Critics give Without a Net a B-Side Breakdown of 89 (B+), from 8 reviews at outlets we track. Scores run 80 to 100.
The verdict on Without a Net
8 of 8 critics liked it, and they mostly agree.
- Highest 100 musicOMH, The Guardian and The Arts Desk
- Lowest 80 Sputnikmusic, PopMatters, Mojo and AllMusic
- By the numbers The best-reviewed album of 2013 we've tracked.
| The gist | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| musicOMH via Wikipediaby Daniel Paton | 5/5 | 100 | 2013 | “Jazz audiences have always been deeply respectful towards age, maturity and experience. The assumption glibly maintained in rock n’ roll that youthful” |
| The Guardian via Wikipediaby John Fordham | 5/5 | 100 | 2013 | “The third album from the Wayne Shorter quartet – another live album – is full to bursting point with breathtaking music, writes John Fordham” |
| The Arts Desk via Wikipediaby Peter Quinn | 5/5 | 100 | 2013 | “Truly an ensemble cast, the Wayne Shorter Quartet's playing on Without A Net – marking Shorter's return to Blue Note Records after 43 years – fuses disparate elements into something…” |
| Los Angeles Times via Wikipediaby Chris Barton | 3.5/4 | 88 | 2013 | “Wayne Shorter Quartet “Without a Net” (Blue Note Records) Three and a half stars There’s a moment during Wayne Shorter’s much-anticipated new album where someone, said to be a member…” |
| Sputnikmusic via Wikipedia | 4/5 | 80 | 2013 | “Wayne Shorter Quartet – Without a Net review: Freedom to roam.” |
| PopMatters via Wikipediaby Will Layman | 8/10 | 80 | 2013 | “Wayne Shorter may be the most respected man in jazz—a member of the legendary Miles Davis ‘60s quintet, a brilliant leader of legendary Blue Note dates during” |
| Mojo via Wikipedia | 4/5 | 80 | “The third live release from the Wayne Shorter Quartet was recorded during the group's 2011 tour.” | |
| AllMusic via Wikipediaby Thom Jurek | 4/5 | 80 |
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How the Breakdown works
Every outlet’s score is converted to 0–100 (2/5 is 40, 5.9/10 is 59, a B+ is 88) and averaged. Grades follow the B-Side scale: A is 90–100, B 80–89, C 70–79, D 60–69, F below 60. Approval is the share of critics who scored it 75 or higher; the Breakdown shows green at 75 and up, red below. Divisiveness asks a different question: not how many critics liked it, but how close their scores are to each other. Five critics who all give it 50 are Unanimous, even though none of them liked it. The labels run Unanimous, Broad agreement, Some debate, Divided, and Contentious. Replay rate comes from listeners, not critics: yes counts fully, a few tracks counts half, no counts zero. The gist quotes each outlet’s own summary of its review. Published is the date on the review itself, read from the outlet’s page, so you can see whether an album’s reputation came at release or years later. Scores marked est. come from reviews that publish no number. Scores marked via Wikipedia are archive ratings, mostly for older albums, taken from the “Professional ratings” box on the album’s Wikipedia page (published openly through Wikidata); each links to the original review when we can find it online, and to that Wikipedia entry when we can’t. When an outlet reviewed an album twice, years apart (often for a reissue), both scores count, each labeled with its year.
A-Side marks the critics’ top tier. An album earns it automatically, from its numbers alone: a Breakdown of 90 or higher, from at least 5 reviews, with at least 75% approval. Nobody hands it out and nobody can buy it; if new reviews pull an album below the line, it loses the badge.
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