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Best of / Year End
What We Liked: 2016
We took our top lists, found the common recordings, added a dozen of my personal faves, and presented them here for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy, and feel free to post your 2016 favorites in the comments section below. Wadada Leo SmithAmerica's National ParksCuneiform Records Michael Formanek The DistanceECM Records Frank KimbroughSolsticePirouet Records Andreas Loven District SixLosen Records Keith Jarrett ...
read more2016: The Year in Jazz
The year 2016 bubbled with events and initiatives to strengthen jazz's place in American and world culture, as well as a variety of venue openings, closings and cancellations. Jazz hit the silver screen in many ways throughout the year, and International Jazz Day continued to thrive--complete with a major all-star concert at the White House. Pop star David Bowie put his farewell musical ride in a jazz context. There were a few more twists and turns to the New Orleans ...
read moreTop 30 MP3 Downloads: 2016
All About Jazz tracks how often a featured MP3 is downloaded, and the following represent our top 30 in 2016. If you missed them the first time around, give them a listen now, and enjoy! Nuevo Día By: Javier Alcántara From: Resilience (Youkali Music S.l.) Featured: 2016-12-31 Stella By Starlight By: Mort Weiss From: Mort Weiss Is a Jazz Reality Show (SMS Jazz)
read moreTop 25 "Read" Album Reviews: 2016
All About Jazz tracks how often an album review is read, and the reviews listed below represent our top twelve published in 2016. Evolution Dr. Lonnie Smith by Dan Bilawsky Published: January 4, 2016 Spark Hiromi by Jeff Winbush Published: April 1, 2016 A Multitude of Angels Keith Jarrett by Karl Ackermann Published: ...
read moreTop 25 "Recommended" Album Reviews: 2016
All About Jazz tracks how often an album review is recommended, and the reviews listed below represent our top 25 published in 2016. Local Color University of Northern Iowa Jazz Band One 2014-15 by Jack Bowers Published: February 9, 2016 Blues, Ballads, and Beyond: Influences Outside the Concert Hall Mark Hetzler by C. Michael Bailey Published: March 5, 2016 ...
read moreMark F. Turner's Best Releases of 2016
Another year of outstanding releases which not only unveiled new artists but also fresh material from those I've admired over many years. While the roots of jazz were formed during the music diaspora from Africa to America its branches are continually grafting and evolving--artistically, culturally, and geographically as musicians and composers find creative ways to express the music. As usual, the task is arduous but here are my picks for 2016. Logan Richardson Shift
read morePhil Barnes' Best Releases of 2016
It was tempting to view the events of 2016 in apocalyptic terms--even leaving politics to one side, the succession of beloved entertainers falling to the Grim Reaper was a salutary reminder of the limits of our own mortality. Some saw this as a sign of something ending, a watershed and not in a good way, but only time will tell whether this is anything more than a simple shift in demographics. Musically, I found it harder than ever ...
read moreNicola Negri's Best Releases Of 2016
Here is a small selection, in no particular order, of some of this year's best releases, chosen among those reviewed at All About Jazz. Satoko Fujii Orchestra Tokyo Peace Libra Records A powerful example of Fujii's explosive creativity and masterful compositional prowess. Simply wonderful. Wadada Leo Smith America's National Parks Cuneiform Records Another work of epic proportions from Maestro Wadada Leo Smith. Essential.
read moreJakob Baekgaard's Best Releases Of 2016
The world seems more uncertain than ever before, but in times of uncertainty, music provides comfort and a hope that it is actually possible to communicate across borders, whether they be physical or psychological. Among the releases that caught my attention this year, the one that meant most to me by far is not on this list, and it was not even reviewed on All About Jazz, not by me or any other writer. Bassist, composer and ...
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