Great List Fred. The beauty of end-of-the-year lists is that they cause us to listen to newer music we may not have heard or to listen more closely to music we already have. Three 2007 favorites that reward repeated listening: Fred Anderson & Hamid Drake - FROM THE RIVER TO THE OCEAN on Thrill Jockey Marty Ehrlich & Myra Melford - SPARK on Palmetto Dino Saluzzi & Anja Lechner - OJOS NEGROS on ECM Great jazz vinyl reissues for which to be thankful: The Candid reissues from Pure Pleasure. The Impulse! reissues from Speakers Corner.

Great list Fred. One of the benefits of end-of-the-year best of or favorites lists is that they cause us to check out new music or encourage us to listen more closely to music we already have - always a good thing. Here are three favorites that reward repeated listens: Fred Anderson & Hamid Drake - From the River to the Ocean on Thrill Jockey Marty Ehrlich & Myra Melford - Spark on Palmetto Dino Saluzzi & Anja Lechner - Ojos Negros on ECM Also, two big reasons for fans of jazz vinyl to be grateful: The Candid reissues on Pure Pleasure. The Impulse! reissues on Speakers Corner.

Great list Fred. One of the benefits of best of and favorites lists is that they encourage us to check out new music and to listen again, perhaps more attentively, to music we already have. Three of my 2007 favorites not on your list: Fred Anderson & Hamid Drake - From the River to the Ocean on Thrill Jockey Marty Ehrlich & Myra Melford - Spark on Palmetto Dino Saluzzi & Anja Lecner - Ojos Negros on ECM

I'm glad you plugged Maria Schneider, I saw her a year or so ago and was blown away. I also wanted to throw my two cents in on Blue Note as a club. During my time in NYC I went twice. Both times I left annoyed. The first one I was on a budget and solo and stood in the bar. The layout is terrible, the bar is off to the side (instead of merely farther away). My impression was that it was a place cashing in on a famous name and a key location. I vowed not to go back until someone was worth seeing for the extra-steep cover. This year I went back to see Haden/Meldau and sat in the real seats. Like you there were talkers around us. It was clear they came to have a NY experience not listen to a jazz show. And the layout still sucks because the servers are constantly walking in front of you. I again vowed never to go back. In my mind it is a tourist trap and even though they get big names, it is not worth the aggravation. I had a better time at Jazz Gallery with folding chairs and plastic cups.

Hey Fred, Pretty much agree with your "lists" of 2007 and for the decade thus far however, not sure how you could leave off Andrew Hill's "Time lines" of the decade list?? Wow, what an unbelievable record and sadly, his last one. I really think it is more remarkable and noteable then Ornette Coleman's newest release considering Mr. Hill's health and new compositions which I find extremely moving. Perhaps you should add this one and remove something off your decade list :) Well, it's on mine for sure.....

Great list, but it leaves off (like everyone else) one of the most underappreciated jazz albums of the year, Camp Meeting by Bruce Hornsby, Christian McBride and Jack DeJohnetee. Much more uptempo than most of your other selections, listen to it two or three times, and it's hard to not keep coming back for more.

Too bad you missed: Jason Lindner's Big Band- Live At The Jazz Gallery

Good list, though I'd make room for at least one of the CDs Fred's favorite trumpeter played on -- Dave Douglas's "Live At The Jazz Standard", "Moonshine", or SF Jazz's "Live 2007". I also think Joel Harrison's "Harbor" stood out.