I wanted to offer up some quick thoughts on my favorite records of the first half of 2023 because it has been a strong year.

Zoe Rahman’s ‘Colour of Sound’ is a heady mix of joy, love and occasional tranquil moments where the music takes you on a giddy trip again and again.

“Funky Nothingness’ is not to be missed by Frank Zappa fans, particularly those fascinated by the arcs of his compositional and soloing evolution.

Cheryl Pawelski spent 17 years saving great music from irretrievable oblivion for ‘Written in Their Soul: The Stax Songwriter Demos.’ It was time well spent.

Pat Metheny produces a solid set of intimate, heartfelt numbers, reminding us that decades later, there’s no guitarist who delivers those better.

In an exclusive interview, Toto’s Steve Lukather describes how long-time bandmate Ringo Starr helped him through the darkest days of the lockdown era.

With Sunna Gunnlaugs’ latest release ‘Becoming,’ the art of the trio is alive and well under her leadership.

As he had done with Wayne Shorter’s and Miles Davis’ music, Denny Zeitlin covers the songs of George Gershwin with imagination, passion and a deeply personal touch.

Black Sabbath called it a career 10 years ago with ’13,’ an album that mixed and matched sounds from every one of their classic eras.

Stylistic influences aside, Jim White’s ‘(The Mysterious Tale of How I Shouted) Wrong-Eyed Jesus!’ is honest, original, un-glossed country at its best.