Enrico Bettinello´s Best of 2011 List – All About Jazz Italy

Tim Berne – Insomnia (Clean Feed)
Crisco 3 – You Can Never Please Anybody (Aut Records)
Franco D’Andrea – Sorapis (El Gallo Rojo)
Gerry Hemingway Quintet – Riptide (Clean Feed)
Julius Hemphill – Peter Kowald – Live at Kassiopeia (NoBusiness Records) Huntsville – For Flowers, Cars and Merry Wars (Hubro)
Bon Iver – Bon Iver (4AD)
Jaruzelski’s Dream – Jazz Gawronski (Clean Feed)
Steve Lacy – School Days (1960/3) (Emanem)
Domenico Lancellotti – Cine Privé (Malintenti)
Rob Mazurek – Calma Gente (Submarine Records)
Louis Moholo-Moholo – Dudu Pukwana – Johnny Dyani – Frank Wright – Spiritual Knowledge and Grace (Ogun)
Mostly Other People Do the Killing – Coimbra Concert (Clean Feed)
Mr. Rencore + Tim Berne – Intollerant (Auand)
Alfonso Santimone Laser Pigs – Ecce Combo (El Gallo Rojo)
São Paulo Underground – Tres Cabeças Loucuras (Cuneiform)
Starlicker – Double Demon (Delmark)
Colin Stetson – New History Warfare Vol. 2 (Constellation)
Vincenzo Vasi – Braccio Elettrico (Tremoloa Records)
Moritz Von Oswald Trio – Horizontal Structures (Honest Jon’s)
http://italia.allaboutjazz.com/php/article.php?id=7400

Jazz Prospecting reviews by Tom Hull

Jaruzelski’s Dream: Jazz Gawronski (CF 211)Italian sax trio, with Piero Bittolo Bon on alto (and smartphone), Stefano Senni on bass, and Francesco Cusa on drums. Don’t know where they came from, what they’ve done in the past, or why they’re obsessed with all things Polish. I can begin to unravel such jokes as “Soulidarnosc” and “Mori Mari Curi” (the discoverer of radioactive elements like “Polonium” that killed her) but not “Swiatoslaw” or “Zibibboniek” or “Maria Goretti Contro Tutti.” Presumably the group name honors (if that’s the word) the last Communist dictator of Poland, Wojciech Witold Jaruzelski. Gawronski, however, appears to be an Italian politician, prominent in Berlusconi’s Forza Italia, first name Jas, easy enough to play off. Gruff, garulous free sax, with enough beat to keep it steady. For a while I thought “Sei Forte Papa” was “New York, New York.” I wouldn’t put anything past them. B+(***)

Billy Fox’s Blackbirds & Bullets: Dulces (CF 204)
Percussionist, credited only with maracas here, has two previous albums, The Kaidan Suite and Uncle Wiggly Suite, and a couple of side credits — e.g., worked with Bobby Sanabria. So how does a maracas player sustain interest? He recruits players I’ve barely (or never) heard of, spread out among two saxes, trumpet, keybs, a one-track violin guest, and gives them each a few minutes to stand up and out. Also does a superb job of working out horn charts for transition. B+(***)
http://www.tomhull.com/blog/archives/1567-Jazz-Prospecting-CG-26,-Part-3.html?PHPSESSID=6c92a8fbe0e7d78232edb35b59c888e8