With ‘Recoil,’ Brad Henkel, Dustin Carlson and Samuel Hall set out and succeeded in making a freeform record that’s not just uncommon, but uncommonly good.

With ‘Letters to George’ by his exciting new combo GEORGE, John Hollenbeck once again takes a somewhat odd assortment of musicians and shaped them into the something truly fresh and compelling.

No artist is pushing harder to expand jazz’s frontiers than Makaya McCraven, and ‘In These Times’ opens up further possibilities of how the music form can progress upward.

Doc City’s new LP is about soul searching and contemplation, but it’s also an enjoyable listen with influences ranging from hip hop, R&B and jazz to gospel, soul and rock.

Mia Garcia and Hailey Niswanger of OHMA made a pure chilled vibe record with ‘Between All Things,’ arguably the best such record of 2022.

The post-rock gem ‘Everywhen We Go’ by Mike Baggetta, mike watt and Jim Keltner is stimulating because everyone brings their considerable talents to bear on these songs.

Some might quibble over whether this is contemporary, smooth or crossover jazz. It’s actually a hybrid from Everette Harp, Jeff Lorber and Paul Jackson Jr.

Preston Frazier’s countdown of the best jazz of 2022 includes Michael Leonhart, Bobby Broom, Simon Phillips, Michael Leonhart, Jeff Denson, Mark Wade and others.

The only thing ‘old’ about Bob James is his willingness to step outside his comfort zone, as evidenced by ‘2080’ with the young electronic whiz Sam Franz.

Deborah Holland discusses how she reunited with Stanley Clarke and Stewart Copeland to create long-awaited new music – and what’s next for Animal Logic.