Ballads
by John Coltrane Quartet
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John Coltrane Quartet bestography
Ballads is ranked 10th best out of 90 albums by John Coltrane on BestEverAlbums.com.
The best album by John Coltrane is A Love Supreme which is ranked number 77 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 14,581.
(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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Ballads track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Ballads rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 2 hours ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |  Graeme2 | Top 15 Music Albums of 1963 | 15/15 | 0 |
| 2026 | Hyggevinyl | Top 40 Music Albums of 1963 | 8/40 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Fischman | Top 100 Music Albums of 1963 | 62/100 | 2 |
| 2026 |  baystateoftheart | Top 30 Music Albums of 1963 | 18/30 | 2 |
| 2026 | Rm12398 | Top 14 Music Albums of 1963 | 2/14 | 5 |
| 2026 | Skerns | Top 25 Music Albums of 1963 | 21/25 | 1 |
| 2026 |  neilgee | Top 45 Music Albums of 1963 | 32/45 | 2 |
| 2026 | mostlymor | Top 20 Music Albums of 1963 | 15/20 | 2 |
| 2026 | Exist-en-ciel | Top 36 Music Albums of 1963 | 13/36 | 3 |
| 2026 | Steppenwolf666 | Top 67 Music Albums of 1963 | 62/67 | 0 |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 102 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 374 | |||
Ballads collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 45 members
Ballads ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
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 3 ratings for this album. | Show all 132 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 09/15/2026 00:38 | Skerns | 5,216 | 80/100 |
| ! | 05/17/2026 09:15 | Johnnyo | 9,849 | 77/100 |
| ! | 03/25/2026 22:48 | Graeme2 | 4,921 | 80/100 |
Rating metrics:
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 78.2/100, a mean average of 77.8/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 78.7/100. The standard deviation for this album is 12.8.
Ballads favourites
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Ballads forum mentions
Romanelli 09/11/2022 19:35 in Albums You Added To Your Collection TodayView all forum mentions
Ballads comments
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When Coltrane signed for Impulse! in 1961, he already had the reputation of being one of the most ardent tenor saxophonists of jazz. But "Ballads" still does not announce Trane's most controversial albums. For those who love Coltrane, this record is indispensable because it reflects a facet of the artist that we forget. There was a Coltrane who had a tender and peaceful approach. Coltrane, is a great and incomparable interpreter of ballads. On the other hand, if you expect something close to "Kind Of Blue", you're wrong. I can play the album, listen to it, enjoy it, leave my headphone, come back 5 minutes later and automatically immerse myself in a warm and calm atmosphere. The album is simple and relaxing, it allows to travel, to dream...
8/10
Best track: "Say It (Over And Over Again)"
A record made later in Coltrane's career as an attempt to be more commercial, because his more experimental material wasn't selling as well as he'd liked. Nonetheless, a sincere effort, and beautiful throughout, with Coltrane's great Quartet in top form. My favorite of his, but I generally prefer his more melodic stuff. Only knock: the songs do have a sameness about them; it can seem like one long ballad. (If you love Coltrane, that's not necessarily a bad thing.) Highlights: "Too Young to Go Steady," "Say It (Over and Over Again)" and "You Don't Know What Love Is."
Very elegant and relaxing. I like the shorter song format and it really shows Coltrane's ability to change style as this was released around the same time as Giant Steps and Africa/Brass which have a far more modal and experimental sound.
A lot more passive compared to his work 60-61 and 65-67 yet still a beautiful collection of covers, very relaxing and immersive. I'm generally not to keen on this period of Coltrane's career (62-64) but this album is definitely a highlight.
Jboy56 11/19/2021 19:29 | #276451 | TOP COMMENT
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For your blue and hazy nights while lights go out.
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