Fans of bands rooted in Beatlemania will find a lot to love in the clever grooves of the late Klas Qvist’s ‘Citizen K III.’

‘Long Story Short: Willie Nelson 90’ was well-meaning, heartfelt, and often well-performed – but a few intangibles were lacking.

John McLaughlin is known for his restlessness – here electric, there acoustic, here Western, there Eastern. ‘This Moment’ straddles many of those worlds.

The Pixies’ seminal ‘Surfer Rosa’ revived rock music 35 years ago with a sound that was somehow both chaotic and cohesive.

‘Digital Reaction’ has all the wide ranging guitar-led gumption and fortitude of Marc Ribot’s Atomic Dog but with Nick Millevoi’s own stamp, marshaling shards of most everything he’s done up this point while adding a few new tricks.

Tyshawn Sorey’s trio builds on the triumph of the standards-reimagining ‘Mesmerism’ with the loose, imaginative ‘Continuing.’

With ‘DREAMBAND,’ Shawn E. Hansen, Mike Pride and Clayton Thomas figured out how to fit their talents together in an inspired way for this experimental collaboration.

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.