February 2026 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

Screenshot of the trailer for Staatsoper Wien’s production of Giuseppe Verdi’s Luisa Miller by There Stands the Glass.

The Top Ten Albums of February 2026
1. Jill Scott- To Whom This May Concern
My review.

2. James Brandon Lewis and the Messthetics- Deface the Currency
Physical graffiti.

3. Bill Frisell- In My Dreams
Where the deer and the antelope play.

4. Charlie XCX- Wuthering Heights
Smoldering art-pop.

5. Tomeka Reid- dance! skip! hop!
With Mary Halvorson, Jason Roebke and Tomas Fujiwara.

6. Mandy, Indiana- Urgh
Yikes.

7. Melissa Aldana- Filin
My review.

8. Pat Metheny- Side-Eye III+
Everything at once.

9. Tigran Hamasyan- Manifeste
My review.

10. J. Cole- The Fall-Off
Farewell.

The Top Three Reissues of February 2026
1. Art Pepper- Everything Happens to Me: 1959, Live at the Cellar
My review.

2. Ranil y su Conjunto Tropical- Galaxia Tropical
Peruvian cumbia from the ‘80s and ‘90s.

3. Alexander Gibson- Opening the Doors
A seven-hour survey of the late Scottish conductor’s work.

The Top Ten Songs of February 2026
1. Jorge Drexler- "Toco madera"
Sparkling MPB #1.

2. Fabiano do Nascimento and Vittor Santos Orchestra-  “O Tempo (Foi O Meu Mestre)”
Sparkling MPB #2.

3. svn4evr- "veil"
Incredulous gospel.

4. Adrian Younge- “Portschute”
My new theme song.

5. LaVelle- "Suga"
Sweet soul music.

6. Ella Mai- "First Day"
Boo’d up.

7. xaviersobased- “Party at My Place”
Don’t bother knocking.

8. Billy Woods featuring Fatboi Sharif- “Funny Games”
Funny, not funny..

9. Willow featuring Kamasi Washington- "Play"
Recess.

10. The Womack Sisters- “You Went Away Too Long”
Family tradition.

The Top Ten Performances of February 2026
1. Joyce DiDonato and Time For Three at the Folly Theater
My review.

2. Isaac Cates & Ordained at Village Presbyterian Church
My Instagram clip.

3. UMKC Conservatory’s “Carmen” at White Theater
My review.

4. Joshua Redman Quartet at the Folly Theater
My review.

5. Lyric Opera of Kansas City’s “Porgy and Bess” at Muriel Kauffman Theatre
My Instagram snapshot.

6. KC Winter Jazzfest at Cap Gun Studios
My review.

7. Jericho Brown at Arrupe Auditorium
My Instagram snapshot.

8. Robert Stubbs at Country Club Christian Church
My Instagram clip.

9. Matt Otto, Aaron Sizemore, Ben Tervort and Mike Warren at the Music House
My Instagram clip.

10. The International Center for Music at Asbury Methodist Church
My Instagram clip.

The previous monthly recap is here.

Album Review: Art Pepper- Everything Happens to Me: 1959, Live at the Cellar

Charlie Parker died in 1955. He was 34. Art Pepper was 56 when he died in 1982. Now that I’m in my sixties, lifespans have become more significant to me. Only love is more precious than time.

The two abstract qualities are well represented on the previously unreleased Everything Happens to Me: 1959, Live at the Cellar. Each of the 142 minutes represents a love letter to Parker. 

The superlative Bird acolyte Art Pepper is accompanied by pianist Chris Gage, bassist Tony Clitheroe and drummer George Ursan at the Vancouver club. Recorded by the venue’s manager and never intended for public consumption, the document is akin to the tapes Dean Benedetti made of Parker.

The low-stakes atmosphere is so ingratiating that I’ve twice listened to the four-hour album without interruption in each of the past two days. Communing with the ghosts of Parker and Pepper will always be time well spent.

The Top Reissues and Reimaginings of 2025

A bundle of cassettes containing unreleased Bruce Springsteen studio recordings was one of my most cherished possessions in the 1980s. Much of that material was officially released this year. Springsteen’s buried treasures meant more to me decades ago, but the following ranking reflects the sustained value of the illicit cache. Hours of obscure Sun Ra sounds also saw the light of day in 2025. I acknowledge that embarrassment of riches with only one listing. Caveat: I have yet to tackle new collections of rarities by icons including Anthony Braxton, Bob Dylan, Rahsaan Roland Kirk and the Who.

1. Bruce Springsteen- Tracks II: The Lost Albums
Perfect world.

2. Bruce Springsteen- Nebraska ‘82: Expanded Edition
Reason to believe.

3. Moor Mother- Analog Fluids of Sonic Black Holes
An orchestral reimagining of her 2019 album.

4. Anat Fort- The Dreamworld of Paul Motian
The pianist with Steve Cardenas, Garry Wang and Matt Wilson.

5. Woody Guthrie- Woody at Home, Vol. 1 and 2
My review..

6. James Newton Quartet- Live in Willisau Switzerland 1983
The flautist with Geri Allen, Anthony Cox and Andrew Cyrille.

7. Larry June, 2 Chainz and the Alchemist- Life Is Beautiful: Chopped But Not Slopped
A lost art.

8. Nick Drake- The Making of Five Leaves Left
Time has told me.

9. Makaya McCraven- Off the Record!
His four 2025 EPs compiled.

10. Joni Mitchell- Joni's Jazz
One side now.

11. Cecil Taylor and Tony Oxley- Flashing Spirits
Spectral sounds from 1988.

12. Irène Schweizer, Rüdiger Carl, Johnny Dyani and Han Bennink- Irène's Hot Four
Improvisational madness from 1981.

13. Charles Mingus- Mingus in Argentina: The Buenos Aires Concerts
A glorious mess from 1977.

14. Sun Ra- Uncharted Passages: New York Piano Soliloquies 1977-79
Solo.

15. Sviatoslav Richter- The Lost Tapes: Beethoven: Sonatas Nos. 18, 27, 28 & 31
My review.

16. Peggy Lee- Mirrors: Expanded Edition
Existential art songs.

17. Kassa Overall- CREAM
My review.

18. Tedeschi Trucks Band and Leon Russell Present- Mad Dogs and Englishmen Revisited: Live at Lockn’
Feelin’ alright.

19. Willie Nelson- Oh What a Beautiful World
Willie on Rodney.

20. Art Pepper- Geneva 1980
Bird lived.

21. Rima Khcheich- Ya Man Itha: Tribute to Fouad Abdel Maheed
The Lebanese vocalist interprets the Egyptian composer.

22. Don Letts- The Rebel Dread at Echo Beach
Reggae party.

23. Branford Marsalis Quartet- Belonging
A fresh take on Keith Jarrett’s 1974 album.

24. Willie Nelson- Workin’ Man: Willie Sings Merle
Swinging doors.

25. Sister Irene O’Connor- Fire of God’s Love
Zany but persuasive gospel.

March 2025 Recap: A Monthly Exercise in Critical Transparency

Screenshot of the trailer for the Royal Opera’s production of Charles Gounod’s Faust by There Stands the Glass.

The Top Ten Albums of March 2025
1. Vijay Iyer and Leo Wadada Smith- Defiant Life
Resistance.

2. Sylvie Courvoisier and Mary Halvorson- Bone Bells
“What tale of terror, now, their turbulency tells.”

3. Destroyer- Dan’s Boogie
Regrettably, I know just what he means.

4. Nels Cline- Consentrik Quartet
My review.

5. clipping.- Dead Channel Sky
Overcast.

6. Anouar Brahem- After the Last Sky
Light in darkness.

7. Jan Lisiecki- Preludes by Chopin, Bach, Rachmaninoff, Messiaen, Górecki
All killer, no filler.

8. Bob James and Dave Koz- Just Us
My review.

9. Slim Thug and Propain- Double Cup
Still tippin’.

10. Stik Figa and DJ Sean P- A Small Fortune
Buried treasure.

The Top Three Reissues, Repackagings and Reimaginings of March 2025
1. Art Pepper- Geneva 1980
Late-career fire.

2. Neil Young- Oceanside Countryside
Previously unreleased 1977 album.

3. Branford Marsalis Quartet- Belonging
A replication of Keith Jarrett’s 1974 album.

The Top Ten Songs of March 2025
1. Nathy Peluso- “Erotika”
Salsa. 

2. PremRock featuring Cavalier and Elucid- “A Good Man Is Hard to Find”
Bad guys.

3. Billy Woods and Kenny Segal- “Misery”
Muck and mire.

4. feeble little horse- “This Is Real”
Debaser.

5. Mackenzie Carpenter- “Gone Fishing”
Hook, line and sinker.

6. Maren Morris- “Carry Me Through”
Self help.

7. Black Country, New Road- “Happy Birthday”
Fourpenny opera.

8. Dierks Bentley featuring Stephen Wilson Jr.- "Cold Beer Can"
Pop a top.

9. Little Simz- "Free"
Priceless.

10. TheBabeGabe and The Human featuring Monogram- "1999"
They were dreaming when they wrote this.

The Top Ten Performances of March 2025
1. Robyn Hitchcock and Emma Swift at Knuckleheads
My review.

2. Branford Marsalis Quartet at the Folly Theater
My review.

3. Dead Heat, Stakes Is High, Failure Drill and Honey at Howdy
My Instagram clip.

4. Leonidas Kavakos and Danil Trifonov at the Folly Theater
My Instagram snapshot.

5. Leonkoro at the 1900 Building
My Instagram snapshot.

6. Bram and Lucy Wijnands and the Kansas City Jazz Orchestra at the Folly Theater
My review.

7. Thomas Dunford at Grace and Holy Trinity Cathedral
My Instagram snapshot.

8. The Lyric Opera of Kansas City’s “Becoming a Redwood: The Songs of Lori Laitman and Dana Gioia” at St. Mary’s Episcopal Church
My Instagram snapshot.

9. Dawson Jones at Green Lady Lounge
My review.

10. The Lyric Opera’s “Cruzar la Cara de la Luna” with Mariachi los Camperos at Muriel Kauffman Theatre
My review.

The previous monthly recap is here.