Best Albums of 1961

Free Jazz

Ornette Coleman

8.7

This Is Our Music

Ornette Coleman Quartet

8.7

Out Front (Remastered) [feat. Max Roach]

Booker Little and his Quintet

8.6

Olé Coltrane

John Coltrane

8.5

Folksinger

Dave Van Ronk

8.4

The Bridge

Sonny Rollins

8.4

Crying

Roy Orbison

8.3

Africa/Brass

John Coltrane Quartet

8.4

Waltz for Debby (Remastered) [Live]

Bill Evans Trio

8.3

Eastern Sounds (Remastered 2023)

Yusef Lateef

8.2

The Blues And The Abstract Truth

Oliver Nelson

8.1

The Genius After Hours

Ray Charles

8.0

My Favorite Things

John Coltrane

8.0

My Kind of Blues

Sam Cooke

8.0

Joan Baez, Vol. 2

Joan Baez

The Great Reunion

Louis Armstrong & Duke Ellington

First Time! The Count Meets the Duke

Duke Ellington & Count Basie

The Sound of Music

Various Artists

Steamin' With the Miles Davis Quintet (Rudy Van Gelder Edition)

New Miles Davis Quintet

Ready For Freddie

Freddie Hubbard

Percussion Bitter Sweet

Max Roach

Folk Time

Hart Valley Drifters

Stravinsky Conducts Le sacre du printemps (The Rite of Spring)

Igor Stravinsky & Columbia Symphony Orchestra

Leapin' and Lopin'

Sonny Clark

Caravan

Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers

7.7

Out of the Cool

Gil Evans

7.7

Jump Up Calypso

Harry Belafonte

7.7

Takin' Off

Herbie Hancock

7.6

Thelonious Monk With John Coltrane

Thelonious Monk & John Coltrane

7.6

Clap Hands, Here Comes Charlie! (Expanded Edition)

Ella Fitzgerald

7.6

Hub Cap (The Rudy Van Gelder Edition Remastered)

Freddie Hubbard

7.5

Showcase (feat. The Jordanaires)

Patsy Cline

7.5

Big Band Bossa Nova

Quincy Jones

7.5

Dexter Calling (The Rudy Van Gelder Edition) [Remastered]

Dexter Gordon

Sinatra-Basie: An Historic Musical First

Frank Sinatra & Count Basie

Green Street (The Rudy Van Gelder Edition)

Grant Green

The Interplay Sessions [2-fer]

Bill Evans & Jim Hall

The Quest (feat. Eric Dolphy & Booker Ervin)

Mal Waldron

El Rey Bravo

Tito Puente

7.3

Kirk's Work (feat. Brother Jack McDuff)

Roland Kirk

7.3

Someday My Prince Will Come (Mono Version)

Miles Davis & Milt Jackson

7.3

Blue & Sentimental

Ike Quebec

Ring-A-Ding-Ding! (50th Anniversary Edition)

Frank Sinatra

N°4

Serge Gainsbourg

Marieke

Jacques Brel

Focus

Stan Getz

Blue Hour

Stanley Turrentine

7.1

Miles Davis At Carnegie Hall (Live)

Miles Davis

Grantstand (The Rudy Van Gelder Edition)

Grant Green

Settin' the Pace [RVG Edition]

John Coltrane

New Juke Box Hits

Chuck Berry

How My Heart Sings!

Bill Evans Trio

6.9

Grant's First Stand (The Rudy Van Gelder Edition)

Grant Green

6.7

Doin' Allright (The Rudy Van Gelder Edition) [Remastered]

Dexter Gordon

6.7

Blue Hawaii (Original Soundtrack)

Elvis Presley

6.6

Something for Everybody

Elvis Presley

6.0

Come Swing With Me!

Frank Sinatra

5.7

Surfin' Safari

The Beach Boys

5.1

The Soulful Moods of Marvin Gaye

Marvin Gaye

5.3