Here’s the part of the annual Best of 2017 lists that’s the most fun to pull together.

‘Err Guitar’ by Elliott Sharp, Mary Halvorson and Marc Ribot is three masters of the outside guitar pushing each other to go even further out, making this a notably delirious entry in the catalogs of all three.

A mere two months following yet another highly thought-of ensemble record, guitarist/composer Mary Halvorson has returned.

Inspired by Susan Alcorn’s pedal steel guitar, ‘Away With You’ keeps Mary Halvorson’s idiosyncratic ideas fresh and pushes forward her boundless conception of jazz on the frontier.

People seeking adventurous music should seek out Marc Ribot adventures like ‘Live In Tokyo’ because he does it with such attitude, resourcefulness and — dare I say — fun.

Featuring Tomas Fujiwara, Ben Goldberg and Mary Halvorson, the Out Louds aren’t always necessarily loud – but they are sure enough ‘out.’

S. Victor Aaron picks the best of 2015’s modern and mainstream jazz albums, including John Scofield, Matthew Shipp, Antonio Sanchez and others.

Jacob Garchik’s ‘Ye Olde’ might be about the hardest rockin’ thinking man’s fusion record in recent memory.

Trying to make sense of the surprises that lurk around every corner on Halvorson’s solo guitar outing ‘Meltframe’ is much of the fun in listening to this.