The 20th Annual
Francis Davis Jazz Critics Poll:
2025
Past Polls Index
New Albums Rara Avis Vocal Latin Debut
Critics
Abreu - BrownleeBuskirk - DrouotDryden - GrossHale - KaminsKanzler - MargasakMedrano - ParnellPerkins - SilvaSlim - WeissWest - Yokoi

2025 Totals: Rara Avis (Reissues/Archival)

This category is for new albums of older music, released in 2025 (or 2024 but discovered in 2025), consisting of reissues with any previously released music, or albums of previously unreleased music that has beeen recorded more than 10 years ago (on or before December 31, 2015). For new albums of newer music, see New Albums.

Critics were asked to list up to 5 albums in descending order, or they could submit an unranked list (preferably alphabetized by artist). Albums in unranked lists are accorded 1 point each. Albums in ranked lists are accorded points according to rank: 1: 2.0; 2: 1.6; 3: 1.4; 4: 1.2, 5: 1.0.

The listings are sorted by votes (in parentheses at the end of the line), with points (the preceding number) used as a tiebreaker. The arrow at the end of the line will route you to a page listing all of the critics who voted for the album. Some entries may have footnotes, which follow the list. There is also a Notes section at the bottom of the page.

Total albums receiving votes: 0. Of these, 21 were initially released in 2024 (10.0%), and 187 in 2025. This up from 8.0% in 2024.

147 critics (88.0%) voted in this category; 20 (11.9%) did not vote. Of those who voted, 98 (66.6%) voted for the maximum 5 albums; 9 (6.1%0 voted for 4 albums; 19 (12.9%) voted for 3 albums (the pre-2024 limit); 10 (6.8%) voted for 2 albums; and 11 (7.4%) voted for only 1 album.

25 critics submitted unranked lists (17.0% of voters; 14.9% overall).

Notes:

Albums that belong in New Albums (not reissued, and all music recorded in or after 2016) but which received votes here:

Rara Avis albums awarded 1 point for each vote they erroneously received under New Albums:

Other albums that erroneously received votes under New Jazz Albums were not awarded extra points (votes) here, because they didn't receive any actual votes here:

If an album received one or more votes both in the previous year and this year, and if it received more votes (not just more points) this year, the two year totals are added together. This applies to::

Rara Avis albums that received votes in 2024 as well as 2025. These are numbered by their position in 2024:

  1. McCoy Tyner & Joe Henderson, Forces of Nature: Live at Slugs' (1966, Blue Note '24) 91.6 (62) + 10 (8) = 101.6 (70)
  2. Miles Davis Quintet, Miles in France 1963 & 1964 [The Bootleg Series, Vol. 8] (Columbia/Legacy '24) 41.2 (28) + 3 (2) = 44.2 (30)
  3. Keith Jarrett - Gary Peacock - Paul Motian, The Old Country: More From the Deer Head Inn (1992, ECM '24) 31 (22) + 7.2 (5) = 38.2 (27)
  4. Wayne Shorter, Celebration, Volume 1 (2014, Blue Note '24) 29.8 (22) + 1 (1) = 30.8 (23)
  5. Emily Remler, Cookin' at the Queens: Live in Las Vegas 1984 & 1988 (Resonance '24) 29.2 (23) + 2 (1) = 31.2 (24)
  6. King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band, Centennial (1923, Archeophone '24) 14.8 (10) + 1 (1) = 15.8 (11)
  7. Tomasz Stanko Quartet, September Night (2004, ECM '24) 12.4 (9) + 2.6 (2) = 15 (11)
  8. Charlie Parker, Bird in Kansas City (1941-51, Verve '24) 10 (7) + 9.2 (6) = 19.2 (13)
  9. Bill Evans, In Norway: The Kongsberg Concert (1970, Elemental Music '24) 8.6 (7) + 2 (1) = 10.6 (8)
  10. Terry Gibbs Dream Band, Vol. 7: The Lost Tapes, 1959 (Whaling City Sound '24) 8 (5) + 1.2 (1) = 9.2 (6)
  11. Classic V-Disc Small Group Jazz Sessions (1943-49, Mosaic '24) 2.4 (2) + 1.2 (1) = 3.6 (3)
  12. Don Ellis, How Time Passes to Essence Revisited (1960-62, Ezz-Thetics '24) 1.4 (1) + 1 (1)

The other '24 releases only received votes in 2025.