Since historical recordings have been pretty well covered, here are some recent favorites, and I listen to a lot, so these are real standouts, IMHO ;-)
Pat Martino: "Live at Yoshi's" (smoking guitar/organ combo).
Marty Ehrlich: both "Song" and "Malinke's Dance" are excellent blends of straight ahead playing and more modern leanings.
Buster Williams Quartet: "Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival" has Mulgrew Miller on piano teamed w/ Steve Nelson on vibes - groovin'.
Eddie Henderson Quintet: "Reemergence" ( A mellow glow surrounds the group and keeps the mood steady.)
Dave Holland Quintet: "Points of View" is my favorite, but "Prime Directive" and "Not for Nuthin'" are also great.
Steve Slagle: "New New York" (start-to-finish fantastic, with varied moods, textures, instrumental mixes).
Greg Osby: "Invisible Hand" with grandmasters Jim Hall and Andrew Hill, sets a haunting mellow mood throughout.
Gene Harris: Best of the Concord Years (rollicking, swinging playing that makes me want to run out and buy everything he ever recorded. Undervalued piano master!)
Chick Corea and Origin: Change (Wow, what a group. Beats the first Origin disc by a mile, by the way).
I could go on, but these keep finding their way back into the player, so start here if you want to hear some of today's best. - Dave
Pat Martino: "Live at Yoshi's" (smoking guitar/organ combo).
Marty Ehrlich: both "Song" and "Malinke's Dance" are excellent blends of straight ahead playing and more modern leanings.
Buster Williams Quartet: "Live at the Montreux Jazz Festival" has Mulgrew Miller on piano teamed w/ Steve Nelson on vibes - groovin'.
Eddie Henderson Quintet: "Reemergence" ( A mellow glow surrounds the group and keeps the mood steady.)
Dave Holland Quintet: "Points of View" is my favorite, but "Prime Directive" and "Not for Nuthin'" are also great.
Steve Slagle: "New New York" (start-to-finish fantastic, with varied moods, textures, instrumental mixes).
Greg Osby: "Invisible Hand" with grandmasters Jim Hall and Andrew Hill, sets a haunting mellow mood throughout.
Gene Harris: Best of the Concord Years (rollicking, swinging playing that makes me want to run out and buy everything he ever recorded. Undervalued piano master!)
Chick Corea and Origin: Change (Wow, what a group. Beats the first Origin disc by a mile, by the way).
I could go on, but these keep finding their way back into the player, so start here if you want to hear some of today's best. - Dave