Some Great Lesser Rated Jazz Albums
Many artists are known for one or two releases, but many of these artists have released many other great albums. The albums I have listed below are all very high quality and deserve more praise and recognition. Please try them out |
| 1 | | John Coltrane
Ole Coltrane
The opening baseline on the title track hooks you in. This album has the added bonus of having Eric Dolphy as a guest player. Also the artwork is killer. |
| 2 |  | Miles Davis
Get up with it
An unusual release at the tail-end of Miles's fusion era - more subdued and eerie. A double album with two side long pieces - "Get up with it" is an excellent piece with Miles on organ. "Rated X" is also another highlight, again with Miles on organ. |
| 3 |  | Eric Dolphy
Out there
A beautiful album. The second side is almost classical in places. The cover art is very surreal. |
| 4 |  | Ornette Coleman
Ornette!
The first release after Coleman's ground-breaking "Free Jazz" album (a must own!). Ornette! still has the free jazz wildness, but with a little more restraint |
| 5 |  | Thelonious Monk
Underground
One of the last releases of Monks. His piano playing on this album still has that lovely unnerving edge and weird little melodies which stay in your head for days afterwards. |
| 6 |  | Charles Mingus
Tijuana Moods
Such a wacky release! A must own for "Ysabel's Table Dance" alone |
| 7 |  | Herbie Hancock
Sextant
I have put this album on another list, but it is so under-rated. All three track are awesome. The use of mellotron on a jazz album is very rare indeed. I think this album is so forgotten because less than a year after it's release, Herbie came out with Headhunters, which is also a great album |
| 8 |  | Sun Ra
Lanquidity
Hard to say if this is an under rated album. To be honest, Sun Ra is very under rated as an artist - mainly because of his Sci Fi "from Saturn" thing. That aside, this is a wonderful album. |
| 9 |  | Alice Coltrane
Journey in Satchidananda
Many things against this album getting the respect it deserves - Alice being the wife of John Coltrane (Jazz's Yoko?) and also being a woman (Jazz does come across a little sexist, well reviewers do). But is is a great album, Alice plays harp which gives the album a very hypnotic feel to it. |
| 10 |  | Count Basie
Afrique
The only Basie album I like. Very experimental and he covers a Pharoah Sanders track and an Albert Alyer track. Worth a listen |
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