Top Albums of 1961
Rank▼ All Time Rank▼ Artist▼ Album▼ Genres▼
1
495
 Bill Evans Sunday at the Village Vanguard Cool Jazz
2
527
 Ornette Coleman Free Jazz Free Jazz
3
642
 Oliver Nelson The Blues and the Abstract Truth Hard Bop
4
656
 Bobby Bland Two Steps from the Blues Rhythm & Blues
5
686
 John Coltrane My Favorite Things Modal Jazz, Post-Bop
6
1026
 Max Roach We Insist! Max Roach's Freedom Now Suite Avant-Garde Jazz
7
1084
 Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane Thelonious Monk with John Coltrane Hard Bop
8
1102
 Gil Evans Out of the Cool Big Band, Cool Jazz
9
1146
 Judy Garland Judy at Carnegie Hall Standards
10
1655
 The Shadows The Shadows Surf Rock
11
1869
 The Original Soundtrack West Side Story Film Soundtrack, Show Tunes
12
1877
 Miles Davis Steamin' with the Miles Davis Quintet Hard Bop
13
1880
 Ornette Coleman This Is Our Music Avant-Garde Jazz
14
1904
 Jimmy Giuffre 3 Thesis/1961 Cool Jazz, Third Stream
15
2020
 Stan Getz Focus Avant-Garde Jazz, Cool Jazz
16
2135
 Jimmy Giuffre 3 Fusion/1961 Cool Jazz, Third Stream
17
2242
 Eric Dolphy At the Five Spot, Vol. 1 Avant-Garde Jazz, Post-Bop
18
2404
 Ray Charles Genius + Soul = Jazz Rhythm & Blues, Soul Jazz
19
2521
 George Russell Ezz-Thetics Avant-Garde Jazz, Modal Jazz
20
2658
 Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers A Night in Tunisia Hard Bop
21
2731
 Jimmy Reed Jimmy Reed at Carnegie Hall Chicago Blues
22
2747
 John Coltrane Olé Coltrane Modal Jazz
23
2834
 John Coltrane Africa/Brass Hard Bop, Modal Jazz, Post-Bop
24
2862
 Lee Konitz Motion Cool Jazz
25
2899
 Freddie King Let's Hide Away and Dance Away with Freddie King Electric Texas Blues
26
2900
 Booker Little Out Front Hard Bop

Albums "bubbling under" the all-time top 3000:
Henry Mancini Breakfast at Tiffany's Film Score, Lounge
Cecil Taylor The World of Cecil Taylor/Air Free Jazz
Phineas Newborn Jr. A World of Piano! Hard Bop
Milt Jackson and John Coltrane Bags & Trane Bebop, Cool Jazz
Eddie Jefferson The Jazz Singer Vocal Jazz
Miles Davis In Person Friday Night at the Black Hawk, San Francisco Vol. 1 Hard Bop
Miles Davis In Person Saturday Night at the Black Hawk, San Francisco Vol. 2 Jazz
Bill Evans Explorations Cool Jazz
Abbey Lincoln Straight Ahead Vocal Jazz
Freddie Hubbard Ready for Freddie Hard Bop
John Coltrane Coltrane Jazz Hard Bop
J. J. Johnson & Kai Winding The Great Kai & J. J. Jazz
Ray Charles and Betty Carter Ray Charles and Betty Carter Standards, Vocal Jazz
Shelly Manne and His Men At the Manne-Hole, Vol. 1 Jazz
Ike Quebec Blue and Sentimental Hard Bop
Freddie Hubbard Goin' Up Hard Bop
Dizzy Gillespie Carnegie Hall Concert Jazz
Sarah Vaughan After Hours Vocal Jazz
Art Blakey Mosaic Hard Bop
Mark Murphy Rah Vocal Jazz
Charles Mingus Pre-Bird/Mingus Revisited Third Stream
Helen Humes Swingin' with Humes Jazz
Jackie McLean Bluesnik Hard Bop
Stan Kenton Kenton's West Side Story Big Band
Dexter Gordon Doin' Allright Hard Bop
Joan Baez Joan Baez, Vol. 2 Folk Revival
Grant Green Green Street Hard Bop
Miles Davis Someday My Prince Will Come Modal Jazz
Yusef Lateef Eastern Sounds Hard Bop