Who are your Top Five Jazz Artists?

[Elk]

Charlie Mingus
Johnny Hodges
Art Pepper
Ben Webster
The Prez, Lester Young

[mc ukrneal]

Julie London
Dave Brubeck
Chet Baker
Charlie Parker
John Coltrane

That's a list I might have come up with myself. I think I would add Lennie Niehaus and call it a day!

[San Antone]

Charlie Mingus
Johnny Hodges
Art Pepper
Ben Webster
The Prez, Lester Young

Nice choices.  But, no trumpeters?

[San Antone]

I'll kick it off:

Louis Armstrong
Miles Davis
Ornette Coleman
Bill Evans
Duke Ellington

While I still like Coleman, a lot, I haven't listened to his music too much in the last year.  Many choices could take that fifth slot: Lester Young; Sonny Rollins; or somewhat controversially, Wynton Marsalis.

[Ghost of Baron Scarpia]

Thelonius Monk
Sonny Rollins
Miles Davis
Clifford Brown
Billie Holiday

[Elk]

Interesting observation, San Antone. I like individual albums, like Miles' Kind of Blue, Porgy and Bess and Miles Ahead; Roy Hargrove's Tenors of our Time; and Art Farmer's Blame it on my Youth, but otherwise don't think of trumpeters much.

O, I forgot about Lady Day, but I don't know who I might take out of my top 5 to include her.

[Mirror Image]

I probably need to redo my list (in no particular order):

Miles
Monk
Mingus
Ellington
Evans

[aukhawk]

I checked back on this thread to see who I'd listed - answer, I hadn't!  So ...

Coltrane and
Monk, certainly,
  but then I'll add ...
Roland Kirk
John McLaughlin
Carla Bley

[San Antone]

Louis Armstrong

Miles Davis

Ornette Coleman

Bill Evans

Duke Ellington

A few changes, but some names remain the same:

Top Five
Jelly Roll Morton
Louis Armstrong
Duke Ellington
Lester Young
Miles Davis

6-10
Sonny Rollins
Bill Evans
Bill Frisell
John Coltrane (stopping with A Love Supreme)
Wynton Marsalis

[SimonNZ]

Which are your favorite Wynton Marsalis albums?

[San Antone]

Which are your favorite Wynton Marsalis albums?

I like his jazz suites like Congo Square, In This House, On This Morning, and Blood on the Fields.  Regarding his jazz records, I really like Marsalis Plays Monk, Mr. Jelly Lord, Live at the Village Vanguard, Bolden (soundtrack), the compilation Swingin' Into the 21st Century.  But his catalog covers such a wide stylistic spectrum, almost any of his recordings are worthwhile.  I am not a fan of his classical recordings.

I think he is close to being the Ellington of his generation.

[SimonNZ]

I love that Village Vanguard box. It was what got me to look past his ultra conservative utterances on what is and isn't jazz and listen without prejudice to his amazing and varied discography.

Will check out the ones I havent yet heard on your list. Thanks.

[Karl Henning]

To judge by my listening:

Monk
Mingus
Miles
Art Tatum
Stan Kenton

[San Antone]

Today I made up a playlist of five Jazz artists, and realized that I did not include some of the ones I had previously listed. Some were the same, but here's today's group:

Duke Ellington
Louis Armstrong
Miles Davis
Thelonious Monk
Charles Mingus

As I have been listening to this playlist, it has become clear to me that these Jazz artists come much closer to my true five. 

[BWV 1080]

The members of Miles 2nd Quintet

[steve ridgway]

I don't pay serious attention to jazz but have a few albums I enjoy so for the sake of adding a list:

Sun Ra
Lounge Lizards
Soft Machine
Annexus Quam
Dzyan

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Yes, rather some players after the 1990s are great.

[BWV 1080]

Wow, lack of love for Wayne Shorter, the greatest sax player and Jazz composer of his generation

[Old San Antone]

Wow, lack of love for Wayne Shorter, the greatest sax player and Jazz composer of his generation

Oh, I certainly love the music Wayne Shorter wrote for, and his playing in general in, Miles's Second Great Quintet, as well his solo records.  Miles is on my top five list based largely on that band with Wayne Shorter.

[Dry Brett Kavanaugh]

Wallace Roney
Mark Shim
Terence Blanchard
Robert Glasper
Antonio Farao