What Are Your Favorite Jazz Recordings of the 21st Century?

[HutchFan]

In a few months, we’ll be 20 years into the new century.  Twenty years!!!  In honor of this occasion (and as an excuse to ruminate on music even more than I already do), I’ve been poring over my music collection for the last week or so, making a list of my favorite jazz recordings of the 21st century.  These were my self-imposed ground rules for this little exercise:

• The music must have been recorded in this century, after December 31, 1999.
• The record must be in my collection.  I want to focus on what I’ve already got.
• Each musician can only appear on the list once as a leader. (Sideman appearances don't count.)

A couple other points:

• These recordings are NOT on my list because they’re the “best” or “most important” recordings of the century.
• These are my favorites.  I use that word deliberately.  The recordings on this list have given me much pleasure and enjoyment; I would recommend them to my friends. 
• Initially, I was going to keep the number of recordings on the list low.  Maybe 20 recordings for 20 years.  But … that was … impossible.  So I just kept adding stuff that I’d recommend without hesitation, and I came up with the following list.  (It turned out to be 102 records.)
• The recordings are listed alphabetically (by the artist's last name). 

My list:

Ambrose Akinmusire – When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
J.D. Allen – Radio Flyer (Savant)
Ben Allison & Medicine Wheel – Riding the Nuclear Tiger (Palmetto)
Fred Anderson, Hamid Drake – From the River to the Ocean (Thrill Jockey)
Billy Bang – Vietnam: Reflections (Justin Time)
Richie Beirach – Impressions of Tokyo: Ancient City of the Future (Out Note)
Jerry Bergonzi – Tenorist (Savant)
Tim Berne – The sublime and. Sciencefrictionlive (Thirsty Ear)
Terence Blanchard – Bounce (Blue Note)
Jane Ira Bloom – Jane Ira Bloom Meets Jackson Pollack: Chasing Paint (Arabesque)
Arthur Blythe – Focus (Savant)
Ruby Braff – Watch What Happens (Arbors)
The Brazilian Trio – Constelação (Motéma)
Bob Brookmeyer, New Art Orchestra – Get Well Soon (Challenge)
Joey Calderrazo – Amanacer (Marsalis Music)
Baikida Carroll ‎– Marionettes on a High Wire (OmniTone)
Bill Carrothers – Castaways (Pirouet)
Marc Cary – Focus (Motéma)
Ryan Cohan – The River (Motéma)
Marc Copland – New York Trio Recordings, Vol. 1: Modinha (Pirouet)
Laurent Coq Quartet ‎– Like a Tree in a City (Sunnyside)
Chick Corea, Gary Burton – Hot House (Concord)
Adam Cruz – Milestone (Sunnyside)
Alexis Cuadrado – A Lorca Soundscape (Sunnyside)
Dave Douglas – The Infinite (RCA)
Marty Ehrlich – Line on Love (Palmetto)
Orrin Evans – Flip the Script (Posi-Tone)
Larry Goldings ‎– Quartet (Palmetto)
Charlie Haden Liberation Music Orchestra – Not In Our Name (Verve)
Jim Hall – Grand Slam: Live at the Regatta Bar (Telarc)
Tom Harrell – Trip (HighNote)
Donald Harrison, Ron Carter, Billy Cobham – Heroes (Nagel-Heyer) 
Billy Hart – Quartet (HighNote)
Albert “Tootie” Heath, Ethan Iverson, Ben Street – Live at Smalls (SmallsLIVE)
Pablo Held – Elders (Pirouet)
Mark Helias' Open Loose – Verbs of Will (Radio Legs)
Dave Holland – Not for Nothin’ (ECM)
Bobby Hutcherson – Wise One (Kind of Blue)
Dick Hyman, Tom Pletcher ‎– If Bix Played Gershwin (Arbors)
Vijay Iyer – Historicity (ACT)
Frank Kimbrough – Solstice (Pirouet)
Guillermo Klein – Los Guachos III (Sunnyside)
Lee Konitz, Alan Broadbent – Live-Lee (Milestone)
Steve Kuhn – Pastorale (Sunnyside)
Dave Liebman Group – Further Conversations: Live (True Azul)
Chris Lightcap Quartet ‎– Bigmouth (Fresh Sound New Talent)
Charles Lloyd Quartet – Rabo de Nube (ECM)
Joe Lovano Us Five – Folk Art (Blue Note)
Brian Lynch, Eddie Palmieri - Simpatico (Holistic Musicworks)
Tony Malaby – Adobe (Sunnyside)
Ray Mantilla & the New Space Station – Man Ti Ya (Savant)
Rick Margitza ‎– Memento (Palmetto)
Branford Marsalis – Braggtown (Marsalis Music)
Pat Martino – Think Tank (Blue Note)
Benny Maupin – Penumbra (Cryptogramophone)
John McNeil, Bill McHenry – Chill Morn He Climb Jenny (Sunnyside)
Pat Metheny – The Way Up (Nonesuch)
Mulgrew Miller – Live at Kennedy Center, Vol. 2 (MaxJazz)
Jason Moran – Ten (Blue Note)
Moutin Reunion Quartet – Something Like Now (Nocturne) 
Ted Nash – The Mancini Project (Palmetto)
Bill O'Connell + the Latin Jazz All Stars – Zócalo (Savant)
Arturo O’Farrill and the Afro-Latin Jazz Orchestra – Song for Chico (Zoho)
Chico O'Farrill – Carambola (Milestone)
William Parker Quartet – O’Neal’s Porch (Aum Fidelity)
Enrico Pieranunzi – Perugia Suite (EGEA)
Odean Pope ‎– Odean's List (In+Out)
Chris Potter – Follow the Red Line: Live at the Village Vanguard (Sunnyside)
Joshua Redman – Compass (Nonesuch)
Adam Rogers – Time & the Infinite (Criss Cross)
Sonny Rollins – Without a Song: The 9/11 Concert (Milestone)
Josh Roseman Unit – Treats for the Nightwalker (Enja/Justin Time)
Renee Rosnes – Beloved of the Sky (Smoke Sessions)
Gonzalo Rubalcaba – Solo (Blue Note)
Jerome Sabbagh – North (Fresh Sound New Talent)
John Scofield – This Meets That (EmArcy)
Christian Scott ‎– Anthem (Concord)
Wayne Shorter Quartet – Beyond the Sound Barrier (Verve)
Edward Simon – Poesia (CamJazz)
Alex Sipiagin ‎– Destinations Unknown (Criss Cross)
Wadada Leo Smith's Golden Quartet – The Year of the Elephant (Pi)
Walter Smith III ‎– III (Criss Cross)
Jim Snidero – Interface (Savant)
Martial Solal – NYC-1: Live at the Village Vanguard (Blue Note)
Terell Stafford Quintet – Taking Chances: Live at the Dakota (MaxJazz)
Bobo Stenson Trio – Indicum (ECM)
Craig Taborn – Light Made Lighter (Thirsty Ear)
John Taylor – Angel of the Presence (CamJazz)
Henry Threadgill & Make a Move – Everybody's Mouth a Book (Pi)
Trio 3 [Oliver Lake, Reggie Workman, Andrew Cyrille] – Open Ideas (Palmetto)
Steve Turre – Delicious and Delightful (HighNote)
Mads Vinding, Jean-Michel Pilc, Billy Hart – Open Minds (Storyville)
Cedar Walton – One Flight Down (HighNote)
Bobby Watson – Horizon Reassembled (Palmetto)
Kenny Werner – Beat Degeneration: Live, Vol. 2 (Night Bird Music/Sunnyside)
Randy Weston & His African Rhythms Trio – Zep Tepi (Random Chance)
Kenny Wheeler Big Band ‎– The Long Waiting (CamJazz)
Jessica Williams – This Side Up (MaxJazz)
Gerald Wilson – In My Time (Mack Avenue)
Mike Wofford Trio ‎– Live at Athenaeum Jazz (Capri)
Bojan Z Trio ‎– Transpacifik (Label Bleu)
Denny Zeitlin – Slickrock (Maxjazz)
 

 

Comments? … Anyone care to share a list of your own favorites?

The more, the merrier.  

 

[sidewinder]

Some very good things in that list. I would definitely add -

Alice Coltrane ‘Translinear Light’

Dave Holland Big Band ‘Overtime’

Yazz Ahmed ‘La Saboteuse’

Keith Tippett Octet ‘The Nine Dances of Patrick O’Gonogon’

 

[HutchFan]

8 minutes ago, sidewinder said:

Some very good things in that list. I would definitely add -

Alice Coltrane ‘Translinear Light’

Dave Holland Big Band ‘Overtime’

Yazz Ahmed ‘La Saboteuse’

Keith Tippett Octet ‘The Nine Dances of Patrick O’Gonogon’

 

Thanks for the recs, sidewinder. More to explore.   

[Niko]

Not much to add, but:

Michael Attias - Credo

Julian Lage - Arclight

Paul Motian - On Broadway Vol 5

John Zorn - Mount Analogue 

 

I've lived longer in this century than in the previous one, but even in my collection the majority of newish jazz is from the 90s  

[aparxa]

I hear you,  the time elapsed between the end of  WWII and my birth is less important than my age by now, but the majority of my jazz listening has been recorded before I was born.

Here are a few records I have enjoyed in the present century, the ones in bold maybe a little more.

Jarek Śmietana / Gary Bartz - African Lake
Abdullah Ibrahim Trio - Cape Town Revisited
Michel Graillier, Riccardo Del Fra - Soft Talk
Mal Waldron / Jeanne Lee - After Hours
Rene Urtreger - Onirica
Paolo Fresu - Kind Of Porgy & Bess
Archie Shepp & Mal Waldron - Left Alone Revisited
Mal Waldron / Jean-Jacques Avenel / Steve Lacy - One More Time
E.S.T. - Seven Days Of Falling
Tony Kofi Quartet - Plays Monk
Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey - Walking With Giants
Kora Jazz Trio - Part Two
Organissimo - This Is the Place
The Bennie Maupin Ensemble - Penumbra
Paul Bley - Solo In Mondsee
Reptet - Chicken Or Beef?
Sophie Alour - Opus 3
Abdullah Ibrahim - Sotho Blue
John Tchicai, Charlie Kohlhase, Garrison Fewell, Cecil McBee, Billy Hart - Tribal Ghost
Yusef Lateef Part-  Live At The Olympia June 27.2012
Stéphane Kerecki Quartet - Nouvelle Vague
Heads Of State - Search For Peace
Ahmad Jamal - Marseille
Laurent De Wilde - New Monk Trio
Nicolas Moreaux - Far Horizons

 

Plus I have discovered and enjoyed many musicians from attending their concerts or from heavy collecting from Dime around 2005-2010 and I should seek out their corresponding recordings at some stage.

[sidewinder]

Forgot to add Yusef Lateef/Belmondo ‘Influence’

[Teasing the Korean]

Jazz's cultural relevance in the 2000s occurs via samples used in electronica and hip hop.  So I will post some of those examples.

Here is Cannonball Adderley:

 

[Teasing the Korean]

 

[HutchFan]

27 minutes ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Jazz's cultural relevance in the 2000s occurs via samples used in electronica and hip hop.

Regardless of jazz's relevance to the culture at large, I know that it remains VERY relevant to me!

That said, keep sharing whatever you feel led to post. 😉

[Teasing the Korean]

 

3 minutes ago, HutchFan said:

Regardless of jazz's relevance to the culture at large, I know that it remains VERY relevant to me!

That said, keep sharing whatever you feel led to post. 😉

Oh, I realize that jazz is relevant to those who frequent this site.  But I don't think any conversation about jazz post-2000 can or should ignore sampling by hip-hop and electronica producers.  But if that is not what you are seeking, I won't go in that direction.  

[HutchFan]

16 minutes ago, Teasing the Korean said:

Oh, I realize that jazz is relevant to those who frequent this site.  But I don't think any conversation about jazz post-2000 can or should ignore sampling by hip-hop and electronica producers.  But if that is not what you are seeking, I won't go in that direction.  

Keep 'em coming, TtK. I'm interested in hearing whatever it is that you're interested in sharing. 

 

3 hours ago, aparxa said:

Mal Waldron / Jean-Jacques Avenel / Steve Lacy - One More Time

The Bennie Maupin Ensemble - Penumbra

Both on my list too.👍

 

3 hours ago, aparxa said:

Jarek Śmietana / Gary Bartz - African Lake

I'm a Gary Bartz guy, but I had no idea that this existed. Looks fascinating. Exactly why I love these sorts of discussions! Thanks for the heads-up! 

Edited August 30, 2019 by HutchFan

[jazzbo]

Honestly my favorite of this decade is Jose Jame "Yesterday I had the Blues--The Music of Billie Holiday." Wonderful ftio backing James, James does a very interesting job, excellent recording.

[BillF]

This is probably as good as it gets ...

[danasgoodstuff]

This list was done for a thread that had slightly different rules, so if you get hung up on that just disregard what doesn't fit the rules here.

so here goes - my fav 21st Century albums, even if most of them are in one way or another backwards looking:

 

1) Enrico Rava - On the Dancefloor (ECM 2012).  A live, big band MJ tribute (so not typical ECM), and a most unusual one from an Italian trumpet player who'd paid Michael no mind until he saw a TV special by chance and became obsessed.  Treatments of MJ tunes (and Chaplin's "Smile") range from Sousa marches to funk and places Jackson in a broader context than usual.  First heard library copy picked up on a whim. 

2) Trio Beyond - Saudades (ECM 2006).  Another live tribute not in ECM's usual bag, this time to the Tony Williams Lifetime.  Scofield, Goldings & DeJohnette aren't quite as abrasive ('in a good way') as Williams, Larry Young & McLaughlin were, but they do bring lots of energy and attitude.  On one level much more 'like' its inspiration than #1 above, but still it's own thing.

3) Derek Bailey - Ballades (Tzadik 2002).  Zorn convinced Bailey to do an album of standards, solo on acoustic, Bailey did one then said 'no, wait, I'm going to redo it' and gave us this stream of consciousness where nice old tunes peek into an ever morphing flow of concrete abstraction.  1st draught came out later (as Standards), and is fine, but this is otherworldly.  Another one I first heard curtesy of the Multnomah County Library where I work. 

4) Ornette Coleman - Sound Grammar (Phrase Text 2006).  Not as great as the gig I saw with three bass players, but good enough to keep other players on their toes well into the next century.

5) J.D. Allen - Graphiti (Savant 2015).  Young-ish tenor sax player (born 1972) has done lots of albums since his 1999 debut as a leader.  This sax/bass/drums trio is the one that grabbed me.  Has that Saxophone Colossus/Our Man in Paris swagger.  May have first heard this on a library copy too.  New original tunes, just played old!

6) Bobby Broom - Stand! (Preminition 2001).  Yes, he does the Sly Stone title tune and a bunch of others of that era.  Guitar, bass, drums; pretty 'straight ahead'.  Quite magical.  Why not?  The're old tunes now/then when he recorded them.  If you play them like the're standards; then they'll be, like, standards.

7) Rodney Jones - Soul Manifesto (Blue Note 2001).  Also nominally new music, but kind of a throwback all the same.  Features Idris Muhammad, Maceo Parker & Arthur Blythe.  Grooving.   

8) James Carter - Chasin' the Gypsy (Atlantic 2000).  Django tribute on which he plays all different saxes, including bass.  Fun record.

9) Regina Carter - Southern Comfort (Masterworks 2014).  A fiddlin' tribute to her coal miner forbearers.  Also plays on her cousin's record, #8 above.  Much of the material is "traditional", which makes it the best recent folk album and unlikely to be recognized as such.

10) Mary Halverson & Bill Frisell - (Tzadik 2018).  Two guitars, Debussy, folk music, standards; a tribute to Johnny Smith that makes him sound like he's melting.  Walk, Don't Run, to get this mind-melter.

11) Lonnie Smith - All In My Mind (Blue Note  2018).  Live with his regular working band.  A little bit spacey, quite a bit greasy.  Saw a gig very like this album.

12) Andrew Hill - Time Lines (Blue Note 2005).  The last word from Alfred Lion's last great discovery.  

13)  William Bell - This is Where I Belong (Stax 2016).  Another return to where he started, label-wise.  All new except for a reinterpretation of his cowrite "Born Under a Bad Sign".

14) Shelby Lynn - Just a Little Lovin' (Lost Highway 2008).  A Dusty Springfield tribute that dares to be quiet in a world maxed out on loud, basically a girl sitting by her stereo, singing along to get herself to tomorrow.  I think this was another library discovery. 

15) Willie Nelson - You Don't Know Me (Lost Highway 2006).  Willie's tribute to Cindy walker, who may not have written anything else as exquisite as the title song, but who wrote (and cowrote) plenty of good ones.  Willie no doubt played 'em coming up and does 'em proud here.  

16)  Willie & the Wheel (Bismeaux 2009). Asleep at the Wheel's presence means it's a Western Swing thing, but here they go for a pre-WWII sound making it a little different.  I swear Willie knows his Country AND Western music state by state and year by year, if not month by month and county by county.

17) B.B. King - Let the Good Times Roll (MCA 1999).  A Louis Jordan tribute with Dr. John and a Ray Charles band horn section.  All kinds of fun. 

18) The Rolling Stones (Polydor 2016).  The record they'd threatened to make for decades. Maybe not as good as it could've been if they'd made it back then, but I'm still glad they did and it's pretty darn good.

19) Sonny Rollins - Without a song, the 9/11 Concert (Milestone 2001). He was close to ground zero and this is the next concert after...as he said, "Music can help."  Yes it can.

20)  John Scofield - Country For Old Men (Impulse! 2016).  Blues of a different colour.  Not as good as the gig I saw from the supporting tour, but still fine.

 

[soulpope]

Waldron + Lacy + Avenel "One More Time" (Sketch)      2002 .... as good as it gets ....

[soulpope]

Speaking of Sketch .... :

Rene Urtreger "Onirica" (Sketch)     2001 ....

[Niko]

yes, and also Rene Urtreger "Tentatives" (Minium) from 2006

[soulpope]

More beauty - three Charlie Mariano winners .... :

Charlie Mariano "Deep In A Dream" (Enja)       2002 ....

Charlie Mariano + Ali Haurand + Daniel Humair "Frontier Traffic" (Konnex Records)      2002 ....

Charlie Mariano "Silver Blue" (Enja)     2006 ....

[Milestones]

I like that original list a lot.  I see that our interests cross a good deal.  I favor most of these musicians (if not always the particular choice of record), the majority being veterans and some no longer with us.

I would certainly add something by Frisell: Beautiful Dreamers or the Frisell-Carter-Motian disc.

And Abercrombie, probably Class Trip.

 

[Teasing the Korean]

 

[HutchFan]

8 hours ago, danasgoodstuff said:

This list was done for a thread that had slightly different rules, so if you get hung up on that just disregard what doesn't fit the rules here.

NOT a problem!!!   

 

8 hours ago, danasgoodstuff said:

8) James Carter - Chasin' the Gypsy (Atlantic 2000).  Django tribute on which he plays all different saxes, including bass.  Fun record.

I should have included this one on my list.  An oversight!  

 

8 hours ago, danasgoodstuff said:

15) Willie Nelson - You Don't Know Me (Lost Highway 2006).  Willie's tribute to Cindy walker, who may not have written anything else as exquisite as the title song, but who wrote (and cowrote) plenty of good ones.  Willie no doubt played 'em coming up and does 'em proud here.  

16)  Willie & the Wheel (Bismeaux 2009). Asleep at the Wheel's presence means it's a Western Swing thing, but here they go for a pre-WWII sound making it a little different.  I swear Willie knows his Country AND Western music state by state and year by year, if not month by month and county by county.

 

Oh man, Willie Nelson! Yes! Actually, I went on a Willie-bender this year, focusing on the years before his big breakthrough in the mid-70s. He was a complete original right from the start. . . . As far as I'm concerned, Willie is one of the TITANS of American music, up there with Dylan and Duke and Ray and such.

[Milestones]

Willie may very well be a titan, though it took me a long time to realize it.

 

[HutchFan]

I remember seeing a photo of Miles Davis from some time back in the Seventies.  He was wearing a baseball cap emblazoned with a logo like this one:

Miles knew a fellow titan when he heard one!   

[duaneiac]

This was the first recording which came to my mind.  I'm sure I will think of others later.

Edited August 30, 2019 by duaneiac

[John Tapscott]

Enough for now.

 

Edited August 30, 2019 by John Tapscott