Jon Batiste, bandleader of The Late Show with Steven Colbert, released a new EP, Anatomy of Angels: Live at the Village Vanguard, that landed in the Top 10 albums of the Billboard Jazz Chart this month. (Photo: Courtesy the artist)
After a week of tectonic shifts in the Billboard Jazz 100 list, things seemed to have settled down, with a mixture of longstanding albums and new faces making up the Top 10. Among the biggest surprises was a re-entry of a classic Bill Evans album, Portrait in Jazz, from Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, a label that specializes in high-fidelity vinyl. The album was produced using Mobile Fidelity’s Ultra Disc One-Step process, which allows record stamps to be formed directly from the lacquers, which are cut from the master tape. Other welcome additions to the list in include Jon Batiste’s latest EP Anatomy of Angels: Live from the Village Vanguard and Keiko Matsui’s Echo, making a list re-entry in its 11th week on the charts. Below is the complete Top 10 list:
1. Love, Michael Bublé
2. Follow the Leader, Jonathan Hay and Benny Reid featuring Mike Smith
3. Elevate, Lettuce
4. Portrait in Jazz, Bill Evans
5. Love Is Here To Stay, Tony Bennett & Diana Krall
6. Jazz Part Two, Smith & Hay X King Tech
7. Anatomy of Angels: Live at the Village Vanguard, Jon Batiste
8. Echo, Keiko Matsui
9. Good Time, Ranky Tanky
10. My Way, Willie Nelson
Meanwhile, the Jazz Week Radio chart took shape the week of August 19 as a testament to the fact that we are living in the Golden Age of Jazz Piano. Seven of the Top 10 albums featured keyboardists in the leader or co-leader role, beginning with piano legend Chick Corea, who reclaimed the top spot after spending several weeks at No. 2. He’s part of an international jazz piano cohort that found itself heavily represented in this week’s charts. Other pianists to land in the Top 10 include American Hammond B3 organ wiz Tony Monaco (in duet with saxophonist Richie Cole), Dominican Republic-born pianist Michel Camilo, Brazilian samba jazz veteran Antonio Adolfo and Japanese piano visionary Yoko Miwa. Below are the Top 10 albums:
1. Antidote, Chick Corea and The Spanish Heart Band
2. Partners In Time, Mike LeDonne
3. I’m All Smiles, George Cables
4. Keep Talkin’, Yoko Miwa
5. Inspirations & Dedications, Al Foster
6. Essence, Michel Camilo
7. The Rhythm of Invention, Wayne Wallace Latin Jazz Quintet
8. Night Mode, Verve Jazz Ensemble
9. Samba Jazz Alley, Antonio Adolfo
10. The Keys of Cool, Riche Cole/Terry Monaco
That’s it for this week’s jazz chart update. Check back next week to see if you’re favorite new album ade the list.