It is the end of year list time again. What are your favourite 2025 new Jazz albums?
My list has a lot of albums that are on the very edges of Jazz.
This year has not thrown up many albums that I have played to death, unlike 2024, and the best stuff seems to have arrived late in the year.
My winner this year is Words Fall Short by Joshua Redman. Good compositions, and great playing.
Close Runner up the original soundscape of "Paradise In The Hold, by Yazz Amed
Tortoise, with Touch. A late entry, on the edges of Jazz. This pounding album, is getting a lot of plays at the moment.
Another very electronic album that arrived late in the year. Small Medium Large with How You Been,
Unclassified Affections by Dan Weiss Quartet is most enjoyable
Cannot leave out Steve Lehman, with The Music of Antony Braxton out of my list. One of my favourite artists.
Mary Halvorson with About Ghosts, finally managed to win me over to her music with this one.
Again of the fringes of Jazz. The rather heavy dark Lullaby For The Lost, by Donny McCaslin
Big Visit: Emma Rawicz and Gwilym Simcock , is another album I enjoyed. Two very good artists get together.
Difficult to go wrong with the brilliant music composed by Jarret and Garbarek, on Belonging by Branford Marsalis Quartet.
Thereupon by Fieldwork is another late entry. Again Lehmann does is stuff.
Spirit Fall by John Patitucci. Almost forgot this super album
Again on the fringes. Openness Trio the debut album by a unique collective comprised of guitarist and producer Nate Mercereau, saxophonist Josh Johnson, and percussionist Carlos Niño.
To finish this is on Edition but something that is not really Jazz, maybe Pop. Heartstrings by Snowpoet. Kinsella has a wonderful voice and the songwriting is first class.
