Favorite Recordings of 2023: Part Three — The Top 20
I will keep updating this list of my 20 favorite albums of 2023, one album at a time, until it is complete. Keep checking back as the list is slowly revealed!
And so we come to the end of another Overstreet favorites list.
I’m counting down the final twenty gradually — because it sounds like fun. And this will give you time to check out each one as they appear.
In case you missed them, this series…
- began on January 6 with an “Honorable Mentions” post,
- and continued with a post where I listed #36 through #21.
Again, if you see any of your own favorites here, post a comment and tell me why you love it. If any provide you with new delight or challenge, I’d love to hear about that, too.
Here are the twenty records I played most, wrestled with most, and loved most in a year when I needed music like I needed food, water, and light.
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#20
Yussef Dayes — Black Classical Music
After hearing this album featured on NPR, I found myself going back again and again for the cathartic, exhilarating jazz performances by Dayes’ inspired combo. This is exactly the kind of jazz I would go hear live on a regular basis if I could find a place in Seattle that serves it up frequently and affordably. Jazz has a thousand flavors, and this is my favorite.
But it’s not just about liking the sound of it. As my friend and musical mentor Thom Jurek writes at AllMusic, “For all its ambitious creativity, Black Classical Music offers a focused, multivalent story at once autobiographical, cultural, and social. The music is lush, advanced, and welcoming, and comes off without a trace of bloat or conceit.” He adds, “This is easily a top pick for best albums of 2023.” But I knew that the first time I heard it.
Favorite Tracks:
- “Black Classical Music (feat. Venna and Charlie Stacey)”
- “Chasing the Drum”
- “Raisins Under the Sun (feat. Shabaka Hutchings)”
Listen to the whole album through this Brownswood Recordings link on YouTube: