Thursday, December 1, 2016

Best of 2016

I'm honored to have been invited to take part in Francis Davis' 11th Annual Jazz Critics Poll, hosted by NPR Music for the fourth consecutive year. As usual, it's hard to edit a list down to ten new releases. Here are my choices, including reissues and best debut:

New releases:

Michael Formanek Ensemble Kolossus
The Distance
ECM

Dan Weiss
Sixteen: Drummer's Suite
Pi Recordings

Mary Halvorson Octet
Away With You
Firehouse 12

Tim Stine Trio 
Tim Stine Trio
Astral Spirits

Christoph Irniger Pilgrim
Big Wheel Live
Intakt

Bill Charlap Trio
Notes from New York
Impulse

Illegal Crowns
Illegal Crowns
Rogue Art

Ches Smith
The Bell
ECM

Igor Osypov Quartet
Dream Delivery
For Tune

Mark Dresser
Sedimental You
Clean Feed

Reissues:

Jimmy Giuffre 3
Bremen and Stuttgart 1961
Emanem

Anthony Braxton
Quintet (Basel) 1977
Hatology

Wadada Leo Smith
Reflectivity
Tzadik

Debut:

Ron Stabinsky
Free for One
Hot Cup