By painting impressionistic portraits out of cues and basic figures for ‘Words Unspoken,’ John Surman got the best contributions from his quartet.

‘Cloudward’ offers a rare chance to see how Mary Halvorson’s music evolves when everything else is kept the same.

Released 50 years ago today, Steely Dan’s ‘Pretzel Logic’ remains a pinnacle achievement for the premier jazz-pop rock band. Here’s a handful of reasons why.

David Torn, Tom Rainey, Tim Berne & Trevor Dunn came together make an instant album that’s explosive, urgent and intense, even when it isn’t loud.

Released 50 years ago this month, ‘What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits’ found the Doobie Brothers at a near-peak of their early-era powers.

‘Interaction’ really all of one big collection of amazing moments, a continuum of passion and a brainstorm of original ideas filtered through three highly trained instruments.

James Brandon Lewis’ quartet albums showcase other sides of his advanced artistry and that heavyweight band. ‘Transfiguration’ is jazz soul music of the highest order.

Rarely ever going far outside, Vijay Iyer continues to pursue his piano trio jazz revolution from within with a persistent creative spark and an inspired rhythm section.

The highly improvisational quartet Kaze makes their first 100% improvisation record ‘Unwritten’ and it’s just as unconventionally delightful as they are with written pieces.

Thollem made something entirely new using used parts created by various trios and mold them into a genuine piece of aural art made by a six performers using the intuition of one.