6th Annual Jazz Critics Poll: 2011

Ballots 2011 [4]

Fred Kaplan (Slate, Stereophile)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Sonny Rollins, Road Shows, Vol. 2 (Doxy/Emarcy)
  2. World Saxophone Quartet, Yes We Can (Jazzwerkstatt)
  3. David Weiss, Snuck Out (Sunnyside)
  4. Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood, MSMW Live: In Case the World Changes Its Mind (Indirecto)
  5. Orchestre National de Jazz & John Hollenbeck, Shut Up and Dance (Bee Jazz)
  6. Bill Frisell, Sign of Life: Music for 858 Quartet (Savoy Jazz)
  7. Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
  8. Youn Sun Nah, Same Girl (ACT)
  9. Noah Preminger, Before the Rain (Palmetto)
  10. Chris Dingman, Waking Dreams (Between Worlds)

REISSUES

  1. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  2. Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong, Ella & Louis (Verve/Analogue Productions (45rpm LP)
  3. Sam Rivers, Fuchsia Swing Song (Blue Note/Music Matters Jazz (45rpm LP))

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Larry Kart (Jazz in Search of Itself)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Warne Marsh & Ted Brown, Live in Hollywood 1957 (Marshmallow)
  2. Anthony Braxton & John McDonough, 6 Duos (Wesleyan) 2006 (Nessa)
  3. Roscoe Mitchell, Before There Was Sound (Nessa)
  4. Chet Baker, The Sesjun Radio Shows (Out of the Blue)
  5. Les Rois du Fox-Trot, Fireworks (Stomp Off)
  6. Allen Lowe, Blues and the Empirical Truth (Music & Arts)
  7. David Binney, Graylen Epicenter (Mythology)
  8. Bill Carrothers, A Night at the Village Vanguard (Pirouet)
  9. Alex Sipiagin, Destinations Unknown (Criss Cross)
  10. Nick Mazzerella, This Is Only a Test (Sonichla)

REISSUES

  1. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)
  2. Jimmie Lunceford, The Complete Decca Sessions (Mosaic)
  3. Von Freeman, Have No Fear (Nessa)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Mark Keresman (SF Weekly, Signal to Noise)

NEW RELEASES

  1. James Carter, At the Crossroads (Emarcy)
  2. Kenny Werner, Balloons (Half Note)
  3. Tom Harrell, Time of the Sun (HighNote)
  4. Dr. Michael White, Adventures in New Orleans Jazz (Basin Street)
  5. Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Fé -- Faith (5Passion)
  6. Morgan Ågren-Henry Kaiser-Trey Gunn, Invisible Rays (7D)
  7. Wadada Leo Smith, Heart's Reflections (Cuneiform)
  8. New York Standards Quartet, Unstandard (Challenge)
  9. Trio 3 + Geri Allen, Celebrating Mary Lou Williams (Intakt)
  10. Mathias Eick, Skala (ECM)

REISSUES

  1. Jimi Hendrix, Hendrix in the West (Reprise)
  2. Etta James, Call My Name (Kent)
  3. Thelonious Monk, Monk's Music (OJC/Concord Jazz)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Elzy Kolb (Hot House)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Rudresh Mahanthappa, Samdhi (ACT)
  2. Matana Roberts, Coin Coin Chapter One: Les Gens de Couleur Libres (Constellation)
  3. Virginia Mayhew, Mary Lou Williams, The Next 100 Years (Renma)
  4. Joe Lovano, Bird Songs (Blue Note)
  5. Geri Allen, A Child Is Born (Motéma)
  6. Nicole Mitchell, Awakening (Delmark)
  7. JD Allen, Victory! (Sunnyside)
  8. Claire Daly, Mary Joyce Project: Nothing to Lose (Daly Bread)
  9. The Cookers, Cast the First Stone (Plus Loin Music)
  10. Pilc Moutin Hoenig, Threedom (Motéma)

REISSUES

  1. Bill Dixon, Intents and Purposes (International Phonograph)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Art Lange (Point of Departure, Fanfare)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Sam Rivers, Trilogy (Mosaic Select)
  2. Roscoe Mitchell, Before There Was Sound (Nessa)
  3. Muhal Richard Abrams, SoundDance (Pi)
  4. Simon H. Fell, Composition No. 75: Positions & Descriptions (Clean Feed)
  5. Tim Berne, Insomnia (Clean Feed)
  6. George Lewis, Les Exercices Spirtuels (Tzadik)
  7. Ivo Perelman, The Hour of the Star (Leo)
  8. Delirium, Green Side Up (ILK)
  9. Misha Mengelberg & Evan Parker, It Won't Be Called Broken Chair (psi)
  10. Ernest Dawkins, The Prairie Prophet (Delmark)

REISSUES

  1. FMP In Rückblick In Retrospect 1969-2010 (FMP)
  2. Charlie Christian, Electric (Uptown)
  3. Heiner Stadler, Tribute to Bird and Monk (Labor)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Devin Leonard (Capital New York)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Keith Jarrett, Rio (ECM)
  2. David Binney, Barefooted Town (Criss Cross)
  3. Walter Smith III, III (Criss Cross)
  4. Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
  5. Orchestre National de Jazz & John Hollenbeck, Shut Up and Dance (Bee Jazz)
  6. Steve Coleman, The Mancy of Sound (Pi)
  7. Rob Garica, The Drop and the Ocean (BJU)
  8. Brad Mehldau & Kevin Hays, Modern Music (Nonesuch)
  9. Claudia Quintet + 1, What is the Beautiful? (Cuneiform)
  10. Joshua Redman-Aaron Parks-Matt Penman-Eric Harland, James Farm (Nonesuch)

REISSUES

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Aidan Levy (Village Voice, JazzTimes)

NEW RELEASES

  1. John Zorn, Nova Express (Tzadik)
  2. Dave King, Good Old Light (Sunnyside)
  3. Brad Mehldau, Live in Marciac (Nonesuch)
  4. Preservation Hall Jazz Band & Del McCoury, American Legacies (McCoury Music/Preservation Hall)
  5. David S. Ware-Cooper-Moore-William Parker-Muhammad Ali, Planetary Unknown (AUM Fidelity)
  6. Noah Preminger, Before the Rain (Palmetto)
  7. Shimrit Shoshan, Keep It Movin' (Shimmya)
  8. Fabian Almazan, Personalities (Biophilia)
  9. Dred Scott, Going Nowhere (Dredrum)
  10. Madeleine Peyroux, Standing on the Rooftop (Decca)

REISSUES

  1. First Impulse!: The Creed Taylor Collectionb 50th Anniversary (Verve)
  2. Thelonious Monk, Monk's Music (OJC/Concord Jazz)
  3. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Martin Longley (BBC Music, Jazzwise)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Necks, Mindset (ReR)
  2. Matana Roberts, Coin Coin Chapter One: Les Gens de Couleur Libres (Constellation)
  3. Tyshawn Sorey, Oblique-1 (Pi)
  4. Wadada Leo Smith, Heart's Reflections (Cuneiform)
  5. Nate Wooley, (Put Your) Hands Together (Clean Feed)
  6. Empirical, Elements of Truth (Naim)
  7. Pascal Marzan & John Russell, Translations (Emanem)
  8. Dan Weiss, Jhaptal Drumset Solo (Chhandayan)
  9. John Escreet, The Age We Live In (Mythology)
  10. Trevor Watts & Veryan Weston, More Dialogues (Emanem)

REISSUES

  1. Ornette Coleman, Something Else!!! (Contemporary/Concord)
  2. Langston Hughes, Harlem in Vogue (Fingertips)
  3. Steve Lacy, School Days (Emanem)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Suzanne Lorge (The New York City Jazz Record)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Terri Lyne Carrington, Mosaic Project (Concord)
  2. Seth MacFarlane, Music Is Better Than Words (Universal Republic)
  3. Kurt Elling, The Gate (Concord)
  4. Karrin Allyson, Round Midnight (Concord)
  5. Gretchen Parlato, The Lost and Found (ObliqSound)
  6. Etta Jones & Houston Person, The Way We Were (HighNote)
  7. Roseanna Vitro, The Music of Randy Newman (Motéma)
  8. Ernestine Anderson, Nightlife (High Note)
  9. Eliane Elias, Light My Fire (Concord)
  10. Tierney Sutton, American Road (BFM Jazz)

REISSUES

  1. Philip Lewis, The Hottest of the Philip Lewis/Rhythm Maniacs Recordings (1928-1930) (Retrieval)
  2. Jackie Cain & Roy Kral, A Wilder Alias (CTI/Masterworks Jazz)
  3. Ella Fitzgerald & Oscar Peterson, Ella and Oscar (Concord)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Kevin Lynch (The Shepherd Express [Milwaukee], No Depression)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Sir Roland Hanna, Colors From a Giant (IPO)
  2. Christine Jensen, Treelines (Justin Time)
  3. Tom Harrell, Time of the Sun (HighNote)
  4. Allen Lowe, Blues and the Empirical Truth (Music & Arts)
  5. Brian Lynch, Unsung Heroes (Holistic MusicWorks)
  6. Anat Cohen, Clarinetwork: Live at the Village Vanguard (Anzic)
  7. Freddie Hubbard, Pinnacle (Resonance)
  8. Armen Donelian, Leapfrog (Sunnyside)
  9. Art Hirahara, Noble Path (Posi-Tone)
  10. Erik Friedlander, Bonebridge (Skipstone)

REISSUES

  1. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  2. Stan Getz, Quintets: The Clef & Norgran Studio Albums (Hip-O-Select)
  3. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

John McDonough (Downbeat, NPR)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Fred Hersch, Alone at the Vanguard (Palmetto)
  2. Sonny Rollins, Road Shows, Vol. 2 (Doxy/Emarcy)
  3. Gigi Gryce, Doin' the Gigi (Uptown)
  4. Gordon Goodwin, That's How We Roll (Telarc)
  5. Chick Corea-Stanley Clarke-Lenny White, Forever (Concord)
  6. Howard Alden, I Remember Django (Arbors Jazz)
  7. Matthew Shipp, Art of the Improviser (Thirsty Ear)
  8. Bill Evans, The Sesjun Radio Shows (Out of the Blue)
  9. Roswell Rudd, Incredible Honk (Sunnyside)
  10. Scott Hamilton & Rossano Sportello, Midnight at NOLA (Arbors Jazz)

REISSUES

  1. Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology (Smithsonian Folkways)
  2. Duke Ellington, The Complete 1932-1940 Brunswick, Columbia and Master Recordings (Mosaic)
  3. Modern Jazz Quartet, The Complete Atlantic Studio Recordings (Mosaic)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Jim Macnie (Downbeat, Village Voice)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Craig Taborn, Avenging Angel (ECM)
  2. Orchestre National de Jazz & John Hollenbeck, Shut Up and Dance (Bee Jazz)
  3. Marcus Strickland, Triumph of the Heavy, Volumes 1 & 2 (Strick Muzik)
  4. Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
  5. Matana Roberts, Coin Coin Chapter One: Les Gens de Couleur Libres (Constellation)
  6. Amir ElSaffar, Inana (Pi)
  7. Keith Jarrett, Rio (ECM)
  8. Medeski Scofield Martin & Wood, MSMW Live: In Case the World Changes Its Mind (Indirecto)
  9. Tyshawn Sorey, Oblique-1 (Pi)
  10. Gerald Cleaver, Be It as I See It (Fresh Sound New Talent)

REISSUES

  1. Bill Dixon, Intents and Purposes (International Phonograph)
  2. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  3. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Howard Mandel (Jazz Beyond Jazz, City Arts-New York)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Sonny Rollins, Road Shows, Vol. 2 (Doxy/Emarcy)
  2. Nicole Mitchell, Awakening (Delmark)
  3. Gonzalo Rubalcaba, Fé -- Faith (5Passion)
  4. Jamaaladeen Tacuma, For the Love of Ornette (Jazzwerkstatt)
  5. Joseph Daley, The Seven Deadly Sins (Jaro)
  6. Tyshawn Sorey, Oblique-1 (Pi)
  7. Roscoe Mitchell, Before There Was Sound (Nessa)
  8. Nguyen Lê, Songs of Freedom (ACT)
  9. Trio M, The Guest House (Enja)
  10. Adam Rudolph, Organic Orchestra--Can You Imagine the Sound of a Dream? (Meta)

REISSUES

  1. Frank Sinatra & Count Basie, The Complete Reprise Studio Recordings (Concord Jazz/Frank Sinatra)
  2. Bill Dixon, Intents and Purposes (International Phonograph)
  3. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Peter Margasak (Chicago Reader, Downbeat)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Atomic, Here Comes Everybody (Jazzland)
  2. Roscoe Mitchell, Before There Was Sound (Nessa)
  3. Matana Roberts, Coin Coin Chapter One: Les Gens de Couleur Libres (Constellation)
  4. Amir ElSaffar, Inana (Pi)
  5. Craig Taborn, Avenging Angel (ECM)
  6. São Paulo Underground, Três Cabeças Loucuras (Cuneiform)
  7. JD Allen, Victory! (Sunnyside)
  8. Pandelis Karayorgis, System of 5 (Hatology)
  9. Matt Bauder, A Day in Pictures (Clean Feed)
  10. Rudresh Mahanthappa, Samdhi (ACT)

REISSUES

  1. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  2. Bill Dixon, Intents and Purposes (International Phonograph)
  3. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Lee Mergner (JazzTimes)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Roy Haynes, Roy-alty (Dreyfus)
  2. Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
  3. Joshua Redman-Aaron Parks-Matt Penman-Eric Harland, James Farm (Nonesuch)
  4. Orrin Evans, Freedom (Posi-Tone)
  5. Keith Jarrett, Rio (ECM)
  6. René Marie, Voice of My Beautiful Country (Motéma)
  7. Ben Allison, Action-Refraction (Palmetto)
  8. Miguel Zenón, Alma Adentro: A Puerto Rican Songbook (Marsalis Music)
  9. Stefon Harris-Christian Scott-David Sanchez, Ninety Miles (Concord Picante)
  10. Joe Lovano, Bird Songs (Blue Note)

REISSUES

  1. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  2. Miles Davis, Bitches Brew Live (Sony/Legacy)
  3. Jazz: The Smithsonian Anthology (Smithsonian Folkways)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Bill Milkowski (JazzTimes, Absolute Sound, Jazziz)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Sonny Rollins, Road Shows, Vol. 2 (Doxy/Emarcy)
  2. Joe Lovano, Bird Songs (Blue Note)
  3. [Bob Belden], Miles Español: New Sketches of Spain (E1)
  4. Joel Harrison, The Music of Paul Motian (Sunnyside)
  5. John Scofield, A Moment's Peace (Emarcy)
  6. Aaron Goldberg & Guillermo Klein, Bienestan (Sunnyside)
  7. Alex Sipiagin, Destinations Unknown (Criss Cross)
  8. Noah Preminger, Before the Rain (Palmetto)
  9. Rudresh Mahanthappa, Samdhi (ACT)
  10. Julian Lage, Gladwell (Emarcy)

REISSUES

  1. Bill Evans, Explorations (Riverside)
  2. Ornette Coleman, Something Else!!! (Contemporary/Concord)
  3. Ella Fitzgerald & Joe Pass, Easy Living (Pablo)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Christopher Monsen (Perfect Sounds, ENOmagasin.no)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Avram Fefer-Eric Revis-Chad Taylor, Eliyahu (Not Two)
  2. Darius Jones, Big Gurl (AUM Fidelity)
  3. Kidd Jordan-Harrison Bankhead-Warren Smith, On Fire (Engine)
  4. Tony Malaby, Tony Malaby's Novela (Clean Feed)
  5. Matt Lavelle, Goodbye New York, Hello World (Musicnow)
  6. Wadada Leo Smith, Heart's Reflections (Cuneiform)
  7. David S. Ware-Cooper-Moore-William Parker-Muhammad Ali, Planetary Unknown (AUM Fidelity)
  8. Other Dimensions in Music & Fay Victor, Kaiso Stories (Silkheart)
  9. Jim Black-Trevor Dunn-Oscar Noriega-Chris Speed, Endangered Blood (Skirl)
  10. Magic Pocket & Morten Qvenild, The Katabatic Wind (Bolage)

REISSUES

  1. Bill Dixon, Intents and Purposes (International Phonograph)
  2. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  3. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Dan Morgenstern (Jersey Jazz, Journal of Jazz Studies)

NEW RELEASES

  1. 3 Cohens, Family (Anzic)
  2. Ira Sullivan & Stu Katz, A Family Affair (Origin)
  3. Sonny Rollins, Road Shows, Vol. 2 (Doxy/Emarcy)
  4. Ken Peplowski, In Search Of . . . (Capri)
  5. Randy Brecker & Danish Radio Big Band, The Jazz Ballad Songbook (Red Dot)
  6. Ran Blake & Dominique Eade, Whirlpool (Jazz Project)
  7. Mark Lopeman, Nice Work If You Can Get It (Lopeman)
  8. Tom McDermott & Evan Christopher, Almost Native: Music From New Orleans and Beyond (Threadbead)
  9. Pilc Moutin Hoenig, Threedom (Motéma)
  10. James Carter, At the Crossroads (Emarcy)

REISSUES

  1. Jimmie Lunceford, The Complete Decca Sessions (Mosaic)
  2. Duke Ellington, The Complete 1932-1940 Brunswick, Columbia and Master Recordings (Mosaic)
  3. Stan Getz, Quintets: The Clef & Norgran Studio Albums (Hip-O-Select)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

John Murph (NPR, The Root, The Washington Post, JazzTimes, Downbeat, Jazzwise)

NEW RELEASES

  1. JD Allen, Victory! (Sunnyside)
  2. Gretchen Parlato, The Lost and Found (ObliqSound)
  3. Terri Lyne Carrington, Mosaic Project (Concord)
  4. Claudia Quintet + 1, What is the Beautiful? (Cuneiform)
  5. Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
  6. Chris Dingman, Waking Dreams (Between Worlds)
  7. Zara MacFarlane, Until Tomorrow (Brownswood Music)
  8. Denys Baptiste, Identity by Subtraction (Dune)
  9. Miguel Zenón, Alma Adentro: A Puerto Rican Songbook (Marsalis Music)
  10. David Binney, Graylen Epicenter (Mythology)

REISSUES

  1. Julius Hemphill, Dogon A.D. (International Phonograph)
  2. Woody Shaw, The Complete Columbia Albums Collection (Columbia/Legacy)
  3. Dexter Gordon, The Complete Columbia Albums Collection (Columbia/Legacy)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Russ Musto (The New York City Jazz Record)

NEW RELEASES (listed alphabetically; 5.5 points each)

REISSUES (listed alphabetically; 2 points each)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN

Michael G. Nastos (Cadence, Hot House, WEMU/89.1 FM Ypsilanti, MI)

NEW RELEASES

  1. Gary Burton, Common Ground (Mack Avenue)
  2. Stefon Harris-Christian Scott-David Sanchez, Ninety Miles (Concord Picante)
  3. Joe Lovano, Bird Songs (Blue Note)
  4. Steve Khan, Parting Shot (Tone Center)
  5. Rez Abbasi, Suno Suno (Enja)
  6. Absolute Ensemble, Arabian Nights (Enja)
  7. Ta Lam 11 [Gebhard Ullmann], Mingus! (Jazzwerkstatt)
  8. Chick Corea-Stanley Clarke-Lenny White, Forever (Concord)
  9. Roy Haynes, Roy-alty (Dreyfus)
  10. Joshua Redman-Aaron Parks-Matt Penman-Eric Harland, James Farm (Nonesuch)

REISSUES

  1. Miles Davis, Live in Europe: The Bootleg Series Volume 1 (Columbia/Legacy)
  2. Mulatu Astake, New York-Addis-London: The Story Of Ethio Jazz 1965-1975 (Strut)
  3. Chick Corea, The Definitive Chick Corea on Stretch and Concord (Concord/Stretch)

VOCAL

DEBUT

LATIN