Top 10 Jazz Concerts

1. Frank Morgan, Kenny Barron (Hyatt Newporter). A duo date that became a wonderful exchange of ideas between the expressive alto saxophonist and Barron, one of the best pianists alive.

2. Cedar Walton (Maxwell’s, Huntington Beach). Lyrically wise, harmonically rich keyboardist Walton plays the kind of improvisations so full of ideas they’re almost visual. Drummer and king of polyrhythms Billy Higgins played no small part in the success of this show. Bassist Tony Dumas was equally astute.

3. Rob Mullins (Orange Coast College). Keyboardist Mullins fused funk and mainstream, acoustic and electric sounds to come up with something rarely heard these days: musically rich numbers based on accessible rhythms. Drummer Ndugu Chancler, bassist Alphonso Johnson and saxophonist Wilton Felder beefed up the sound with their strong attacks while Mullins, moving easily between piano and synthesizer, showed virtuosity of his own.

4. Buddy Collette, (Maxwell’s). A chamber-jazz session with Collette’s gentlemanly sound on tenor and flute playing counterpoint to bassist Richard Simon and guitarist Al Viola. A wonderfully civilized evening.

5. Jay McShann (Hyatt Newporter, Newport Beach). A bit of Kansas City came to Newport when the blues-and-boogie master stirred up the keyboard. Surprisingly, McShann also added decidedly modern dissonant touches to his work, showing that old dogs can learn new tricks.

6. Tito Puente (Orange Coast College, Costa Mesa). This was a big year for El Rey with his appearance in “The Mambo Kings” and a Grammy nomination for his recording of mambo music. This concert showed the accolades were well-deserved.

7. Robert Conti (Irvine Marriott Hotel). This is an ongoing gig for the marvelous guitarist (he continues weeknights in the hotel’s Skylight Lobby Lounge). Whether playing solo or with drop-in guests, Conti shows plenty of heart as well as technique on his seven-string instrument. Go see him.

8. Wilton Felder, Phil Upchurch (El Matador, Huntington Beach). An “old-fashioned jam session,” bassist Luther Hughes called it. And jam they did, with Felder’s Texas tenor and wily guitarist Upchurch churning up the excitement in bop, ballad and funk-based tunes.

9. Horace Tapscott (Maxwell’s). The pianist’s dense, often involved style combined with Roberto Miguel Miranda’s hyper-active bass work and tasteful polyrhythms from drummer Fritz Wise to produce demanding, yet beautiful character sketches and visual backdrops.

Best Jazz Albums

1. “The Spirits of Our Ancestors,” Randy Weston (Antilles)

2. “Live at Koncepts,” Henry Threadgill, Very Very Circus (Taylor Made Records)

3. “People Time,” Stan Getz, Kenny Barron (Verve)

4. “The Standard Joe,” Joe Henderson (Red Records)

5. “1961,” Jimmy Giuffre 3 (ECM)

6. “Maroons,” Geri Allen (Blue Note)

7. “Haunted Heart,” Charlie Haden Quartet West (Verve)

8. “Family Portrait,” Victor Lewis (Audioquest)

9. “Black Hope,” Kenny Garrett (Warner Bros.)

10. “43rd & Degnan,” Black Note (World Stage)