Out To Lunch!
by Eric Dolphy

Out To Lunch! by Eric Dolphy
Year: 1964
Release date: 1964-08-00
Overall rank: 843rd   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
80/100 (from 396 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 5 albums of 1964 (5th)
Award Top 100 albums of the 1960s (94th)
Award Top 1,000 albums of all time (843rd)

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Eric Dolphy - Out To Lunch [New Vinyl LP]
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Eric Dolphy "Out To Lunch!" LP Blue Note 84163 Van Gelder 1970's Pressing VG
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Eric Dolphy - Out To Lunch [Blue Note Classic Vinyl Series] NEW Sealed LP Album
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Eric Dolphy bestography

Out To Lunch! is ranked as the best album by Eric Dolphy.

Eric Dolphy album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (843rd)
Out To Lunch!
Lower ranked (6,378th) »
At The Five Spot, Vol. 1

(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).

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Out To Lunch! rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 843rd | 1960s rank: 94th | 1964 rank: 5th

Out To Lunch! collection

Out To Lunch! ratings

Average Rating: 
80/100 (from 396 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.

Showing latest 5 ratings for this album. | Show all 396 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 
01/15/2026 00:22 This_is_handsome  Ratings distribution  76979/100
 
100/100
 
01/03/2026 10:07 leobaraza  Ratings distribution  889/100
 
100/100
 
12/16/2025 02:21 colabunga  Ratings distribution  59180/100
 
80/100
 
12/11/2025 03:03 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  7,70370/100
 
100/100
 
12/03/2025 21:25 mgreg50  Ratings distribution  19193/100

Rating metrics: Help Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)

This album is rated in the top 2% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 79.6/100, a mean average of 78.6/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 79.7/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.5.

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Out To Lunch! comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 13 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
65/100
From 10/14/2022 11:26 | #290454
I'm not a big fan of experimental jazz, but this one was not too bad, and this guy definitely had talent.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
55/100
From 07/13/2022 09:42 | #287356
There is some interesting experimentation on this album but I don't think it completely comes together and it struggles with remaining consistent. There are some great moments of instrumentation on here and a few of the compositions are fantastic. I do also enjoy the way he switches the leading instrument multiple times throughout the record as it keeps the music fresh and demonstrates the quality Dolphy has on each one. My favourite is probably the bass clarinet on Something Sweet, Something Tender. However, the album can feel confused at times and like there is too much going on so it clouds the sound they are going for. Furthermore, a few of the backing instrumentalists aren't fantastic and they do give some poor performances. I think that is best displayed on the title track with it sounding a bit chaotic. Overall, there is some great stuff to find on here but that cannot be maintained for the whole release and I think the record is really carried by Eric Dolphy.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 05/02/2022 08:52 | #284866
Very original and eternal.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 12/14/2020 18:37 | #262700
50/100

Best track: Something Sweet
Worst track: Hat and Beard
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -2 votes (0 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 11/29/2020 16:25 | #261640
Fantástico! Mto da vanguarda paulistana veio daqui!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
50/100
From 08/03/2019 13:44 | #240719
I must say it didn’t really sit with me. Definitely some interesting things going on in terms of structure, but at a certain point the dissonance becomes too much to parse through
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 01/09/2019 03:02 | #229356
Seminal jazz/sax album. Excellent composition and playing. Music marvelously has one foot in each world: traditional and progressive, and really pulls out off.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 04/25/2018 19:28 | #213644
Mother, why is he naked? (and why do I dig the track with the lowest rating..)
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
70/100
From 03/01/2018 20:54 | #209875
Definitely ot what I was expecting, but an interesting listen nonetheless. I thought this was some sort of hard-bop album, but its quite the avante-garde/free jazz record instead. I'm not really digging the vibraphone sound right now, but I'm sure it will grow on me
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 08/20/2017 21:52 | #196419
Dolphy can do anything on this record. A great place to start if you're looking to get into jazz.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1964
1. A Hard Day's Night by The Beatles
2. Getz/Gilberto by Stan Getz & João Gilberto
3. The Times They Are A-Changin' by Bob Dylan
4. Beatles For Sale by The Beatles
5. Out To Lunch! by Eric Dolphy
6. Another Side Of Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan
7. Presenting The Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica by The Ronettes
8. Ain't That Good News by Sam Cooke
9. Where Did Our Love Go by The Supremes
10. Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus by Charles Mingus
11. Kinks by The Kinks
12. The Sidewinder by Lee Morgan
13. Empyrean Isles by Herbie Hancock
14. Folk Singer by Muddy Waters
15. The Animals by The Animals
16. Meet The Beatles! by The Beatles
17. Song For My Father (Cantiga Para Meu Pai) by Horace Silver Quintet
18. "Live" At The Star-Club, Hamburg by Jerry Lee Lewis
19. Wednesday Morning, 3AM by Simon & Garfunkel
20. The Rolling Stones by The Rolling Stones
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