Home » Jazz Articles » Year in Review » Mark F. Turner's Best of 2014

Mark F. Turner's Best of 2014

By Mark F. Turner
January 9, 2015
View read count

Typically, when music is labeled it gets thrown into a box that limits its artistic scope. But the four letter word "jazz" in today's environment obliterates typical categorization as found in these diverse releases.

Ambrose Akinmusire
The imagined savior is far easier to paint
(Blue Note)

In his early thirties trumpeter

Ambrose Akinmusire

trumpet
b.1982

" data-original-title="" title="">Ambrose Akinmusire is developing his own voice as one of today's brightest and most imaginative young leaders with a recording whose music breathes multicolored flowers, shades of blue, and swings with creativity.

Brian Blade

drums
b.1970

" data-original-title="" title="">Brian Blade
Landmarks
(Bluenote)
The soft-spoken yet explosive drummer is well known as an integral member of saxophonist

Wayne Shorter

saxophone
1933 - 2023

" data-original-title="" title="">Wayne Shorter's quartet. Here, he reunites his long time Fellowship collective with music that travels along the roads of his hometown of Shreveport, Louisiana and emotive contemporary jazz.

Elizabeth Shepherd

keyboards

" data-original-title="" title="">Elizabeth Shepherd
Signal
(Linus Entertainment)
Thought-provoking lyrics and funky-pop driven hooks walk hand-in-hand in this enjoyable release which features the Canadian-based musician, singer and songwriter featuring Benin, West African jazz guitarist

Lionel Loueke

guitar
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Lionel Loueke.

Enoch Lee

piano
b.1986

" data-original-title="" title="">Enoch Lee
Finish Line
(Self-Produced)
Fully realized and filled with purpose, pianist Enoch delivers a most memorable debut that reveals his ability as a writer whose charts bring the best out of some of today's most respected jazz musicians.

Eric Hofbauer

guitar
b.1974

" data-original-title="" title="">Eric Hofbauer
Prehistoric Jazz Volume 1: The Rite of Spring
(Creative Nation Music)
It's one thing to tackle the complexities of Igor Stravinsky's 20th century classic The Rite of Spring but quite another to interpret it so uniquely as done by Boston-based guitarist Eric Hofbauer.

Erik Truffaz

trumpet
b.1960

" data-original-title="" title="">Erik Truffaz / Murcof
Being Human Being
(Mundo Recordings)
French jazz trumpeter Erik Truffaz and Mexican electronica producer Murcof provide a hypnotic soundtrack to animator/filmmaker Enki Bilal's multimedia project on the fatal beauty and striking qualities of humankind.

Flying Lotus

multi-instrumentalist

" data-original-title="" title="">Flying Lotus
You're Dead
(Warp)
Acclaimed electronica musician and producer Steven Ellison aka "Flying Lotus" is the great nephew of

Alice Coltrane

piano
1937 - 2007

" data-original-title="" title="">Alice Coltrane but has forged a named outside of his jazz roots. This inventive release is admittedly his most jazz-oriented recording that combines hip hop, and electronic music with contributions from rapper Snoop Dog to pianist

Herbie Hancock

piano
b.1940

" data-original-title="" title="">Herbie Hancock in a concept album which focuses on what happens to human consciousness after death.

Jason Moran

piano
b.1975

" data-original-title="" title="">Jason Moran
All Rise: A Joyful Elegy for Fats Waller
(Blue Note)
One of most recognized jazz pianists of today pays tribute to 1930's icon Fats Waller and reinvents classics such as "Ain't Misbehavin'" and "Honeysuckle Rose" with fresh vigor.

Joshua Redman

saxophone
b.1969

" data-original-title="" title="">Joshua Redman
Trios Live
(Nonesuch)
There's nothing like the experience of live jazz but sometimes a recording can capture its essence. Documented with two different trios at two venues, this is one of the saxophonist's best releases to date.

Marko Churnchetz

piano
b.1986

" data-original-title="" title="">Marko Churnchetz
Devotion
(Whirlwind)
Recorded in 2012, Slovenian born pianist / composer Marko Churnchetz delivers one the hottest progressive releases of the year with the help of a tight band which includes searing work from saxophonist

Mark Shim

saxophone, tenor
b.1973

" data-original-title="" title="">Mark Shim. Think

Vijay Iyer

piano
b.1971

" data-original-title="" title="">Vijay Iyer and

Craig Taborn

piano
b.1970

" data-original-title="" title="">Craig Taborn as Churnchetz's sheds mad skills with precision, deft form, and freedom.

Miguel Zenon

saxophone, alto
b.1976

" data-original-title="" title="">Miguel Zenon
Identities Are Changeable
(Miel Music)
Saxophonist Miguel Zenon continues to excavate and illuminate his heritage, this time with jazz quartet, a stellar large ensemble, and music interspersed with spoken interviews from New Yorkers of Puerto Rican descent.

Tigran Hamasyan

piano

" data-original-title="" title="">Tigran Hamasyan
Shadow Theater
(Sunnyside)
Armenian folk music blended through progressive jazz, funk, and other influences, capture the imagination and talent of pianist Tigran Hamasyan.

Wadada Leo Smith

trumpet
b.1941

" data-original-title="" title="">Wadada Leo Smith
The Great Lakes Suites
(Tum)
Two influential and prolific avant-garde giants—trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith and saxophonist

Henry Threadgill

woodwinds
b.1944

" data-original-title="" title="">Henry Threadgill—both in their seventies, collaborate and exhaust the limits of free jazz with depth and sensitivity in this two disc set.

PREVIOUS / NEXT

Alloy
< Previous

Roots
Next >

Support All About Jazz

All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who make it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

Go Ad Free!

To maintain our platform while developing new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity, we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for as little as $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination vastly improves your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.