Will Layman

Will Layman is a writer, teacher and musician living in the Washington, DC area. He has been a contributor to National Public Radio and WNYC's "Soundcheck" as a jazz critic. He plays rock, funk, and jazz in the bars and clubs in and near the nation's capital. His fiction and humor appear in print and online.
Allen Lowe Challenges Ideas About American Music

Allen Lowe Challenges Ideas About American Music

Allen Lowe solos as if he loves Ben Webster and Ornette Coleman in equal measure. The rhythm section seems like it wants to be Count Basie and Sun Studios.

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of Summer 2023

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of Summer 2023

Our jazz columnist chooses the best new jazz albums of the summer while reflecting on the passing of Astrud Gilberto and Tony Bennett.

Meshell Ndegeocello’s ‘The Omnichord Real Book’ Is Stellar Soul Music

Meshell Ndegeocello’s ‘The Omnichord Real Book’ Is Stellar Soul Music

Meshell Ndegeocello always creates a mood around the music that puts rhythm, harmony, and melody in delicious orbits. This is a real genre-crossing soul album.

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of April and May 2023

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of April and May 2023

Our jazz columnist chooses the best new jazz albums of the past two months while reflecting on the passing of Ahmad Jamal and highlighting Walter Smith III.

That Stank Attitude: Steely Dan’s Final Albums Two Decades Later

That Stank Attitude: Steely Dan’s Final Albums Two Decades Later

The last album by the rock/jazz phenoms Steely Dan was released 20 years ago. This is a look back at why their last two records deserve reconsideration.

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of February and March 2023

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of February and March 2023

Our jazz columnist chooses the best new jazz albums of the past two months while reflecting on the passing of Wayne Shorter and the Grammy Awards.

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of January 2023

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of January 2023

Will Layman rounds up the best new jazz albums and cocoons with jazz documentaries, Louis Armstrong’s Black & Blues and Ron Carter: Finding the Right Notes.

The 20 Best Jazz Albums for Beginners

The 20 Best Jazz Albums for Beginners

If you’ve always wanted to get interested in jazz, jump in. Don’t approach it with fear or a sense that you don’t know enough about it. It’s just a smorgasbord of stuff to enjoy.

Jazz Singer Catherine Russell Bridges the Century with Soul

Jazz Singer Catherine Russell Bridges the Century with Soul

Singer Catherine Russell is one of the best voices in the world, whether she is backing up international acts like Steely Dan or touring with her small band.

The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2022

The 20 Best Jazz Albums of 2022

Jazz, born of the creative brilliance of Black American culture and now wonderfully global, is passionately alive in 2022. These are the year’s best jazz albums.

Growing Into Yourself: Former Jazz Prodigies Joey Alexander and Nikki Yanofsky Mature

Growing Into Yourself: Former Jazz Prodigies Joey Alexander and Nikki Yanofsky Mature

New mature albums by jazz prodigies Joey Alexander and Nikki Yanofsky demonstrate the potential and limitations of starting an artistic career as a child.

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of Autumn 2022

JazzMatters: The Best New Jazz of Autumn 2022

PopMatters jazz critic Will Layman rounds up the best new jazz albums of recent vintage, including some thoughts about the US festival season and the undersung virtuoso Warren Wolf.