BEST JAZZ RELEASES
OF 2007
by Marshall Bowden
What is amazing, looking back on 2007, is
how much incredible (not merely good, mind you) music is
constantly being released under the banner of jazz. For
all the recordings on my best of list here, there are maybe
a couple dozen that I think should be widely heard as well.
So, I’ll put out my list and then afterward talk about
some of the other releases that were really amazing this
past year. The list, in no particular order:
New Releases
Harry
Connick Jr./Chanson du Vieux Carre (Marsalis Music)
Connick’s cool big band date recorded in New Orleans
prior to Katrina.
Joe
Zawinul/Brown Street (Heads Up) Live performance
that is the final official release from this keyboard giant
who passed away at the end of 2007. Accompanied by a big
band and a core rhythm section that keeps the groove intact,
Zawinul revisits a number of his most beloved Weather Report
compositions.
Tom
Harrell/Light On (Highnote) Beautiful yet energetic
performance by the golden-toned trumpeter and his young,
sharp band. Harrell's playing is beautiful, and his compositions
also help to make this a modern day jazz quintet classic.
Tierney
Sutton Band/On the Other Side (Telarc) A meditation
on happiness that succeeds on both the conceptual and the
practical basis. Sutton is now firmly established as one
of the most interesting vocalists currently mining the territory
between pure jazz and pure cabaret singing.
Enrico
Rava/The Words and the Days (ECM) Gorgeous
autumnal-laced performances by Rava that surprises with
some New Orleans-based jazz roots. A clear demonstration
that the best and most longstanding European players have
a legitimacy that sometimes has been (wrongly) questioned
in the past.
Kurt
Elling/Night Moves (Concord) Elling’s
Concord debut is less frenetic and style-hopping than some
of his previous releases, and thereby achieves a more sustained
mood and depth.
Bill
Charlap Trio/Live at the Village Vanguard (Blue Note) By
many listeners’ reckoning, Charlap is the best pianist
to come down the pike since Bill Evans. There’s no
question that he brings a high level of sophistication combined
with chops to spare on this sumptuous live performance.
Billy
Bang featuring Frank Lowe/Above & Beyond: An Evening
in Grand Rapids (Justin Time) A farewell performance
(Lowe died later the year this was recorded) with old friends
Bang and Lowe playing a s though nothing else mattered…because
it didn’t.
Wallace
Roney/Jazz (Highnote) Roney demonstrates again
(in case you didn’t get it the first few times) why
he’s the musician of his generation who can best tame
the various elements of modern post-Miles jazz and turn
it into something fresh and edgy, yet highly listenable
and enjoyable.
Joe
Lovano & Hank Jones:Kids (Blue Note) This
set is a really valuable document of these performances,
and deserves a spot on listener’s CD shelves. It may
not turn out to be the most essential release in either
performer’s discography, but it’s difficult
to imagine any listener coming away from this disc disappointed.
Enrico
Pieranunzi/Live in Japan (CAM Jazz) The ghost
of pianist Bill Evans figures prominently in this 2-CD live
recording by Enrico Pieranunzi and his trio mates, Marc
Johnson and Joey Baron. Bassist Marc Johnson played with
Bill Evans’ final trio from 1978 until the pianist’s
untimely death two years later. Like virtually every jazz
pianist to emerge since the legendary Evans trio put its
stamp on the piano trio, Pieranunzi is profoundly influenced
by Evans and has obviously studied and absorbed many of
the maestro’s lessons.
Lafayette
Gilchrist/3 (Hyena) On Gilchrist’s second
album, Towards the Shining Path the emphasis was on Gilcrhist
the composer. Here it’s his piano playing that is
front and center, and it is no small feat that he carries
off being the focal point of the disc’s sound with
apparent ease. Like Monk he stakes out his own claim on
the instrument, but he doesn’t play so much like a
composer or arranger as one might expect.
Keith
Jarrett/My Foolish Heart (ECM) What makes this
performance something special in the group’s 18-record
discography with ECM? Well, as Jarrett himself says in the
liner notes, “It shows the trio at its most buoyant,
swinging, melodic, and dynamic.” And it’s impossible
to argue with him. All three members seem to be in top form
here, playing as well as possible on an individual basis
while contributing equally to the group experience
Christian
Scott/Anthem (Concord) Scott truly swings and
he plays like a jazz trumpet player, regardless of what
you want to call the styles that his rhythm section employs.
In addition, there are recurrent themes and motifs that
run like threads through the album, creating a real cohesive
listening experience.
>>Best
Jazz of 2007: Reissues and Newly Issued Archival Performances
>>Best Jazz of
2007: More Good Stuff
