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Everyone's a critic -- a music critic, in particular. Blogs and social networking sites like MySpace and Facebook serve some of the curatorial roles once held by music critics. Meanwhile, staff cuts at print media organizations have eliminated many music columnists and arts reporters. In another Soundcheck Smackdown, two guests ...

Here's music critic Will Layman's list of the best jazz albums of 2008.

1. Aaron Parks, Invisible Cinema (Blue Note)

2. Avashai Cohen Trio, Gently Disturbed, (Razdaz)

3. Eri Yamamoto, Duologues, (AUM Fidelity)

4. Mostly Other People Do the Killing, This Is Our Moosic

5. William Parker ...

Here's a best-of-2008 list from Anne Midgette, chief classical music critic of the Washington Post.

Glass: Songs and Poems for Solo Cello, Wendy Sutter, cellist (Orange Mountain
Music)

Schoenberg/Sibelius: Violin Concertos, Hilary Hahn, violin, Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting the Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra (DG)

Adams: A Flowering Tree (Nonesuch)

Our annual critics week on Soundcheck is always a popular series of shows. Critics weigh in on the best pop, hip hop, classical, jazz, and world music of the year, as well as the worst music of the year, and these always provoke a lot of comments from our listeners, ...