The talented soloists are the highlight of the album, though small mistakes and a lack of continuity keep it from reaching its full potential After appearing as a sideman on several recent Criss Cross releases, this 2017 album is guitarist David Gilmore's first as a leader for the label. He tackles a program of mostly covers, with a few originals mixed in, with a quintet consisting of tenor saxophonist Mark Shim, pianist Victor Gould, bassist Carlo De Rosa, and drummer E.J. Strickland. Vibraphonist Bill Ware and harmonica player Gregoire Maret also make guest appearances on one track each.

Following the same formula as Atlantic Crossing and A Night on the Town, but not explicitly breaking the record into fast and slow sides, Foot Loose & Fancy Free was a limp effort from an increasingly complacent Rod Stewart. With the exception of the dumb, sleazy "Hot Legs," none of the rockers are discernible from each other, and this time he doesn't have a strong set of ballads to save him. The affectionately sappy acoustic ballad "You're in My Heart" was the big hit, but Stewart sounds completely convincing only on "I Was Only Joking." Coming at the end of the album, the song seems like a justification for the uninspired, by-the-book record that preceded it.

For the second ECM album by Aaron Parks – following the solo release Aborescence, which JazzTimes praised as “expansive, impressionistic… like a vision quest” – the prize-winning pianist has convened a trio featuring bassist Ben Street and drummer Billy Hart. The rhythm pair, which also teams in Hart’s hit quartet for ECM, blends fluidity and strength – what Parks calls “an oceanic” quality, producing waves of energy for the pianist to alternately ride and dive into. Find the Way has the aura of a piano-trio recording in the classic mold, from melody-rich opener “Adrift” to the closing title track, a cover of a romantic tune Parks grew to love on an LP by Rosemary Clooney and Nelson Riddle. Parks also drew inspiration for this album from the likes of Alice Coltrane and Shirley Horn (for whom Hart played); space and subtlety are a priority.

The great Polish trumpeter Tomasz Stanko has long been one of the most distinctive musicians in all of jazz, his grainy tone and smeared notes instantly recognizable, his intensely lyrical improvisations and soulful themes as characteristic as the noirish atmospheres they often conjure. "December Avenue" – recorded at Studios La Buissonne in the South of France in June 2016 and produced by Manfred Eicher – takes the story forward.