Best & Notable Releases of 2012
Nota bene: All of my choices are in alphabetical order by artist or name of group and are to be counted equally as to points, rank, etc. TEN BEST NEW RELEASES
Dan Barrett and Chris Hopkins, Dan Barrett's International Swing Party: Tour 2010 — Live! Volume 2 (Echoes of Swing Productions) Anat Cohen, Claroscuro (Anzic) Ernest Dawkins, Afro Straight (Delmark) Curtis Fuller, Down Home (Capri) Keith Jarrett, Sleeper (ECM) Brad Mehldau, Ode (Nonesuch) Art Pepper, Unreleased Art Pepper Vol. VII: Sankei Hall — Osaka, Japan (Widow’s Taste) Roberta Piket, Solo (Thirteenth Note) Wadada Leo Smith, Ten Freedom Summers (Cuneiform) Henry Threadgill, Tomorrow Sunny/The Revelry, Spp (Pi)
TOP THREE REISSUES
Clifford Brown and Max Roach, The Clifford Brown & Max Roach Emarcy Albums (Mosaic LP) Eva Cassidy, The Best of Eva Cassidy (Blix Street) Sweet Sue Terry, Greatest Hits (Qi Note)
BEST VOCAL ALBUM
Kate Miller-Heidke, Nightflight (SIN/Sony Australia)
BEST LATIN JAZZ ALBUM
Papo Vasquez, Oasis (Picaro)
BEST DEBUT CD
Natalie Cressman, Unfolding (Natalie Cressman)
NOTABLE INSTRUMENTAL JAZZ RELEASES OF 2012
Harry Allen & Scott Hamlton, ’Round Midnight (Challenge) Joe Alterman, Give Me The Simple Life (Miles High ) Bob Arthurs and Steve Lamattina, Jazz for Svetlana (Bob Arthurs) Dan Block, Duality (Miles High) Vince Giordano and The Nighthawks, Loudon Wainwright III, Catherine Russell, Leon Redbone, and others, Boardwalk Empire: Volume 1 Music From The HBO Original Series (Elektra) Anthony Branker & Ascent, Together (Origin) Dave Brubeck Quartet, Their Last Time Out (Columbia Legacy/Sony) Brubeck Brothers Quartet, Lifetimes (Blue Forest) Don Byron, Love, Peace And Soul (Savoy Jazz) Kevin Coelho, Funkengruven: The Joy of Driving a B3 (Summit/ Chicken Coup) Copernicus, Deeper (Nevermore/Moonjune) Roger Davidson Trio, We Remember Helen (Soundbrush) Caroline Davis, Live Work & Play (Ears & Eyes) Tom Dempsey/Tim Ferguson Quartet, Beautiful Friendship (Planet Arts) Akua Dixon, Moving On (Akua Dixon) Rick Drumm and Fatty Necroses, Return From the Unknown (Rick Drumm ) Duke Ellington Legacy, Single Petal Of A Rose (Renma) The Fat Babies, Chicago Hot (Delmark) Michael Feinberg, The Elvin Jones Project (Sunnyside Communications) Mercedes Figueras & The Black Butterflies, Rainbows for Ramon (Mercedes Figueras) Jacob Fischer, Jacob Fischer: Guitarist (Arbors Jazz) Rebecca Coupe Franks, Two Oceans (Rebecca Coupe Franks) Satoko Fujii and Natsuki Tamura, Muku (Libra) Hal Galper Trio, Airegin Revisited (Origin) Gato Libre, Forever (Libra) Beka Gochiashvili, Beka Gochiashvili (Exitus Entertainment) Vinny Golia Abstractions and Retrocausalities (Nine Winds) Scott Healy Ensemble, Hudson City Suite (Hudson City) Fred Hersch Trio, Alive at the Vanguard (Palmetto) Marquis Hill, Sounds of the City (SkipTone Music) Chris Hopkins & Bernd Lhotzky, Partners in Crime (Echoes of Swing Productions) Jason Kao Hwang, Burning Bridge (Innova) Asuka Kakitani, Bloom (Nineteen Eight) Karl 2000, Karl 2000 (GSI Studios) Frank Kimbrough Trio, Live at Kitano (Palmetto) Lee Konitz, Bill Frisell, Gary Peacock, Joey Baron, Live at the Blue Note (Half Note) Steve Kuhn, Steve Swallow, Joey Baron, Wisteria (ECM) Jeff Lorber Fusion, Galaxy (Heads Up) Jon Lundbom & Big Five Chord, No New Tunes (Hot Cup LP) Roberto Magris, Aliens in a Bebop Planet (JMood) Wynton Marsalis, Music of America (Sony Masterworks) Mark Masters Ensemble, Ellington Saxophone Encounters (Capri) Virginia Mayhew Quartet, Mary Lou Williams — The Next 100 Years (Renma) Myra Melford, The Guest House (Enja/Yellow Bird) Pat Metheny, What’s It All About (Nonesuch) Hendrik Meurkens and Gabriel Espinosa, Celebrando (ZOHO Music) Bob Mintzer, For the Moment (MCG Jazz) James Morrison, Snappy Too (Aleph) MP3 Trio, l'Eau (Demajors) Hailey Niswanger, The Keeper (Calmit Productions) Dave Phillips and Freedance, Confluence (Innova) Ben Powell, New Street (Ben Powell Music) Reggie Quinerly, Music Inspired by Freedman Town (Redefinition Music) Sam Rivers, Reunion: Live in New York (Pi) Jason Robinson, Tiresian Symmetry (Cuneiform) Scott Robinson Doctette, Bronze Nemesis (ScienSonic Laboratories) Cynthia Sayer, Joyride (Plunk) Bobby Sanabria Big Band, Multiverse (Jazzheads) Wadada Leo Smith and Louis Moholo-Moholo, Ancestors (TUM) Gary Smulyan, Smul’s Paradise (Capri) Aki Takase & Han Bennink, Two for Two (Intact) Leon Foster Thomas, Brand New Mischief (Krossover Jazz) Ryan Truesdell and Gil Evans, Centennial — Newly Discovered Works of Gil Evans (ArtistShare) UoU, Take the 7 Train (Tippin’) Michael Webster, Momentus (OA2) Jessica Williams, Songs Of Earth (Origin) Steve Williams & Jazz Nation, Steve Williams & Jazz Nation With Eddie Daniels (OA2)
NOTABLE JAZZ VOCAL RELEASES OF 2012
Amikaeyla, Being In Love (RootsJazz) Peter Appleyard, Sophisticated Ladies (Linus Entertainment) Susie Arioli, All the Way (Jazzheads) Dee Bell, Sagacious Grace (Laser) Cheryl Bentyne, Let’s Misbehave: The Cole Porter Songbook (Summit) Ran Blake and Christine Correa, Down Here Below: Tribute to Abbey Lincoln Volume One (Red Piano) Lola Danza, The Island (Evolver) Dena Derose, Travelin' Light (MAXJAZZ) Paulette Dozier, In Walked You (Paulette Dozier) Madeline Eastman and Randy Porter, A Quiet Thing (Mad-Kat) Cynthia Felton, Freedom Jazz Dance (Felton Entertainment) Amina Figarova, Twelve (In & Out) Letizia Gambi, Introducing Letizia Gambi (Jando Music) Giacomo Gates, Miles Tones: The Music of Miles Davis (Savant) Marcus Goldhaber, Almost Love (Fallen Apple) Norah Jones, Little Broken Hearts (Blue Note) Stacey Kent, Dreamer in Concert (Blue Note) Lisa Kirchner, Something To Sing About (Verdant World) The Lumineers, The Lumineers (Dualtone Music Group) Sandra Marlowe, True Blue (Sandra Marlowe) Paul McCartney, Kisses on the Bottom (Hear Music/Concord) Chris McNulty, The Song That Sings You Here (Challenge) Jessica Molaskey and Dave Frishberg, At the Algonquin (Arbors Jazz) Stephanie Nakasian, Show Me The Way (Capri) Maria Neckam, Unison (Sunnyside Communications) Alexis Parsons & Connie Crothers, hippin’ (New Artists) John Proulx, The Best Thing For You (MAXJAZZ) Ellen Robinson, Don't Wait Too Long (EMR Music) Jackie Ryan, Listen Here (Openart Productions) Seung-Hee, Sketches on the Sky (SoRieN Music) Tessa Souter, Beyond the Blue (Motema Music) Sweet Leda, Need The Music (Sweet Leda) Uptown Vocal Jazz Quartet, Hustlin' for a Gig (HouseKat) Joan Watson Jones with Frank Wilkins, Quiet Conversations — A Duet (Eye Of Samantha Productions) Alison Wedding, This Dance (Ground Up Music) Bob Wolfman, Transition (Bob Wolfman Music)
NOTABLE LATIN JAZZ RELEASES OF 2012
Paul Beaudry & Pathways, Americas (Soundkeeper) Anna Estrada, Volando (Feral Flight Productions) Grupo Los Santos, Clave Heart (OA2) Kat Parra, Las Aventuras de Pasion! (JazzMa) Carol Saboya, Belezas (AAM Music) Son Yambu, La Maravilla (Apollo Sound)
NOTABLE BLUES AND BEYOND RELEASES OF 2012
All Purpose Blues Band, Cornbread & Cadillacs (Catbone Music) Jeff Black, B-Sides and Confessions Vol. 2 (Lotos Nile Music) Carolina Chocolate Drops, Leaving Eden (Nonesuch) Barbara Carr, Keep the Fire Burning (Catfood) The Chieftains (with Bon Iver, Carolina Chocolate Drops The Civil Wars, The Decemberists, and Imelda May), Voice Of Ages (Hear Music) CMC & Silenta, Get It on Now (Roca) Ry Cooder, Election Special (Nonesuch) Craig Charles Funk & Soul Club, Craig Charles Funk & Soul Club (Freestyle) The Cutler, The Best Things In Life Aren't Things (Steel Tiger) Daddy Mack Blues Band, Pay the Piper (Inside Sounds) Doubt, Mercy, Pity, Peace & Love (Moonjune) Antje Duvekot, New Siberia (Dandelion) Ghost Town Blues, Dark Horse (Inside Sounds) Davy Graham, Anthology: 1961-2007 Lost Tapes (Les Cousins Music) Caroline Herring, Camilla (Signature Sounds) Hey, Rube!, Can You Hear Me Mutha? (Steel Tiger) Martha High, Soul Overdue (Freestyle) Howelldevine, Jumps Boogies & Wobbles (Arhoolie) Jim Lauderdale, Charlie Louvin, Nanci Griffith, Mike Farris and 18 South, Music City Roots: Live From Loveless Cafe (Compass) Colin Linden, Still Live (Yellow Dog) New Riders Of The Purple Sage, 17 Pine Avenue (Woodstock) Johnny Rawls, Soul Survivor (Catfood) Shuffle Demons, Clusterfunk (Linus Entertainment) Skillet & Leroy, 2 Or 3 Times A Day (Cult Collectibles) Connie Townsend & The Ginsangers, Feast of St. Martin (Wild Ginsang Music)
NOTABLE MUSICAL CAST RECORDINGS OF 2012
George Gershwin, Audra McDonald, Norm Lewis, and David AlanGrier, Porgy and Bess: New Broadway Cast Recording (P.S. Classics) George Gershwin, Danny Burstein, Rebecca Luker, Jason Graae, and Philip Chaffin, Sweet Little Devil (P.S. Classics) Stephen Sondheim, Colin Donnell, Celia Keenan-Bolger, and Lin Manuel Miranda, Merrily We Roll Along (P.S. Classics)
BEST CHRISTMAS RELEASES OF 2012
Jason Paul Curtis, Lovers Holiday: With Swinglab & Swing Machine (Jason Paul Curtis) Nathan Eklund, Crafty Christmas (OA2)
NOTABLE REISSUES ALL GENRES
Hilton Felton, The Best Of Hilton Felton 1970-74 (Jazzman) Allan Holdsworth, Hard Hat Area (Moonjune) Henri-Pierre Noël, Piano (Wah Wah 45s) Various Artists, Jukebox Mambo: Rumba & Afro-Latin Accented (Jazzman) Various Artists, Spiritual Jazz 2: Europe (Jazzman) Various Artists, Spiritual Jazz 3: Europe (Jazzman) Paul Winter Sextet, Count Me In (Living Music)
NOTABLE DVD RELEASES OF 2012
Gregg Allman, I'm No Angel: Live on Stage (Cherry Red) The Beatles, Strange Fruit: The Beatles' Apple Records (Sexy Intellectual) The Beatles, Their Golden Age (Facts That Matter) Charlie Daniels Band, Live At Rockpalast (Made in Germany Music) Bob Dylan and The Band, Down in the Flood: Associations and Collaborations (Sexy Intellectual) The Vinny Golia Large Ensemble, Overview: 1996-2006 (Nine Winds) The Grateful Dead, Dawn Of The Dead (Sexy Intellectual) John Lee Hooker, Cook With The Hook: Live 1974 (John Lee H) The Rolling Stones Under Review 1975-1983: The Ronnie Wood Years Part 1 (Sexy Intellectual) Ike & Tina Turner, Ike & Tina on the Road 1971-72 (MVD Visual) Frank Zappa, From Straight To Bizarre: Zappa, Beefheart, Alice Cooper and L.A.’s Lunitic Fringe (Sexy Intellectual)