Best Blues and Jazz Albums of All Time

The Best Jazz Albums of All Time

Before Rock music took the album seriously as a work of art in the mid-1960s, the album field was the preserve of Jazz. Frank Sinatra pioneered the idea of the album and released a string of themed collections. Other artists included many of the most accomplished musicians of the 20th century. They created albums that were masterpieces of composition, arrangement, performance and on-the-spot improvisation - in collectives of musically-sympathetic and equally-talented band members. By the measure of pure musicianship these albums have yet to be beaten.

The 25 Best Jazz Albums of All Time

1. Kind Of Blue - Miles Davis, 1959
2. A Love Supreme - John Coltrane, 1965
3. Bitches Brew - Miles Davis, 1970
4. Giant Steps - John Coltrane, 1960
5. In The Wee Small Hours - Frank Sinatra, 1955
6. Wild is the Wind - Nina Simone, 1966
7. Lady in Satin - Billie Holiday , 1958
8. Headhunters - Herbie Hancock , 1973
9. The Shape of Jazz to Come - Ornette Coleman, 1959
10. Songs For Swingin' Lovers! - Frank Sinatra, 1956
11. Ah Um - Charles Mingus, 1959
12. In a Silent Way - Miles Davis, 1969
13. Sketches of Spain - Miles Davis, 1960
14. Out to Lunch - Eric Dolphy, 1964
15. The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady - Charles Mingus, 1963
16. Sings For Only the Lonely - Frank Sinatra, 1958
17. Birth of the Cool - Miles Davis, 1957
18. Saxophone Colossus - Sonny Rollins, 1956
19. Ella & Louis - Ella Fitzgerald / Louis Armstrong, 1956
20. Blue Train - John Coltrane, 1957
21. Somethin' Else - Cannonball Adderley, 1958
22. Getz Gilberto - Getz Gilberto, 1964
23. Genius + Soul = Jazz - Ray Charles, 1961
24. Brilliant Corners - Thelonius Monk, 1958
25. The Atomic Mr Basie - Count Basie, 1958

The 10 Best Blues Albums of All Time

The Blues is the root of all the music on this website. It dates from long before the album format: starting in the Mississippi Delta in the 1890s, it wasn't recorded at all until the 1920s, and its heyday had passed before albums were taken seriously. It is not surprising then that we have only 10 Blues to list but the songs on these are some of the most influential of all time.

Robert Johnson's King of the Delta Blues Singers was actually recorded over two sessions in 1936 and '37 but not released as an LP until as late as 1961. It then became one of the most influential albums of all time - inspiring Bob Dylan and the Rolling Stones among others. We wouldn't have rock music without the electric blues of Muddy Waters, Howlin' Wolf and BB King - their impact was in singles but both also released classics albums (often featuring recent singles and B sides or live albums).

1. King of the Delta Blues Singers - Robert Johnson [recorded 1937-8], 1961
2. Howlin Wolf (Rocking Chair album) - Howlin Wolf, 1962
3. At Newport - Muddy Waters, 1960
4. Live at the Regal- BB King, 1965
5. Born Under a Bad Sign - Albert King, 1967
6. Folk Singer - Muddy Waters, 1964
7. Let's Hide Away and Dance Away - Freddie King, 1961
8. Hard Again - Muddy Waters, 1977
9. Hoodoo Man Blues - Junior Wells, 1965
10. West Side Soul - Magic Sam, 1967

​BEST ALBUMS OF ALL TIME

The Best Jazz Albums of All Time

BEST ALBUMS OF ALL TIME