The 2019 NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll

Plus, our favorite discoveries from globalFEST 2020.

by Marissa Lorusso and Lyndsey McKenna Caroline Mardok/Courtesy of the artist Kris Davis seemed every bit the conjurer last Sunday night, hunkered behind an upright piano at the Sultan Room in Bushwick, Brooklyn. Though mostly hidden, she was firmly in control — of the fluid dimensions of her sound and the changeable shape of her all-star band. This was a Winter Jazzfest showcase for Davis’ most recent album, Diatom Ribbons, and its transfixing excellence struck me, in some measure, as a validation. That’s because I knew the results of the 2019 NPR Music Jazz Critics Poll, which published just a couple of days later. Diatom Ribbons came in at No. 1, putting Davis in the Top 10 for the first time in her career. I was among the 140 critics who cast a ballot, and one of a handful who had that album at No. 1, for all the ways that it wriggles and stretches while maintaining its balance. But jazz is large, it contains multitudes. Scan the results and you’ll find many other perspectives in the poll: the refined ruggedness of the Branford Marsalis Quartet; the fearless candor of Matana Roberts; the restless wisdom of The Art Ensemble of Chicago. We asked some of our voters to write about the Top 10, along with first-place finishers categorized under Vocals, Debuts, Latin and Historical/Reissue. As veteran critic and poll master Francis Davis (no relation to Kris) notes in his keynote essay, the 2019 poll features the youngest and fringiest array of artists in recent memory, and the highest-ever proportion of women. (Drummer Terri Lyne Carrington, a core partner on Diatom Ribbons, is also on the extended list with her Waiting Game.) It would be a mistake to draw tidy conclusions about consensus, but there’s a lot to chew on — and listen to! — in these results. The multiplicity is a gift. Nate Chinen, WBGO Newsletter continues after sponsor message New Music For the past 17 years, globalFEST has curated a selection of musicians from all over the world to come perform in New York City. Each time Bob Boilen attends, he finds new, incredible musicians whose careers are just about to break in the United States — and this time was no exception. On this week’s All Songs Considered, he invited our colleague Anastasia Tsioulcas, Afropop Worldwide's Banning Eyre and WFMU's Rob Weisberg to share their globalFEST discoveries with him. The news from Alt.Latino World Headquarters is good: 2020 already sounds amazing. The show kicked off the new decade with an episode of the best new Latin music, including Nicky Jam and Daddy Yankee, garage-rocker Tall Juan and newcomers Salt Cathedral. On this week’s New Music Friday from All Songs Considered, we hear the first posthumous album from rapper Mac Miller, Little Big Town takes us on a beautiful journey and The Innocence Mission commits to tenderness. Plus, hear some of the week’s best tracks on our New Music Friday playlist, refreshed every week. Featuring This week, the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame announced its 2020 class of inductees, which includes Whitney Houston, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails and the Notorious B.I.G. (Sorry, Dave Matthews Band fans — the band won the fan ballot — better luck next year?) Even with Houston’s inclusion, the gender disparity between honorees remains appalling: Women make up less than 8% of the total inductees . That figure inspired NPR Music’s Ann Powers to make a list (and playlist!) of 41 women who could — and should — be enshrined in the Rock Hall, including Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Roberta Flack and Kate Bush.  In the streaming era, numbers can tell quite a story about our listening habits: For instance, last year, U.S. music streams topped a trillion for the first time; those streams alone accounted for more than 30% of all streaming activity over the past six years. Cherie Hu takes a look at new reports released by BuzzAngle and Nielsen Music and unearths the deeper truths about the industry behind the statistics.  Two years after the Recording Academy’s then-leader Neil Portnow said women needed to “step up” to earn industry recognition, Deborah Dugan took over as president and CEO, promising increased diversity and substantial change. Now she’s been placed on administrative leave in a major shakeup less than two weeks before this year's Grammy Awards. Tiny Desk Mhari Shaw/NPR Last week, we promised you a captivating Tiny Desk concert by an artist who recently got a best new artist nomination from the Grammys. That artist is Yola : a soulful, charismatic singer with classic R&B swagger and an outrageously powerful voice. Bob Boilen first heard her at Nashville’s AmericanaFest in 2016; behind his desk, she performed three tracks from her debut album, Walk Through Fire. Also at the Desk this week: A performance by opera star Joyce DiDonato, who jazzed up classical songs with rigor, wit and a sense of spontaneity. DiDonato’s voice is undeniably amazing — but what was equally undeniable was just how much fun the acclaimed singer was having during the performance. Incoming Next Sunday, Jan. 26, is Music’s Biggest Night (the Recording Academy’s words, not ours): The Grammy Awards! Love ’em or hate ’em, we’ll be sharing our takes as the evening unfolds on our annual live blog, plus members of the team will join the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast for post-show analysis. Let us know if you’ll be tuning in! One More Thing Congratulations to those men. Listen to your favorite NPR Member station live on your Alexa or Google Home device. Just tell your smart speaker to,  “Play NPR.” What do you think of today's email? We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions and feedback:  nprmusic@npr.org Enjoying this newsletter? Forward to a friend! They can sign up here. Looking for more great content? Check out all of our newsletter offerings — including Books, Pop Culture, Health and more! Need a new playlist? Follow NPR Music on Spotify and Apple Music! You received this message because you're subscribed to NPR Music emails. This email was sent by National Public Radio, Inc., 1111 North Capitol Street NE, Washington, DC 20002 Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy