The Clown (studio album)
by Charles Mingus

The Clown by Charles Mingus
Year: 1957
Overall rank: 2,282nd   
Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 139 votes)
     
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1957 (12th)
Award Top 100 albums of the 1950s (62nd)
Award Best albums of all time (2,282nd)

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Product Details
Availability

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Charles Mingus - The Clown [Mono] [Analogue Productions Atlantic 75 Series]
Condition: New


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CHARLES MINGUS The Clown JAPAN REISSUE PROMO LP 1976 ATLANTIC P-7509A
Condition: Used


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CHARLES MINGUS JAZZ WORKSHOP ~ THE CLOWN LP ~ HAITIAN FIGHT SONG BLUE CEE JAZZ!
Condition: Used

$127.77


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Charles Mingus bestography

The Clown is ranked 7th best out of 54 albums by Charles Mingus on BestEverAlbums.com.

The best album by Charles Mingus is The Black Saint And The Sinner Lady which is ranked number 92 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 13,003.

Charles Mingus album bestography « Higher ranked (2,047th)
Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus Mingus
This album (2,282nd)
The Clown
Lower ranked (3,031st) »
Tijuana Moods

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

Upcoming concerts

Feb
15
Sun
20:00
Dancing With The Stars: Live! - 2026 Tour
Radio City Music Hall, New York, United States. United States
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Jan
17
Sat
19:00
Stevie Wonder and Lionel Richie Tribute Show
House of Blues Myrtle Beach, North Myrtle Beach, United States. United States
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Jan
22
Thu
19:30
Charlie Starr
Bijou Theatre, Knoxville, United States. United States
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The Clown track list

   The tracks on this album have an average rating of 82 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).

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1.
Track pick (870 - 49 votes)
Average Rating: 87 (49 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 81 (33 votes)Comments: View 0
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Average Rating: 80 (32 votes)Comments: View 0
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Track pick (1000 - 100 votes) Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.

The Clown rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 2,282nd | 1950s rank: 62nd | 1957 rank: 12th

The Clown collection

The Clown ratings

Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 139 votes)
   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 139 ratings for this album.

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RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
80/100
 !
12/21/2025 17:42 Exist-en-ciel   4,62270/100
 
80/100
 !
12/11/2025 11:15 Hayden   7,36872/100
 
60/100
 !
11/01/2025 11:19 TonySayers61   23,21564/100
 
75/100
 !
10/26/2025 00:19 xhitmanx   1,37784/100
 
80/100
 !
09/13/2025 11:19 Tamthebam   22,85769/100

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 78.5/100, a mean average of 77.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 79.0/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.1.

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The Clown comments

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Rating:  
90/100
From 09/12/2024 06:56 | #305253
This version suffers from the lack of the last two tracks, which were omitted for a stupid reason (because people said Mingus couldnt swing). Together at Noon was easily one of the most badass jazz tracks ever.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 10/22/2020 09:44 | #259560
Decent. Not up to par witg Mingus Ah Um but good enough to grant at least 1 or 2 full listens. Maybe skip the dialogue at the end the 2nd time around.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 08/15/2019 15:21 | #241200
Really good album, one of Mingus' better ones. Haitian Fight Song is the best song on the album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 09/27/2016 07:25 | #175878
Solid Mingus set with the highlight being the bizarre and ultimately depressing narrated title track. A cynical look into the underbelly of late 50's society or a bitter metaphor for his own experience?
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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Best Albums of 1957
1. Here's Little Richard by Little Richard
2. Brilliant Corners by Thelonious Monk
3. The "Chirping" Crickets by The Crickets
4. Saxophone Colossus by Sonny Rollins
5. Birth Of The Cool by Miles Davis
6. 'Round About Midnight by Miles Davis
7. With His Hot And Blue Guitar by Johnny Cash
8. After School Session by Chuck Berry
9. Ray Charles by Ray Charles
10. Cookin' With The Miles Davis Quintet by Miles Davis Quintet
11. Monk's Music by Thelonious Monk Septet
12. The Clown by Charles Mingus
13. Miles Ahead by Miles Davis + 19
14. Dance Album by Carl Perkins
15. After Midnight by Nat King Cole
16. Singin' The Blues by B.B. King
17. Way Out West by Sonny Rollins
18. Singin' To My Baby by Eddie Cochran With The Johnny Mann Orchestra And Chorus
19. Gene Vincent & The Blue Caps by Gene Vincent
20. Kenya by Machito
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