Rather late in the poll cycle, it occurred to me that I hadn't written very much about the actual music contained in the hundreds of albums that received votes. I've written about most of them over the course of the last six months (or longer for 2025 releases), but those reviews are scattered in monthly archives, mixed in with non-jazz reviews. So I've pulled this together as a reference of how one critic coped with a half-year's music. The list numbers are taken from the final totals. The grades are entirely my own, and are more representative of my own limits of understanding and taste than of the music itself. I've heard a lot of records, but I've rarely played the records more than once, and often the reviews are cut short for lack of anything more I wanted to say at the moment.
To speed up the compilation process, I've left the original letter grades (which include *, **, and *** divisions of B+ — most records fall in this range, as jazz albums that are incompetent or even uninteresting are very rare; lower grades are most likely personal pet peeves, which you are urged to ignore), as well as the source notes (cd, cdr, lp; sp = Spotify, bc = Bandcamp, yt = YouTube, dl = download, os = other stream). On rare occasions, you might also see U++ or U+ for records I was only able to stream part of. Those seemed promising, as in contrast to U- or U-- (or plain U). But as a practical matter, I've rarely bothered with records I didn't receive or couldn't easily stream.
Chart positions from here.
Cecil Taylor Unit: Fragments: The Complete 1969 Salle Pleyel Concerts (1969 [2026], Elemental Music, 2CD): Pathbreaking avant-garde pianist (1929-2018), but a charmed one, who recorded early on for major labels, waltzed easily into DownBeat's Hall of Fame, and shows up here in an archival series that had never before strayed farther out than Mingus. But apparently this European tour packaged him alongside Duke Ellington and a very dismissive Miles Davis (described by Taylor as "pretty good for a millionaire"). His Unit always included Jimmy Lyons (alto sax), usually Andrew Cyrille (drums), and on this occasion Sam Rivers (tenor/soprano sax, flute). Three sets, over two long CDs (70:10 + 71:45), where Taylor works his magic, while the discordant horns wail away, remarkable as long as patience holds. A− [cd]
Joe Henderson: Consonance: Live at the Jazz Showcase (1978 [2026], Resonance, 2CD): Tenor saxophonist (1937-2001), made a big impression with Blue Note in the 1960s, and managed to keep going strong through the 1990s. Penguin Guide noted that he always sounds like he's in the middle of a big solo, and there is a lot of that here in sets that span 160 minutes. with Joanne Brackeen (piano), Steve Rodby (bass), and Danny Spencer (drums). Suffers a bit from sprawl, compared to albums like 1985's The State of the Tenor, but the high points are undeniable. A− [cd]
Roy Hargrove: Bern (2000 [2026], Time Traveler): Big-time trumpet player (1969-2002), has had a couple of stellar archival releases recently. Live set from Switzerland, a quintet with Sherman Irby (alto sax), Larry Willis (piano), Gerald Cannon (bass), and Willie Jones III (drums). B+(**) [cd]
Kenny Barron/Ray Drummond/Ben Riley: So Many Lovely Things: Live in Brecon (1995 [2026], Elemental Music, 2CD): Piano-bass-drums trio, already well established then but legends now. I'm not much of a piano trio fan, especially when there's not a lot of rhythm/swing, so often this sort of thing slips past me as pleasant background. But when I do focus, I find it remarkable. Nice package, too. A−
Julius Hemphill: Dogon A.D. (1972, New World): [previous edition grade: A−]
Marty Ehrlich/Julius Hemphill: Circle the Heart (1982 [2026], Relative Pitch): Hemphill (1938-95) founded the Black Artists Group in St. Louis, which Ehrlich joined before moving to New York. Duets, both playing soprano and alto sax, and flute, with Ehrlich also on bass clarinet. B+(**) [sp]
Charles Tyler Ensemble: Voyage From Jericho (1974, Frederiksberg): [previous edition grade: B+(*)]
Yusef Lateef: Alight Upon the Lake: Live at the Jazz Showcase (1975 [2026], Resonance, 3CD): Tenor saxophonist (1920-2013), also studied and played a lot of flute, especially as his interests moved into African and Middle Eastern musics. Born William Huddleston in Chattanooga, moved to Detroit where his mother remarried, briefly making him Bill Evans, until he converted to Islam and changed his name. Received advanced degrees, and taught in Massachusetts and Nigeria. Quartet here with Kenny Barron (piano), Bob Cunningham (bass), and Albert "Tootie" Heath (drums), runs the gamut, includes some impressive tenor sax and a lot of flute (which I've never much cared for, but is not uninteresting). B+(***) [cd]
Marion Brown: Live in Europe 1968 & 1972 (1968-72 [2026], NoBusiness): Alto saxophonist (1931-2010), produced several major avant-garde albums in the late 1960s. These sets — the first a quartet with Gunter Hampel (vibes), Barre Phillips (bass), and Steve McCall (drums); the second a duo with McCall — are interesting but relatively minor. B+(**) [cd]
Art Pepper: Everything Happens to Me: 1959 Live at the Cellar (1959 [2026], Omnivore, 4CD): Alto saxophonist, started out in the 1940s with Benny Carter and Stan Kenton, recorded some brilliant albums early but got busted for drugs and other crimes, spending most of 1954-64 in jail, except for a brief stretch from 1956-60, when he recorded his classics (the prime albums are Meets the Rhythm Section and Smack Up, but also look for the later-collected 1956-57 Aladdin sessions). After he got out, he gigged some, but didn't really get going again until his 1975 album Living Legend, followed by years of manic touring and massive recording until he died at 56 in 1982. The late studio work is collected in a 16-CD box set, The Complete Galaxy Recordings, which invites (and rewards) random sampling. Since his death, his third (and last) wife, Laurie Pepper, has been releasing his tapes, mostly from this late period. But this product goes back to the earlier period, with four hours of live sets recorded in Vancouver, with all the tape they could find (including incomplete tunes when tape ran out, ambient noise, chatter, etc.). Quartet with Chris Gage (piano), Tony Clitheroe (bass), and George Ursan (drums), who are proficient but hardly stars. But Pepper is a star, and able to extend his aura indefinitely. A− [sp]
Mal Waldron: Stardust & Starlight: At the Jazz Showcase (1979 [2026], Resonance): A great pianist (1926-2002), came up during the hard bop era, is famous for accompanying Billie Holiday in her last years, but did some of his best work in the 1980s, leading free jazz groups on an Italian label. Transitional trio set here with Steve Rodby (bass) and Wilbur Campbell (drums), joined for the last two tracks by Sonny Stitt (alto sax). A− [cd]
Cecil Taylor New Unit: Words & Music: The Last Bandstand (2016 [2026], Fundacja Słuchaj): Avant-garde pianist (1929-2018), debut 1956, ran a legendary band called the Cecil Taylor Unit in the 1970s with Jimmy Lyons, mostly recorded duos and trios after that, including a monumental showcase in Berlin in 1988. Last recording in my database was a duo with drummer Tony Oxley from 2011, so this New Unit album comes as a surprise. With Harri Sjöström (soprano and sopranino sax), Okkyung Lee (cello), Oxley (electronics), and Jackson Krall (drums), with piano and spoken word by Taylor, in a single 79:23 take (now split into two tracks). The music is remarkable. The words, which appear in the second half, are hard to follow, but have their own musicality. A− [bc]
Woody Shaw: Love Dance (1976, Muse/Time Traveler) [U]
Ahmad Jamal: At the Jazz Showcase: Live in Chicago (1976 [2026], Resonance, 2CD): Pianist (1930-2023), mostly trios starting in 1951, some quite brilliant, including the first disc here, with John Heard (bass) and Frank Gant (drums). Second disc slacks off some. B+(***) [cd]
Duke Ellington: Copenhagen 1964 (1964 [2026], Storyville): After a few bars of "Take the 'A' Train," opens with a medley of early tunes, followed by a 14:52 "Harlem Suite," and new material from the then-unrelesed Far East Suite. Lots of good stuff, especially "Kinda Dukish," an intro for the piano player that explodes into "Rockin' in Rhythm." A− [bc]
Bill Evans: At the BBC (1965 [2026], Elemental Music): Piano trio, with Chuck Israels and Larry Bunker, two sets on one CD, runs 70:15, with Humphrey Lyttleton the announcer. Some remarkable passages, but that's not unusual for the dozen or more Evans live shots that have come out recently. B+(***) [cd]
Carla Bley: Joyful Noise (Live in Hamburg 1984) (1984 [2026], Moosicus): Pianist (1938-2023), exceptionally famous as a composer and arranger, was a founder of the Jazz Composers Orchestra Association, whose initial project was her ambitious opera, Escalator Over the Hill. Large (10-piece) group, with four brass, two saxes, piano (Ted Saunders), organ (Bley), electric bass and drums. Title is taken from a song, but is also a philosophy of life. A− [sp]
Miroslav Vitous: Mountain Call (2003-10 [2026], ECM): Czech bassist, studied music in Vienna, then got a scholarship to Berklee, emerging in 1970 as a founder of Weather Report, leaving in 1973 to pursue an eclectic solo career. Discography jumps a decade from 1992-2002, resumes with one of his best albums (Universal Syncopations), and continues, but with nothing since 2018. This picks from several sessions, with Michel Portal (clarinets) and Jack DeJohnette (drums) in large print on the cover, and variously the first nine pieces; Esperanza Spalding (voice), Bob Mintzer (bass clarinet), Gary Campbell (soprano/tenor sax), and Gerald Cleaver (drums) in smaller print, plus "members of Czech National Symphony Orchestra" (two extended pieces near the end). B+(*) [sp] [also in New Jazz Albums: 325]
Miles Davis: Miles '56: The Prestige Recordings (1956 [2026], Craft): As I've long owned the 8-CD Chronicle: The Complete Prestige Recordings, I wasn't in a rush to check out Craft's year-by-year series, which started in 2024 with Miles '54: The Prestige Recordings, added Miles '55, and ends here. They skipped the scattered early 1951-53 stuff, so the three annuals add up to 7-CD, but 1954 was when Davis started to get his shit together, and in 1956 he got his much touted "first great quintet" together, with John Coltrane, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and Philly Joe Jones. It was also the year he signed with Columbia, owing Prestige four last albums. Those four were cut in two sessions, one on May 11, the other on October 26, and Prestige released them slowly to compete with the new Columbias. The first was Workin' With the Miles Davis Quintet, the rest replacing the verb with Steamin', Relaxin', and Cookin'. Despite the throwaway intent, they are among the major hard bop albums of the 1950s, and did as much as the more ambitious Columbias to establish the Quintet's legacy (at least until Kind of Blue made "modes" a by-word in 1959). Those are prefaced here by a March 16 session with Sonny Rollins that contributed three songs to Collector's Items. A− [sp]
Pierre Favre Trio: Bird Food (1968 [2026], Songs): French drummer, b. 1937, first albums 1964-65 were jazzed-up classical music, much notable work followed, especially his duos with Swiss pianist Irène Schweizer. This recently unearthed tape appears to have been their first collaboration, a trio with George Mraz on bass, playing Ornette Coleman's title piece plus three by Schweizer (total: 29:56). B+(**) [sp]
Mick Goodrick/Fred Hersch: Feebles, Fables and Ferns (1988 [2026], ECM): Guitar and piano duo. Goodrick (1945-2022) recorded his excellent debut album, In Pas(s)ing, for ECM in 1979; he worked with Gary Burton, Charlie Haden, Jack DeJohnette, and others, recording a few more albums, but mostly teaching. This was Hersch's session, previously unreleased. B+(**) [sp]
Art Ensemble of Chicago: People in Sorrow (1969 [2026], Play Loud!): Early album (first one listed by Discogs, but a 5-CD box of 1967-68 recordings was later issued on Nessa), recorded in France (where they cranked out 14 albums in 23 months) and released by Pathé Marconi there. Just snippets available. ++ [bc: 8:14 samples]
Rahsaan Roland Kirk: Vibrations in the Village: Live at the Village Gate (1964 [2025], Resonance): Previously unreleased sets originally recorded for a documentary, with Kirk playing his usual everything, backed by bass, drums, and revolving pianists (Horace Parlan, Melvin Rhyne, Jane Getz). B+(***) [cd]
The Oscar Peterson Trio: At Baker's Keyboard Lounge: The Complete Recordings (1960 [2026], Verve): With Ray Brown (bass) and Ed Thigpen (drums), five full sets, in the order performed, from a single Friday in a two-week engagement, recorded for a live album that never got released. At best, this is what you expect from jazz piano c. 1960, fast and sparkling. B+(***) [sp]
Buster Williams: Pinnacle (1975, Muse/Time Traveler) [U]
Michel Petrucciani: Kuumbwa (1987 [2026], Elemental Music, 2CD): French pianist, short-lived (1962-99), physically stunted but he had an amazing span of the keyboard, trio with Dave Holland (bass) and Eliot Zigmund (drums), left some extraordinary performances, but this isn't quite one. B+(**) [cd]
Louis Armstrong: Reference: Hot Five & Hot Seven at 100 (1925-28, AlAy/Thingamajig) [U]
Thelonious Monk: Thelonious Alone in San Francisco (1959, Craft) [B+(**)]
Charles Tolliver All Stars: Right Now . . . and Then (1968, Strata-East) [A−]
The Bottle Tapes (1996-2005 [2025], Corbett vs. Dempsey, 6CD): Chicago had a storied avant-jazz scene back in the 1960s, when AACM was founded, but got a second jolt in the 1990s when Ken Vandermark moved in from Boston and started organizing his groups, many drawing on top European free jazz players. From 1996 he and John Corbett organized weekly sets at the Empty Bottle, where a steady stream of Europeans could gig with locals, while being treated like jazz royalty. This collects 41 tracks from their tapes, including a couple pieces that run quite long — Peter Brötzmann for 41:16; Alexander Schlippenbach with Evan Parker, Paul Lytton, and Conrad Bauer for 55:01 — some short, most in the 10-23 minute range. Solo pieces include pianists Misha Mengelberg and Irène Schweizer, clarinetists François Houle and André Jaume, and drummer Milford Graves. Remarkable stuff, especially the hard-hitting saxes. There must be tons more where this came from. A− [dl]
Classic V-Disc Big Band Jazz Sessions (1943-48, Mosaic) [U]
Sun Ra: East Two + 7 (1972-73 [2026], Cosmic Myth): Two previously unreleased sessions, named for the first track ("East Two") plus extra tracks (5 for the LP, 7 for the CD; the difference is extra live tracks from 1984-85). B+(**) [sp]
Thelonious Monk: Live in Paris, 1967: Volume One (1967 [2026], Rhythm-a-Ning): Estate-authorized bootleg, the Nov. 3 concert was released on France's Concert in 1988 (as Thelonious Monk Nonet: Live in Paris, 1967), running 68:49, then remastered and reissued in 2002 by Thelonious Records. This version, aimed at vinyl junkies, is trimmed to an introduction and four songs, 38:33, with a second volume promised. The original order opened with Monk's Quartet (Charlie Rouse on tenor sax, Larry Gales on bass, and Ben Riley on drums), then added horns, starting with Ray Copeland (trumpet), then saxophonists Phil Woods (alto) and Johnny Griffin (tenor), Jimmy Cleveland (trombone), and finally Clark Terry (trumpet). This version moves the nonet tunes to Side A, the smaller groups to Side B. I have reservations about the business proposition, but Terry's solo reminds me that his previous encounter with Monk on In Orbit (1958) was one of his best albums. B+(**) [sp]
Oscar Peterson: The Classic Oscar Peterson Trio Sessions With Ray Brown & Ed Thigpen (1959-65, Mosaic) [U]
Albert Ayler Quintet: Reference: Copenhagen, Bordeaux 1966 & Newport 1967 Live First Release (AlAy/Thingamajig '25) [U]
Rahsaan Roland Kirk: Seek & Listen: Live at the Penthouse (1967 [2025], Resonance, 2CD): This one sprawls onto a second CD, but isn't that much longer (84 minutes vs. 78). Group is more obscure, with Rahn Burton (piano), Steve Novosel (bass), and Jimmy Hopps (drums). But the medleys are brighter here, the originals on the second disc cook, and his vocal to close is an unexpected delight. A− [cd]
Jimmy Scott: Falling in Love Is Wonderful (1963 [2026], Tangerine): Jazz singer (1925-2014), originally "Little" due to his diminutive stature and high voice, recorded singles early, three albums for Savoy 1955-60, then this album for Ray Charles, which has been long out of print. His voice takes some getting used to, but he picks great songs, and puts his mark on them. Bigger problem for me is the string arrangements, which I've always gagged on. B+(*) [sp]
Sunny Murray/Sabu Toyozumi: Sun's Blessings (1999 [2026], NoBusiness): Two free jazz drummers, Murray (1936-2017) most famous as the guy who drove John Coltrane off the deep end, Toyozumi a bit younger (b. 1943) and still active, some notable encounters with western avants over the years (Peter Brötzmann, Derek Bailey, Han Bennink, Paul Rutherford, Wadada Leo Smith). Whether you need to listen to just drums for 61:27 is up to you, but these guys are masters, and the inspired rumble retained my interest throughout. A− [cd]
Evan Parker/Paul Rogers/Louis Moholo: Tebugo (1992 [2025], Jazz in Britain): Live tape from the Vortex in London, tenor and soprano sax, bass, and drums. Takes a while to warm up, but delivers in the end. B+(***) [bc]
The Visitors [Earl & Carl Grubbs]: Motherland (1975 [2026], Craft): Saxophonist brothers, Earl Grubbs (d. 1989, tenor/soprano) and Carl Grubbs (1944-2024, alto), recorded four albums 1972-76; Carl had a few later albums on his own, plus work with Julius Hemphill and Odean Pope. Album cover lists their names right after the group name. Credit varied over time, with first album just The Visitors; the second (like this one) with names after group, the third with Earl & Carl Grubbs (The Visitors). With Jo Bonner (piano), John Lee (bass), and Victor Lewis (drums). Straddles free jazz and soul jazz. B+(**) [sp]
Daunik Lazro/Joëlle Léandre/Paul Lovens: For Baritone Sax, Double Bass & Drumset (2013 [2026], Relative Pitch): French saxophonist, plays baritone here but primary instrument is probably alto, many albums since 1980, several previous encounters with the bassist and drummer. This is one improv piece, titled "Temps du Corps" for the venue in Paris. B+(**) [sp] [also in New Jazz Albums: 200]
Roland Brival: Créole Gypsy (1980, Soundway) [U]
Randy Weston: The Music of Randy Weston (1985-88, Groovin' High/In + Out) [U]
Johannes Bauer/Michael Griener/Olaf Rupp: Aufsturz (2007 [2026], Scatter Archive): German trombonist (1954-2016), younger brother of Conrad Bauer, an improv bash with drums and guitar. B+(***) [bc]
Kelan Phil Cohran & Legacy: African Skies (1993 [2025], Listening Position): Trumpet player (1927-2017), in Sun Ra Arkestra 1959-61, recorded several albums, leading Hypnotic Brass Ensemble. Plays various instruments here (congas, flute, guitar, harp, trumpet, violin uke, and his own invention of an electrified kalimba, the frankiphone). Starts uncertain, with some vocals, but finds its groove, highlighted by a blues. A− [bc]
Oscar Peterson: Around the World (1969-81 [2025], Mack Avenue/Two Lions) [U]
Grupo Um: Nineteen Seventy Seven (1977 [2026], Far Out): Brazilian jazz group, with Roberto Sion (soprano sax/clarinet), Lelo Nazario (keyboards), Zeca Assumpção (electric bass), and Zé Eduardo Nazario (drums), released three albums 1979-82, this find dating from a bit earlier. B+(**) [sp]
J Jazz Volume 5: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan 1970-1988 (BBE) [U]
Joe Chambers: Double Exposure (1977, Muse/Time Traveler) [U]
Kenny Dorham: The Complete 'Round About Midnight at the Café Bohemia (1956, Blue Note) [U]
Intercommunal Free Dance Music Orchestra: Vol. 1: Concert À Prades-Le-Lez (1974 [2026], Souffle Continu): Jazz group led by French pianist François Tusques (b. 1938), followed up his 1971 album Intercommunal Music by organizing this group, which in various guises recorded a half-dozen albums up to 1983. This one has two saxophonists (Jo Maka and Michel Marre), trombone (Adolphe Winkler), and percussion (Guem). Draws on sources "from New Orleans to Brittany to North Africa," and perhaps points south. B+(***) [bc]
Alan Silva Celestrial Communication Ensemble: 2000-06-24 Amherst (Eremite) [U]
Joe Henderson Quartets: Tetragon (1967-68 [2026], Craft): After five more/less classic albums on Blue Note (1963-66), the tenor saxophonist moved to Milestone for this pair of quartet sessions, with Don Friedman or Kenny Barron (piano), Jack DeJohnette or Louis Hayes (drums), and Ron Carter (bass) on both. A− [sp]
Michael Gregory Jackson: Clarity [50th Anniversary Edition] (1976, Moved-By-Sound) [U]
Schlippenbach Trio: Elf Bagatellen (1990, Cien Fuegos) [B+(**)]
Kenny Wheeler Sextet: What Was (1995, False Walls) [U]
Marion Brown: Awofofora (1976 [2026], Aguirre): Alto saxophonist (1931-2010), recorded his debut for ESP-Disk in 1965, followed by albums on Impulse! and ECM, but by this time he was consigned to obscure labels (this on Discomate, a Japanese label). B+(***) [bc]
Noah Howard: The Black Ark (1969, Superior Viaduct) [U]
Red Norvo: The Secret Session (1942 [2026], Dot Time): Mallets player (1908-99), started recording in 1933, filling up eight volumes in the Classics Chronological Series through 1951. This session, where he plays xylophone, was recorded in secret in late 1942, in defiance of the recording ban, just before the war would break up his band. Best known musicians here are Shorty Rogers (trumpet), Eddie Bert (trombone), and Aaron Sachs (clarinet/alto sax), backed by piano, bass, and drums. B+(**) [bc]
Satoko Fujii: Satoko Fujii's Bunker Ulmenwall Orchestra (2014 [2026], Libra, 2CD): Japanese avant-pianist, very prolific since 1996, went on a big band kick around 2007, organizing a series of orchestras wherever she traveled (first three were New York, Nagoya, and Tokyo). Many more since, with five new tapes of various vintages promised this year, starting with this one from Bielefeld, Germany (Bunker Ulmenwall was a WWII-vintage air raid shelter; to be followed later this year by the Orchestras Kobe, Nagoya, Berlin, and Tokyo). Detailed with many remarkable passages, demanding close scrutiny. A− [cd] [also in New Jazz: 186]
Paul McCandless: Live at Kimball's East 1992 (Moosicus) [U]
Ralph Towner & Gary Peacock: Oracle (1993, ECM) [B+(**)]
Lou Bennett & Rupert Clemendore: Live at the Golden Circle 1963 - Day 1 (Country & Eastern) [U]
Art Blakey & the New Jazz Messengers: Buttercorn Lady (1966 [2026], Elemental Music): Another live set, released at the time on Limelight (a Mercury subsidiary). This particular group featured Chuck Mangione (trumpet, also wrote 3 of 6 songs), with Frank Mitchell (tenor sax), Keith Jarrett (piano), and Reggie Johnson (bass). Mangione started in the Jazz Brothers (aka Mangione Brothers) in the early 1960s, and went on to commercial success in the 1970s, leaving this as his only album with Blakey. While he is central here, Mitchell, Jarrett, and Blakey himself leave stronger impressions. B+(*) [sp]
Donald Byrd: The Cat Walk (1961, Blue Note) [B]
Daniel Carter/Sabir Mateen/William Parker/Lou Grassi: Keeping It in Context (1996 [2026], NoBusiness): Two saxophonists (alto/tenor/flute, one also on trumpet, the other on clarinet), backed by superb bass, and drums: a jam session spun off from Parker's 1990s Improviser's Collective. When the going gets rough, I used to complain that chaotic free jazz must have been more fun to play than to listen to. Now I hear more method in what formerly felt ramshackle. Or perhaps I'm just touched by nostalgia? A fine document of lost times. A− [cd]
Jacques Coursil: Black Suite (1969 [2025], BYG): French trumpet player (1938-2020), parents from Martinique, had a very interesting life, where he entered traveled around Maruitania and Senegal from 1958 (befriending Leopold Senghor), moved back to Paris, then to New York in 1965 (where he played with Sun Ra, Sunny Murray, and Frank Wright). Back in Paris he recorded this haunting suite with Arthur Jones (alto sax), Anthony Braxton (contrabass clarinet), Burton Greene (piano), Bob Guérin (bass), and Claude Delcloo (drums). He dropped out of music, taught for 30 years, then picked it up again. B+(***) [sp]
Stanley Cowell: Musa: Ancestral Streams (1974 [2025], Strata-East): Pianist (1941-2020), made a big impression on me with his 1969 debut Blues for the Viet Cong, was co-founder (with Charles Tolliver) of the Strata-East label. Solo here, with some electric and kalimba (thumb piano). B+(***) [sp]
Either/Orchestra & Ethiopian Guests: Nalbandian L'Ethiopien/The Ethiopian [Éthiopiques 32] (2011 [2025], Buda Musique): Large band from Boston, founded by saxophonist Russ Gershon, released albums 1986-2010, website touts their "40th anniversary season," but this live tape, following up their 2004 Live in Addis [Éthiopiques 20], seems to be the only new release. B+(***) [sp]
James Emery & Anthony Braxton: Articulations, Florence, 1992 (self-released) [U]
Herb Geller Quartet: Barcelona Session (1990, Fresh Sound): Alto saxophonist, one of the key players in the West Coast Cool Jazz scene of the 1950s, moved to Germany in 1962, playing and arranging for big bands in Berlin (RIAS) and Hamburg (NDR), resuming his own albums around 1990. This is the rest of the session that produced Birdland Stomp, with piano (Kenny Drew), bass (Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen) and drums (Mark Taylor), with two guest spots each for young trumpet players Roy Hargrove and Gerard Presencer. B+(***) [sp]
Muriel Grossmann: Quartet (2008 [2026], Modernistas): Alto saxophonist, from Austria, one of her first albums, recorded in Ibiza, where she lives. With Radomir Milojkovic (guitar), David Marroquin (bass), and Marko Jelača. B+(***) [bc]
Peggy Lee: Too Marvelous for Words (1955, Peggy Lee Associates) [U]
Phonographic Yearbook 1924: Open Up Your Golden Gate (Archeophone) [U]
Tom Raworth & Peter Brötzmann: No Hard Feelings: For Steve Lacy (2005 [2026], Corbett vs. Dempsey): British poet (1938-2017), only album in Discogs is a 1969 reading, plus this rara avis, where "John Corbett schemed to make a duo record" from a 2000 reading with accompaniment by Steve Lacy. However, Lacy died in 2004 before delivering, so Brötzmann filled in a year later, playing tarogato, clarinet, and alto sax, short fragments plus some longer solos. Includes bits of music box, credited to Raworth. To some extent, a simple shuffle of two separate things, but each helps with the other's limits. B+(***) [bc]
Hans Reichel: Dalbergia Retusa (1973-88, Black Truffle) [U]
Shudan Sokai: Live at Alone (1977, Aguirre) [U]
Louis Stewart: Joyce Notes (1982 [2026], Livia): Irish guitarist (1944-2016), recorded extensively from 1975 on, but I've only noticed him since this reissue series began. A six part suite composed for James Joyce's centennary, with narration and readings from Ulysses by Eamon Morrissey, and a fairly large group with two saxophones, flute, piano, bass, drums, and extra percussion. The music is delightful, and the words add a powerful dimension. A− [bc]
Cecil Taylor Orchestra Humane: At Iridium 2004 (Burning Ambulance) [U]
Allen Toussaint: Songbook [Deluxe Edition] (2009, Craft) [U]
Mal Waldron & Sam Rivers: Live in Mestre Venezia 1984 (1984 [2025], Caligola): Piano and tenor sax duets. Around this time, Waldron was playing in duos with Steve Lacy and Marion Brown, so he has a well-honed sense of how to engage here. It's hard to imagine a more astute accompanist, and his solos never leave you wanting. Probably helps that they stick to standards, including "Scrapple From the Apple" and "Blue Monk." A− [bc]
Miles Davis: The Complete Live at the Plugged Nickel 1965 (Columbia/Legacy) [A]
Joseph Jarman - Famoudou Don Moye - Johnny Dyani: Black Paladins (1979, Dead Currencies) [U]
Frank Kimbrough: The Call (2010 [2025], Sunnyside): Pianist (1956-2020), was at the center of a very influential cluster of postbop musicians, mostly working with Matt Baltisaris at Palmetto. Recently discovered solo tape from that period, the sort of thing that those who knew and revered him will fall for completely. B+(**) [sp]
Steve Lacy Three: Live Lugano 1984 First Visit ([2025], Ezz-Thetics) [U]
Byard Lancaster & Keno Speller: Exactement (1974, Souffle Continu) [U]
Lee Mason: Music by Lee Mason (1971, Wewantsounds) [U]
Poing: Giants of Jazz (2001, Royal) [U]
John Taylor With Stan Sulzmann: Quintessence (1987 [2026], Jazz in Britain): English pianist (1942-2015), a major figure in British jazz, who worked with John Surman, Kenny Wheeler, and (in Azymuth) with Norma Winstone. Sulzmann (b. 1948) plays soprano sax here, backed by Rundfunkorchester Hannover des NDR. B+(*) [bc]
Traditional Jazz From New Orleans (1960s-80s, Mardi Gras) [U]
McCoy Tyner: The Seeker: Live at Umbria Jazz Festival (1993 [2026], Red): Previously unreleased live album, a quartet with Bobby Hutcherson (vibes), Avery Sharpe (bass), and Aaron Scott (drums), a few months before Tyner and Hutcherson recorded their duo album, Manhattan Moods. Their careers intersected as far back as 1966 (on Hutcherson's Stick-Up!) and 1968 (on Time for Tyner). But the rhythm section really helps here. A− [sp]
Lester Young: Lester Leaps In: Live at Birdland 1951-1952 (1951-52 [2025], Liberation Hall): Eight previously unreleased tracks from four "Jumpin with Symphony Sid" radio shots, with various piano, bass, and drums, plus some trumpet (Jesse Drakes). B+(***) [bc]
Art Blakey: Kongsberg, 1976 (Elemental Music) [U]
Anthony Braxton: Six Monk's Compositions (1987) [A−]
Cheer-Accident: CheerAx Basement, Chicago 4/2/22 // Reggie's Chicago 9/26/23 (2022-23 [2026], Cuneiform): Two live sets, available separate or bundled with the new album, the first expanding the septet to nine with an extra singer and drummer. It's not unfathomable that they would have a cult following, but this is an awful lot of not so very much. [PS: I left this hanging overnight, then finished it the next morning. When I was fresher, I found myself more amused and less annoyed, so nudged the grade up a bit, while doubling down on my summary line.] B+(*) [dl]
Nels Cline & Elliott Sharp: Open the Door (1999-2007, Zoar) [U]
Miles Davis: Ascenseur Pour L'Échafaud (1957, Decca France) [B+]
Vince Guaraldi and Bola Sete: From All Sides (1965, Craft) [U]
I Compani: Basta! The Last Concerts 2025 (2025 [2026], I Compani): Dutch group, led by saxophonist Bo van de Graaf, founded in 1985, decided to call it quits after a series of "last concerts" in December, 2025. Throughout their career, they've mostly recorded film music, in the circus style that seems peculiar to the Dutch avant-garde (cf. ICP Orchestra and Willem Breuker Kollektief) and is often deliriously wonderful. My understanding is that packages 2 CDs, which are available on streaming as separate albums. One is their core 7-Tet. The other is "Extended," where an additional friends or hangers-on drop in for a song or two or more. The latter includes more vocalists, who add a cabaret air. Of the digitals, I prefer the latter, but I wasn't able to give either nearly enough time. Maybe if the CDs exist, and could somehow be obtained? B+(***) [sp]
The Lawrence Marable Quartet: Tenorman (1956 [2026], Blue Note): Drummer (1929-2012), from Los Angeles, associated with West Coast jazz starting with Hampton Hawes, Wardell Gray, and Herb Geller, extending to Charlie Haden's Quartet West. Discogs counts 246 albums he played on, but this is the only one with his name up top, and even here the title is a nod to the featured saxophonist, James Clay. He's terrific throughout, well supported by Sonny Clark (piano) and Jimmy Bond (bass). A− [sp]
Charlie Mariano/Sal Nistico: Barcelona Meeting (1989 [2026], Fresh Sound): Two saxophonists, alto and tenor, only together on three tracks, the rest quartet tracks, three led by Mariano, five by Nistico, all backed by Frank Strazzeri (piano), Isla Eckinger (bass), and Peer Wyboris (drums). B+(**) [sp]
Sun Ra: Hidden Fire (1988 [2025], Strut): Live album, originally released as two volumes ("in tiny quantities with minimal packaging and cryptic artwork"), combined here (6 songs, 77 minutes). Group has some extra violins (Billy Bang for one), and vocals (Art Jenkins?), and spends much time way out on the fringe. B+(**) [sp]
Music Inc. [Charles Tolliver/Stanley Cowell/Cecil McBee/Jimmy Hopps]: Music Inc. (1970 [2025], Strata-East): First album released on the label, which was founded in 1971 by Tolliver (trumpet) and Cowell (piano), at a time when previously dominant labels were dropping like flies, and young musicians who had just come of age on the late-1960s avant-garde were desperate for an outlet. The label ultimately released 50+ albums -- an important catalog in American jazz history which has long been neglected. Recently, Mack Avenue picked up the catalog and have started reissuing records, starting here. Group (with a different bassist) dates back to Toliver's 1969 album, The Ringer, and can be credited here, but the musician names are also on the cover, so I would normally credit them. I wound up with this credit line based on a later album. But while Toliver and Cowell used Music Inc. for various quartets from 1969-76, here they're joined by a "supporting orchestra" that turns this into a big band (plus a little extra brass, including Howard Johnson on tuba). It's a bit overkill for my taste. B+(**) [sp]
Keith Tippett: Mujician: Music to Accompany the Authorised Biography by Martin Phillips (1976-84, Jazz in Britain) [U]
Bill Connors: Of Mist and Melting (1977, ECM) [U]
Red Garland Quintet: Soul Junction (1957, Craft) [B+(**)]
Yusef Lateef: Lost in Sound (1962, Good Time/Charlie Parker) [U]
Charlie Rouse: Cinnamon Flower: The Expanded Edition (1977 [2025], Resonance): Tenor saxophonist (1924-88), played in big bands early, ranging from Bull Moose Jackson to Dizzy Gillespie (and including brief stops with Basie and Ellington), but best known for his work with Thelonious Monk (1959-70, the band continuing after Monk died as Sphere). His own work is rather mixed, including Brazilian themes: Bossa Nova Bachanal (1962) and this in 1977, expanded here past 80 minutes. B+(*) [cd]
Sun Ra: Do the Impossible [Original Soundtrack to the Documentary] (1957-82, Modern Harmonic) [U]
Keith Tippett/Claudio Gabbiani/Roberto Musci: Music for Labyrinths (2000, Dark Companion) [U]
Mal Waldron & Steve Lacy: Play Monk, Ellington & Strayhorn: Live at Yoshi's 1994 (Elemental Music) [U]
Otomo Yoshihide's New Jazz Orchestra: Out to Lunch (2005, Aguirre) [U]
Derek Bailey/Evan Parker/Han Bennink: Topographie Parisienne (1981 [2025], Fou) [U]
Derek Bailey & Tony Bevan: River Monsters (1999, Scatter Archive '25) [U]
Chet Baker: Five From '65: The Quintet Summer Sessions ([2025], New Land) [U]
Art Blakey & the Jazz Messengers: Jazz Messengers '70 (1970 [2026], Good Time): The drummer's definitive hard bop group left Blue Note after 1964, and his stars split as well. Blakey's label work petered out, but he kept touring, and had a knack for finding young talent. This live album was released in Japan in 1970. The group: Bill Hardman (trumpet), Carlos Garnett (tenor sax), Joanne Brackeen (piano), and Jon Arnet (bass). They're mostly playing his hits — starts with "Moanin'" and "Blues March," ends with "A Night in Tunisia" — with only one new piece (by Garnett, the most interesting thing here). B+(**) [sp]
Dollar Brand/Don Cherry/Carlos Ward: The Third World-Underground (1972 [2026], Wewantsounds): South African pianist, soon changed his name to Abdullah Ibrahim, debut album in 1963 "presented by Duke Ellington," soon became known for his integration of township jive with jazz, up to his death in 2026. With trumpet and alto sax (and everyone tapped for vocals and percussion), recorded live in Copenhagen, and released (until now) only in Japan. Strong ideas, somewhat harshly achieved. B+(**) [sp]
John Coltrane: A Love Supreme [60th Anniversary Edition] (1964, Impulse! '25) [A+]
John Coltrane: Ascension (Edition I & II) (1965, Impulse!) [A−]
Chick Corea: Piano Improvisations Vol. 1 (1971, ECM '25) [B+(*)]
Miles Davis: Reference: Miles Davis' 3rd Quintet Bitches Brew Live 1969 in Europe (AlAy/Thingamajig) [U]
Zeno De Rossi Trio + 1: Human Prints (2013-17, self-released) [U]
Ellery Eskelin: Setting the Standard (1988 [2026], Prime Source): Tenor saxophonist, originally from Wichita, first album, a trio with Drew Gress (bass) and Phil Haynes (drums), released 1989 on Cadence Jazz, seven standards, remastered with two extra tracks added. Sometimes I talk about the major wave of tenor saxophonists that emerged in the 1990s. I've never really thought of him in that regard, possibly because he never appeared on major or mainstream labels, but on this evidence he could have squared off against any of them. B+(***) [bc]
Bill Evans: Haunted Heart: The Legendary Riverside Studio Recordings (1959-61 [2025], Craft): The pianist's 1956-63 The Complete Riverside Recordings ran 12-CD, but this narrowly focuses on the two studio albums he made with his most famous trio, with Paul Motian (drums) and Scott LaFaro (bass), which came to an abrupt end when LaFaro was killed in a car crash, just a month after the live sets they are most famous for (Sunday at the Village Vanguard and Waltz for Debby, which eventually grew into their own 3-CD box). CD reissues of the two albums added extra takes, and this adds still more, reaching 43 tracks, running 212 minutes. That's a lot more than seems necessary. B+(***) [sp]
Pierre Favre & Andrea Centazzo: Endless Dialogues 1977 & 2024: The Complete Sessions (Ictus) [U]
Ella Fitzgerald: Live at the Falkoner Theatre Copenhagen 6th February 1966 (Gearbox) [U]
Mick Goodrick: In Pas(s)ing (1978, ECM) [A−]
Freddie King: Feeling Alright: The Complete 1975 Nancy Pulsations Concert (1975 [2026], Elemental Music, 2CD): Blues guitarist-singer (1934-76), placed three albums on Robert Santelli's list of the best 100 blues albums. Live in France, a little more than a year before he died at 42. B+(**) [cd]
James Brandon Lewis & Lutosławski Quartet: These Are Soulful Days (2021 [2026], TAO Forms): Tenor saxophonist, makes his entry into the sax-with-strings forum with a well-known Polish string quartet (dozen-plus albums since 2012, including jazz meets with Uri Caine and Kris Davis). This was originally released as a bonus CD with Lewis's poll-winning 2023 album, For Mahalia, With Love. A− [sp] [also in New Jazz: 47]
Charles Lloyd: Sangam & Friends (2009, Blue Note) [U]
Bennie Maupin: The Jewel in the Lotus (1974 [2025], ECM) [B]
Medeski Martin & Wood: Tonic (1999, Blue Note) [U]
Charles Mingus: Mingus in Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts (1977 [2025], Resonance, 2CD): A tremendous bassist from the start, his genius period as a composer ran from roughly 1956-64, although he got a second wind in the early 1970s with a new quartet that went independent under the joint leadership of George Adams and Don Pullen. His health soon deteriorated, and he died in 1979 (age 56), so anything from his last few years doesn't come with great expectations. I found this one unsettling at first, but flashes of brilliance kept surfacing, most from compositions that undoubtedly have been done better elsewhere, but he had an uncanny knack for breathing fresh life into everything he touched. And for making small groups -- this one especially notable for Jack Walrath (trumpet) and Ricky Ford (tenor sax). Also, he closes both sets with his own solo piano. A− [cd]
Barre Phillips & György Kurtág Jr.: Togetherness (2014, BMC) [U]
Tomasz Stanko: Balladyna (1976, ECM) [B+]
Keith Tippett: At the BBC 1969-70 (Rhythm and Blues) [U]
McCoy Tyner: Extensions (1970 [2026], Blue Note): Pianist (1938-2020), from Philadelphia, played briefly in the Jazztet (with Benny Golson and Art Farmer) before joining John Coltrane's legendary quartet (1961-65). Started recording his own albums in 1962, and went on to have a major solo career, notably with Blue Note (1966-70, although this one was held back to 1973). This sounds like it popped out of a Coltrane time capsule, spacey and spiritual but not burdened by the ambitions and delirium of Trane's last years. With two saxophonists (Gary Bartz on alto, Wayne Shorter on tenor/soprano), Ron Carter on bass, Elvin Jones on drums, and Alice Coltrane on harp. A− [sp]
Total number of records: 0. Total unheard: 67 (2 partial, 15 rated from previous conditions).