Best of 2025, The Final Chapter; January Jazz in NYC; Igor Willcox Interview; and Songs of the Week

I don't typically start our newsletter with housekeeping updates, but it's worth noting that we recently upgraded our version of PHP. That upgrade reset certain settings to their default values, including the maximum file upload size (think JPGs for the Photo Gallery or MP3s for Song of the Day). AAJ's max file upload is normally set to 20MB, and while we updated most locations post-upgrade, we missed one. As a result, several musicians and publicists were temporarily unable to upload tracks for Song of the Day. The issue was resolved Tuesday morning, so if you're a musician, publicist, or record label rep and ran into this problem, please try again—it's now working.

Album Reviews

The album reviews below represent our most popular from the past week. View more recent reviews.

Prove You're Not a Robot Alex Skolnick Trio	Unbridled The Flying Horse Big Band	House of the Singing Blossoms Anthony Wilson	Stand Up! Jerome Sabbagh
Close to Nothing EH3	Sacha: Paris After Dark Sacha Boutros	Aria Roy Powell, Lorenzo Feliciati & Lucrezio de Seta	Alternate Route Kerry Politzer

Looking for an album review?

If you're a musician, publicist, or record label seeking album review coverage on All About Jazz, please first read our review submission guide, then complete the coverage request form here. When submitting your request, include up to five AAJ album reviewers who best align with your music. For example, if it's a big band or large ensemble recording, select Jack Bowers. You can familiarize yourself with our staff, here.

Nels Cline and Others At 2026 Winter Jazzfest's Manhattan Marathon

Like New York's winters on the whole, the long nights of the city's Winter JazzFest demand hardiness. Moveable feasts that sprawl onto multiple stages in a neighborhood, the Jazzfest's celebrated marathons require braving New York's cold to trudge, for up to a mile, between clubs. And when you arrive at one, you may have to line up for a while and stand, rather than sit, in tight quarters once you get in. The reward, though, is a festival like no other. Continue reading...

Unity Jazz Festival 2026 at Jazz At Lincoln Center

It does not rain—or snow—jazz in New York in the first week of January, it pours—or blizzards—the music. Winter JazzFest, the longtime colossus that takes over clubs in downtown Manhattan and Brooklyn, has been joined in the past three years by the Unity Jazz Festival, which runs two marathon nights within the multiple spaces of the Jazz at Lincoln Center headquarters just north of midtown Manhattan. Further filling the New York jazz calendar that same weekend: a Jazz Congress conference and a Pyroclastic Records festival at Jazz Gallery, featuring the adventurous likes of Kris Davis and Patricia Brennan. Continue reading...

Igor Willcox: Have Drums, Will Travel

Brazilian drummer Igor Willcox is fast becoming one of the most interesting young artists in jazz. A string of superb releases with his jazz fusion quartet, which currently includes saxophonist Wagner Barbosa, electric bassist Ricardinho Paraiso, and pianist Erik Escobar, culminated in the 2025 album Time Traveller (Room73 Records, 2025). Music is in Willcox's blood, as Igor descends from several generations of successful musicians. "My mother, Sônia (Rocha) Willcox, is a celebrated Brazilian singer, and my father, Paulo César Willcox, was a conductor, arranger, pianist, and vibraphonist," says the drummer. "He wrote arrangements for important Brazilian artists, and although he passed away when I was only nine months old, his musical legacy has been a constant presence in my life through recordings, scores, and the stories shared within my family. Continue reading...

Best of 2025

We kept a running list of our staff's 2025 favorites and wrapped it up this week with four more additions from Glenn Astarita, Marek Śmietański, Pierre Giroux and Kerilie McDowall.

Jack Kenney	Mike Jurkovic	Dan McClenaghan	Doug Collette
Konstantin Rega	Troy Dostert	Paul Rauch	Don Ball
Neil Duggan	Joshua Weiner	Mark Corroto	C. Andrew Hovan
Jack Bowers	Dean Nardi	Ian Patterson	Geno Thackara
Jua Howard	Angelo Leonardi	Kyle Simpler	Jerome Wilson
Libero Farnè	Ben Boddie	Karan Khosla	John Sharpe
Maurizio Zerbo	Carl Medsker	Katchie Cartwright	Paolo Peviani
Cheryl K	Marco Iacoboni	Mark Sullivan	Geoff Anderson
Adam Beaudoin	Ken Hohman	David Bruggink	Glenn Astarita
Marek Śmietański	Pierre Giroux	Kerilie McDowall

Songs of the Week

Two late-2025 released tunes to jump start your day... or evening.

Top Songs

The songs below represent the most heard in the past four weeks. View the Song of the Day archive.

Ready 'N Able From the album Zito's Jump! By James Zito	Si tu Vois Ma Mère From the album Sacha: Paris After Dark By Sacha Boutros	Transencion From the album A Seeker's Dream By Marubia	Button Up Your Overcoat From the album Swinging In The Holidays By Songbook Ink All-Stars
CONSENSO From the album Consenso By Sal La Rocca	Gumshoes From the album Setting Standards By Tim Larkin	Quarantrio From the album ENSEMBLE By Erez Aviram	La Sabrosura From the album La Sabrosura By Juan Manuel Romero Silvera

Choice Content

Stacey Kent At Birdland (read); Super Nova In The Great White North: Explosive Jazz 2025 (read); Marek Śmietański's Favorite Jazz Albums Of 2025 (read); Chris Botti Week at SFJAZZ (view photos); Chad Taylor and Smoke Shifter at the Jazz Gallery (view photos); Pierre Giroux's Favorite Jazz Albums of 2025 (read); Breath Without End: The Trumpeter Who Found Faith and Never Died (read); Glenn Astarita's Best Jazz Albums Of 2025 (read); David Bruggink's Best Jazz Albums of 2025 (read); Ken Hohman's Iconoclastic List of the Top 9 Jazz Recordings for 2025 (read); Fountain de Chopin's "Thank You" Festival in Hong Kong (read); Adam Beaudoin's 15 Favorite Albums of 2025 (read); From Mystery to Momentum: Bill Frisell's Quartet at The Jazz Gallery (view photos).

Radio & Podcasts

Tune into our extensive collection of quality programs every week.

World of Jazz: New Music From Hart, Gratkowski, Rahn, Smith And More (listen); Allston Boylston: A post generic mix-Rin Seo Collective, Catalyst, Messthetics with James Brandon Lewis, and Shostakovich (listen); Backstage Bay Area: Chico Pinheiro and Vinicius Cantuária: Brazilian Guitar Dialogues (listen); Exploration: Classics from Bud Powell and others, new music from Joel Ross and others (listen); The Third Story: Kurt Elling: Manifesting the Music (listen); A Broad Spectrum: Betty Bryant, Lisa Hilton, Carolyn Trowbridge, Kris Davis With The Lutoslawski Quartet & More (listen); One Man's Jazz: Music From Favourite Recordings of 2025 (listen); Neon Jazz: Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman, Les Elgart & Jonah Jones (listen); Bitches Brew: Best of 2025-The Outernet, garaj Mahal, Varun Das, Grand Discovery, Commodore (listen); North Star Sounds: 2025 Releases from Ingebrigt Håker Flaten, Frank Gratkwski, Chad Taylor and more! (listen); The Tonearm: Phil Haynes: Banging The Drum For Liberty Now (listen); Mondo Jazz: The Final Batch of My Favorite 2025 Jazz Things—Part 6 (listen); Jazz On The Tyne: Knats, Gregory Porter, Julian Lage, Cleo Laine, And More (listen); Backstage Bay Area: Taylor Eigsti Comes Home, Carrying the Fire Forward (listen); Jazz Connections: Remembrance 2025, part II: Gordon Goodwin, Al Foster, Jack DeJohnette, Hal Galper & Ray Drummond (listen); Mondo Jazz: The Final Batch of My Favorite 2025 Jazz Things—Part 5 (listen); World of Jazz: New Music From Hart, Gratkowski, Rahn, Smith And More (listen); The Jazz Disturbance: Kris Davis with The Lutosławski Quartet, Carolyn Trowbridge, Shifa شفاء (listen); Ben Boddie On Jazz: Aaron Parks, Nat Adderley Jr., Houston Person, Jerry Weldon and more (listen).

News Announcements

Timely announcements covering new album releases, tours, special events and more. View all recent announcements.

Thailand International Jazz Conference 2026 To Celebrate John Coltrane Centennial With Grand Orchestral Tribute (read); Deborah Henson-Conant Live: A Powerful, Spellbinding Night Of Electric Harp (read); Cameron Washington Brings His New Orleans-inspired Lazy Californians To The World Stage With 'Back To San Francisco,' Set For February 13 Release Via Angel Island Records (read).

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