Amazing Jazz Albums

John Coltrane - Live at Birdland

I've mentioned this album several times, I'm sure. "Your Lady" is one of my favorite pieces of recorded music and, in a way, a definitive example of this amazing quartet. It's hard to pin down exactly what kind of music this is. Eastern and African music deeply informs their playing, but in an organic and utterly unique way. Elvin is a crackling fire under the whole thing (or ocean waves against the shore), Garrison anchors the tune, vamping only one or two notes, and McCoy sparingly adds his beautiful chords.

John Scofield - EnRoute

I mostly love this album for Bill Stewart's drumming. Check out "Wee", "It Is Written" and "Over Big Top".

Dave McKenna & Gray Sargent - Concord Duo Series, Vol.2

The cover art is dreadful, but this is a fantastic pairing of musicians. Gray Sargent is a guitarist who comes out of the Charlie Christian/Freddie Green/Barney Kessel lineage (rather than the post-Scofield/Metheny thing) and blends his woody sound seamlessly with the piano. McKenna's claim to fame is his driving left-hand bass lines, and together with Sargent's Freddie Green-esqe comping they nicely reinforce each other. Great traditional jazz.

Later:

Lennie Tristano - The New Tristano

Paul Bley - Footloose

Nmperign - Ommatidia

Rodrigo Amado - Searching for Adam

Trio Sowari - Shortcut

Sonny Simmons - Burning Spirits

The Electrics - Live at the Glenn Miller Cafe

Archie Shepp / Bill Dixon - Quartet

Nate Wooley & Paul Lytton - Creak Above 33

Nels Cline / Wally Shoup / Chris Corsano - Immolation / Immersion