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About
Robert
Middleton
My
Top Jazz Albums
Are
you interested in jazz or are thinking of starting
a jazz CD collection? This is a great place to
start. Look, jazz is a very subjective thing,
but I've been a serious collector of jazz for
several years and am really good at separating the
wheat from the chaff. You can't go wrong with
anything listed here. This represents less than 10%
of my total collection, so this really is the good
stuff!
I've
divided the list into a few
categories.
1.
The All-Time Masters. Miles Davis, Duke
Ellington, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk and
Charles Mingus. You should have several CDs from
each of these artists for your core collection.
I've picked my favorite ones.
2.
The Early Jazz Masters. This was music recorded
from the 30's to the 50's by the greatest jazz
musicians of the time.
3.
Jazz from the mid-period of Jazz - Most of
these are from artists on various labels recorded
from the mid 50s to late 60's. It wasn't easy to
pick just one CD for each artist, but these are the
cream of the crop.
4.
Blue Note Artists - From the mid 50s to the mid
60's, Blue Note recorded some of the best jazz in
history. I've listed one CD for each of these
artists. Many of them are classics.
5.
Jazz from the Modern Era - These are CDs
recorded by artists since 1969. A few artists
represented in the lists above are also still
recording now. Yes, Jazz is alive and well and
dozens of great jazz CDs are recorded each
year.
6.
ECM Artists - Music on the ECM label is a
special category of jazz all its own - mostly
European. Many people are nuts about ECM
music.
7.
Ten Reasons to Start Collecting Jazz - Jazz is
great music and fun to collect and listen to for a
lifetime.
8.
Where to start your collection. Here are 20 CDs
you can't go wrong with.
Also
check out All
About Jazz
and the Top
100 Jazz CDs
You
can buy most of what you see here on
Amazon.com
A lot of this stuff you can download inexpensively
and legally from EMusic.
I
have some of this music linked to Amazon and will
have more linked in the future.
1.
The Al-Time Jazz Masters
These
five jazz musicians were the greatest of them all.
You can't just get one of their CDs, you need
at least a handful. These are my favorite. Note
that links lead to Amazon.
Miles
Davis - Trumpet
Birth
of the Cool '49
Round
About Midnight '55
Milestones
'58
Kind
of Blue '59
Sketches
of Spain '60
Someday
My Prince Will Come '61
Complete
Live at The Blackhawk '61
ESP
'63
Filles
de Killimanjaro '68
In
a Silent Way '69
Bitches
Brew '69
We
Want Miles '81
Duke
Ellington - Piano, Bandleader
Blues
in Orbit '59
Piano
in the Background '60
Three
Suites '60
Money
Jungle '62
Back
to Back (with Johnny Hodges)
'63
And
His Mother Called Him Bill '67
Far
East Suite
'69
Afro-Eurasian
Eclipse '71
John
Coltrane Tenor/Soprano Sax
Blue
Train '57
Giant
Steps '59
Coltrane's
Sound '60
My
Favorite Things '61
Ole´
Coltrane '61
Africa
Brass '61
A
Love Supreme '63
Crescent
'64
Theonious
Monk - Piano
Brilliant
Corners '56
Monk's
Music '57
Thelonious
Himself '57
At
Carnegie Hall with John Coltrane
'57
Monk
at Town Hall '59
At
the Blackhawk '60
Monk's
Dream '63
Underground
'68
Charles
Mingus - Bass
Tijuana
Moods - '57
Blues
and Roots '59
Mingus
Ah Um '59
Mingus
Dynasty '59
Mingus
at Antibes '60
Mingus,
Mingus, Mingus, Mingus '63
The
Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
'63
Changes
I & II '74
2.
The Early Jazz
Masters
These
artists were the early giants of jazz, playing from
the
mid-thirties
into the 50's and 60's. There are so many
CDs to choose from that you might want to get one
of these boxed sets by Proper Records that are
excellent overviews of their careers. Four CDs each
for about $16 through an Amazon
reseller.
Louis
Armstrong - Trumpet - Satchmo
in the 40s
Count
Basie - Bandleader - The
Count Basie Story
Lester
Young - Tenor Sax - The
Lester Young Story
Ben
Webster - Tenor Sax -
Big
Ben
Coleman
Hawkins - Tenor Sax - The
Beebob Years
Jerry
Mulligan - Baritone Sax -
Jeru
Bud
Powell - Piano -
Tempus
Fuge It
Charlie
Parker - Alto Sax - Boss
Bird
Dexter
Gordon - Tenor Sax - Settin'
The Pace
Clifford
Brown - Trumpet
- Joy
Spring
3.
Classics from the Mid-Years of
Jazz
There are some amazing CDs in this
collection. They span the mid
fifties to the late sixties. Start with one from
each artist and expand from there.
Clifford
Brown - Trumpet - Study in Brown '55
Dave
Brubeck - Piano - Time Out '59
Kenny
Burrell - Guitar - Bluesy Burrell
'62
Benny
Carter - Tenor Sax - Further Definitions
'61
Ornette
Coleman - Alto Sax - The Shape of Jazz to
Come '59
Eric
Dolphy - Tenor Sax, Flute - Far Cry
'60
Bill
Evans - Piano - Portrait in Jazz
'59
Gil
Evans - Bandleader - Out of the Cool
'60
Booker
Ervin - Tenor Sax - The Freedom Book
'63
Art
Farmer - Trumpet - Portrait of Art
'58
Red
Garland - Piano - Soul Junction
'57
Dizzy
Gillespie - Trumpet - Gillespiana / Carnegie
Hall Concert '60
Chico
Hamilton - Drums - The Dealer '66
Roy
Haynes - Drums - Out of the Afternoon
'62
Quincy
Jones - Bandleader - The Quintessence
'61
Wynton
Kelly - Piano - Kelly Blue '59
Rhashan
Roland Kirk - Saxophones - We Free Kings
'61
Yusef
Lateef - Tenor Sax, Flute - The Centaur and
the Phoenix '60
Booker
Little - Trumpet - Out Front '61
Modern
Jazz Quartet - Group - Dedicated to Connie
'60
Wes
Montgomery - Guitar - The Incredible Jazz
Guitar '60
Oliver
Nelson - Bandleader - Blues and the Abstract
Truth '61
Herbie
Nichols - Piano - Love, Gloom, Cash, Love
'57
Charlie
Parker - Alto Sax - Jazz at Massey Hall
'53
Art
Pepper - Alto Sax - Meets the Rhythm Section
'57
Sun
Ra - Bandleader - Jazz in Silhouette
'58
Max
Roach - Drums - Deeds Not Words
'58
Sonny
Rollins - Tenor Sax - Saxophone Collosus
'56
George
Russell - Bandleader - Ezz-Thetics
'61
Clark
Terry - Trumpet - In Orbit (with Monk)
'58
4.
Blue Note Classics
These CDs could entertain you for a
lifetime. But be careful, this music is
addictive. Each of these artists has half a dozen
or more CDs. And most of them are just as good as
the ones below. They span the mid fifties to the
late sixties.
Cannonball
Adderley - Alto Sax - Somethin' Else
'58
Tina
Brooks - Tenor Sax - True Blue
'60
Art
Blakey - Drums - Night in Tunisia
'59
Donald
Byrd - Trumpet - Byrd in Flight
'60
Lou
Donaldson - Tenor Sax - Artist Selects
'58-'67
Kenny
Dorham - Trumpet - Trompetta Toccata
'64
Dexter
Gordon - Tenor Sax - Doin' Alright
'61
Grant
Green - Guitar - Idle Moments '63
Herbie
Hancock - Piano - Maiden Voyage
'65
Joe
Henderson - Tenor Sax - Page One
'63
Andrew
Hill - Piano - Black Fire '63
Freddie
Hubbard - Trumpet - Open Sesame
'60
Bobby
Hutcherson - Vibes - Components
'65
J.J.
Johnson - Trombone - The Eminent J.J. Jonson
Vol 1 '53
Jackie
McLean - Alto Sax - New Soil '59
Blue
Mitchell - Trumpet - The Thing to Do
'64
Hank
Mobley - Tenor Sax - Soul Station
'60
Lee
Morgan - Trumpet - Search for the New Land
'64
Sam
Rivers - Tenor Sax - Fuchsia Swing Song
'64
Wayne
Shorter - Tenor Sax - Speak No Evil
'64
Horace
Silver - Piano - Song for My Father
'64
Jimmy
Smith - Organ - Open House/Plain Talk
'60
Stanley
Turrentine - Tennor Sax - Never Let Me Go
'63
McCoy
Tyner - Piano - The Real McCoy
'67
Larry
Young - Organ - Unity '65
5.
Modern Jazz - Recordings from 1969 to the
present
A good percentage of the artists below
are alive and recording today. They are
the present and future of jazz. Jazz is indeed
alive and well. I have selected my current favorite
recording by these artists. These CDs are divided
into three time periods: 1969 to 1994, 1995 to 2000
and 2001 to 2007.
Part
I - 1969 to 1994
Toshiko
Akiyoshi - Bandleader - Desert Lady
Fantasy '93
Terrence
Blanchard - Trumpet - Malcom X Jazz Suite
'92
Paul
Bley - Piano - Fly Away Little Bird
'92
Jane
Ira Bloom - Soprano Sax - Art and Aviation
'92
Arthur
Blythe - Alto Sax -
Lennox
Avenue Breakdown '79
Gary
Burton - Vibes - Dreams So Real
'75
Ron
Carter - Bass - Third Plane '77
Graham
Collier - Bass, Bandleader
- Down Another Road '73
Chick
Corea - Piano -
Three
Quartets '82
Either/Orchestra
- Band - Calculus of Pleasuure
'90
Art
Farmer - Trumpet - Blame it On My Youth
'88
Stan
Getz - Tenor Sax - Anniversary/Serenity
'87
Don
Grolnick - Piano
- The Complete Blue Note Recordings
'89
Roy
Hargrove - Trumpet - With the Tenors of Our
Time '94
Roy
Haynes - Drums - Te Vous '94
Joe
Henderson - Tenor Sax - So Near, So Far
'93
Andrew
Hill - Piano - Passing Ships '69
Freddie
Hubbard - Trumpet - Red Clay '70
Bobby
Hutcherson - Vibes - color Schemes
'85
Abdullah
Ibrahim - Piano -
Water
From an Ancient Well '86
Keith
Jarrett - Piano - My Song '77
Keith
Jarrett - Piano - Changeless '89
Rabih
Abou Khalil - Oud - Blue Camel
'92
Joe
Lovano - Tenor Sax - From the Soul
'91
Mike
Mainieri - Vibes - Wanderlust -
'81
Wynton
Marsallis - Trumptet - Black Codes From the
Underground '85
John
McLaughlin - Guitar - Extrapolation
'69
Jackie
McLean - Alto Sax - Dynasty '88
Pat
Metheny - Guitar - Bright Size Life
'75
Pat
Metheny - Guitar - Off Ramp '81
T.S.
Monk - Drums - Take One '92
Joshua
Redman - Tenor Sax -
Moodswing
'94
George
Russell - Bandleader - So What
'83
Shakti
- Group - Natural Elements '77
Woody
Shaw - Trumpet - Stepping Stones
'78
Soft
Machine - Group - 3rd & 4th - '70
'71
John
Surman - Baritone Sax - Way Back When
'69
McCoy
Tyner - Piano - Sama Layuca '74
Miroslav
Vitous - Bass - Infinite Search
'70
Weather
Report - Band -
Heavy
Weather '77
Randy
Weston - Piano
-
African Sunrise '92
Buster
Willliams - Bass - Something More
'89
Tony
Williams - Drums - Best of Tony Williams
'85
Yellow
Jackets - Group - Four Corners
'87
Joe
Zawinul - Keyboards - Dialects
'86
Frank
Zappa - Guitar - Hot Rats - '69
Part
II - 1995 to 2000
Atomic
- Group - Feet Music '99
Omer
Avital - Bass - Aking No Permisssion
'95
Ginger
Baker - Drums
-
Coward of the County '99
Joey
Baron - Drums -
Down
Home '97
Ray
Barretto - Percussion -
Portraits
in Jazz and Clave '00
Brian
Blade - Drums -
Perceptual
'00
Michael
Brecker - Tenor Sax - Tales of the Hudson
'96
Davbe
Brubeck - Piano - So What's New
'98
James
Carter - Saxophones - Chasin' the Gypsy
'00
Marc
Cary - Piano - Listen
'97
Avashai
Cohen - Bass - Colors '00
Chick
Corea - Piano -
Change
'00
Barbara
Dennerlein - Organ - Junkanoo '96
Pierre
Dorge - Guitar, Bandleader -
Welcome
to the Danish Jungle '96
Dave
Douglas - Trumpet -
In
Our Lifetime '95
Either/Orchestra
- Band - More Beautiful than Death
'00
Peter
Epstein - Soprano & Tenor Sax - Staring
at the Sun '96
Bill
Frisell - Guitar - Gone, Just Like a Train
'98
Kenny
Garrett - Alto Saxophone -
Songbook
'97
Marc
Gross - Saxophone -
Riddle
of the Sphinx '00
Chico
Hamilton - Drums - Timely '99
Tom
Harrell - Trumpet -
The
Art of Rhythm '98
Charlie
Hayden Bass - Beyond the Missouri Sky
'97
Charlie
Hunter - Guitar
-
Bing! Bing! Bing! '95
Mark
Isham - Trumpet -
Blue
Sun '95
Wynton
Marsallis - Trumpet - Marciac Suite
'00
John
Mayer - Bandleader - Asian Airs
'97
Brad
Mehldau - Piano -
Art
of the Trio - Vol 1 '97
David
Murray - Tenor Sax - Octet Plays Trane
'00
Mike
Nock - Piano - Ozboppin' '98
Greg
Osby - Alto Sax - Art Forum - '95
Wallace
Roney - Trumpet - No Room for Argument
'00
John
Scofield - Guitar - Works for Me
'01
Brad
Shepik - Guitar - The Well '00
Steps
- Group - Holding Together '99
Jacky
Terrasson - Piano - Jacky Terrasson
'95
Steve
Turre - Trombone and
Shells
-
Rhythm Within '95
McCoy
Tyner - Piano - Infinity '95
Jessica
Williams - Piano - Blue Fire '01
Michael
Wolff - Piano -
Impure
Thoughts '00
Part
III - 2001 to 2007
Ben
Allison - Bass - Cowboy Justice '06
Fred
Anderson & Hamid Drake - Sax/Drums -
From the River to the Ocean '07
Omer
Avital - Bass - The Ancient Art of Giving -
'06
The
Bad Plus - Piano Trio -
Prog
'07
Steven
Bernstein - Tenor Sax - Diaspora Blues
'02
David
Binney - Tenor Sax - Oceanos
'07
Michale
Blake - Tenor Sax - Elevated '02
Terence
Blanchard - Trumpet - Bounce '04
Michael
Brecker - Tenor Sax - Pilgrimage
'07
Anat
Cohen - Saxophones - Noir '07
Dave
Douglas - Trumpet - Meaning and Mystery
'06
Mark
Egan - Electric Bass - As We Speak
'06
Electric
Masada - Group - At the Mountains of Madness
'05
Peter
Epstein - Tenor Sax - Lingua Franca
'05
Javier
Girotto - Saxophones - New York Sessions
'06
Roy
Hargrove - Trumpet - Nothing Serious -
'06
Stefon
Harris - Vibes -
African
Tarantella '06
Joel
Harrrison - Guitar - Harbor '07
Billy
Hart - Drums - Billly Hart Quartet
'06
Joe
Lovano - Tenor Sax - Joyous Encounter
'05
Herbie
Nichols Project - Group - Strange City
'01
Andrew
Hill - Piano - Time Lines '06
Vijay
Iyer - Piano - Reimagining
'05
Vijay
Iyer / Redresh Mahathappa - Sax - Raw
Materials '06
Same
Keevers - Piano - No Conditions/No
Expectations '06
Frank
Kimbrough - Piano / Joe Locke - Vibes - The
Willow '01
Nguyen
Le - Guitar - E.L.B. '04
Jason
Lindner big Band - Live at the Jazz Gallery
'07
Charles
Lloyd - Tenor Sax - Sangam '06
Joe
Locke/Geoffrey Keezer - Vibes/Piano - Live
in Seattle '06
Christian
McBride - Bass - Live at Tonic
'06
Donny
McCaslin - Tenor Sax - In Pursuit
'07
Brad
Mehldau - Piano - House on Hill
'06
Ted
Nash - Tenor Sax - In the Loop
'06
Chris
Potter - Follow the Red Line '07
Joshua
Redman - Tenor Sax -
Back
East '07
Kurt
Rosenwinkel - Guitar - Deep Song
'06
Maria
Schneider - Bandleader - Concert in the
Garden '05
SF
Jazz Collective - Group - SFJC 2
'06
Paul
Shapiro - Tenor Sax - Midnight Minyan
'03
Wayne
Shorter - Tennor Sax - Alegria
'03
Kenny
Wheeler - Trumpet - What Now? '05
Jessica
Williams - Piano - Live at Yoshi's I &
II '04
Kenny
Werner - Piano - Lawn Chair Society
'07
Randy
Weston - Piano - Zep Tepi '06
Yellow
Jackets - Group - Time Squared
'03
Joe
Zawinul - Keyboards - Brown Street
'07
Miguel
Zenon - Tenor Saxophone -
Looking
Forward '02
John
Zorn - Alto Sax - Masada Live at Tonic
'01
John
Zorn - Bandleader - 50th Birthday
Celebration - Bar Kokhba + Masada String Trio
'03
6.
ECM Records
Artists
This is almost a whole new category of jazz.
Sometimes called "Nordic Jazz," it is an
improvisational music that is not based in the
blues. More quiet and reflective, for the most part
with crystaline sound. Some of the greatest modern
jazz artists have recorded for ECM since the
70s.
John
Abercrombie - Guitar - Open Land '99
Carla
Bley - Piano, Bandleader - Fleur Carnivore
'88
Gary
Burton - Vibes - Dreams so Real
'75
David
Darling - Cello - Cycles '81
Jack
deJohnette - Drums - New Directions
'78
Bill
Frisell - Guitar - Where in the World
'91
Jan
Garbarek - Tenor Sax - Twelve Moons
'92
Gateway
- Group - Homecoming '95
Dave
Holland - Bass - Extensions '89
Zakir
Hussain - Tabla - Making Music
'86
Keith
Jarrett - Piano -
Koln
Concert (solo) '75
Mark
Johnson - Bass -
Bass
Desires '86
Charles
Lloyd - Tenor Sax -
Voice
in the Night '99
Pat
Metheny - Guitar - Bright Size Life
'75
Enrico
Rava - Trumpet - Easy Living '04
Martin
Speake - Tenor Sax - Change of Heart
'05
Tomasz
Stanko - Trumpet - The Soul of Things
'02
Bobo
Stenson - Piano - Dansere '76
John
Surman - Saxophones - Stranger Than Fiction
'93
Steve
Tibbetts - Guitar - Yr '80
Ralph
Towner - Guitar - Solstice
'74
Miroslav
Vitous - Bass - Universal Syncopations
'03
Eberhard
Weber - Bass - Endless Days '01
Kenny
Wheeler - Trumpet -
Angel
Song '97
7.
Ten Reasons to Start Collecting Jazz
1.
Jazz is music for grownups; it's for smart
people; it's for creative people. (Like you,
right?)
2.
Jazz expands your mind. No kidding. There's a
lot of depth in jazz. It's played by
extraordinary musicians.
3.
Jazz is fun. It can be great background music,
create a romantic mood or stimulate creative
ideas. You can even dance to it!
4.
There's enough recorded jazz to keep you busy
for a lifetime.
5.
Jazz never gets old. Like wine, it tends to get
better as it ages.
6.
Pick your style. From swing to bebop, to avant
garde to fusion, there's a style to suit every
taste. (But please, smooth jazz is not really
jazz, it's instrumental pop.)
7.
You can order the majority of available jazz CDs
online at reasonable prices. (Amazon)
8.
You can download a huge amount of jazz legally
at even more reasonable prices.
(eMusic)
9.
It sure beats watching television! Listening to
great music renews you instead of draining
you.
10.
It's just cool to listen to jazz.
8.
How to Get Started with Your Jazz
Collection
Buy
10 or more of the following 20 CDs. Open your
mind and just listen. If you don't begin to like
jazz after listening to these CDs, well, jazz
probably isn't for you. Nothing extreme here, I
promise. A wide variety of styles, these are all
jazz masterpieces that you can listen to over and
over again. Links take you to Amazon where you can
pick up most of these under $10 through Amazon
resellers.
Older
Jazz (Mostly 60s)
Kind
of Blue
- Miles Davis
Some say the best jazz album of all time.
Certainly a classic that appeals to almost
everyone. Timeless.
Time
Out
- Dave Brubeck
Has perhaps the most recognizable jazz tune ever
- Take 5. Features Paul Desmond's signature alto
sax sound.
Far
East Suite
- Duke Ellington
Duke got better and better in his later years.
Some say this is his masterpiece.
Breathtaking.
My
Favorite
Things
- John Coltrane
Coltrane took a Rogers and Hammerstein tune from
the Sound of Music and turned it into a timeless
jazz classic.
Out
of the Cool
-
Gil Evans
Miles Davis sometimes collaborator, Evans,
recorded this album of unclassifiable orchestral
jazz in 1960.
Somethin'
Else
- Cannonball Adderley
Blues-drenched jazz featuring Miles Davis on a
program of standards and originals.
Open
Sesame
- Freddie Hubbard
As straight ahead as jazz gets with the
incendiary trumpet playing of Hubbard on his
debut album.
Speak
No Evil
- Wayne Shorter
One of the great jazz composers, Shorter's tunes
are still fresh and surprising over 40 years
later.
Maiden
Voyage
- Herbie Hancock
One of the most sublime Blue Note recordings,
Hancock pens a timeless jazz standard with
Maiden Voyage.
My
Song -
Keith Jarrett
With the soaring saxophone of Jan Garbarek, this
is one of Jarrett's most memorable and beautiful
recordings.
Newer
Jazz (90s to 00s)
Rhythm
Within
- Steve Turre
Turre proves that unusual instruments - in this
case conch shells(!!) - can make wonderful
music. Truly unique.
Blue
Sun
- Mark Isham
Isham's beautiful trumpet tone coupled with a
handful of memorable tunes makes this album
special.
Mood
Swing
- Joshua Redman
Redman is one of the tenor saxophone's
contemporary leaders. This is one of his very
best.
Gone,
Just Like a
Train
- Bill Frisell
Frisell's otherworldly guitar and unique
melodies come together on this trio date with a
wide variety of sounds and textures.
Angel
Song
- Kenny Wheeler
An album that leaves you feeling suspended in
space. This drumerless quartet features Lee
Konitz and Bill Frisell.
Coward
of the
County
- Ginger Baker
The ex-Cream drummer and trumpeter/writer Ron
Miles creates a truly original sound with
inspired playing.
Deep
Song
- Kurt Rosenwinkel
Nobody plays guitar and writes music like
Rosenwinkel. This album is deeply satisfying in
every way.
Live
at Yoshis (Vols. I &
II)
- Jessica Williams
One of the jazz world's virtuoso piano players,
Williams shines on this pair of live CDs.
Delicious music.
Lingua
Franca
- Peter Epstein
Gifted saxophonist teams with Brad Shepik on
guitar to blend jazz with the sound of the East.
Mesmerizing.
Cowboy
Justice
- Ben Allison
The ultimate jazz modernist, Ben Allison makes
every song on this wonderful CD interesting and
memorable.
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