Monday, December 19, 2011

Eldridge Weighs In

Hard to top Stratton; I won't try. But here's my humble offering, just the same:

First, 10 of my favorite discs of 2011, in no particular order (well, OK, in alphabetical order):

  • Ben Allison, Action-Refraction (Palmetto)
  • Etienne Charles, Kaiso (Culture Shock)
  • Adam Cruz, Milestone (Sunnyside)
  • Dymaxion Quartet, Sympathetic Vibrations (self-released)
  • Steven Lugerner, Narratives (self-released)
  • Rene Marie, Black Lace Freudian Slip (Motema)
  • Verneri Pohjola, Aurora (ACT)
  • Craig Taborn, Avenging Angel (ECM)
  • Tunnel Six, Lake Superior (OA2)
  • Sam Yahel, From Sun to Sun (Sunnyside)

And since neither rules nor algorhythms govern the blog, I'll follow with a slew of honorable mentions that I like just about as well as any of the ten discs above:

  • Ambrose Akinmusire, When the Heart Emerges Glistening (Blue Note)
  • Bill Carrothers Trio, A Night at the Village Vanguard (Pirouet)
  • Chris Dingman, Waking Dreams (Between Worlds)
  • Aaron Goldberg/Guillermo Klein, Bienestan (Sunnyside)
  • Joel Harrison String Choir, Music of Paul Motian (Sunnyside)
  • Orchestre National de Jazz/John Hollenbeck, Shut Up and Dance (Bee Jazz)
  • Noah Preminger, Before the Rain (Palmetto)
  • Matt Slocum, After the Storm (Chandra)

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