It's New Year's Eve, my time and excuses have run out, and thus it's finally, finally time to bust out the year-end edition of Jazz Workshop for 2007.

This was a big year, folks, this 2007. Ornette Coleman won a Pulitzer Prize; the all-important Monterey Jazz Festival celebrated its 50th anniversary, and Sonny Rollins also celebrated the 50th anniversary of his first Carnegie Hall concert; Cecil Taylor and Anthony Braxton performed together for the first time; and Keith Jarrett, NOT for the first time, made an ass of himself onstage in Umbria.

It was the year I dedicated myself to jazz, the year I heard records by Freddie Keppard and Satoko Fujii and Bobby Few for the first time. It was the year when what seems to be the dominant trend of the decade, the first truly seamless integration of jazz and electronica, really reached its zenith. It was the year that belonged to big bands; funnily enough, it was also the year that belonged to the solo performer.

It's also the year in which Blogcritics allowed me to premiere this column - which means it's the first time the Jazz Workshop has done the "Best of" for the year. Thus, having done this for the first time ever, I discovered every caveat I've ever heard was true: as soon as you compile your list, you'll change your mind, or find something new under the couch that you hadn't listened to. So take this list with at least one grain of salt.

The Dirty Dozen:

1. Live at the Jazz Gallery, Jason Lindner Big Band (Anzic)-  I've already covered this album four freaking times, and have little to add to what I wrote for BC's Best of '07 feature. I'll say this: I picked it not for being groundbreaking, or for stretching my perception of jazz or music in general - I just picked it because it was so fucking good.

2. Live, Vol. 1, Robin Eubanks & EB3 (Kindred Rhythm)- Now this is the one that takes the cake for innovation. Eubanks, operating his trio under the guideline of "1+1+1=4 and more," figured out how to make sampling, looping, remixing, and electronic processing into resources as spontaneous as thematic improvisation. It comes with a DVD, which is the best possible help, since you won't believe it until you see it.
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