The music I most enjoyed in the plague year

 Yes, it was an awful year. I'm glad it's over. Here's some of the music that helped me through it:

JD Allen - Toys/Die Dreaming (Savant) 

Ran Blake & Frank Carlberg - Grey Moon (Red Piano)

Joe Fiedler’s Big Sackbut - Live In Graz (Multiphonics Music)

Bill Frisell - Valentine (Blue Note)

Gato Libre - Koneko (Libra)

Lafayette Gilchrist - Now (Lafayette Gilchrist Music)

Fred Hersch - Songs From Home (Palmetto)

Ray Mantilla - Rebirth (Savant)

Aruán Ortiz with Andrew Cyrille & Mauricio Herrera - Inside Rhythmic Falls (Intakt)

Jason Palmer - The Concert: 12 Musings for Isabella (Giant Step Arts)

Ivo Perelman & Matthew Shipp - Amalgam (Mahakala Music)

Jorge Roeder - El Suelo Mio (self-released)

Jim Snidero - Project-K (Savant)

Micah Thomas - Tide (self-released)

and, like every year, there was some special music unearthed 

Art Blakey - Just Coolin’ (Blue Note)

Paul Desmond - The Complete 1975 Toronto Recordings (Mosaic)

Hank Mobley - The Complete Blue Note Sessions 1963-1970 (Mosaic)

Sonny Rollins - Rollins In Holland (Resonance)

and heartfelt thanks to the publicists, labels, and musicians 

who persevered in spite of the obstacles

top 13 + 4 more for 2018

yes, it’s time once again for a year-end list. here are the CDs i most enjoyed in 2018

first, a baker’s dozen of new releases, in alphabetical order:

Andy Biskin - 16 Tons - Songs From The Alan Lomax Collection (Andorfin)

Black Art Jazz Collective - Armor Of Pride (HighNote)

Samuel Blaser - Early In The Mornin' (Out Note)

Frank Carlberg/Noah Preminger - Whispers And Cries (Red Piano)

Nels Cline 4 - Currents, Constellations (Blue Note)

Steve Coleman & Five Elements - Live at the Village Vanguard, Vol. 1 

(The Embedded Sets) (Pi Recordings)

Benjamin Deschamps - No Codes (Multiple Chords)

Fred Hersch Trio - Live In Europe (Palmetto)

Joe Lovano & Dave Douglas Sound Prints - Scandal (Greenleaf Music)

Jamie Saft Quartet - Blue Dream (RareNoise)

Bobby Sanabria Multiverse Big Band - West Side Story Reimagined (Jazzheads)

Thumbscrew - Theirs (Cuneiform)

Denny Zeitlin - Wishing On The Moon (Sunnyside)

and here are some historical and reissue highlights:

Miles Davis & John Coltrane - The Bootleg Series, Volume 6: The Final Tour (Columbia/Legacy)

Frank Morgan/George Cables - Montreal Memories (HighNote)

Teddy Wilson - Classic Brunswick & Columbia Sessions 1934-1942 (Mosaic)

Various Artists - The Savory Collection 1935-1940 (Mosaic)

and thanks to all the labels and publicists who keep me busy,

and especially to all the people who actually make the music!