Jazz albums you need to know about in 2021...
2021 has been an excellent year for the new music...
Last updated 7th Dec 2021
After a difficult 2020, 2021 marked the return of music venues opening up to many across the world, but it also marked a year of phenomenal releases.
Took a look at our list of some of our top albums of 2021 from the world of jazz, soul and blues, many of which featured as our Album of the Week on-air and online:
Jazz albums you need to know about 2021:
Wynton Marsalis - 'The Democracy Suite'
Trumpeter Wynton Marsalis released The Democracy! Suite on 15th January, recorded live at Lincoln Center's Appel Room during the global pandemic. Wynton said: "The question that confronts us right now as the United States of America is, 'Do we want to find a better way?'"
Various artists - 'Indaba Is'
Indaba Is was released on 29th January - a compilation of South African improvised music made up of eight newly-composed tracks, curated by pianist and songwriter Thandi Ntuli and The Brother Moves On's Siyabonga Mthembu.
Nicola Conte & Gianluca Petrella - 'People Need People'
Released on 26th February, People Need People saw the reunion of Nicola Conte & Gianluca Petrella after their previous work on 2001 release 'New Standards'.
Gretchen Parlato - 'Flor'
Grammy-nominated singer Gretchen Parlato announced her return to the music business and jazz world with a brand new album__ Flor released on 5th March 2021, after a six-year break to focus on her family.
Pat Metheny - 'Road to the Sun'
Pat Metheny announced his new album _Road to the Sun__ in December 2020, as well as a new record deal with BMG's Modern Recordings imprint. _Road to the Sun, released on 5th March 2021, features two new works composed by the Jazz FM Award-winning artist and is performed by five of the world's leading guitarists: Grammy winners Jason Vieaux and the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet.
Nubiyan Twist - 'Freedom Fables'
Released on 12th March, Freedom Fables is Nubiyan Twist's third record. Band leader Tom Excell said: "'Freedom Fables' reflects on the power of narratives. Each vocalist on this record explores their own memoirs, a freedom of expression underpinning our belief that music is the ultimate narrative for unity. The record references a lot of music that we all loved during our formative years; you can hear touches of broken beat, blunted hip hop, highlife, Latin, jazz and UK soul running through the tracks."
Charles Lloyd & the Marvels - Tone Poem
Tone Poem is the third full-length album by Charles Lloyd & The Marvels, the genre-straddling quintet that features the master saxophonist with Bill Frisell on guitar, Greg Leisz on pedal steel guitar, Reuben Rogers on bass, and Eric Harland on drums. Following the band's 2016 debut I Love To See You and their 2018 collaboration with Lucinda Williams Vanished Gardens, the nine dynamic instrumental tracks here include new Lloyd originals along with pieces by Ornette Coleman, Thelonious Monk, Leonard Cohen, Gabor Szabo, and Bola de Nieve.
The album was released on the 12th of March via Blue Note Records
Floating Points, Pharaoh Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra - 'Promises'
Sam Shepherd, known as his alias Floating Points, teamed up with jazz saxophonist Pharoah Sanders and the London Symphony Orchestra for the new album Promises on 26th March - which landed them a nomination for Album of the Week in the Jazz FM Awards 2021.
STR4TA - 'Aspects'
Broadcaster, DJ and label boss Gilles Peterson and the widely lauded Brit-funk pioneer Jean-Paul "Bluey" Maunick announced their newest album _Aspects__ in March 2021, releasing the record at the end of that month on 26th March.
Released under the pair's group STR4TA, the record aims to tap into the early-1980s Brit-funk scene. It was through Maunick's band, Incognito – one of the essential groups of an oft-overlooked, vital pocket of Black British musical history – that they first connected. On _Aspects, he and Peterson revisit that important period and the spirit that guided it: self-taught, DIY vitality, raucous energy built on live performance. which united the pair.
Norah Jones - ''Til We Meet Again'
Multi-Grammy Award-winning star Norah Jones released her first-ever live album _Til We Meet Again___ on 16th April 2021. The album features recordings of performances between 2017 to 2019 whilst Norah Jones was on tour, including shows in U.S., Brazil, Argentina and more.
The album was, in part, released as a response to the lack of live music during the COVID-19 pandemic. In a statement, Jones said: "Whether we're musicians or fans, we all miss sharing the experience of live music," Jones said in a statement.
Alfa Mist - 'Bring Backs'
Alfa Mist's fourth record Bring Backs was released on 23rd April, writing on Instagram: 'Thank you to everyone on the album, the music doesn't exist without you all.'
Carlos Niño & Friends - 'More Energy Fields, Current'
LA-based percussionist, producer and composer Carlos Niño released the album More Energy Fields, Current digitally on 7th May via International Anthem, and the record will get a physical release as an LP and CD on 25th June 2021. Featuring contributions from many Los Angeles-based instrumentalists including Jamael Dean, Nate Mercereau, Sam Gendel, and Jamire Williams, the record also features the multi-Jazz FM Award winning saxophonist, composer and bandleader Shabaka Hutchings as well as Mike D (of the Beastie Boys).
Sons of Kemet - 'Black to the Future'
_Black to the Future___ is Sons of Kemet's fourth record, released on 14th May 2021, and their second with the legendary Impulse! Records. The record reflects on the events of 2020, including the reaction in the wake of George Floyd's death and the protests sparked across the world.
Nina Simon and Etta James - 'The Montreaux Years'
New live albums from Nina Simone and Etta James performances were released on 28th May, forming part of The Montreux Years series.
The live albums - Nina Simone: The Montreux Years and Etta James: The Montreux Years - feature sublime collections of the musical icons' finest Montreux Jazz Festival performances, including previously unreleased material, all restored to their full glory and more. The releases will be available on LP, CD and digitally.
Hiatus Kaiyote - Mood Valiant
Twice Grammy-nominated, Melbourne-based group Hiatus Kaiyote returned after a 6-year hiatus in 2021 with their third album Mood Valiant. The result is an album that relaxes into a groove: sunlit, sublime, masterful. Behind everything is Hiatus' familiar sense of musical adventure, their knack for making the complex sound simple.
Mood Valiant was released through Brainfeeder Records on 25 June 2021.
Bill Evans Trio - 'On A Friday Evening'
A previously unreleased album from pioneering jazz pianist Bill Evans was released on 25th June. _On A Friday Evening___ is a recently-discovered live performance of the Bill Evans Trio (with Eddie GĂłmez on bass and Eliot Zigmund on drums), recorded in 1975. The live performance - originally recorded for radio host Gary Barclay - took place at Oil Can Harry's in Vancouver, Canada, and has been restored by Plangent Processes, with mastering by Paul Blakemore.
Emma-Jean Thackray - 'Yellow'
Jazz FM Award-nominee and one of the leading lights of the contemporary jazz scene Emma-Jean Thackray released her debut album Yellow on 2nd July. The multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and producer announced the new record with the release of her new single 'Say Something'.
Prince - Welcome 2 America
The Prince Estate and Legacy Recordings, a division of Sony Music Entertainment, released the enigmatic 2010 Prince album Welcome 2 America on 30th July – a powerful creative statement that documents Prince's concerns, hopes, and visions for a shifting society, presciently foreshadowing an era of political division, disinformation, and a renewed fight for racial justice.
Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga - Love for Sale
Following up from their 2015 album Cheek to Cheek, Love For Sale is historic as it is Tony Bennett's last ever studio recording. As the title suggests, here the pair take on the Cole Porter songbook of classic popular music with both duet and solo selections, accompanied by a mixture of jazz ensemble, big band and orchestral arrangements.
Love For Sale was released on 1 October 2021 through Columbia / Interscope / Streamline Records.
Brandee Younger - Somewhere Different
2021 saw American harpist Brandee younger maker her major-label debut with Somewhere Different. Having spent her career breaking down the barriers between classical music and contemporary forms of R&B, hip-hop and funk - this record solidifies her work to date, whilst seeing her break into exciting new ground.
Somewhere Different was released through Impulse! Records on 13 August 2021.
Lady Blackbird - Black Acid Soul
2021 saw the release of the highly-anticipated debut album Black Acid Soul from Lady Blackbird.
With a voice that has stopped critics in their tracks, Lady Blackbird is a revelatory new talent with music that transcends the jazz scene through which the LA-based artist is rooted. Reflecting influences as varied as Billie Holiday, Gladys Knight, Tina Turner and Chaka Khan, Lady Blackbird's distinct and beguiling talent is not one to be missed.
Black Acid Soul was released on 3 September 2021 through Foundation Music.
Jordan Rakei - What We Call Life
Multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, producer, and songwriter Jordan Rakei released his fourth studio album in 2021 - What We Call Life.
What We Call Life is Jordan Rakei's most vulnerable and intimate album to date. Its lyrics concern the lessons that the New Zealand-born, Australia-raised, and London-based artist learned about himself during therapy, a journey that began two years ago when he started reading about the 'positive psychology' movement.
What We Call Life was released via Ninja Tune on 17 September 2021.
John Coltrane - A Love Supreme: Live in Seattle
After nearly six decades, a private recording of a rare, nightclub performance by John Coltrane of his magnum opus, A Love Supreme, in 2021.
Recorded in late 1965 on the culminating evening of a historic week-long run at The Penthouse in Seattle, A Love Supreme: Live In Seattle is a musical revelation of historic importance, capturing Coltrane as he began to expand his classic quartet—adding Pharoah Sanders on second saxophone and Donald Garrett on second bass—and catapulting him into the intense, spiritually focused final phase of his career.
A Love Supreme Live in Seattle was released on 8 October 2021 on Impulse! Records/UMe.
Kurt Elling - SuperBlue
After scoring his second GRAMMY Award (and 14th nomination) in March 2021, the protean vocalist Kurt Elling hangs an unexpected left turn with SuperBlue for Edition Records. It's a torrent of roisterous funk, indelible beats and all-too-current lyrics that boasts the talents of producer-guitarist Charlie Hunter and two stars of the hip-hop generation: drummer Corey Fonville and bassist-keyboardist DJ Harrison (both of the genre-hopping band Butcher Brown).
Elling has always been a master of grooves, ranging from bebop to pure pop and progressive jazz to neo-soul, but he's never filled an album with grooves quite like these.
SuperBlue was released via Edition Records on 8 October 2021.
Makaya McCraven - Deciphering the Message
Having recently signed to the prestigious Blue Note Records, the Jazz FM Award-winning producer and beat scientist Makaya McCraven delved into the Blue Note vaults with his impressive remix project that puts a modern bounce on jazz classics by Art Blakey, Horace Silver, Hank Mobley, Kenny Burrell, Kenny Dorham & more.
McCraven's mastery of the loop is akin to hip-hop's most celebrated beatmakers like J Dilla & Madlib, both of whom have also remixed Blue Note classics, but McCraven's unique approach also incorporates newly recorded elements including his own drums, Joel Ross' vibraphone, Jeff Parker's guitar, Marquis Hill's trumpet and more.
Deciphering The Message was released via Blue Note Records on November 19 2021.
Gregory Porter - Still Rising
Over the past decade, Gregory Porter has taken the world by storm, bringing contemporary jazz to the masses. With Still Rising, Gregory Porter has amassed a 34-track selection of brand-new songs, covers, duets and a handpicked selection of his most cherished songs.
Still Rising was released on 26 November 2021 through Blue Note Records.
Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers - First Flight to Tokyo: The Lost 1961 Recordings
First Flight to Tokyo: The Lost 1961 Recordings is a thrilling previously unreleased live recording of Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers captured at Hibiya Public Hall in Tokyo on January 14th, 1961 during the band's first-ever tour of Japan.
The Jazz Messengers were among the first modern jazz groups to tour the country, and adoring Japanese audiences were enthralled by one of the band's all-time great line-ups featuring the legendary drummer with Lee Morgan on trumpet, Wayne Shorter on tenor saxophone, Bobby Timmons on piano, and Jymie Merritt on bass.
First Flight to Tokyo is out on Blue Note Records on 10 December 2021.
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