Pazz & Jop
Pazz & Jop was an annual poll of top musical releases, compiled by American newspaper The Village Voice and created by music critic Robert Christgau. It published lists of the year's top releases for 1971 and, after Christgau's two-year absence from the Voice, each year from 1974 onward. The polls are tabulated from the submitted year-end top 10 lists of hundreds of music critics.[2][3] It was named in acknowledgement of the defunct magazine Jazz & Pop, and adopted the ratings system used in that publication's annual critics poll.[4]
History
[edit]The Pazz & Jop was introduced by The Village Voice in 1971 as an album-only poll;[5] it was expanded to include votes for singles in 1979.[6] Throughout the years, other minor lists had been elicited from poll respondents for releases such as extended plays,[7] music videos,[8] album re-issues,[9] and compilation albums—all of which were discontinued after only a few years.[10] The Pazz & Jop albums poll uses a points system to formulate list rankings.[11] Participating critics assigned a number value, ranging from 5 to 30, to each of the albums on their top 10 list, with all 10 albums totaling 100 points.[11] The singles lists, however, are always unweighted.[11]
The Pazz & Jop was created by Village Voice critic Robert Christgau.[12] The idea behind its name (a spoonerism of Jazz & Pop) was that, since the words "pazz" and "jop" do not exist, participating critics would judge a musical work on its own merits rather than be distracted by categories and genres.[13] In 1971, English rock band the Who topped the first Pazz & Jop albums poll with Who's Next.[14] The following year, Christgau left The Village Voice for Newsday,[15] and the poll was not conducted again until 1974,[16] when Christgau returned to the Voice[17] and the poll "became an institution", according to fellow Voice critic Chris Molanphy.[16] English singer Ian Dury and his band the Blockheads topped the first singles poll with "Hit Me with Your Rhythm Stick" (1979).[14][13] Bob Dylan and Kanye West topped the albums poll the most number of times, with four number-one albums each. West, in addition, won the singles poll of 2005. Christgau oversaw the Pazz & Jop poll for more than thirty years; he also wrote an accompanying essay that discussed the poll's contents.[18][19]
Writing in 2002, author Bernard Gendron cited the lack of overlap between the 1999 poll results and that year's best-selling albums on Billboard's US charts—whereby only five of Pazz & Jop's top 40 appeared in the Billboard list—as indicative of a continued division between the avant-garde aesthetic of cultural accreditation and commercial considerations.[20] Although Pazz & Jop established itself as a critics' poll with a clear identity, it has attracted criticism, particularly for its methodology. Addressing the participants in 2001, Mike Doughty of the New York Press complained: "In the guise of a love of music, you've taken the most beautiful nebulous form of human expression, squeezed it through an asinine points-scoring system specially cooked up for this pointless perennial, and forced it into this baffling, heinous chart system."[13]
Later years
[edit]Christgau's tenure as Pazz & Jop overseer came to an abrupt end when he was controversially fired from The Village Voice after a company buy-out in August 2006.[21] In response to his dismissal, several prominent critics publicly announced that they would no longer be turning in their lists for the poll; Sasha Frere-Jones of The New Yorker described Christgau's firing as "a slap in the face to so many of us [critics] in so many ways".[22] Regardless, The Village Voice continued to run the feature, with Rob Harvilla succeeding Christgau as music editor and overseer of the poll.[23] Christgau's annual Pazz & Jop overview essay was discontinued and substituted with multiple retrospective articles of the year's music written by a selection of critics.[24]
In 2016, the poll's name was changed from Pazz & Jop to the Village Voice Music Critics Poll by the new owners of the newspaper.[25] Christgau, who had continued to vote in the poll since his departure from the newspaper, expressed dismay at the name change.[25] When the 2016 results were announced in January 2017, the poll had reverted to its Pazz & Jop name.[26]
The Village Voice ceased publication altogether in August 2018.[27] Despite the closure of the newspaper, a Pazz & Jop poll for 2018 was announced on December 20, with Christgau confirming its legitimacy on Twitter.[28] The 2018 poll was published on the Village Voice's website on February 6, 2019.[29]
As a continuation of the poll, Glenn Boothe and Keith Artin organised a "Village Voice Pazz & Jop Rip-Off Poll" in 2019.[30] The poll was conducted via private Facebook group and included over 1,100 members—music writers, business execs, or artists themselves. Purple Mountains' eponymous album was voted the best album of 2019.[31] Uproxx also launched an annual music critic poll in 2018.
Albums voted number one
[edit]Singles voted number one
[edit]Defunct categories
[edit]Compilation albums
[edit]Year | Artist | Album | Mentions | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1995 | Various artists | Macro Dub Infection: Volume One | 28 | [52] |
1996 | LTJ Bukem | Logical Progression | 11 | [53] |
Album re-issues
[edit]Year | Artist | Album | Mentions | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1986 | The Neville Brothers | Treacherous: A History of the Neville Brothers (1955–1985) | 43 | [43] |
1987 | James Carr | At the Dark End of the Street | 35 | [44] |
1988 | Chuck Berry | The Chess Box | 35 | [45] |
1989 | Muddy Waters | The Chess Box | 65 | [46] |
1990 | Robert Johnson | The Complete Recordings | 108 | [47] |
1991 | James Brown | Star Time | 84 | [48] |
1992 | Bob Marley | Songs of Freedom | 51 | [49] |
1993 | The Beach Boys | Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of The Beach Boys | 42 | [50] |
1994 | Louis Armstrong | Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (1923–1934) | 34 | [51] |
1995 | The Velvet Underground | Peel Slowly and See | 57 | [52] |
1996 | Sun Ra | The Singles | 25 | [53] |
1997 | Various artists | Anthology of American Folk Music | 100 | [54] |
1998 | Various artists | Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968 | 111 | [55] |
1999 | Os Mutantes | Everything Is Possible: The Best of Os Mutantes | 31 | [56] |
Various artists | Loud, Fast and Out of Control: The Wild Sounds of '50s Rock |
Extended plays
[edit]Year | Artist | Album | Mentions | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1981 | The Specials | Ghost Town | 44 | [38] |
1982 | T-Bone Burnett | Trap Door | 75 | [39] |
1983 | Los Lobos | ...And a Time to Dance | 54 | [40] |
1984 | Tommy Keene | Places That Are Gone | 32 | [41] |
1985 | Alex Chilton | Feudalist Tarts | 32 | [42] |
1986 | Alex Chilton | No Sex | 27 | [43] |
1988 | Bruce Springsteen | Chimes of Freedom | 13 | [45] |
1989 | Lucinda Williams | Passionate Kisses | 17 | [46] |
1990 | The Mekons | F.U.N. '90 | 27 | [47] |
1991 | Pavement | Perfect Sound Forever | 26 | [48] |
1992 | Pavement | Watery, Domestic | 23 | [49] |
1993 | Luscious Jackson | In Search of Manny | 31 | [50] |
1994 | Pizzicato Five | Five by Five | 15 | [51] |
Music videos
[edit]Year | Artist | Music video | Director(s) | Mentions | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1983 | Michael Jackson | "Beat It" | Bob Giraldi | 63 | [40] |
1984 | Art of Noise | "Close (To the Edit)" | Zbigniew Rybczyński | 35 | [41] |
1985 | Artists United Against Apartheid | "Sun City" | Jonathan Demme, Godley & Creme | 68 | [42] |
1986 | Peter Gabriel | "Sledgehammer" | Stephen R. Johnson | 87 | [43] |
1987 | Squeeze | "Hourglass" | Ade Edmondson | 12 | [44] |
1990 | Deee-Lite | "Groove Is in the Heart" | Hiroyuki Nakano | 35 | [47] |
Madonna | "Justify My Love" | Jean-Baptiste Mondino | |||
1991 | Nirvana | "Smells Like Teen Spirit" | Samuel Bayer | 59 | [48] |
1992 | Nirvana | "In Bloom" | Kevin Kerslake | 23 | [49] |
1993 | Nirvana | "Heart-Shaped Box" | Anton Corbijn | 34 | [50] |
1994 | Beastie Boys | "Sabotage" | Spike Jonze | 66 | [51] |
1995 | Björk | "It's Oh So Quiet" | Spike Jonze | 33 | [52] |
References
[edit]- ^ Cromelin, Robert (January 1, 2007). "Jockeying for top music poll position". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved January 12, 2014.
- ^ Thorpe, David (January 16, 2013). "Pazz & Jop: A Note on Crap". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 3, 2013. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Sinclair, Tom (December 12, 2001). "CD Wow". Entertainment Weekly. Archived from the original on February 1, 2014. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ "The Village Voice's 44th Pazz & Jop Music Critics' Poll". villagevoice.com. Archived from the original on February 23, 2017. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
- ^ "The 1971 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". robertchristgau.com. Archived from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2013.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (January 28, 1980). "The 1979 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 31, 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (February 1, 1982). "Pazz & Jop 1981: The Year the Rolling Stones Lost the Pennant". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on January 2, 2010. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (February 28, 1984). "Pazz & Jop 1983: Who Else? A Goddamn Critics Band, That's Who Else". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 5, 2013. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (March 3, 1987). "Pazz & Jop 1986: Township Jive Conquers the World". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 9, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (February 20, 1996). "Pazz & Jop 1995: Lost in the Soundscape". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on July 6, 2014. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ a b c McDonald, Glenn (January 21, 2011). "Pazz & Jop Stats II: Calculating Enthuasiasm, Hipness, Metalism, And, Uh, Kvltosis". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 7, 2013. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Hermes, Will (2012). Love Goes to Buildings on Fire: Five Years in New York That Changed Music Forever. Macmillan. p. 286. ISBN 978-0374533540.
- ^ a b c Edmondson, Jacqueline, ed. (2013). Music in American Life: An Encyclopedia of the Songs, Styles, Stars, and Stories that Shaped our Culture. Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO. p. 85. ISBN 978-0-313-39348-8. Archived from the original on April 12, 2023. Retrieved January 28, 2019.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (February 10, 1972). "The 1971 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 22, 2021. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (March 2, 1972). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Postscript notes. Archived from the original on October 26, 2012. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
- ^ a b Molanphy, Chris (October 28, 2011). "100 & Single: You Can Keep Your EGOT; Adele's Going For A 2011 PB&G". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 29, 2019. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (October 2008). "User's Guide to the Consumer Guide". MSN Music. Archived from the original on September 23, 2019. Retrieved September 17, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ Scholtes, Peter S. (October 19, 2006). "Robert Christgau: NPR Animal". City Pages. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert. "Pazz & Jop". Robert Christgau. Archived from the original on August 1, 2009. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Gendron, Bernard (2002). Between Montmartre and the Mudd Club: Popular Music and the Avant-Garde. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. p. 325. ISBN 978-0-226-28737-9. Archived from the original on April 12, 2023. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
- ^ Rosen, Jody (September 5, 2006). "X-ed Out". Slate. Archived from the original on May 20, 2012. Retrieved February 15, 2013.
- ^ Ganz, Jacob (January 5, 2007). "'Voice' Music Poll Undermined by Internet". NPR. Archived from the original on September 18, 2013. Retrieved June 7, 2013.
- ^ Sisario, Ben (November 30, 2006). "Meaty, Beaty, Big and Bloggy: An Online Poll Covets the Territory Once Owned by Pazz & Jop". The New York Times. Archived from the original on August 16, 2021. Retrieved June 7, 2013.
- ^ "Critical Review: An Interview with Village Voice Music Editor Rob Harvilla on Pazz + Jop". Flavorwire. January 22, 2009. Archived from the original on June 25, 2013. Retrieved June 7, 2013.
- ^ a b Gordon, Jeremy (December 2, 2016). "The Village Voice's Iconic, Annual Pazz & Jop Music Poll Has a New Name | SPIN". Spin. Archived from the original on December 3, 2016. Retrieved December 2, 2016.
- ^ Critics, Various (January 25, 2017). "Pazz & Jop, the Village Voice Music Critics Poll: The Top Albums of 2016". Village Voice. Archived from the original on January 25, 2017. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
- ^ Cush, Andy (August 31, 2018). "The Village Voice Shutters After 55 Years | SPIN". Spin. Archived from the original on October 4, 2018. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
- ^ Christgau, Robert [@rxgau] (December 20, 2018). "WOL? LUT? Huh? But just for the record, I knew Pazz & Jop 2018 was in the works and I'm voting. In fact, I'm kinda proud. The list has been updated, and any cross-publication/generation poll will be better than none. I urge anyone who gets a ballot to participate. https://t.co/41mTiOM5pE" (Tweet). Retrieved December 2, 2022 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b "Pazz & Jop: The Top 100 Albums of 2018". www.villagevoice.com. Archived from the original on February 7, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
- ^ "Village Voice Pazz & Jop Rip-Off Poll's Best Albums of 2019". floodmagazine.com. Archived from the original on February 9, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ "Village Voice Paz & Jop Rip-Off Poll results 2019". Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (January 20, 1975). "The 1974 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on December 15, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (December 29, 1975). "The 1975 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 15, 2014. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (January 31, 1977). "The 1976 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on July 29, 2016. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (January 23, 1978). "The 1977 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 4, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (January 22, 1979). "The 1978 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on June 19, 2009. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 9, 1981). "The 1980 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 8, 2005. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (February 1, 1982). "The 1981 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 4, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (February 22, 1983). "The 1982 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on July 9, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (February 28, 1984). "The 1983 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 17, 2015. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (February 18, 1985). "The 1984 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (February 18, 1986). "The 1985 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 17, 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (March 3, 1987). "The 1986 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on July 10, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (March 1, 1988). "The 1987 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 13, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (February 28, 1989). "The 1988 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on December 24, 2016. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (February 27, 1990). "The 1989 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on July 10, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (March 5, 1991). "The 1990 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on January 5, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (March 3, 1992). "The 1991 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on May 7, 2006. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (March 2, 1993). "The 1992 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (March 1, 1994). "The 1993 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (February 28, 1995). "The 1994 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 25, 2014. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d e Christgau, Robert (February 20, 1996). "The 1995 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 25, 2014. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c d Christgau, Robert (February 25, 1997). "The 1996 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (February 24, 1998). "The 1997 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (March 2, 1999). "The 1998 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 28, 2015. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b c Christgau, Robert (February 22, 2000). "The 1999 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 16, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 20, 2001). "The 2000 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on September 4, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 12, 2002). "The 2001 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on December 2, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 18, 2003). "The 2002 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 17, 2004). "The 2003 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on July 17, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 15, 2005). "The 2004 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 15, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (February 7, 2006). "The 2005 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 15, 2013. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b "The 2006 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. February 6, 2007. Archived from the original on April 23, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ a b "The 2007 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 1, 2008. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Albums − All Votes (2008)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Albums − All Votes (2009)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on August 15, 2014. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Albums − All Votes (2010)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 20, 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Albums − All Votes (2011)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on January 18, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Albums − All Votes (2012)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on May 13, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on February 14, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on January 28, 2017. Retrieved May 21, 2015.
- ^ a b "Pazz & Jop: The Top Albums and Singles of 2017". Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 21, 2018.
- ^ "Pazz & Jop Voters Ballots: 2018 Albums". www.villagevoice.com. Archived from the original on February 17, 2019. Retrieved February 18, 2019.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Singles − All Votes (2008)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on October 16, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Singles − All Votes (2009)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 26, 2010. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Singles − All Votes (2010)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on February 6, 2011. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Singles − All Votes (2011)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on March 10, 2012. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ "New York Pazz and Jop Singles − All Votes (2012)". The Village Voice. Archived from the original on May 13, 2017. Retrieved February 13, 2013.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on January 16, 2014. Retrieved January 15, 2014.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on February 3, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2015.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved January 12, 2016.
- ^ McDonald, Glenn. "Pazz & Jop Statistics". Furia.com. Archived from the original on June 10, 2017. Retrieved May 21, 2017.
- ^ "Pazz & Jop: The Top 50 Singles of 2018". www.villagevoice.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2019. Retrieved February 6, 2019.