Each year I'm asked for my picks of the best jazz CDs. "Top Ten" lists often seem rather arbitrary, so here are my favorites out of more than a thousand CDs which came my way last year. (Like the Grammys, the list seems to get longer every year!)

Favorite Jazz | Reissues | Northwest | Earlier Picks

artist - album title - label

Big Bands & Large Ensembles
Jim Cifelli NY Nonet - Tunnel Vision - Short Notice
Slide Hampton World of Trombones - Spirit of The Horn - MCG / Telarc
Orchestre National de Jazz - Charmediterranéen - ECM
Mike Kaplan Nonet - How’s That?
Joe Lovano Nonet - On This Day at The Vanguard - Blue Note
Bob Florence - Whatever Bubbles Up - Summit Records
Kim Richmond - Refractions - Origin
Jaco Pastorius Big Band - Word of Mouth Revisited - Heads Up
Gerald Wilson Orch - New York, New Sound - Mack Avenue
Renee Rosnes - and The Danish Radio Big Band - Blue Note
Lars Jansson/Bohuslan Big Band - Temenos - Spice of Life
Lalo Schfrin/WDR Big Band - Esperanto - Aleph
Lester Bowie Brass Fantasy - When the Spirit Returns - Dreyfus Jazz
Malachi Thompson & Africa Brass - Blue Jazz - Delmark
Gordon Goodwin’s Big Phat Band - XXL - Silverline
Rob McConnell Tentet - Music of The Twenties - Justin Time

Small groups
Marsalis Family - A Jazz Celebration - Marsalis Music
Kenny Wheeler, et al - Angel Song - ECM
Karolina Strassmayer - Klaro!
Steve Turre - One 4 J, Homage to J.J.Johnson - Telarc
Regina Carter - Paganini: After A Dream - Verve
David Fathead Newman - The Gift - High Note
Organissimo - Waitiing for the Boogaloo Sisters - PKO Records
Kenny Garrett - Standard of Language - Warner Bros
Charlie Hunter - Right Now Move - ropeadope
Jane Ira Bloom - Chasing Paint - Arabesque
John Scofield - Up All Night - Verve
Eddie Henderson - So What - Eighty-Eights/ Columbia
Roy Haynes - Love Letters - Eighty-Eights/ Columbia
Gary Smulyan - The Real Deal - Reservoir
Dave Ellis - State of Mind - Milestone
Terence Blanchard - Bounce - Blue Note
Geoffrey Keezer - Sublime - Telarc
Winard Harper - A Time for The Soul - Savant
Steve Wilson - Soulful Song - MaxJazz
Dave Stryker/Steve Slagle - The Stryker/Slagle Band - Khaeon
Greg Osby - St.Louis Shoes - Blue Note
Kenny Burrell - Blue Muse - Concord
Ron Eschete/Mort Weiss - No Place To Hide - SMS Jazz 2 CD
Lee Konitz/Alan Broadbent - Live-Lee - Milestone
Ingrid Jensen/ Project O - Now as Then - Justin Time
Miami Saxophone Quartet - Live - Fourtitude
Eric Alexander - Nightlife in Tokyo - Milestone
One for All - Wide Horizons - Criss Cross
Ray Brown - Walk On - Telarc (2 CD)
Scott Hamilton Qrt - Live In London - Concord
Flutology - First Date - Capri
Arthur Blythe - Exhale - Savant
Eric Reed - e-bop - Savant
Barry Harris - Live in New York - Reservoir
Greg Skaff - Blues for Mr.T - Khaeon
Ron Carter - The Golden Striker - Blue Note
Dave Holland - Extended Play - Live at Birdland - ECM
Tom Harrell - Wise Children - Bluebird
Branford Marsalis - Romare Bearden Revealed - Marsalis Music/ Rounder
Pat Martino - Think Tank - Blue Note
Basile/Abercrombie - Animations - Underhill Jazz
Red Holloway - Coast To Coast - Milestone
Bill Cunliffe Sextet - How My Heart Sings - Torii
John Swana - On Target - Criss Cross
Ryan Kisor - Awakening - Criss Cross
Wycliffe Gordon - Dig This!! - Criss Cross
Bruce Forman Trio - Bootleg Vol.1 Dedication - Blu Jazz
Houston Person - Social Call - High Note
George Cables - Looking for the Light - Muse FX
Nick Brignola - Things Ain’t What They Used To Be - Reservoir
Geoffrey Keezer - Falling Up - MaxJazz
Jeremy Pelt - Close To My Heart - MaxJazz
Carmen Lundy - Something to Believe In - Justin Time
Convergence - Modern Man - Capril
Horace Silver - Rockin’ with Rachmaninoff - Bop City
Claudio Roditi - Three For One - Nagel Heyer
Russell Gunn - Mood Swings - High Note
James Carter - Gardenias for Lady Day - Columbia
Andy Martin Quartet - It’s Fine... It’s Andy! - Fresh Sound
Arne Domnérus - Dompan! - Fresh Sound

Pianists -
Benny Green/Russell Malone - Jazz At The Bistro - Telarc
Fred Hersch - Live at the Village Vanguard - Palmetto
The Drummonds - Pas de Trois - True Life
Lynne Arriale - Arise - Motema
Jessica Williams - All Alone - MaxJazz
Mike Melvoin - It’s Always You (with Phil Woods) - City Light
Bill Mays - Going Home - Palmetto
Dave Brubeck - Park Avenue South- Telarc
Chick Corea - Rendezvous in New York - Stretch/ Concord 2 CD
Steve Kuhn - Love Walked In - Sunnyside
Keith Jarrett - Up for It - ECM
McCoy Tyner/ Bobby Hutcherson - Land of Giants - Telarc
Monty Alexander - Impressions In Blue - Telarc
The Great Jazz Trio - Autumn Leaves - 441 Records
Hod O’Brien Trio - Fine and Dandy - Fresh Sound

Singers -
Carol Welsman - The Language of Love - Savoy Jazz
Sheila Jordan - Little Song - High Note
Joyce Breach - Remembering Mabel Mercer- Audiophile
Norma Winstone/ Fred Hersch - Songs & Lullabies - Sunnyside
Stacey Kent - In Love Again - Candid
René Marie - Live at The Jazz Standard - MaxJazz
John Pizzarelli - Live at Birdland - Telarc
Shirley Horn - May the Music Never End - Verve
Ernie Andrews - Jump For Joy - HighNote
Kurt Elling - Man In the Air - Blue Note
Jimmy Scott - Moonglow - Milestone
Grazyna Aguscik - <pastforward> - GMA
Stacey Kent - The Boy Next Door -Candid
Carol Sloane - Whisper Sweet - High Note
Abbey Lincoln - It’s Me - Verve
Ian Shaw- A World Still Turning - 441
Nneena Freelon - Live - Concord
Carmen Lundy - Something to Believe In - Justin Time
Henry Johnson/ Nancy Wilson - Organic- A440
Elllyn Rucker - Now - Capri
Ernestine Anderson - Love Makes The Changes - High Note

Afro-Cuban/ Latin -
Mark Levine & Latin Tinge - Isla - Left Coast Clave
Jane Bunnett - Cuban Odyssey - Blue Note/ EMI Canada
Danilo Perez -....til Then - Verve
Eddie Palmieri - Ritmo Caliente - Concord Picante
Cesar Camargo Mariano & Rombero Lubambo - Duo - Sunnyside
Astor Piazzolla - Adio Nonino - Circular Moves
Michel Camilo - Live at The Blue Note - Telarc
Poncho Sanchez - Out of Sight! - Concord Picante
Chucho Valdés -New Conceptions - Blue Note



Gerry Mulligan - Complete Verve Concert Jazz Band Sessions - Mosaic 4 CD
Carmell Jones - Mosaic Select 2 - Mosaic Records 3 CD
Ben Webster - Soulville - Verve
Dave Brubeck - The Essential - Columbia Legacy
Conte Candoli/ Carl Fontana - Complete Phoenix recordings - Woofy Productions
Paul Desmond/ Gerry Mulligan - Two of a Mind - Bluebird
Mal Waldron - Soul Eyes - Memorial Album - Prestige
Gerry Mulligan - Meets Johnny Hodges - Verve
Lee Konitz - MotionLee - Verve
Shirley Scott - Queen of the Organ - Prestige
Jeanne Lee/Mal Waldron - After Hours - Sunnyside
Steve Kuhn/ Miroslav Vitous/ Aldo Romano - Oceans In the Sky Sunnyside
Thelonious Monk - Monk in Paris, Live at Olympia - Hyena (CD/DVD)
Art Tatum - Best of Complete Pablo solo masterpieces - Pablo
Ella Fitzgerald - Best of Concert Years - Pablo
Lee Konitz/ Kenny Werner - UnLeemited - Sunnyside
Stan Getz - Bossas & Ballads: the Lost Sessions - Verve
Oscar Peterson Trio - Vancouver 1958 - Justin Time
Cal Tjader - Cuban Fantasy - Fantasy
Ella Fitzgerald - The Complete Singles, Vol.1 - Verve (2 CD)
Dexter Gordon - Live at the Both/And Club- 1970 - BPM
Jaco Pastorious - Punk Jazz - Warner Bros/ Rhino (2 CD)

For Northwest jazz fans in particular, here are some of the exceptional releases from artists living in Seattle, Portland, Vancouver and Victoria.

Kevin Elaschuyk/Campbell Ryga Qrt - Any Answers - Cellar Live
Oliver Gannon - Live at the Cellar - Cellar Live
Ross Taggart Qrt - Thankfully - Cellar Live
Larry Fuller - Easy Walker - Pony Boy
Karin Plato - The State of Bliss - KVP
Jay Thomas - Blues for JW - McVouty
Jill Townsend Big Band - Tales from the Sea - Pagetown Records
Miranda Sage - Moon Tiger - Boathouse
Jim Knapp Orchestra - Secular Breathing - Origin
Dawn Clement - Hush - Conduit
Jovino Santos Neto - Canto do Rio - Liquid City
Wataru Hamasaki - Live at Tula’s - McVouty
Janis Mann - Let It Happen - Pancake
Brian Nova Trio - Shadow Of Your Smile - Pony Boy
Dan Faehnle - Ohio Lunch - Heavywood
Phil Kelly & NW Prevailing Winds - Convergence Zone - Origin
Bebop & Destruction - Live at the Owl ‘n Thistle - Freetone
Steve Korn - Points in Time - Origin
Various artists - Modern Jazz, Seattle’s Finest - Origin
Various artists - Take Time - O’Doul’s (Vancouver sampler)

Earlier picks: 2002  2001  2000  1999  1998  1997


Buy any CD on this list and you're guaranteed some great music! Each of these CDs has received frequent airplay on Jazz After Hours and/or Jazz Northwest.

—Jim


Amazon.com is an easy way to order the music you're looking for. That CD could be in your mailbox in a couple of days by clicking here.

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