The 100 Best Recordings of 2025 (Part 1 of 2)

Music discovery without boundaries—all genres, all styles, all regions

Today I’m sharing my favorite recordings of 2025. I listened to over one thousand new releases this year—covering all styles, all genres, and all regions of the world. Then came the hard work of picking my top 100.

There’s lots of good new music out there—if you know where to look. You will find some unfamiliar names on my list below. But don’t be discouraged by that. My goal is music discovery—both for you and me.

So I encourage you to click on the links (in the album titles) and sample some new artists. There are many gems here that you won’t learn about anywhere else.

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Below you will find the first 50 titles from my top 100 (in alphabetical order). I’ll share the rest in a few days.

Happy listening!

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The 100 Best Recordings of 2025 (Part 1 of 2)

In alphabetical order

Grecia Albán
Nubes Selva
Andean Pop from Cotopaxi, Ecuador

Carl Allen (with Chris Potter and Christian McBride)
Tippin’
Superstar Jazz Trio

Tony Allen and La Bogota Orquesta Afrobeat
La Boa Meets Tony Allen
Late Nigerian Drum Legend’s Collaboration with a Bogotá Afrobeat Ensemble

Oren Ambarchi, Johan Berthling, Andreas Werliin
Ghosted III
Guitar Trio Plays Slow Groove Music with North African and Arabic Flavoring

Sam Amidon
Salt River
21st Century Avant Folk with 19th Century Roots

Ichiko Aoba
Luminescent Creatures
Japanese Dream Pop with Bits of Bossa, Polyphony, and Art Song

Julius Asal
Siena Tapes
Classical Pianist Juxtaposes Improvisations with Ravel