2009] 
Steve Lehman Octet: Travail, Transformation, and FlowA composer and alto saxophonist experiments with "spectral harmony" in jazz -- a technical matter that produces a non-technical result known as "great music". [25 August 2009] 
Christian McBride and Inside Straight: Kind of BrownThe great bassist and his new quintet lay down a meat-and-potatoes set of tracks that are straight-ahead pleasure. [21 August 2009] 
Dave Douglas and Brass Ecstasy: Spirit MovesDouglas revives the Lester Bowie post-modern brass band formula, with great invention. [14 August 2009] 
Jack DeJohnette: Music We AreThe enigmatic composer and drummer makes a free-wheeling recording with a stellar trio including Danilo Perez and John Patitucci [10 August 2009] 
The Way Home by George PelecanosThere's not a saint here, but most of the sinners have saintly moments. [4 August 2009] 
Enrico Rava: New York DaysThe lyrical, Miles-ian Italian trumpeter weaves a spell with his partner Stefano Bollani and three US luminaries. 
Return to Forever: Returns, Live at Montreux 2008The music mostly as fusion fans will remember it: bombastic and amazing, mechanical and fleet, leaden and eventually freshly swinging. [2 August 2009] 
Miles Davis: That’s What Happened, Live in Germany 1987A bleak 1987 concert by Miles Davis, reminding us that the '80s (and certain legends) are best forgotten. [22 July 2009] 
John McLaughlin and Chick Corea: Five Peace Band LiveTwo leading players from fusion's heyday reunite with a hot new band, trying to make sense of the past, but in the present. [19 June 2009] 
Spyro Gyra: Down the WireWith more than two dozen albums under its belt, this easy jazz juggernaut keeps making it sound smooth. [18 June 2009] 
Cassandra Wilson: Closer to You: The Pop SideA compilation of pop covers by jazz's most idiosyncratic, ingenious singer. [9 June 2009] 
The Smithereens: The Smithereens Play TommyThe '80s pride of Hoboken continues its historical take on the British Invasion. [3 June 2009] 
Melody Gardot: Mosaic: My One and Only ThrillA subdued and dark sophomore release from a talented kinda-jazz singer. [26 May 2009] 
Joe Lovano Us Five: Folk ArtThe superb saxophonist plays a garrulous and loose date with his new and percussive quintet [22 May 2009] 
Allen Toussaint: The Bright MississippiA storied delta pianist makes an album of classic New Orleans tunes, and it may be the best jazz of 2009. [30 April 2009] 
Melinda Doolittle: Coming Back to YouA strong retro-soul effort from one of the best of the Idols. [29 April 2009] 
Growing Up Dead by Peter ConnersIt's charming and informative to read Conners' musings on his youth, even as he tries and ultimately fails to demonstrate that it was not misspent. [27 April 2009] 
Nat King Cole, Re: GenerationsNat Cole is given the posthumous remix treatment—and it works better than you might think. [24 April 2009] 
Diana Krall: Quiet NightsThe dusky-voiced jazz singer on a lush, somewhat logy orchestral bossa nova collection. [23 April 2009] 
Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson: Live from Jazz at Lincoln Center New York CityThe video record of the January 2007 concerts combining Wynton Marsalis and Willie Nelson is simply beautiful. [9 April 2009] 
Jazz Icons: Sonny Rollins Live in ‘65 & ‘68In his mid and late-30s, Sony Rollins was playing with the intelligence of age but the still blazing heat of youth. [7 April 2009] 
Brad Shepik: Human Activity SuiteA versatile, wide-ranging quintet plays music from across the globe as well as downtown. [6 April 2009] 
The October Trio + Brad Turner: Looks Like It’s Going to SnowA fresh, pianoless quartet of Canadians, bringing a modern sound that resolves seemingly musical contradictions. [2 April 2009] 
Return to Forever: ReturnsThe 1970s fusion juggernaut on a reunion tour, sounding more mature for sure. [31 March 2009] 
Wynton Marsalis: He and SheThe great trumpeter brings his quintet to a project combining music and poetry -- and the music is great. [30 March 2009] 
Nels Cline: Coward / Alex Cline: ContinuationThe drum-and-guitar playing brothers release simultaneous solo projects on the great West Coast jazz label. [18 March 2009] 
Marion Maerz: Burt Bacharach SongbookIf you are a young German pop songstress in 1970, what do you do? Record a Bacharach album in German, watch it fail, then wait 28 years for the reissue. [17 March 2009] 
Rudresh Mahanthappa’s Indo-Pak Coalition: AptiA leading jazz saxophonist revives his multicultural trio and makes clear that some hybrid music contains no seams at all. [27 February 2009] 
Paul Motian Trio 2000 + Two: Live at the Village Vanguard, Volume IIAnother heaping dose of angular melody and stuttering swing from the eccentric, brilliant drummer. [23 February 2009] 
Carla Bley and Her Remarkable Big Band: Appearing NightlyA live outing from the composer/arranger's big band, playing tunes referencing classics without being entirely classic themselves. [12 February 2009] 
Gunmetal Black by Daniel SerranoA nice twist on the crime novel genre combines atypical insights into Latino culture with some truly lovely writing about the grace of salsa dancing. [27 January 2009] 
Matthew Shipp Trio: Harmonic DisorderA jazz trio operating outside the music, peeking inside and achieving remarkable and listenable results. [26 January 2009] 
The Blue Note 7: Mosaic: A Celebration of Blue Note RecordsAnother all-star band reminds of the rich jazz legacy of Blue Note Records. [13 January 2009] 
Paul Shapiro: EssenA joyous good-time record that combines jumping jazz with Yiddish entertainment, plus a dose of modern jazz funkiness. Sit down! Eat! You look too thin! [12 January 2009] 
Steven Bernstein’s Millennial Territory Orchestra: We are MTOThe brash, fun MTO's sophomore set: plenty swing, some funk, some vocals, all a mite too sterile this time out. [9 January 2009] 
The Book of Lies by Brad MeltzerA toothless potboiler that wants to be both The Da Vinci Code and a Superman comic. [6 January 2009] 
Fight the Big Bull: Dying Will Be EasyA nonet that sounds like no other, Fight the Big Bull makes a glorious noise. [16 December 2008] 
Jenny Scheinman: CrossingThe jazz/Americana/anything violinist creates a new set of riveting soundscapes. [10 December 2008] 
Esbjorn Svensson Trio (E.S.T.): LeucocyteThe progressive jazz trio takes its final bow. [8 December 2008] 
Kenny Barron: The TravelerThe great post-bop jazz pianist offers a breezy yet substantive outing -- lovely and melodic. [25 November 2008] 
Eri Yamamoto: Duologue/RedwoodsAn inside-out jazz pianist, playing duets with the cream of a downtown crop and playing with her trio. All arresting music. [12 November 2008] 
Rudresh Mahanthappa: KinsmenDowntown jazz meets South Indian improvising in a creative supernova. [10 November 2008] 
Joe Lovano: SymphonicaThe saxophonist makes a date with the WDR Orchestra and it's a night to remember. [5 November 2008] 
Boz Scaggs: Speak LowMr. "Lowdown" takes his second, remarkably intelligent, shot at a set of classic American standards. Much better than Rod Stewart, if that means anything to you. [31 October 2008] 
McCoy Tyner: GuitarsAn overpolite meeting between a great jazz trio and batch of six-string slingers. [30 October 2008] 
Take 6: The StandardThe brilliant gospel a cappella group tackles jazz and soul standards with sharp guests. [23 October 2008] 
Bebo Valdes and Javier Colina: Live at the Village VanguardThe veteran Cuban pianist and former "Tropicana" bandleader presents a modest but charming duet program in the great jazz basement. [1 October 2008] 
If Every Month Were June by Tony BenderHooter is presented as gloriously shallow, so when he sees a hot girl on a tool calendar -- the super-bodied "Trixie Foxalot" -- he falls immediately in love. [12 September 2008] 
Aaron Parks: Invisible CinemaThe Blue Note debut of a prodigious pianist -- more proof that jazz is consuming contemporary popular music in the best possible way. [28 August 2008] 
Lazlo Gardony: Dig DeeperA modern jazz trio with more than a little argument for excellence. [26 August 2008] 
Uri Caine Ensemble: The Othello SyndromeAnother mad hybrid project from the jazz pianist, but one of his best. [25 August 2008] 
Wadada Leo Smith’s Golden Quartet: TablighAbstract jazz trumpet in an introspective, explosive world. 
Stuff: Live at Montreux 1976 [DVD]The five hottest New York studio musicians of the mid-1970s give a class in Groove 101. [21 August 2008] 
Miss Murgatroid & Petra Haden: Hearts and DaggersNine tiny symphonies for voices, accordion, violin and viola. [15 August 2008] 
Freddie Hubbard and the New Jazz Composers Octet: On the Real SideA celebration of the great hard bop trumpeter featuring the man himself, though now a shadow of his past. [11 August 2008] 
Sergio Mendes: EncantoMr. Brasil '66 returns in '08 with some old tunes and some new friends, bringing bossa-nova up to date again. [6 August 2008] 
Return to Forever: Return to ForeverThe four electric sessions by the fusion juggernaut, coming back at you with screaming precision. [4 August 2008] 
The Jeff Gauthier Goatette: House of ReturnThe founder of Cryptogramophone Records returns with his genre-defying jazz band, featuring Nels and Alex Cline. [1 August 2008] 
CommonwealthBlue Gene -- a mullet-sporting, tattoo-covered, monster truck-loving, "Love It Or Leave It" spouting man of the people -- is selling off his childhood action figures at a flea market at the age of 27. [23 July 2008] 
Todd Sickafoose: Tiny ResistorsA distinctive and generous collection of tunes blending jazz and indie-rock yet doing so without preciousness or pretention. [16 July 2008] 
Fieldwork: DoorA jazz collective mates avant-chamber jazz to power and rhythmic complexity -- but listen with care. [14 July 2008] 
Willie Nelson and Wynton Marsalis: Two Men with the BluesWillie makes a jazz gig, singing blues and standards with his inimitable ease and generosity. [10 July 2008] 
Avishai Cohen Trio: Gently DisturbedA grooving and orchestral piano trio fronted by a great bass player -- a stunner. [9 June 2008] 
Lionel Loueke: KaribuThe African guitarist makes an evocative and quietly exciting date for Blue Note. [6 June 2008] 
Get Smart: The Complete SeriesThis collection of Get Smart is simply a feast, inspiring both nostalgia and respect for how ahead of its time this groundbreaking parody truly was. [3 June 2008] 
Jason Mraz: We Sing, We Dance, We Steal ThingsThe groovy singer-songwriter tries his hand at a horn-and-string-powered '70s vibe. [29 May 2008] 
JD Allen: I Am I AmA fine but not singular record from a tenor saxophone trio that seems intent on evoking the greats of the tradition: Coltrane, Rollins, and Joe Henderson. [16 May 2008] 
Blue Note: A Story of Modern JazzBoy-o-boy, did Blue Note dates schwing -- a solid, music-laced documentary about the legendary jazz record label. [15 May 2008] 
Alex Sipiagin: Out of the CircleThe Russian-born jazz trumpeter makes a deeply felt and beautiful record that sits on the soft edge of the tradition. [8 May 2008] 
David Buchbinder: Odessa/HavanaA seamless fusion of Jewish music and Afro-Cuban groove, this project from a Canadian trumpeter and a Cuban pianist is real "world music". [7 May 2008] 
Chick Corea and Gary Burton: The New Crystal SilenceThe venerable piano/vibes duo revisits its most vital recording, cloaking it in classical filigree and nostalgia [2 May 2008] 
Nicholas Payton: Into the BlueThe protean trumpeter records a bold quintet date in his native New Orleans, reinventing himself as a mature, romantic modernist. [22 April 2008] 
Cuong Vu: Vu-tetThe versatile and adventurous trumpeter continues to refine his personal sound in a volcanic, brilliant quartet release [18 April 2008] 
Maceo Parker: Roots and GroovesThe funky saxman gets with the WDR Big Band and plays Brother Ray, as well as his own well-honed brand of groove music. [17 April 2008] 
Miguel Zenon: AwakeA young alto player with a great quartet rises to the top of the class with his fourth disc of brilliant originals. [15 April 2008] 
Steven Bernstein: Diaspora SuiteThe fourth of the trumpeter's ingenious transformations of Jewish music, this gorgeous mass of guitars, horns and drums fuses Bitches Brew to the synagogue. [9 April 2008] 
Steve Lehman Quintet: On MeaningAn academic scholar with a passionate attack on alto sax drives his quintet through a focused set of truly modern jazz scenarios -- an Out to Lunch for today. [7 April 2008] 
Uri Caine: The Classical VariationsA jazz pianist mashes classical music -- and every other kind of music -- into a singular, wonderful, deeply felt whole. [19 March 2008] 
Sonny Fortune: You and the Night and the MusicA veteran jazz saxophonist plays standards with vinegar. [21 February 2008] 
The Epochs: The EpochsFresh indie-pop grounded in electronics and not a little bit of blue-eyed soul. [14 February 2008] 
Soft Machine Legacy: SteamForty years on, the British psychedelic/jazz group continues to explore textured, circular rock-jazz fusion that fascinates. [13 February 2008] 
Sheryl Crow: DetoursThe veteran singer and songwriter returns for her sixth studio album, armed with a rich series of stories to tell and her trademark rootsy professionalism. [12 February 2008] 
Eliane Elias: Something for YouThe Brazilian-American pianist (and sometime singer) dials up a middling tribute to a much greater jazz pianist. 
Wynton Marsalis: Standards and BalladsA collection of purely played jazz standards/ballads plucked from the trumpeter's huge Columbia catalog. [11 February 2008] 
Keith Jarrett: Setting StandardsThe fulfillment of the promise shown in the three records collected in this lovely box set continues to this day. [7 February 2008] 
Pat Metheny Trio: Day TripMelody, swing, and the guitarist's signature sound on ten originals with a top-flight trio. [6 February 2008] 
Joe Jackson: RainThe eclectic pianist/songwriter delivers a treat -- ten perfectly crafted pop songs that recall his best work or maybe are his best work. [28 January 2008] 
The Sarah Silverman Program: Season OneSilverman's show is smart and self-conscious, but I wonder if maybe -- when all the tics and clever bits are pushed away -- it's also without a humorous center. [18 January 2008] 
Stacey Kent: Breakfast on the Morning TramBlossom Dearie-ish jazz singing from an elegant but predictable artist. [15 January 2008] 
William Parker / Raining on the Moon: Corn Meal DanceA collection of liberation soul jazz with a fresh, free tang. [14 January 2008] 
Gentlemen of the Road by Michael ChabonFans of Chabon will want to know that questions of identity here are sexual as well as religious and that these matters are artfully twined into the action. 
Andy and the Bey Sisters: Round MidnightAn early group effort from a great jazz singer who has never gotten his due. [9 January 2008] 
The Pizzarelli Boys: Sunday at PetesSwing guitar taken way back and way forward in a tight, relaxed quartet date. [8 January 2008] 
Paul Motian Trio 2000 (Plus Two): Live at the Village VanguardThe drummer brings a wild and jagged quintet into jazz's Carnegie Hall and makes it all sound new again. [4 January 2008] 
Joe Henderson: Power to the PeopleA lost hint of jazz-rock fusion from one of jazz's finest straight post-bop players. [2 January 2008] 
Michael Blake Sextet: Amor de CosmosO Canada! An outstanding collection of varied new jazz recorded in Vancouver by one of New York's best tenor saxophonists. [20 December 2007] 
Jacky Terrasson: MirrorThe once-hot pianist returns with his first solo piano date. [19 December 2007] 
Christian Scott: AnthemA modern kind of emo-fusion from a young trumpeter -- and not at all a bad thing. [18 December 2007] 
Chris Potter 10: Music for AnyoneThe outstanding young reed player writes for an unconventional tentet of strings, winds, and rhythm -- and it works! [17 December 2007] 
Chris Potter Underground: Follow the Red LineA fired-up quartet of architectural jazz-funk fills the legendary jazz basement with sonic silver. [14 December 2007] 
Dee Dee Bridgewater: Red EarthAn American jazz singer ventures to Mali and achieves an African/jazz meld of the first order. [11 December 2007] 
Frode Haltli: Passing ImagesNorwegian vistas sculpted by accordion, trumpet, viola, electronics, and voice. [10 December 2007] 
Charlie Hunter: MisticoAnother scruffy-cool groove workout from the prolific guitarist. How many have there been now? [7 December 2007] 
Emerson, Lake, and Palmer: Brain Salad SurgeryThe high water mark of goofy progressive rock returns as a reissue. [5 December 2007] 
Thelonious Monk: Live at the 1964 Monterey Jazz FestivalThe vintage, never-before-released outing from the a high point of Monk's career [3 December 2007] 
Sarah Vaughan: Live at the 1971 Monterey Jazz FestivalThis is a fairly bored never-before-released set from a time when jazz had no idea how to exist in the world of rock 'n' roll. [30 November 2007] 
In the Know by Nancy MacDonellA fashion-heavy guide to hip that just reeks of not knowing what it is really about. [29 November 2007] 
Charlie Hunter and Bobby Previte as Groundtruther Plus John Medeski: AltitudeThe finest of the three recordings from the duo/trio, Altitude is a sonic exploration in both electric and acoustic improvised music that brings it all home. [28 November 2007] 
Dave Brubeck: Indian SummerIndian Summer is a gentle and reflective collection that neatly summarizes Dave Brubeck's musical personality. [12 November 2007] 
Diana Krall: The Very Best of Diana KrallThe Very Best of Diana Krall is professional, slick-as-a-trick, accomplished and too often dull. [8 November 2007] 
Meshell Ndegeocello: The World Has Made Me the Man of My DreamsThe iconoclastic bassist/singer/songwriter returns with her most complete, accessible and daring recording in a decade. [1 November 2007] 
Queen Latifah: Travlin LightThe rapper/ actress/ singer bids for jazz legitimacy. One wonders why she bothers to try. [30 October 2007] 
Kenny Burrell: 75th Birthday Bash Live!Mainstream guitar with big band and small group -- an easygoing tasty treat. [22 October 2007] 
Ultra-Talk by David KirbyUltra-Talk succeeds primarily when it allows Kirby the literature professor to do his thing most directly: explaining Shakespeare, Whitman, Dante, or Dickinson. But when he attempts to explore more mundane topics, Kirby reaches conclusions about the ordinary that may be revelations only to him. [15 October 2007] 
Billie Holiday: Lady DaySome of the finest small-group swing ever, accompanying the finest body of vocal performances in jazz history. [5 October 2007] 
Herbie Hancock: RiverThe great jazz pianist, with Wayne Shorter at his elbow and a list of sympathetic guest singers, makes a stunning Joni Mitchell tribute. [4 October 2007] 
The Claudia Quintet: ForA shimmering collection of avant-chamber-jazz fueled by rumba, Steve Reich, and Karen Carpenter, if you can believe it. [1 October 2007] 
Joni Mitchell: ShineAn environmentally fired-up Joni returns to songwriting with a gloomy, beautiful set of chamber-pop. [28 September 2007] 
Joe Henry: CiviliansA gorgeous feat of sonic story-telling from a songwriter deserving much wider recognition. [19 September 2007] 
Esbjorn Svensson Trio (E.S.T.): Tuesday WonderlandEuropean crossover jazz with a soulful bent, EST goes more distinctly electronic on its tenth album. [14 September 2007] 
Bruce Hornsby: Camp MeetingThe pop pianist makes an honest-to-goodness jazz album. And it's honest-to-goodness good. [6 September 2007] 
Turtle Island Quartet: A Love SupremeA capable-of-improvising string quartet tackle the repertoire of jazz giant Coltrane in a workable but curious fusion. [29 August 2007] 
Lyle Lovett and His Large Band: Its Not Big, Its LargeLovett cements his status as one of our best and offers further proof that popular American songcraft is a thriving art. This seamless album is one for the ages. [28 August 2007] 
Tord Gustavsen Trio: Being ThereA crystalline ECM piano trio makes another crystalline, ECM-ish piano trio record. Again. [27 August 2007] 
James Carney Group: Green-WoodJazz "fusion" for this exact moment -- electric, bold, funked-out, loose-as-a-goose terrific [22 August 2007] 
Bobby Hutcherson: For Sentimental ReasonsA straight-ahead recording from Bobby Hutcherson's working quartet, featuring Renee Rosnes -- and something special. [20 August 2007] 
Trio of Doom: Trio of Doom LiveThree masters of 1970s jazz fusion re-emerge, collectively and on their own -- a mixed, if rich, blessing. [17 August 2007] 
Terence Blanchard: A Tale of Gods WillThe New Orleans trumpeter's lyrical meditation on disaster. [15 August 2007] 
Joe Lovano and Hank Jones: KidsA fruitful musical friendship simply lifts off the ground, light as air. [10 August 2007] 
Monks Music Trio: Monk on MondaysA long-running San Francisco trio that is fully -- slavishly -- devoted to the great compositions of Thelonious Monk. [6 August 2007] 
William Parker & Hamid Drake: Volume 1: First Communion and Piercing the Veil; Volume 2: Summer SnowThe complete three-disc collection of duets by the top out-jazz rhythm section. [27 July 2007] 
The Chicago Underground Trio: Chronicle [DVD]The veteran jazz/electronic/free band in concert and given the hip video treatment [23 July 2007] 
Charles Mingus Sextet: Cornell 1964A truly great band at a definitive moment in the music's history -- and never heard before. [20 July 2007] 
Kenny Werner: Lawn Chair SocietyFully integrated electro-acoustic jazz from a journeyman pianist -- a revelation. [19 July 2007] 
Martin Sexton: SeedsA sterling and overdue stop in the studio for the great singer and performer [16 July 2007] 
Page McConnell: Page McConnellMore Phish Phallout. What was he holding in over all the years, secondary to Trey and yearning to be set free? [27 June 2007] 
Alvin Batiste: Alvin BatisteThe recently late New Orleans clarinetist in a jubilant, unpretentious set. [18 June 2007] 
Boz Scaggs: Silk DegreesSilk Degrees is signature '70s stuff: part sophisticated pre-punk pop, part disco, part singer-songwriter quirk. [12 June 2007] 
Allison Krauss: A Hundred Miles or MoreEvery last gorgeous Alison Krauss guest spot or soundtrack contribution, right here, in a shimmering newgrass pool of prettiness. [8 June 2007] 
Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman - Volume 1The never-forgotten '70s soap send-up emerges for the first time for home viewing -- a welcome reminder of a certain kind of glory day [3 May 2007] 
The Decemberists: The Decemberists [DVD]The Decemberists are fun; terrific melodies, compelling stories, and careful pop songcraft. [30 April 2007] 
Pat Martino: El HombreA lovely Rudy Van Gelder-remastered reissue of the great guitarist's solo debut, a 1967 date with organ, flute, and speed [23 April 2007] 
Robert Glasper: In My ElementA genuinely new sound for a jazz trio -- swing plus hip-hop brings something powerfully new. [12 April 2007] 
Jonatha Brooke: Careful What You Wish ForA folk-pop chanteuse has her Liz Phair middle-aged moment -- trying to make plastic pop music and succeeding all too admirably [2 April 2007] 
U2: Achtung Baby [DVD]A half-dozen rock critics talk about a classic U2 album, arguing its "audacity" with precious little musical evidence. 
The Oscar Peterson Trio: The Berlin Concert [DVD]A 1985 concert by the jazz trio led by legendary pianist Peterson is straight-ahead swing of a somewhat mechanical nature [29 March 2007] 
Brad Shepik Trio: Places You GoGuitar, organ, and drums in a contemporary program that is fresh and familiar at the same time. [15 March 2007] 
Stryker/Slagle Band: Latest OutlookModern small-group jazz that dances with a taste of Ornette and a bounce from Blakey. [13 March 2007] 
The Paul Carlon Octet: Other TonguesJazz at the top of its modern game -- Latin, tight, tasty, and modern. [9 March 2007] 
Katharine McPhee: Katharine McPheeThe first true RoboIdol -- voice, body, face, compliant desire to be a star -- releases her debut. [1 March 2007] 
Steve Kuhn Trio: Live at BirdlandMature, classic piano trio jazz: vintage stuff. [19 February 2007] 
Rickie Lee Jones: The Sermon on Exposition BoulevardRickie Lee's hip-swingy voice is set in an indie-rock nest with kinda Christian lyrics -- yeah, I'm a bit baffled too. [2 February 2007] 
Tahiti 80: FosburyParisian retro-pop: a little disco, a little Bacharach, a dash of '60s bubblegum melodicism -- a lot of fey contrivance. [29 January 2007] 
Nickel Creek: Reasons WhyTasty tracks from three spectacular newgrass albums, plus videos and live music. [26 January 2007] 
The Brian Lynch/Eddie Palmieri Project: SimpaticoA jazz-Latin all-star group uniting mentor and student surges and glistens. [19 January 2007] 
The Microscopic Septet: Seven Men in Neckties/Surrealistic SwingPossibly the most vital jazz group of the 1980s, in retrospect. [12 January 2007] 
Erin McKeown: Sing You SinnersThe post-folkie Judy Garland freak makes the now-obligatory standards album. [10 January 2007] 
NRBQ and the Whole Wheat Horns: Derbytown [DVD]Vintage 'Q, vintage line-up, vintageg rockin' good times. [8 January 2007] 
Get Smart The Complete CollectionThis collection of Get Smart is simply a feast, inspiring both nostalgia and respect for how ahead of its time this groundbreaking parody truly was. [22 December 2006] 
Rudresh Mahanthappa: CodebookThe rising alto saxophone star makes music from cryptography play as sharp and clear as noon. [20 December 2006] 
Mark Helias and Open Loose: Atomic ClockTenor-bass-drums play every which way jazz can go in a session to match the best of 2006. [11 December 2006] 
Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane: The Complete 1957 Riverside RecordingsThe classic studio meetings between Monk (teacher) and Coltrane (student), still tantalizing and uneven. [8 December 2006] 
Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood: Out LouderThe jammy sequel of Scofield's brilliant A Go Go appears at last. [4 December 2006] 
David Krakauer and Socalled with Klezmer Madness: BubbemeisesKlezmer meets hip-hop with hopes of having latkes of fun. [29 November 2006] 
Branford Marsalis Quartet: BraggtownSaxophone-plus-rhythm, head down and bent to it again. [28 November 2006] 
Nanci Griffith: Rubys TorchThe Texas folkie with strings, completing her transformation into something studied and stodgy. [21 November 2006] 
Steely Dan: Classic Albums [DVD]The famous pop perfectionism of Steely Dan, dissected at the mixing board by Becker and Fagen themselves -- maybe the best entry in this documentary series. [13 November 2006] 
Jeff Lang: Prepare Me WellThe Australian slide guitar whiz makes a long overdue US debut and ZING it is tasty! [3 November 2006] 
Sarah Vaughan: Send in the ClownsThe great jazz singer gets her entry in the Legacy "Signature Series", mostly pulled from later in her career. [30 October 2006] 
Roy Haynes and the Fountain of Youth Band: WhereasModern bop, live in Minnesota! Yup -- and it's great. [23 October 2006] 
Fats Waller: If Youve Got To Ask, You Aint Got ItThree discs of old-time bliss -- one of the greats at his greatest. [20 October 2006] 
Randy Brecker with Michael Brecker: Some Skunk FunkA reprise of the best of the Brecker Brothers Band, with the aid of the WDR Big Band [19 October 2006] 
The Brecker Brothers: Sneakin Up Behind YouThe Legacy Signature Series profiles the NY sound of mid-'70s funk-fusion. 
Geri Allen: Timeless Portraits and DreamsA fantastic jazz trio gets somewhat stuck in a web of other voices and intentions -- but still plays great. [12 October 2006] 
Dave Holland Quintet: Critical MassOne of the top bands in jazz today sends out another zinging-great record. [6 October 2006] 
Jason Moran: Artist in ResidenceA jazz pianist of steel steers his music through the dangerous web of official arts organizations, encountering plenty of Kryptonite, yet emerges unscathed -- the globe still safe for improvisation. [25 September 2006] 
Chris Thile: How to Grow a Woman From the GroundThe Nickel Creek front man and mandolin marvel drops back for a relatively traditional bluegrass date, featuring other young hotshots and a couple of modern rock covers with a Kentucky tinge. [21 September 2006] 
Anne Ducros: PIANO, pianoA top French jazz vocalist strangles a string of the usual standards, with Chick Corea and Jacky Terrason aiding and abetting on some tracks 
Bobby Previte: Coalition of the WillingA "nonjazz" record of assertive instrumental rock from a great downtown drummer -- both political and funky in its intentions, it arrives with purpose. [12 September 2006] 
John Pizzarelli: Dear Mr. SinatraJohn Pizzarelli is the sneak attack version of the Young Fogey Movement in jazz singing. [7 September 2006] 
Sex Mob: SexoticaSteven Bernstein's jazz pranksters take on Martin Denny-style lounge exotica, mixing bold jazz with nostalgic bird-call texture. A mixed drink, for sure. [1 September 2006] 
Liquid Soul: One Two PunchThe "acid jazz" outfit run by saxophonist Mars Williams sounds dated and uncommitted in its first disc in over five years. [29 August 2006] 
Joe Lovano: Streams of ExpressionTwo suites of complexly orchestrated jazz that update The Birth of the Cool -- and two takes on the whole shebang. [25 August 2006] 
Brian Bromberg: Wood IIJazz bass wizardry so astonishing that it is mostly pointless. [24 August 2006] 
Edgar Meyer: Edgar MeyerThe classical bassist with a woodsy bent indulges his inner folkie by overdubbing mandolin, dobro, guitar, piano, and gamba in a series of pastoral tone poems. [23 August 2006] 
Jason Kao Hwang: EdgeA quartet playing jazz/new music generates fiddle-fueled propulsion. [18 August 2006] 
Liberty Ellman: Ophiuchus ButterflyA unique guitarist from the young New York scene plays funky, angular music with a sextet grounded in tuba and reeds. [17 August 2006] 
Steven Bernsteins Millennial Territory Orchestra: MTO Volume 1A hairy nine-piece romp from the '20s to the '90s -- living proof that great American music has no categories. [16 August 2006] 
Christian McBride: Live at TonicA triple-dose of jazz bass monsterhood -- one slice of contemporary fusion followed by two slices of jam-o-rific guest-laden funk. Get your jazz groove on. [15 August 2006] 
Wayne Horvitz Gravitas Quartet: Way Out EastChamber jazz of the highest order, for quartet (trumpet, bassoon, cello, piano) -- a perfect mix of composition and improvisation [11 August 2006] 
Janis Siegel: A Thousand Beautiful ThingsManhattan Transfer vocalist's Latin gambit is risky and rewarding. [2 August 2006] 
Medeski, Martin & Wood: Note BleuMMW's jammy Blue Note years, collected, with the addition of several unreleased tracks and a DVD of the band live-in-grooveloving-concert [26 July 2006] 
Terry Smith: Fall OutOriginally recorded in 1968, this is the first-ever CD release of a jazz solo album by the guitarist for the short-lived British rock/jazz band If. [25 July 2006] 
George Benson: The Essential George BensonLooking back at the once and future king of jazz guitar, Bad Benson. [21 July 2006] 
Karrin Allyson: FootprintsA stunning program of post-bop jazz standards from a mature singer out on the mainstream edge. [18 July 2006] 
Some Girls: Crushing LoveThe sophomore release from Juliana Hatfield's all-female side project, a winner combining edge with sweetness. [14 July 2006] 
The Derek Trucks Band: SonglinesA young phenom no more, D Trucks straddles genres with one authoritative guitar. [11 July 2006] 
Trey Anastasio: ShinePhish frontman drops the funk for classic PH-M rock sounds. 'Bout time. [6 July 2006] 
Nick Lachey: What’s Left of MeBoyBand Alum/Celebrity/Ex-husband/Hunk makes an album about not getting It anymore. Ouch! [5 July 2006] 
Miles Davis: The Legendary Prestige Quintet SessionsFour discs of the greatest American music there is. Feast. [30 June 2006] 
Out There/Eric Dolphy Out There [Rudy Van Gelder Remasters]Vintage early Dolphy featuring Ron Carter on cello, in a sterling Van Gelder remastered version [5 June 2006] 
Paul Shapiro: Its in the TwilightMore electrifying Jewish jazz from John Zorn's imprint, Tzadik. [10 May 2006] 
Joey DeFrancesco: Organic VibesHammond B-3 plus Bobby Hutcherson equals deeply sophisticated groove. [4 May 2006] 
Steve Khan: The Green FieldA unique, strong, and serious jazz guitar album from a modern master. [3 May 2006] 
Monty Alexander: Concrete Jungle: The Music of Bob MarleyThe Jamaican jazz pianist takes on Marley, again. [24 April 2006] 
Mimi Fox: Perpetually HipMimi Fox is one of the umpteen jazz musicians you've never heard of who can play their way out of a sealed vault at the bottom of an ocean canyon. [17 April 2006] 
Manu Katche: NeighorhoodA crystalline ECM session featuring a pop drummer, Tomasz Stanko, and Jan Garbarek -- but really too gentle for its own good. [12 April 2006] 
Jason Miles: Whats Going On: Songs of Marvin GayeDesecration of a music legend begins here. [11 April 2006] 
Duduka Da Fonseca Quintet: Samba Jazz in Black & WhiteA breezy samba-jazz date suggests the warmer days ahead. [10 April 2006] 
Bonnie Bramlett: Roots, Blues & JazzAn Ike-ette and lost legend growls a variety of soul and jazz standards. [3 April 2006] 
The Kronos Quartet / Terry Riley: Cadenza on the Night PlainA classic recording of Terry Riley's string quartet music, reissued. [31 March 2006] 
Donald Fagen: Morph the CatMore jazz-slick (but seriously dark) sophistipop from one half of Steely Dan. [28 March 2006] 
Carmen Lundy: Jazz and the New SongbookA live, career-encompassing date of all-original material from a top jazz vocalist. [16 March 2006] 
Garrison Starr: The Sound of You and MeA singer-songwriterish singer-songwriter effort from a fine singer-songwriter. [14 March 2006] 
Sam Bardfeld: Periodic Trespasses [The Saul Cycle]Alt-Jazz violinist weighs in with a daring, fun session of melodic quirk. [10 March 2006] 
Herbie Hancock: The Essential Herbie HancockA career retrospective of the great jazz pianist and popsmith spanning four decades, seven labels and as many styles. [9 March 2006] Odyssey the Band: Back in TimeA legendary trio reunites for a session so yesterday that it's tomorrow. [6 March 2006] 
John McNeil: East Coast CoolThe Gerry Mulligan Quartet filtered through the Ornette Coleman Quartet, and the result is something new. [3 March 2006] Tom Scott: Bebop UnitedAn absolutely straight-ahead live date for concert octet, believe it or not, from the usually smoove saxophonist. [1 March 2006] Edsel Gomez: Cubist MusicDon Byron's and David Sanchez's pianist makes a bold US debut. [27 February 2006] 
Andrew Hill: Time LinesThe stalwart post-bop pianist returns (again) to Blue Note with a combination of daring and remembrance. [22 February 2006] Chick Corea: The Ultimate AdventureThe jazz pianist and composer constructs an absorbing, career-summarizing fantasy soundtrack. [20 February 2006] 
The Advantage: Elf-TitledNintendo rock! Get off your couch, put down your controller and dance. [14 February 2006] Chris Thile and Mike Marshall: Live DuetsLive mandolins duel across the whole musical spectrum. [13 February 2006] 
Charlie Hunter Trio: CopperopolisJazz-jam guitarist and his trio proceed to make the funky good-time rock music you crazy kids are so fond of. [9 February 2006] 
Ray Davies: Other People’s LivesThe first true full-length studio album from the legendary leader of The Kinks is spectacular. [3 February 2006] 
Some Girls: Heaven’s Pregnant TeensIcily dull hardcore screamo metal that has been Pro-Tooled within an inch of it's life. Daring and scary and brutalizing and eardrum bleeding? In its dreams. [18 January 2006] 
Todd Rundgren: Best of Todd Rundgren LiveA collection of Rundgren's legitimately beloved hits played live by various high-calorie bands between 1979 and 2004. The rock iconoclast is at his most melodic and tuneful but will seem overproduced by post-punk ears. [12 January 2006] 
Bill Frisell: East/West / Further East/Further WestA comprehensive and breathtaking tour of the musical world of today's most distinctive and singular guitarist. [21 December 2005] 
Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey: The Sameness of DifferenceA hip and happenin' new-style jazz trio covers the (newly) usual indie-folk: Bjork, Brian Wilson, The Flaming Lips. In a word: Eh. [12 December 2005] 
Dave Liebman, Steve Smith, Eydin Esen, Anthony Jackson: FlashpointFusion forward -- Dave Liebman fronts a musical version of That '70s Show. [7 December 2005] 
Craig Wedren: LaplandThe Shudder to Think and Baby front-man makes a sterling, songful solo debut. [6 December 2005] 
Javon Jackson: Have You HeardA jazz saxophonist wearing his funky party clothes, featuring Dr. Lonnie Smith's organ, but a forced good time. [5 December 2005] 
Mat Maneri: PentagonThirsty Ear's 'Blue Series' goads out-violinist Maneri into his own Bitches Brew session. [2 December 2005] 
Bobo Stenson: GoodbyeA modern master of jazz piano plays against the ECM clichés to create another in a series of deep trio albums, this time with Paul Motian on drums. [1 December 2005] 
Jenny Scheinman: 12 SongsThe Americana/jazz violinist performs a perfect dozen miniatures with a perfectly modulated chamber septet. [30 November 2005] 
The Roots: Home Grown! The Beginners Guide to Understanding The RootsSpectacular hip-hop from A to Z, a collection of depth and wonder from Philly's hometown heroes -- beats, rhymes and riffs to end the discussion of how 'musical' rap really is. [29 November 2005] 
Marc Johnson: Shades of JadeStrong playing from Eliane Elias, Joe Lovano, John Scofield, and Joey Baron makes for a pleasant but schizophrenic listen. [28 November 2005] 
Toshi Reagon: Have You HeardAn Artist Deserving Wider Recognition puts her wounded joy front and center. [23 November 2005] 
Digable Planets: Beyond the Spectrum: The Creamy Spy ChroniclesGreatest hits and a few remixes and oddities from the hippie-hop trio that briefly defined a brand of kinder, gentler rap. [17 November 2005] 
Bill Withers: Just As I Am [DualDisc]A 'dualdisc' version of Mr. Withers' first album -- a folk-soul fusion that reminds us of what the 1970s was really good for. [14 November 2005] 
Jamie Cullum: Catching TalesBritish Boy Wonder of Kinda-Jazz Delivers a deeply ambiguous sophomore set. [11 November 2005] 
Mark O’Connor & Nadja Salerno-Sonnenberg: Double Violin ConcertoThe bluegrass fiddler turned Americana-Classical composer tackles jazz in his third symphonic concerto. [2 November 2005] 
Shemekia Copeland: The Soul TruthA blast of blues-drenched soul -- when has that ever hurt a person?" [25 October 2005] 
Uri Caine & Bedrock: Shelf-LifeJazz's leading post-modern trickster pulls apart the 1970s -- crime shows, game shows, Blue Note albums, Philly soul -- to give you a strange pastiche that could only have been made today. Fasten you ear-belts and get ready for take-off. [24 October 2005] 
Charlie Haden Liberation Music Orchestra: Not in Our NameLess an album of political conviction than an article of American hope, this gorgeous recording transcends difference and discovers delicate beauty. [19 October 2005] 
Tim Ries: The Rolling Stones ProjectRaise your hand if you've been hankering for a set of jazzified Rolling Stones covers. [17 October 2005] 
Rickie Lee Jones: The Duchess of Coolsville: An AnthologyOne of the most idiosyncratic and powerful voices in pop sums it all up. [14 October 2005] 
Sonny Rollins: Without a SongThe Tenor Titan presents a live program of typical strength but also typical... typicalness?" [13 October 2005] 
Tim O’Brien: Fiddler’s Green / Cornbread NationBluegrass authenticity and huge ears make Tim O'Brien all the musician you can handle. [11 October 2005] 
Billy Martin and Socket: January 14 & 15 2005, Live at TonicLive cacophony ladled over a healthy dose of groove -- but perhaps pack an aspirin or two. [5 October 2005] 
Herbie Hancock: PossibilitiesA largely forgettable set of pop duets that could be interpreted as a regrettable sell-out move if it actually had any commercial potential. Hancock's Starbucks album yawns toward blandness. [29 September 2005] 
Alison Moyet: VoiceMoyet's big British pop voice set against a pretentious orchestral setting. [28 September 2005] 
Miles Davis: The Cellar Door Sessions 1970Another sumptuous box set from the Columbia Miles Davis archives features the Live Evil Cellar Door band -- turning the corner from jazz to stellar jam-funk of the highest order. [23 September 2005] 
Gerald Veasley: At the Jazz Base!Philly bassist takes a local band into his own club and turns up the heat. [21 September 2005] 
Lee Ritenour: OvertimeA college seminar in compromise, this kind-of live career retrospective from 'Captain Fingers' spans styles and degrees of taste. [12 September 2005] 
Horace Silver: Silver’s BlueAn early and lesser-known date from the hard bop stalwart shines with funky Silver tunes and arrangements, featuring authoritative work by Hank Mobley. [6 September 2005] 
Dizzy Gillespie & Charlie Parker: Town Hall, New York City, June 22, 1945A long-lost 1945 recording of Bird, Diz, and Max in the full flush of their youthful invention. Sparkling, crackling, thrilling American music. [2 September 2005] 
Greg Osby: Channel ThreeOsby continues his winning streak with a fresh-sounding saxophone trio approach. [1 September 2005] 
Tierney Sutton: I’m With the BandBringing hyper-technique into the scat-o-sphere, the jazz vocalist releases a partly-live set that dazzles -- maybe too much. [29 August 2005] 
Esther Phillips: Jazz Moods / HotA slice of '70s soul from a singer who always brings it, even when her material is a semi-discofied mixed bag. [25 August 2005] 
Woody Shaw: Stepping StonesCrackling live '70s hard bop from the trumpeter who might have been king. [24 August 2005] 
Jack DeJohnette: Music from the Hearts of the MastersThe royal jazz drummer releases two on his own label: an encounter with an African kora master and a single track of healing and meditation music. [18 August 2005] 
Paul Brown: The CityA package hackneyed Smoove clichés, Mr. Brown's sophomore release is just the thing for all you cognac-smooth, French wine collectin', high stakes poker playin', condo livin' cats out there. [17 August 2005] 
Ahmad Jamal: The Legendary Okeh and Epic RecordingsThese are the early sides that turned Miles Davis into a lifelong fan of this swinging, elegant pianist. [16 August 2005] 
Me’Shell Ndegeocello: The Spirit Music Jamia: Dance of the InfidelsThis is a jazz album, essentially, from the most adventurous artist in all of American R&B, but one that strains successfully even against the notoriously wide boundaries of jazz. [12 August 2005] 
Earl Klugh: Naked GuitarSolo acoustic guitar from the smooth pioneer finds him doing what good musicians do when unburdened by too much schmaltz. [9 August 2005] 
Tony Bennett: Jazz Moods: CoolYet another collection of jazz-oriented pop from 'the singer's singer'. [8 August 2005] 
Nickel Creek: Why Should the Fire Die?The newgrass wunderkinds make a strong bid for pop stardom without sacrificing too much of their purity. [4 August 2005] 
The Thieves: Tales From the White LineIn the sweepstakes to make the most derivative rock album ever, the Thieves live up to their name. [1 August 2005] 
Beth Nielsen Chapman: LookThe big-ballad songwriter extraordinaire delivers a solo record spanning several styles. [29 July 2005] 
Louis Armstrong: Jazz Moods: HotA selection of 14 tracks from The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings, which is to say a thin slice of one of the sweetest cakes that was ever baked. [28 July 2005] 
Groundtruther (Bobby Previte and Charlie Hunter with DJ Logic): LongitudeThis jazz-jam venture in rhythm and texture could be the soundtrack to a David Cronenberg film. Alas, it is not. [25 July 2005] 
Sara Lazarus: Give Me the Simple LifeAmerican ex-pat jazz singer releases her first disc since winning the Monk award a decade ago. [22 July 2005] 
Stanley Turrentine: Jazz Moods—CoolVintage CTI recordings that get the balance between jazz and schmaltz just about right. [20 July 2005] 
Danilo Perez: Live at the Jazz ShowcaseA live, stunningly adventurous trio date by Wayne Shorter's pianist. [18 July 2005] 
Ron Blake: Sonic TonicProduction by Me'Shell NdegéOcello doesn't compromise this excellent jazz recording by an eclectic, muscular tenor voice. [15 July 2005] 
Ted Nash & Odeon: La Espada de la NocheA state-of-the-art jazz saxophonist tackles tango and swamp music. Who says jazz all sounds the same?" [11 July 2005] 
Tord Gustavsen Trio: The GroundThis delicately balanced piano trio blends slow tempos, a gospel feel, and delicious restraint into something lovely. You almost feel guilty for liking something so beautiful, but this music gets under your skin and into your head. [6 July 2005] 
Tracy Bonham: Blink the BrightestThe once rockin' Grammy nominee and MTV figure shows her real stuff on this mature stunner. [29 June 2005] 
Walter Beasley: For HerCan 'smooth jazz' be particularly bland and mushy? Yes -- yes it can. [27 June 2005] 
Bob James: Live at Montreux [DVD]DVD release of a 1985 concert by the pianist and his crack band of proto-smooth jazz fusioneers. [23 June 2005] 
Chet Baker: Career: 1952-1988Chet Baker was a second or even third-tier trumpeter but an often first-class singer. This retrospective offers a view of his entire career, the complex ups and downs of which belie the simplicity of his art. 
Sting: Bring on the Night [DVD]The 1985 documentary in which Der Schtingle forms his first post-Police band and demonstrates for the first time that he will soon become a hopelessly pretentious British pretty boy. [22 June 2005] 
Wayne Shorter: Beyond the Sound BarrierThe third release from Shorter's acoustic quartet catches the band at its live best. In three new originals and a diverse selection of classical, film, and older music, the group plays with almost unparalleled democracy and drive. Wayne is back. Boy is he. [17 June 2005] 
Lizz Wright: Dreaming Wide AwakeThis is an entry in the Next Norah Sweepstakes, with the Jesse Harris songs and the mid-tempo folkiness in strong supply. But it sounds great, with unaffected singing and a 'new standards' repertoire that quietly jolts. [16 June 2005] 
Marcia Ball: Live! Down the RoadAn over-glossy sound makes this first-ever live album of Gator music and blues a bit distant, but the piano chops and down-home vocals shine through. [14 June 2005] 
X: Live in Los Angeles [CD and DVD]The seminal LA punk band that has never quite broken up plays their best songs with their classic line-up on the Sunset Strip. And, to our relief, they still sound like much more than just a punk band. [13 June 2005] 
Keith Jarrett: RadianceRadiance is unique in this venerable line of concert recordings, and reestablishes Mr. Jarrett as one of the few truly gigantic talents in modern jazz. [7 June 2005] 
Terence Blanchard: FlowAnother former 'Young Lion' on trumpet nods toward Bitches Brew in his middle age. But the sound is as much Metheny as it is Miles, despite Herbie Hancock being the producer. Through it all, however, Blanchard plays singingly. [3 June 2005]
Tord Gustavsen Trio: The GroundThis is a delicately balanced piano trio that blends slow tempos, gospel feel and delicious restraint into something lovely. You almost feel guilty for liking something so beautiful, but this music gets under your skin and into your head. [31 May 2005] 
Dizzy Gillespie: Career: 1937-1992The greatest trumpeter simply didn't make a single great album. By default, then, this compilation is it: your must-have set for the brilliant bebop master. [27 May 2005] 
The Robert Cray Band: TwentyLike a great pair of jeans, Robert Cray is easy to take for granted. His latest is nothing new, nothing startling, but it's comfortable, sturdy and built to fit your curves. [24 May 2005] 
KEM: Album IIThe second album from this Motown soul-fusioneer is tasty and soulful, but it represents such a wholesale copping of the style of the soul-fusioneer Al Jarreau that it's, frankly, difficult to know how to react. [17 May 2005] 
Abdullah Ibrahim: A Celebration / Re:Brahim: Abdullah Ibrahim RemixedThe South African composer and pianist is properly celebrated in two collections that give him the retrospective treatment and remix treatment that his captivating music deserves. Spectacular. [11 May 2005] 
Alison Brown: Stolen MomentsThis experiment in fusing bluegrass with jazz is the exception -- it really works. When even the dreaded heavy-hitter guest vocalists don't wreck things, you know you're onto something special. Alison Brown, banjo at the ready, is coming to get you. 
Joni Mitchell: Songs of a Prairie GirlThe third personal compilation of Joni's Songs to be released in the last year, this disc features songs about or inspired by her Canadian childhood. There's almost nothing new here, though Joni's old songs are enough to make you smile. But if you already own this stuff, don't bother. If you don't have it, this is not the ideal collection. So, like -- what's the point?" [29 April 2005] 
Faith Evans: The First LadyBiggie's widow makes a bid for neo-soul stardom on a new label -- and proves that her singing is more than enough to overcome the faceless tracks featuring guest rappers that open and close this otherwise vintage disc. [28 April 2005] 
Various Artists: The Colors of Latin Jazz: Soul Cookin’Take off your shoes, tuck your napkin into your shirt, and get ready to eat with your fingers while you boogie with your feet. This compilation is a funky Afro-Cuban feast. [22 April 2005] 
Marcus Miller: Silver RainAs cobbled together as it is, this collection is a portrait of an insanely talented bass player and arranger. Featuring guest vocals (Clapton!) and covers (Prince! Beethoven! Ellington! Luther!) designed to sell, it remains a bass-lover's dream project and a good example of 'contemporary jazz' with a conscience. [21 April 2005] 
Gary Burton: Next GenerationAnother shiny-young group of over-polished jazz technicians from the vibes-master and former Berklee Professor. It sounds great, no doubt, but it can't improve on Burton's old, similar-sounding bands. [19 April 2005] 
Dave Douglas: Mountain PassagesUncompromising trumpeter Dave Douglas emerges from the major-label jungle into cool mountain air. The result is unforgettable, unique jazz with a gentle, world-music sheen. [6 April 2005] BlogsConsuming Consumables: Billie Holiday: Lady Day: The Master Takes and Singles [$49.98] [20 November 2007]Consuming Consumables: Fats Waller: If You’ve Got to Ask, You Ain’t Got It [$34.98] [12 December 2006] |
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