Jul 16, 2026 1:34 PM
74th Annual DownBeat Critics Poll: And the Winners Are …
The DownBeat Critics Poll never ceases to amaze! And the 74th Edition offered plenty of accolades for poll veterans and…
Ted Nash revisits Bernstein and Sondheim for ‘Somewhere Else: Songs From West Side Story.’
(Photo: Frank Stewart)
Matthew Stevens (left), Terri Lyne Carrington, Debo Ray, Kassa Overall, Morgan Guerin, Aaron Parks all contribute to Carrington’s ‘Waiting Game,’ one of six new albums that earned five stars in DownBeat during 2019.
(Photo: Delphine Diallo)Ed Partyka Jazz Orchestra, In The Tradition (Neuklang)
Peterson-Kohler Collective, Winter Colors (Origin)
Ralph Peterson & The Messenger Legacy, Legacy Alive: Volume 6 At The Sidedoor (Onyx Productions)
Guilherme Pimenta, Catopé (Self Release)
Leslie Pintchik, Same Day Delivery: Leslie Pintchik Trio Live (Pintch Hard)
Preservation Hall Jazz Band, A Tuba To Cuba (Sub Pop)
Tom Rainey Trio, Combobulated (Intakt)
Mette Rasmussen/Chris Corsano, A View Of The Moon (From The Sun) (Clean Feed)
John Raymond, Real Feels Live, Vol. 2 (Sunnyside)
Kate Reid, The Heart Already Knows (Self Release)
Dave Rempis/Brandon Lopez/Ryan Packard, The Early Bird Gets (Aerophonic)
Steph Richards, Take The Neon Lights (Birdwatcher)
Matana Roberts, Coin Coin Chapter Four: Memphis (Constellation)
Scott Robinson, Tenormore (Arbors)
Tad Robinson, Real Street (Severn)
Mark Ronson, Late Night Feelings (RCA)
Joel Ross, KingMaker (Blue Note)
Bobby Rush, Sitting On Top Of The Blues (Deep Rush/Thirty Tigers)
Catherine Russell, Alone Together (Dot Time)
Felipe Salles Interconnections Ensemble, The Lullaby Project (Tapestry)
Antonio Sanchez & Migration, Lines In The Sand (Cam)
Mighty Mike Schermer, Bad Tattoo (Finedog/VizzTone)
Scopes, Scopes (Whirlwind)
Christian Scott aTunde Adjuah, Ancestral Recall (Ropeadope)
Arian Shafiee and Wendy Eisenberg, A Scarlet Fail (VDSQ)
The Matthew Shipp Trio, Signature (ESP-Disk)
Matt Slocum, Sanctuary (Sunnyside)
somesurprises, somesurprises (Drawing Room)
Something Blue, Maximum Enjoyment (Posi-Tone)
Mary Stallings, Songs Were Made To Sing (Smoke Sessions)
Brynn Stanley, Classic Christmas (SonoPath)
Yale Strom’s Broken Consort, Shimmering Lights (ARC Music)
Dave Stryker, Eight Track III (Strikezone)
Dave Stryker, Eight Track Christmas (Strikezone)
Helen Sung, Sung With Words: A Collaboration With Dana Gioia (Stricker Street)
Tartit, Amankor/The Exile (Riverboat)
Vaneese Thomas, Down Yonder (Segue)
Henry Townsend, Mule (Omnivore)
Gianluigi Trovesi/Gianni Coscia, La Misteriosa Musica Della Regina Loana (ECM)
Benny Turner & Cash McCall, Going Back Home (Nola Blue)
Jeremy Udden, Three In Paris (Sunnyside)
The Vampires, Pacifica (Earshift)
Chucho Valdés, Jazz Batá 2 (Mack Avenue)
Petra Van Nuis & Dennis Luxion, Because We’re Night People (String Damper)
Wayne Wallace Latin Jazz Quintet, The Rhythm Of Invention (Patois)
Greg Ward Presents Rogue Parade, Stomping Off From Greenwood (Greenleaf Music)
Florian Weber, Lucent Waters (ECM)
Cory Weeds Quintet, Live At Frankie’s Jazz Club (Cellar Live)
Kenny Werner, The Space (Pirouet)
G. Calvin Weston, The Phoenix Orchestra Dust And Ash (577 Records)
Matthew Whitaker, Now Hear This (Resilience)
JJ Whitefield, Brother All Alone (Kryptox)
Big Daddy Wilson, Deep In My Soul (Ruf)
Wing Walker Orchestra, Hazelsuite (Ears & Eyes)
Ben Wolfe, Fatherhood (Resident Arts)
Mitch Woods, A Tip Of The Hat To Fats (Blind Pig)
Nate Wooley, Columbia Icefield (Northern Spy)
Yes! Trio, Groove Du Jour (jazz&people)
Miguel Zenón, Sonero: The Music Of Ismael Rivera (Miel Music)
Jesper Zeuthen/Jacob Anderskov/Anders Vestergaard, Out Of The Spectacle (ILK)
Various Artists, Live At Little Gem Saloon: Basin Street Records Celebrates 20 Years (Basin Street)
Louis Armstrong, Live In Europe (Dot Time)
Andy Bey, Shades Of Bey (Ko Ko)
Bley/Peacock/Motian, When Will The Blues Leave (ECM)
Marion Brown and Dave Burrell, Live At The Black Musicians’ Conference 1981 (NoBusiness)
Betty Carter, The Music Never Stops (Blue Engine)
Teddy Edwards, Out Of This World (SteepleChase)
e.s.t., Live In Gothenburg (ACT)
John Lee Hooker, The Country Blues Of John Lee Hooker (Craft)
House Guests, My Mind Set Me Free (Shake It)
J.B. Hutto & His Hawks, Things Are So Slow (Space)
Instant Composers Pool, Groupcomposing (Corbett Vs. Dempsey)
Franklin Kiermyer, Solomon’s Daughter (Dot Time)
Sunny Murray, Homework (No Business)
Don Rendell-Ian Carr Quintet, The Complete Lansdowne Recordings (Jazzman)
Sam Rivers, Emanation (NoBusiness)
Cecil Taylor, Silent Tongues (ORG)
Ebo Taylor, Palaver (BBE)
Various Artists, Feelin’ Right Saturday Night: The Ric & Ron Anthology (Craft)
Various Artists, Jazz Fest: The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival (Smithsonian Folkways)
Various Artists, Rough Guide To Barrelhouse Blues (Rough Guide)
Clockwise from top left, Mary Halvorson, Patricia Brennan, Adam O’Farrill, Keith Jarrett’s At the Deer Head Inn: The Complete Recordings, Sheila Jordan and Jaki Byard.
Jul 16, 2026 1:34 PM
The DownBeat Critics Poll never ceases to amaze! And the 74th Edition offered plenty of accolades for poll veterans and…
A drummer’s drummer, Rodney Holmes gigged with everyone from Joe Zawinul and Carlos Santana to Steve Kimock and the Brecker Brothers.
Jul 22, 2026 12:37 PM
Drummer Rodney Holmes, a powerful presence behind the kit who emerged as an in-demand player on the New York scene…
Ibrahim was an early jazz acolyte, studying the music via 78s he would buy from soldiers stationed in South Africa — who also gave him the nickname “Dollar.”
Jun 30, 2026 3:19 PM
Pianist Abdullah Ibrahim, the NEA Jazz Master from South Africa who helped fuse the folk music of his home country with…
Joe Lovano’s Paramount Quartet will record live at New York’s Village Vanguard for ECM records on Aug. 26–27.
Jul 22, 2026 12:46 PM
One of Joe Lovano’s buzz terms is “the moment of now” and with seemingly infinite patience — despite a schedule…
Percussionist Poncho Sanchez was among the artists scheduled to perform at the now-canceled inaugural LA Jazz Festival.
Aug 11, 2026 12:53 PM
The inaugural LA Jazz Festival, originally scheduled to run Aug. 7–23 with dozens of events across Los Angeles’…
