61St Annual Critics Poll
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D O W N B E AT 61st Annual Critics Poll 61ST A NNUAL CRITI C S POLL /// W AYNE AYNE S HORTER WINS! Jazz /// CHARLIE CHARLIE ARTIST Jazz H ALBUM A D Jazz Without A Net EN /// R GROUP O B Wayne Shorter ERT JOHNSON ERT Quartet Soprano SAX /// CHRISTIAN M Hall of Fame Charlie Haden C BRI Robert Johnson D E Poll Winners Wadada Leo Smith Christian McBride Gregory Porter AUGUST 2013 U.K. £3.50 Gerald Clayton Tia Fuller AU G UST Top 2013 91 DOWNBEAT.COM Albums AUGUST 2013 VOLUME 80 / NUMBER 8 President Kevin Maher Publisher Frank Alkyer Managing Editor Bobby Reed News Editor Hilary Brown Reviews Editor Aaron Cohen Contributing Editor Ed Enright Art Director Ara Tirado Production Associate Andy Williams Bookkeeper Margaret Stevens Circulation Manager Sue Mahal Circulation Assistant Evelyn Oakes ADVERTISING SALES Record Companies & Schools Jennifer Ruban-Gentile 630-941-2030 [email protected] Musical Instruments & East Coast Schools Ritche Deraney 201-445-6260 [email protected] Advertising Sales Associate Maggie Glovatski Cuprisin 630-941-2030 [email protected] OFFICES 102 N. 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Á AUGUST 2013 On the Cover 61st Annual Critics Poll 20 Wayne Shorter Jazz Artist, Jazz Album, Jazz Group & Soprano Saxophone WITH ESSAYS By JOSEF WOODARD, JOE LOVANO AND JON IRABAGON The saxophonist lands a quadruple-crown of victories. 28 Top Jazz Albums 30 Charlie Haden Hall of Fame By ED ENRIGHT 36 Robert Johnson Veterans Committee Hall of Fame By FRANK-JOHN HADLEY 38 Top Historical Albums 40 Christian McBride Bass AZZA 30 PI By TED PANKEN L AE H C Charlie Haden I 42 Wadada Leo Smith M Composer Cover photo of Wayne Shorter by Adam McCullough By AARON COHEN 44 Tia Fuller Rising Star Alto Saxophone & Rising Star Flute By ALLEN MOrriSON 46 Gregory Porter Rising Star Jazz Artist & Rising Star Male Vocalist By SHAUN BrADY 72 Tommy Emmanuel/ 78 Gregory Tardy 79 Keith Jarrett/Gary 84 Wallace Roney Martin Taylor Peacock/Jack DeJohnette 48 Gerald Clayton Rising Star Piano By JOE TANGARI 50 Jason Marsalis Departments Rising Star Vibes By Phillip LUTZ 8 First Take 69 Reviews 98 Toolshed 52 Derrick Hodge Rising Star Electric Bass 10 Chords & 94 Master Class 102 Jazz On Campus By HilARY BROWN Discords By Gabriel Alegría 106 Blindfold Test 54 Complete Critics Poll Results 13 The Beat 96 Transcription Javon Jackson 6 DOWNBEAT AUGUST 2013 AUGUST 2013 DOWNBEAT 7 First Take BY BObbY REED Youthful Ambition TEENAGERS ARE ImpRESSIONABLE. SEEING A GREAT MUSICIAN when you’re a youngster can alter your life’s path. Javon Jackson was 13 when he met Dexter Gordon in Denver and said to himself, “I want to do just what he does.” Jackson looked up to Gordon—both figuratively and literally—as he vividly explains in this month’s Blindfold Test, which also includes his anecdote about seeing Sonny Stitt in concert. When Wayne Shorter was 15 years old, he saw Lester Young perform in Newark, N.J. Charlie Haden was 18 when he grabbed a seat on the front row to see Paul Chambers share the Wayne Shorter bandstand with Miles Davis, John Coltrane and Philly Joe Jones in Los Angeles. In hindsight, the artists see these as formative experiences. Today Jackson is an acclaimed saxophonist with a discography of more than a dozen leader proj- ects, and last year he released the CD Celebrating John Coltrane. And what ever happened to those kids crazy kids named Wayne and Charlie? Well, Shorter takes home four awards in this year’s Critics Poll, and Haden has just been elected as the 134th member of the DownBeat Hall of Fame. As he approaches his 80th H birthday, Shorter remains one of OUG the most revered musicians on LL the planet. He stands eternal- ly youthful and vital, garnering ADAM MCCU wins for Jazz Artist, Jazz Album (for Without A Net), Jazz Group (for the Wayne Shorter Quartet) and Soprano Saxophone in this year’s poll. A decade after he was elected into the DownBeat Hall of Fame, Shorter—whose bandmates in the quar- tet are pianist Danilo Pérez, bassist John Patitucci and drummer Brian Blade—continues to make some of the most exciting music of his career. For this issue, we recruited a couple of saxophonists (who are both poll winners) to write about Shorter’s unique artistry. Both of them have admired Shorter’s work since the days when they were young, aspiring musicians. Joe Lovano, this year’s winner in the Tenor Saxophone cate- gory, offers a loving, poetic, exuberant tribute to Shorter. Jon Irabagon, our winner for Rising Star—Tenor Saxophone, describes some of his favorite musical moments in Shorter’s oeuvre. Haden, the ultra-melodic bassist, has been an integral contributor to the music of dozens of Hall of Famers. And now, he rightfully joins Ornette Coleman, Keith Jarrett and so many more of his collaborators. We welcome Mr. Haden to the Hall of Fame. Our feature (starting on page 30) illustrates his deep love for the music and for his colleagues. Haden has been appearing in (and reading) DownBeat for a half-century. Each year, our Critics Poll provides a thorough picture of what’s hap- pening in the world of jazz, blues and improvised music. With 165 crit- ics voting, and more than 1,000 artists listed, these results provide an invaluable database for anyone who wants to explore the noteworthy singers and instrumentalists who are making waves in 2013. This issue is your invitation to the greatest virtual concert imaginable. Dig in. DB 8 DOWNBEAT AUGUST 2013 AUGUST 2013 DOWNBEAT 9 Chords Discords Snark Attack As a DownBeat reader since 1961, I have a comment regarding one of your Hot Box critics. The time has come to tell Paul de Barros to please cut back on the snark. In the May issue, he dropped a musical deuce on Aaron Diehl with a 2½- star review of the pianist’s The Bespoke Man’s Narrative and never took the time to mention the incredible musicality of Rod- ney Green’s drumming on that CD. Then, in the July issue, his 2-star comments offered nothing constructive in criticizing saxophonist Joshua Red- man’s album Walking Shadows. To call the work “dull” really provides no content upon which to judge. Looking over the majority of his reviews, I can JOHN ABBOTT From left: only assume that most of the mu- Drummer Rodney sic de Barros enjoys is the kind Green, pianist Aaron Diehl, that brings spontaneous rectal vibraphonist bleeding to the listener. Paul Warren Wolf and bassist de Barros is not a person to be taken seriously any David Wong longer. His personality gets too much in the way. THE REV. JEFFREY WALKER [email protected] Standing Tall Too Foul? Corrections Paquito D’Rivera’s tribute I am writing in regard to In the Reviews section of to the late pianist Bebo the Blindfold Test with the July issue, the Order- Valdés (“The Big Horse David Weiss in your May ing Info was incorrect for Rides Away,” July) issue.