Starting today, I’m premiering a new ratings category, Worth A Listen.
Sometimes, I won’t be able to recommend a release to the majority of jazz fans for a variety of reasons. Maybe there’s one standout performance on the record, but everybody else is just okay. Maybe there’s one incredible composition, but the rest are just marginal.
Sometimes, a record will be important in the evolution of a particular artist, but isn’t all that compelling on its own. If you are a huge fan of that artist, then it’s worth picking up the release, but otherwise, you’d probably be better off spending your limited music budget somewhere else.