The best jazz recordings of 2018:
David Virelles: “Igbo Alakorin (The Singer’s Grove), Vol. I and II” (Pi Recordings). Pianist Virelles’ Cuban heritage always has been vital to him, but here he investigates a specific facet of it: the music of his native Santiago de Cuba and the elder masters who embody it. After years of visiting Cuba from his home in the U.S. to absorb their lessons, Virelles convened several venerable musicians for this recording. The results are at once sumptuous in color, seductive in rhythmic sway and utterly persuasive in their evocations of historic musical forms. Many listeners will liken this to the “Buena Vista Social Club,” but it has a golden tone and melodic urgency of its own. The last few tracks, titled Vol. II, pair Virelles’ piano with percussionist Rafael Abalos’ guiro in austerely beautiful music of Antonio Maria Romeu.
Ulysses Owens, Jr.: “Songs of Freedom” (Somethin’ Cool). Last spring, drummer Owens brought his ambitious “Songs of Freedom” suite to the University of Chicago’s Logan Center for the Arts, the work emerging as a potent reflection on music of the 1960s – and its message of civil rights. The three vocalists in that concert – Theo Bleckmann, Alicia Olatuja and Joanna Majoko – have documented that work here, with the addition of singer Rene Marie. As in the concert, Owens’ “Songs of Freedom” carries all too timely lessons for today, via classics such as Nina Simone’s “Mississippi Goddam” (devastatingly delivered by Rene Marie), Max Roach and Oscar Brown Jr.’s “Driva Man” (another Rene Marie epic) and the traditional “Balm in Gilead” (brilliantly reinvented by Bleckmann).
Jose James: “Lean on Me” (Blue Note). The dearth of first-rate male jazz singers has been a problem for decades, which makes the ascent of James worth celebrating. Some might argue that this homage to Bill Withers doesn’t fall strictly within many definitions of jazz, but that characterizes James’ career to date: Like the great Gregory Porter, James is re-establishing long-damaged connections between jazz impulses and a populist expression of them. He does so seductively here by applying his signature, smoky vocals to Withers standards such as “Ain’t No Sunshine” and the title track. Like Porter, James stands poised to reach an audience well outside jazz precincts.
Arianna Neikrug: “Changes” (Concord Jazz). The vocal debut of the year belongs to Neikrug, who claims her place as a singer of considerable technical control, tonal imagination and intellectual acuity. Though Neikrug takes on mostly standards here, her way of reshaping familiar phrases and bringing subtle tints to particular words renders these pieces fresh again. Yet none of this sounds contrived or conceived to draw attention to the singer, instead placing the focus where it belongs: on the meaning of the song. Neikrug is aided significantly by the arrangements of Laurence Hobgood, whose pianism remains a wonder unto itself.
Stefon Harris: “Blackout” (Motema Music). Jazz listeners already know of Harris’ virtuosity and fluidity as vibraphonist, but that’s not really what “Blackout” is all about. For Harris emphasizes the ensemble, his innate optimism inspiring like-minded work from drummer Terreon Gully, violinist Regina Carter, guitarist Mike Moreno and others. The ebullience of the band’s version of Oscar Brown Jr. and Bobby Timmons’ “Dat Dere,” the rhythmic puckishness they conjure in Harris “Chasin’ Kendall” and the sense of stillness and peace they convey in Bobby Hutcherson and Gene McDaniels’ “Now” point to the expressive range of an instantly compelling album.
Don Byron, Aruan Ortiz: “Random Dances and (A)Tonalities” (Intakt). Aside from some annoyingly repetitive pianism in its opening track, “Random Dances” shows clarinetist Byron and pianist Artiz successfully chipping away at barriers separating musical idioms. That always has been a Byron credo, and it’s reiterated here via his searching take on Duke Ellington’s “Black and Tan Fantasy,” his serenely lyrical arrangement of a J.S. Bach violin partita and his own, bluesy, rhythmically slinky “Joe Btfsplk.”
Matt Ulery: “Sifting Stars” (Woolgathering Records). The mystical quality of Chicago bassist-composer Ulery’s music never fails to cast its spell, regardless of the size or character of the ensemble in question. Here Ulery leads a large group with strings, reeds and horns, plus the other worldly vocals of Grazyna Auguscik and the disarming intimations of singer Katie Ernst. The chords may seem elemental, but they’re unconventional in progression and reflective of Ulery’s compelling earlier work.
Kobie Watkins Grouptet: “Movement” (Origin Records). Former Chicago drummer Watkins shows his deepening maturity with this release, a collection of vividly stated, often hard-charging originals featuring his muscular Grouptet. There’s unstoppable rhythmic energy here at all tempos and unmistakable cohesion among its five players. As for the compositions, the lyric poetry of Watkins’ “Six Moods” is counterbalanced by the tuneful charm and vigor of “Catch This” and the ever-changing textures and syntax of the title track.
Joe Lovano & Dave Douglas’ Sound Prints: “Scandal” (Greenleaf Music). What happens when two of the most inventive improvisers in jazz join forces? A series of brilliant dialogues between Lovano’s saxophone and Douglas’ trumpet ensues, the two finding remarkably unanimity of spirit and tone in original compositions by each (as well as each musician’s arrangement of a Wayne Shorter classic). Their Sound Prints band features pianist Lawrence Fields, bassist Linda May Han Oh and drummer Joey Baron in a warm, bracing, intimately recorded session.
John Moulder: “Decade: Memoirs” (Origin Records). It’s difficult to say which is most profound: Chicago guitarist Moulder’s compositions, his ferocity as guitarist or his gifts as bandleader. All converge on this album, a major statement of vast expressive and stylistic reach, from the epic “Memoirs by the Sea” (Parts 1 and 2) and the incantations of “One Last Call” to the acoustic-guitar whisperings of “About Us” and the fragile lyricism of “Remembrance.” Ample atmosphere, color and musical substance are provided by pianist Gwilym Simcock, reedist Tim Garland, bassist Steve Rodby, drummer Paul Wertico and percussionist Ernie Adams.
Howard Reich is a Tribune critic.
hreich@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @howardreich
