01
The Epic — Kamasi Washington (2015)
172 minutes · Yes, all of it
A triple album that announced Washington as the most ambitious saxophonist of his generation. Strings, choirs, spiritual jazz, hip-hop production sensibility — The Epic is the record that convinced people jazz was alive again. It's long and it earns every minute. Start with Re Run Home or Change of the Guard.
02
On the Tender Spot of Every Calloused Moment — Ambrose Akinmusire (2020)
Trumpet · Blue Note
The most quietly devastating record on this list. Akinmusire's trumpet is barely above a whisper for most of the album — but the restraint is the point. This is jazz that deals with grief and race in America without ever shouting. Harder to get into than most records here, but worth the patience.
03
Deciphering the Message — Makaya McCraven (2021)
Drums · International Anthem
McCraven takes Blue Note recordings from the 1960s and rebuilds them from the inside — adding beats, textures, new arrangements that sit under and around the original performances. The result sounds old and completely new at the same time. A genuinely original approach to the jazz canon.
04
Ghost Song — Cécile McLorin Salvant (2022)
Vocals · Nonesuch
The best jazz vocalist working today, and this might be her best record. Salvant moves between cabaret, blues, art song, and pure jazz without any of it feeling forced. The programme is eclectic — Sondheim, Barbara, a medieval song — and her voice holds all of it together. Accessible and deep at the same time.
05
Black Radio III — Robert Glasper (2022)
Piano · Loma Vista
Glasper has spent fifteen years building a bridge between jazz, hip-hop, and R&B, and this is his most polished version of that project. Guests include Killer Mike, Meshell Ndegeocello, and Stevie Wonder. Not everyone calls it jazz. It doesn't matter what you call it.
06
Source — Nubya Garcia (2020)
Tenor saxophone · Concord
Garcia came out of the London jazz scene that emerged around 2015 — a generation of musicians who grew up on grime and drum and bass as much as Coltrane. Source is the record that announced her internationally: rhythmically complex, warm, and immediately compelling. The title track alone is worth it.
07
Amaryllis — Mary Halvorson (2022)
Guitar · Nonesuch
Halvorson is the most distinctive guitarist in jazz today — her sound is recognisable within seconds, angular and warm at the same time. Amaryllis is her most orchestrated record, with strings and horns giving her compositions room to breathe. An acquired taste that rewards the acquisition.
08
Drunk — Thundercat (2017)
Bass · Brainfeeder
Thundercat plays bass the way other people play lead guitar — fast, melodic, and slightly ridiculous in the best way. Drunk sits somewhere between jazz, funk, and comedy, with guest appearances from Kendrick Lamar and Kenny Loggins on the same record. It shouldn't work. It absolutely works.
09
12 Little Spells — Esperanza Spalding (2017)
Bass / Vocals · Concord
Spalding has been one of the most interesting musicians in jazz for a decade, and this album is her strangest and most personal. Each track is associated with a part of the body. It's conceptual in a way that could easily feel precious, but her musicianship keeps it grounded. Not the easiest starting point, but rewarding.
10
The Parable of the Poet — Joel Ross (2022)
Vibraphone · Blue Note
Ross is twenty-six years old on this record and already sounds fully formed. The vibraphone is an instrument that can easily sound decorative — Ross makes it sound necessary. This is the kind of record Blue Note used to put out in 1965. That it exists in 2022 is quietly remarkable.