9. Wadada Leo Smith, Jack DeJohnette & Vijay Iyer A Love Sonnet for Billie Holiday (TUM)

Set aside the title; this music has little to do with the legendary vocalist. What we have here instead lives on the highest plane of interplay and intuition while balancing structure with freedom. Trumpeter Smith has been doing his life’s greatest (and most prolific) work in his golden years, and this superior outing teams him with two kindred master craftsmen, keyboardist Iyer and drummer DeJohnette. Compelling and surprising from start to finish. STEVE GREENLEE