Best New Jazz Of March 2026

What happens when you put three of jazz's biggest personalities in a studio for a day? You get Money Jungle: Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus and Max Roach. Can it work? Miles Davis hated it. Others revere it. And the story behind this album is WILD.It's perhaps the most tense album we've ever listened to. And this episode of You'll Hear It is possibly the most we have ever disagreed about an album! Listen for the music, the hot takes, or just to see what all the fuss is about. No matter your reason for listening to this episode, you'll never hear Money Jungle the same way again.-------------------------------Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs:https://openstudiojazz.com/yhi-------------------------------Related You'll Hear It episodes:Mingus Ah Um: https://youtu.be/XYeRZ0Awui4Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington: https://youtu.be/Z5YJr2iLG74-------------------------------About You'll Hear It:In this popular music series, Adam and Peter break down the greatest albums of all time. Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, D'Angelo: Jazz is the foundation of the most GENIUS music in recent history. These seasoned jazz pianists bring their deep musical knowledge to every joyful episode to help you hear the hidden qualities that make music AMAZING. You'll never hear music the same way again.-------------------------------Sign up for the You'll Read It newsletter for little known stories about the artists you love:https://youllhearit.com/newsletter -------------------------------00:00 - Money Jungle: Ellington, Mingus, Roach01:00 - Can This Record Work?05:06 - "Money Jungle": Mingus is Menacing!09:15 - What Was Really Happening That Day12:17 - Musical Context Leading Up to Money Jungle14:15 - "Fleurette Africaine": Stunning Bass Work17:00 - Must Great Artists Make Great Art? Not Always20:18 - Why Money Jungle Keeps Showing Up on "Greatest" Lists23:45 - "Very Special": Can This Song Win Over Peter?27:07 - One Week Later: Duke Ellington & John Coltrane29:32 - Adam's Hot Take: Duke's Magnificent Final Act36:43 - "A Warm Valley": That Piano Sound!39:35 - "Wig Wise": Sounding Like Monk. Can You Hear It?42:59 - We Don't Talk About This Enough In Jazz45:27 - "Caravan": Best Moment on Money Jungle48:18 - Or Is THIS the Best Moment on Money Jungle?52:25 - Want to Learn to Play Like Duke? Join Open Studio!55:55 - "Solitude": A Musical F-You to End the Album1:02:42 - Is This a "Emperor Has No Clothes" Situation?1:03:40 - Desert Island Tracks + Bespoke Playlists01:05:40 - Quibble Bits ... Do We Even Need to Ask?01:08:48 - How Snobby Is This Album?01:10:35 - What to Listen to Next01:11:18 - Have We Ever Disagreed This Much? Wrap-Up

We're looking at the best jazz releases of March 2026! Listen with pianist Adam Maness as he breaks down and reacts to these great tracks.Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs: https://osjazz.link/yhi

Thelonious Monk Plays Duke Ellington: The musicians on this album were already legends when it came out in 1955. Each of them completely reinvented how people play their instruments. Drummer Kenny Clarke: the originator of so much of modern drumming language. Bass player Oscar Pettiford: possibly the greatest bass soloist in the history of the instrument. And then there's Monk, one of the singular greatest pianists of all time. And here they are playing the music of Duke Ellington: an untouchable legend. The result is an album that brought Monk's genius to the masses. And it may just be one of his best. In this LIVE episode of You'll Hear It, jazz pianists Adam Maness and Peter Martin break down this remarkable moment in music history, playing Monk's interpretations next to Duke's originals. If you've never really got Monk, this album is your gateway into his music. And if you're already a fan, you'll never hear this album the same way again.-------------------------------Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs: https://openstudiojazz.com/yhi-------------------------------About You'll Hear It:In this popular music series Adam and Peter break down the greatest albums of all time. Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, D'Angelo: Jazz is the foundation of the most GENIUS music in recent history. These seasoned jazz pianists bring their deep musical knowledge to every joyful episode to help you hear the hidden qualities that make music AMAZING. You'll never hear music the same way again.-------------------------------Sign up for the You'll Read It newsletter for little known stories about the artists you love: https://youllhearit.com/newsletter -------------------------------0:00 - "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)"2:07 - You'll Hear It Live at Jazz at Lincoln Center6:02 - The Story of Thelonious Monk8:24 - First Official Recording: Coleman Hawkins Quartet (1944)10:21 - Keepnews Big Idea to Bring Monk to the Masses14:46 - "It Don't Mean a Thing": Duke's original vs. Monk's version20:40 - Bassist Oscar Pettiford's Sophisticated Musical Language24:10 - Louis Armstrong & Ella Fitzgerald's Version27:38 - "Sophisticated Lady"31:44 - "I Got It Bad and That Ain't Good" 35:08 - Bet You Can't Guess This Singer39:10 - "Black and Tan Fantasy": Duke (1927) vs. Monk42:30 - Oscar Pettiford Plays "Basso Profundo" with Duke Ellington45:00 - "Tricotism" - Oscar Pettiford 45:55 - Kenny Clarke deep dive47:48 - "Mood Indigo" 49:50 - "I Let a Song Go Out of My Heart": Duke's original vs. Monk's version52:30 - "Solitude"55:00 - "Caravan": Duke's original vs. Monk's version 58:35 - Categories: Desert Island, Apex Moments, Bespoke Playlists, Quibble Bits59:50 - Drummer Kenny Clarke's Brush Master Class1:04:00 - Is This Better than Kind of Blue?1:04:55 - What to Listen to Next

D'Angelo's Brown Sugar sounded like nothing else in 1995. R&B was slick, polished, and built for clubs. D'Angelo later said the "deeper consciousness" had gone out of contemporary music. Questlove later wrote that contemporary R&B had become "trite" and "soulless" ... and then there was Brown Sugar, D'Angelo's debut album. It sounded more like the '70s than the '90s. More like church than the club. On this episode of You'll Hear It, jazz pianists Adam Maness and Peter Martin go track by track through D'Angelo's debut, pulling apart the vocal stems, naming the jazz chords underneath the soul, and tracing every influence back to its root. They also bring in the archival recordings you might have missed: a live set from the Jazz Café London that gives the album a whole second life, and a J Dilla remix.-------------------------------Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs: https://openstudiojazz.com/yhi -------------------------------Related You'll Hear It episodes:Voodoo: https://youtu.be/AYqmFNF2s0U-------------------------------About You'll Hear It:In this popular music series Adam and Peter break down the greatest albums of all time. Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, D'Angelo: Jazz is the foundation of the most GENIUS music in recent history. These seasoned jazz pianists bring their deep musical knowledge to every joyful episode to help you hear the hidden qualities that make music AMAZING. You'll never hear music the same way again.-------------------------------Sign up for the You'll Read It newsletter for little known stories about the artists you love: https://youllhearit.com/newsletter -------------------------------00:00 - D'Angelo's Brown Sugar01:11 - Let's Go Back to 1995 05:35 - "Brown Sugar"08:30 - Engineer Bob Power's Influence 09:13 - "Brown Sugar" Felt Different From Anything Else in 199516:57 - D'Angelo on Why He Picked Bob Power19:30 - "Alright" 28:57 - Isolated Vocal Stems on "Alright"31:27 - "Jones in My Bones" 33:20 - The Little-Known D'Angelo Album36:25 - "Me & Those Dreamin' Eyes of Mine"40:30 - The J Dilla Remix (1997)44:18 - "Shit, Damn, Motherfucker" 46:30 - Live at the Jazz Cafe - "Shit, Damn, Motherfucker"48:10 - "Smooth" 50:20 - D'Angelo Could Have Been a Jazz Pianist53:04 - D'Angelo and Peter's Ellis Marsalis Connection56:21 - "Cruisin'" 59:25 - Ad Break: Learn To Play Like D'Angelo1:00:37 - "When We Get By"1:04:44 - "We Were Just Mocking Dilla": Raphael Saadiq on How "Lady" Was Made1:06:20 - "Lady"1:11:02 - "Higher"1:15:28 - "Brown Sugar" Hits Different 30 Years Later1:17:00 - Our Favorite Moments1:23:45 - Quibble Bits, Snob-O-Meter & Accoutrements1:27:26 - Up Next + Listener Reviews1:29:45 - Open Studio Plays "Lady"

Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come (1959) may be the most controversial album in jazz history, and one of the most important.In 1959, a broke musician from Fort Worth, Texas arrived in New York City with a plastic saxophone and a band that didn't play by the rules. And EVERYONE had an opinion about it.Jazz legends hated it. Miles Davis said Ornette was "all screwed up inside." Max Roach punched him in the mouth. Dizzy Gillespie said Ornette's music wasn't even jazz. Meanwhile, Leonard Berstein and John Coltrane celebrated him.So what exactly is The Shape of Jazz to Come, and why was it so radical? Jazz pianists Peter Martin and Adam Maness break down every track, from "Lonely Woman" to "Chronology". They dig into harmolodics, free jazz, and how Ornette shaped everyone from Miles Davis (who eventually came around) to the '80s burnout crew, including Wynton Marsalis, who personally recommended this record to Peter.Dig into The Shape of Jazz to Come with us, and learn why this soft spoken saxophonist inspired both criticism and awe.-------------------------------Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs:https://openstudiojazz.com/yhi-------------------------------Related You'll Hear It episodes:Mingus Ah Um: https://youtu.be/XYeRZ0Awui4Giant Steps: https://youtu.be/8umC2yZlPHcKind of Blue: https://youtu.be/ShzSnjP8bSgTime Out: https://youtu.be/-_qPhFSJeQUNina Simone at Town Hall: https://youtu.be/2PDjN5_2y5Q-------------------------------About You'll Hear It:In this popular music series Adam and Peter break down the greatest albums of all time. Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, D'Angelo: Jazz is the foundation of the most GENIUS music in recent history. These seasoned jazz pianists bring their deep musical knowledge to every joyful episode to help you hear the hidden qualities that make music AMAZING. You'll never hear music the same way again.-------------------------------Sign up for the You'll Read It newsletter for little known stories about the artists you love:https://youllhearit.com/newsletter-------------------------------0:00:00 - Ornette Coleman's The Shape of Jazz to Come0:01:42 - 1959: A Pivotal Year0:03:06 - Ornette Coleman: The Backstory0:04:44 - Ornette's Earlier Sound0:06:18 - Lore of the Five Spot0:07:00 - "Lonely Woman"0:12:27 - Harmolodics Explained (Charlie Haden + Don Cherry)0:13:27 - "Eventually"0:14:42 - The '80s Jazz Connection (Wynton, Branford, Kirkland)0:17:21 - "Peace"0:23:50 - Ad: Open Studio0:24:57 - Mingus Said THIS About Coleman0:27:47 - "Focus on Sanity"0:29:40 - When Peter Played with Charlie Haden0:32:43 - Don Cherry's Kids: Neneh Cherry + Eagle-Eye Cherry0:34:22 - "Congeniality"0:36:28 - "Chronology"0:37:23 - Technical Technique vs. Artistic Vision0:42:13 - Categories: Desert Island Tracks, Apex Moments0:48:55 - You'll Read It Newsletter + Ambies

What happens when you let a musical genius make the album of his dreams? You get Stevie Wonder's Music of My Mind (1972), the start of the greatest run in music history. Music of My Mind would be the first of a five-album run that formed Stevie Wonder's Classic Period, including Talking Book (1972), Innervisions (1973), Fulfillingness' First Finale (1974) and Songs in the Key of Life (1976).In this episode of You'll Hear It, jazz pianists Adam Maness and Peter Martin dive into every track on Music of My Mind, listening to isolated stems and breaking down the theory behind the songs. Plus - we talk about TONTO, the one-ton synthesizer Stevie used to create this record. And we dig into the innovative ways Stevie and collaborators Malcolm Cecil and Robert Margouleff mixed the album.-------------------------------Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs: https://openstudiojazz.com/yhi-------------------------------Related You'll Hear It episodes:Talking Book: https://youtu.be/ymcy3ot116w  Innervisions: https://youtu.be/mUYwIijL7s0Songs in the Key of Life: https://youtu.be/uk5x4-uTzj8 -------------------------------About You'll Hear It:In this popular music series, You'll Hear It, Adam and Peter break down the greatest albums of all time. Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, D'Angelo: Jazz is the foundation of the most GENIUS music in recent history. These seasoned jazz pianists bring their deep musical knowledge to every joyful episode to help you hear the hidden qualities that make music AMAZING. You'll never hear music the same way again.-------------------------------Like the jam at the end of the show? Head to https://youtube.com/@OpenStudioMusic for more.00:00 - Stevie Wonder's Music of My Mind03:40 - Breaking Free: The Motown Contract Story05:35 - Finding TONTO: Malcolm Cecil & Robert Margouleff08:45 - What Was TONTO? The Technology Explained09:20 - How Stevie Wonder Met Cecil & Margouleff12:00 - "If You Really Love Me" - Stevie's Motown Sound16:40 - What Albums Belong in the Run?19:10 - "Love Having You Around"22:20 - Isolated Breakdown: Vocals, Talk Box, Rhythm Section27:35 - Stevie Made Albums Different32:10 - "Superwoman (Where Were You When I Needed You)"36:25 - The Greatest Transition EVER41:45 - Innovation Behind the Mix44:10 - Ad Break: Learn to play like Stevie Wonder45:18 - "I Love Every Little Thing About You"52:55 - "Sweet Little Girl"56:14 - "Happier Than the Morning Sun"1:00:53 - Find more performances from Adam and Peter at Open Studio Music1:01:58 - "Girl Blue"1:09:28 - "Seems So Long"1:11:49 - "Keep on Running"1:15:52 - "Evil" - The biggest moment on the album1:21:10 - This One is for the Math Nerds About Music 1:23:05 - Categories1:29:05 - Better Than Innervisions? / Up Next1:32:05 - More from You'll Hear It: You'll Read It1:32:40 - Open Studio plays "Superwoman"

We're looking at the best jazz releases of February 2026! Listen with pianist Adam Maness as he breaks down and reacts to these great tracks.Start your free Open Studio trial for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs: https://osjazz.link/yhi00:00 - Intro00:26 - In On It - Pat Metheny02:20 - Circlesz - GENA04:13 - Will You Walk A Little Faster - Holland, Stone, London Vocal Project06:31 - La Sentencia - Melissa Aldana08:55 - La Fiesta - Geoffrey Keezer & Tim Garland10:58 - Oo Long! - The Tomeka Reid Quartet13:18 - The Edge - Noah Stoneman15:40 - Shivaranjani - Ragini Trio

Charlie Parker was punk rock before there was punk rock. His bebop was underground music: subversive, intellectual, and a major departure from popular music of the day (think: Nat King Cole, The Andrews Sisters, Perry Como). He was an intellectual heavyweight, nearly untouchable in his technical ability and pushing music to places no one else was daring to go. So where did Charlie Parker with Strings, his most accessible album, come from?It's not Bird going commercial, like some have claimed. Charlie Parker with Strings is an album he fought to make. He loved Bach and Stravinsky (even quoting the opening of Stravinsky's 'Firebird Suite' mid-solo in one legendary performance), and had longed to make a record where his jazz saxophone was accompanied by strings.The resulting record is music's greatest improviser at his best. Jazz pianists Peter Martin and Adam Maness listen to select tracks (like "Just Friends" and "Summertime"), breaking down the theory behind the music to understand what makes this album great. Jazz is the foundation of the most GENIUS music in recent history: Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, Joni Mitchell, D'Angelo. In this popular music series, You'll Hear It, Adam and Peter break down the greatest albums of all time. These seasoned jazz pianists bring their deep musical knowledge to every joyful episode to help you hear the hidden qualities that make music AMAZING. You'll never hear music the same way again.Like the jam at the end of the show? Head to @openstudiomusic on YouTube for more.Visit Open Studio for ALLLLL your jazz lesson needs:https://osjazz.link/yhi00:00 - Intro: Charlie Parker with Strings01:10 - "Just Friends"04:40 - Want to Be a Great Musician? Study This Track10:20 - Early Recording: "Swingmatism" (1941)12:45 - The Secret to Charlie Parker's Genius: Practice15:20 - The Savoy Sessions: "Now's the Time" & Young Miles Davis18:20 - The Contrafact Built in Real Time21:45 - "Koko": Miles Davis Couldn't Play It?!24:30 - Musicians NEED to Listen to This27:15 - Think Parker Sold Out? Think AGAIN28:55 - "April in Paris": Parker's Chosen Tune33:55 - About Mitch Miller's Oboe ... 38:25 - "Summertime"44:10 - "Out of Nowhere"46:35 - We Have An Album! 47:20 - "East of the Sun"53:00 - "I'll Remember April"55:50 - Categories: Desert Island Tracks56:35 - The BEST Moments on Strings1:11:10 - Open Studio Plays "Just Friends"

Is Steely Dan's Gaucho more perfect than Aja? Maybe even ... too perfect? Two years in the studio. The greatest session musicians alive asked to play take after take after take until it was exactly right. And sometimes that STILL wasn't enough for Donald Fagen and Walter Becker.On today's episode of You'll Hear It, jazz pianists Peter Martin and Adam Maness are breaking down the 1980 album track by track: the jazz harmony hiding inside those smooth grooves, the abstract poetry of the lyrics, and the insane stories behind how this thing got made. Including the $150,000 drum machine invented specifically for this record, the interview quote that cost them a third of a song, and the drum track that took 85 takes and 35 tape edits to piece together.And after all that, we didn't get another Steely Dan record for 20 years.Was it worth it?Read about the simple mistake that would haunt Steely Dan for 44 years in this week's edition of the You'll Read It newsletter: https://youllhearit.com/newsletterWatch our FULL breakdown of Steely Dan's Aja: https://youtu.be/G10mYohR6T400:00 - Steely Dan's Gaucho: A Monument to Perfect01:15 - "Babylon Sisters"11:00 - What Makes Steely Dan Genius13:35 - The Precision of Purdie's Drums on Babylon Sisters16:10 - Abstract Lyrics19:35 - "Hey Nineteen"22:25 - Pristine Rhodes25:25 - Isolated Vocal Stems on "Hey Nineteen"33:00 - "Glamour Profession"38:55 - The Mingus Influence40:10 - "Gaucho"43:20 - The Keith Jarrett Lawsuit48:50 - Gaucho Chorus Deep Dive54:10 - "Time Out Of Mind"57:50 - Monument to Perfectionism (Lead Boots)1:01:35 - Perfectionism and Jazz1:05:05 - Is Gaucho More Perfect Than Aja?1:06:25 - "My Rival"1:10:40 - Bowie / Steely Dan Side-By-Side1:14:00 - Too Fussy?1:19:05 - Open Studio Plays "Glamour Profession"

The Impossible follow-up: Michael Jackson's 1987 album Bad. Five years after Thriller changed everything, Michael returned with a record that would become one of the best-selling of all time, win two Grammys, feature some of the greatest musicians in the world (hey, Stevie Wonder!) ... and somehow still gets called a letdown. We've covered two of Michael's albums produced by Quincy Jones: Off the Wall and Thriller. What about Bad? Could it actually be better than its predecessor? Jazz pianists Peter Martin and Adam Maness deliver their final verdict on this 80s pop sensation.Along the way, you'll hear behind-the-scenes stories about the making of the album. Plus - we break down the tracks (with keyboards) to highlight the music theory behind this album's most compelling moments. “Annie, are you OK?” Sometimes the best hooks come from the strangest places - find out where in the YHI newsletter: https://youllhearit.com/newsletter00:00 - Intro: "Smooth Criminal" - Michael Jackson01:30 - Michael Jackson's Bad (1987)6:40 - Quincy's Smaller Role on Bad7:50 - The Quincey Jones Brain Trust11:00 - "Bad" - Tough Guy Michael15:00 - Too Much Programming?18:40 - That Organ Solo? Jimmy Smith!22:40 - The Tragedy Behind Bad23:45 - "The Way You Make Me Feel" - Sweet Michael29:15 - How WE Really Feel (About Bad vs Thriller)30:30 - "Speed Demon" - A Nostalgic Track31:55 - Can We Be Honest?32:50 - "Liberian Girl" - The Mid-Album Dip35:30 - "Just Good Friends" - Stevie Can't Save It41:00 - "Another Part of Me" - Pure Joy45:00 - How "Man in the Mirror" Got Its Name45:55 - "Man in the Mirror" - The Apex53:00 - Why We Don't See Songs Like This Today57:30 - "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" - Rejected By Babs1:01:00 - "Dirty Diana" - Phil Collins Vibes1:02:50 - "Smooth Criminal" - That's MJ's Heartbeat!1:06:25 - "Leave Me Alone" - The Shuffle1:09:15 - Apex Moments: Phillinganes and That "Woo!" 1:10:55 - Final Verdict: Bad vs Thriller1:14:05 - Open Studio Plays "Smooth Criminal"