Jazz has been around for over a century, and it has seen its fair share of iconic albums and musicians. From Louis Armstrong to Miles Davis, jazz has been shaped by some of the most influential artists in music history. But which albums have sold the most records? In this article, we'll take a comprehensive look at the albums that changed jazz and changed lives. Released in 1977, Heavy Weather by Weather Report was the band's most popular album. It featured two of their most iconic songs, Birdland and Rumba Mama.
Weather Report was a great band with a subtle but powerful style that made them popular in the 70s and 80s. Scott Joplin rose to fame for his ragtime compositions and was nicknamed the “King of Ragtime”. During his short career, he wrote more than 100 original ragtime pieces, a ragtime ballet and two operas. The first vinyl recordings of jazz were made in 1917, but it wasn't until the 1920s that jazz became popular on vinyl records. The most famous jazz singer was Louis Armstrong, whose records were highly sought after by collectors. Other famous jazz musicians of the time include Duke Ellington, Benny Goodman and Jelly Roll Morton.
One of the most important albums of all time is Kind of Blue, released in 1959 by Miles Davis. It remains the best-selling jazz album of all time. Another revolutionary album from 1959 is The Shape of Jazz To Come, by Ornette Coleman. It marked a whole new direction in jazz, as musicians sought to break free from conventional structures, such as chord sequences and compositional forms. Saxophones are one of the most well-known jazz instruments, and the saxophone is often the instrument that comes to mind when you imagine a jazz band.
With musicians like John Coltrane and Coleman Hawkins, jazz became a whole new area of potential. Flutist Herbie Mann was compared to Wynton Marsalis as a spokesman for a new breed of technically accomplished young jazzers. In 1967, Miles Davis released Sorcerer, an album that pushed the boundaries of jazz in a dramatic amalgamation of jazz, blues, rock, Hendrix, MC5. It left listeners tempered shocked and critics speechless. However, a legendary performance at the Newport Jazz Festival that year helped revive his flag-winning career. The 34-measure binary 'Dolphin Dance' and the 32-bar 'Maiden Voyage' modal from Maiden Voyage, released in 1965 by Herbie Hancock, will probably be played while jazz itself is still around. The album includes six compositions by pianist Brubeck and one (the best-selling jazz-single in history, 'Take Five') by saxophonist Paul Desmond. Since their formation in 1992, Medeski Martin and Wood have been welcomed as an escape from a largely conservative jazz-trend.
Their attachment to deeply felt melody, unhurried intensity, framed with the Nordic tone, and comparatively unconventional pop-like structures made both jazz and non-jazz fans entail the honest humanity of their interpretation. Another classic jazz album from 1959 is Mingus Ah Um, Charles Mingus' first for Columbia Records. It contains a series of musical tributes and marked a whole new direction in jazz. From the title track with Davis, Shorter and Maupin emerging from the mix matrix before being swallowed up by this electric whirl to 'Miles Runs the Voodoo Down' with Miles Davis stepping on Hendrix's heels, this album changed jazz forever. In addition to these iconic albums, there are many other great albums that have sold well over time. While it's impossible to definitively say which album has sold the most records, it's clear that these albums have had an immense impact on jazz music. In conclusion, there is no single answer to who has sold the most jazz records.
However, it's clear that some albums have had an immense impact on jazz music and have sold millions of copies over time.
