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NPR'S TOP 100 JAZZ SONGS OF ALL TIME · Playlist · 101 songs · 3.5K likes.
- Duke Ellington & His Famous Orchestra – Mood Indigo
- Norah Jones – The Nearness of You
- Johnny Mathis – Misty
- Julie London – Cry Me A River
- Brother Bones and His Shadows – Sweet Georgia Brown
- Diana Krall – The Look of Love
- George Shearing – Lullaby of Birdland
- Ahmad Jamal – Poinciana
- Jimmy Smith – Organ Grinder Swing
- Modern Jazz Quartet – Django
According to Duke Ellington’s biographer, “Mood Indigo” is “an imperishable classic” and who are we to disagree? With lrving Mills having added the lyric, this remarkable 1930 standard has since been covered by artists as diverse as Frank Sinatra, Joe Jackson, and Kelly Hogan.
The concluding song from jazz/pop fusionist Norah Jones’ multi-million-selling 2002 debut Come Away With Me, this Hoagy Carmichael standard was first recorded by the Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1940.
With his lush velvet croon, Johnny Mathis became a world-conquering pop idol in the late 1950s. One of his biggest jazz songs was the romantic interpretation he gave to pianist Erroll Garner’s evergreen ballad “Misty” in 1959, which reached No. 12 in the US charts.
Over 500 renditions of this classic Arthur Hamilton-penned ballad exist, which all followed in the wake of torch song specialist Julie London’s original version recorded in 1955. The jazz song gained wider exposure after London was featured singing it in the 1956 hit movie, The Girl Can’t Help It.
This tune has been covered by plenty of jazz luminaries, Art Tatum, Bud Powell, and Django Reinhart included. The most famous version, however, is by Brother Bones and His Shadows. It’s played every time the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team takes the court.
Burt Bacharach and Hal David’s patient bossa nova is the perfect canvas for the gorgeous voice of Diana Krall, one of the greatest modern jazz vocalists. The song has been covered countless times, but Krall’s restrained delivery is a master class in doing a lot with a little.
Blind from birth, London-born pianist George Shearingreaped acclaim in America in the late 1940s and early 50s with his mix of swing and bebop; it was a unique sound crystallized by “Lullaby of Birdland,” a jazz song originally written in 1952 to advertise the famous New York club with the same name.
A pianist with a delicate touch from Pittsburgh, Ahmad Jamal‘s name is synonymous with “Poinciana,” an obscure 1930s pop song that became both a hit single and the cornerstone of his 1958 million-selling LP, At The Pershing: But Not For Me.
Hammond organ hero Jimmy Smithbroke into the US Hot 100 in 1965 when he teamed up with guitarist Kenny Burrell and drummer Grady Tate to record this punchy, blues-infused instrumental. It’s the musical equivalent of soul food.
Distinguished by Milt Jackson’s crystalline vibes sound, the Modern Jazz Quartet’s elegant chamber jazz style is epitomized by this haunting 1954 instrumental, written by the band’s pianist John Lewis as a homage to his friend, jazz guitar great Django Reinhardt, who had died the previous year.
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- Dave Brubeck, “Take Five” Dave Brubeck - Take Five. This song gets its name from the unusual 5/4 meter it’s written in. Brubeck’s saxophonist, Paul Desmond, wrote the song in 1959, in an era when most jazz was written in 4/4 or 3/4 time, making this a truly groundbreaking song.
- Miles Davis, “So What” Miles Davis - So What (Official Audio) One of the most famous and easily recognizable jazz songs, Davis and his band recorded all the tracks of this song in one take, after practicing the new song for only two days.
- Duke Ellington, “Take The A Train” Duke Ellington, "Take the A Train" Ellington, a standout of the Harlem Renaissance, penned this with collaborator Billy Strayhorn at the same time that the new A train subway line was pumping people and ideas all around Manhattan Island.
- Thelonious Monk, “Round Midnight” Thelonious Monk - 'round Midnight. Monk’s hit is the most recorded jazz standard of all time. Supposedly penned when he was just 18, Monk and his band recorded it eight years later.
People also ask
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- Summertime – Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong. Ask any non-jazz fan to name five jazz songs, and chances are Summertime will be there! With over 25,000 recorded versions, it’s one of the top jazz standards of all time.
- I Got Rhythm – Sarah Vaughan. George Gershwin is one of the best loved composers in American musical history. As well as writing jazz-tinged orchestral music – such as his famous “Rhapsody in Blue” – he composed numerous songs for theatre and film, their sophisticated harmony and snappy rhythms making them perfect for interpretation by jazz musicians.
- Body and Soul – Coleman Hawkins. Johnny Green’s “Body and Soul” is perhaps the archetypal American ballad, a sad jazz song full of yearning and devotion.
- The Girl From Ipanema – Stan Getz. Bossa Nova, a new style of music that combined elements of traditional Brazilian samba with jazz harmony, took America by storm during the 1960s.
- Take Five. Dave Brubeck.
- So What. Miles Davis.
- Take The A Train. Duke Ellington.
- Round Midnight. Thelonious Monk.
Top 100 Jazz Classics Playlist | Best Jazz Songs of All Time. UPDATED Jan. 22, 2016 : We are Jazz Fanatics! SHARE THIS PLAYLIST with other Classic Jazz Fanatics! Share with people learning...
1. Miles Davis - Freddie Freeloader (Official Audio) •. 4.7M views • 10 years ago. 2. Dave Brubeck - Take Five. buckinny. •. 87M views • 15 years ago. 3. So What - Miles Davis (1959)...
