Best Albums of 1961
Listed below are the best albums of 1961 as calculated from their overall rankings in over 59,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 1 hour ago).
"Sure Coltrane is good... but to think that this album of standards is better than A Love Supreme it's just not getting the point. The take on "My Favorite Things" is beautiful, even though some parts of the last round of sax solos are redundant. The take on "Summertime" is powerful... and natural..." [+] Reply
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JoaoMoreira | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (4 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,799
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"I may be the only person to rank this album #1 but without Robert Johnson & a handful of other Mississippi delta blues singers there wouldn't be any rock and roll. I've been listening to this album for most of my life and I still find new and wonderous things every time I listen to it." Reply
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,736
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"God on earth. Debussy, Ravel, Ellington..all is in Evans and Evans is in heaven. The best pianist of all time and not only in jazz. Gould, Rubinstein, Pollini, Horowitz..... yes, of course, but Bill Evans forever. N.- Evans, LaFaro and Motian are THE TRIO." Reply
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,016
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"Has some great parts, but some mediocre parts drag it down a bit. The bass and drum solos are too long and rambling, yet I would say Ornette's soloing stands out (minutes 10-19)" Reply
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JulianR | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
962
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"I remember how my jaw dropped the first time I heard Olé!" Reply
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Robert Anton Wilson | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
682
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Comments:
"Very cool sound. I love the big band sound and experimentation on Africa and the rework of Greensleeves. Surprised how low this is on Coltrane's discography on this site tbh." Reply
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
617
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"Bill Evans gets a bit overshadowed here; he's great, but he's not mic-ed up great and he's not bringing the harder edges the other players are. Eric Dolphy on this album, oh my god. Check out Yearnin', where he plays the last part of the head with total precision, and then immediately goes wailin..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
546
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"Bland is one of the five greatest singers of all time. His voice, tone, phrasing are wonderful. And this album is a masterpiece every bit with many jewels like "I'll Take Care Of You", the tittle track and above all, "Lead Me On". You know how it feels-you understand What is it to be a stranger, ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
431
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"This record has some true classic's on it. It does contain some filler material but Patsy puts her all into them anyway. A country superstar if there ever was one." Reply
Year of Release:
1961
Appears in:
Rank Score:
429
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"This is a relaxing and thoughtful album, perfect for a Sunday afternoon. 9.5/10!" Reply
Total albums: 509. Page 1 of 51
Best Albums of 1961 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| John Coltrane | 5 | 1% | |
| Frank Sinatra | 5 | 1% | |
| Ray Charles | 5 | 1% | |
| The Ventures | 4 | 1% | |
| Grant Green | 4 | 1% | |
| Lightnin' Hopkins | 4 | 1% | |
| Fats Domino | 3 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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359 | 71% | |
 |
41 | 8% | |
 |
17 | 3% | |
 |
11 | 2% | |
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10 | 2% | |
 |
9 | 2% | |
 |
7 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
