# Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album

The Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works (songs or albums) in the vocal jazz music genre. Awards in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".

## History

Until 2001 this award was titled the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Performance. From 1981 to 1991 (except for 1985) this category was presented as separate awards for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female and Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Male.
Years reflect the year in which the Grammy Awards were presented, for works released in the previous year.

## Recipients

| Year | Performing artist(s) | Work | Nominees |
| 1977 | Ella Fitzgerald | Fitzgerald and Pass... Again | Irene Kral – Where Is Love? Quire – Quire Ray Charles and Cleo Laine – Porgy and Bess Sarah Vaughan – More Sarah Vaughan Live in Japan |
| 1978 | Al Jarreau | Look to the Rainbow | Irene Kral – Kral Space Helen Merrill – Helen Merrill - John Lewis Carmen McRae – Carmen McRae at The Great American Music Hall João Gilberto – Amoroso |
| 1979 | Al Jarreau | All Fly Home | Ray Charles – True to Life Mel Tormé – Together Again - For the First Time Eddie Jefferson – The Main Man Sarah Vaughan – How Long Has This Been Going On Irene Kral – Gentle Rain |
| 1980 | Ella Fitzgerald | Fine and Mellow | Eddie Jefferson – The Live-Liest Helen Humes – Sneakin' Around Joe Williams – Prez and Joe Sarah Vaughan – I Love Brazil! |
| 1985 | Joe Williams | Nothin' but the Blues | Carmen McRae – You're Lookin' at Me Sue Raney – Ridin' High Lorez Alexandria – Harlem Butterfly Mel Tormé – An Evening at Charlie's |
| 1992 | Take 6 | He Is Christmas | Mel Tormé – "Ellington Medley" from Mel and George "Do" World War II Natalie Cole – "Long 'Bout Midnight" from Garfield The Manhattan Transfer – The Offbeat of Avenues Shirley Horn – You Won't Forget Me |
| 1993 | Bobby McFerrin | "Round Midnight" from Play | Shirley Horn – Here's to Life Abbey Lincoln – You Gotta Pay the Band Jimmy Scott – "All the Way" Take 6 - "I'm Always Chasing Rainbows" from Glengarry Glen Ross |
| 1994 | Natalie Cole | Take a Look | Ernestine Anderson – Now and Then Shirley Horn – Light Out of Darkness Bobby McFerrin – "The Pink Panther Theme" Bobby Short with the Alden-Barrett Quintet – Swing That Music |
| 1995 | Etta James | Mystery Lady: Songs of Billie Holiday | Dee Dee Bridgewater – Keeping Tradition Shirley Horn – I Love You, Paris Lena Horne – We'll Be Together Again Cassandra Wilson – Blue Light 'til Dawn |
| 1996 | Lena Horne | An Evening with Lena Horne | Dee Dee Bridgewater – Love and Peace: A Tribute to Horace Silver Kurt Elling – Close Your Eyes Abbey Lincoln – A Turtle's Dream Dianne Reeves – Quiet After the Storm |
| 1997 | Cassandra Wilson | New Moon Daughter | Ernestine Anderson – Blues, Dues and Love News Nnenna Freelon – Shaking Free Shirley Horn – The Main Ingredient Diana Krall – All for You |
| 1998 | Dee Dee Bridgewater | Dear Ella | Kurt Elling – The Messenger Shirley Horn – Loving You Diana Krall – Love Scenes Mark Murphy – Song for the Geese |
| 1999 | Shirley Horn | I Remember Miles | Kurt Elling – This Time It's Love Nnenna Freelon – Maiden Voyage Etta Jones – My Buddy – Etta Jones Sings the Songs of Buddy Johnson Dianne Reeves – That Day... |
| 2000 | Diana Krall | When I Look in Your Eyes | Carla Cook – It's All About Love Etta James – Heart of a Woman Dianne Reeves – Bridges Cassandra Wilson – Traveling Miles |
| 2001 | Dianne Reeves | In the Moment - Live in Concert | Dee Dee Bridgewater – Live at Yoshi's Freddy Cole – Merry Go Round Kurt Elling – Live in Chicago Nnenna Freelon – Soulcall |
| 2002 | Dianne Reeves | The Calling: Celebrating Sarah Vaughan | Mose Allison – The Mose Chronicles – Live in London, Vol. 1 Karrin Allyson – Ballads – Remembering John Coltrane Kurt Elling – Flirting with Twilight Shirley Horn – You're My Thrill |
| 2003 | Diana Krall | Live in Paris | Patti Austin – For Ella Natalie Cole – Ask a Woman Who Knows Etta Jones – Etta Jones Sings Lady Day Luciana Souza – Brazilian Duos |
| 2004 | Dianne Reeves | A Little Moonlight | Kurt Elling – Man in the Air Shirley Horn – May the Music Never End Aaron Neville – Nature Boy – The Standards Album Luciana Souza – North and South |
| 2005 | Nancy Wilson | R.S.V.P. (Rare Songs, Very Personal) | Andy Bey – American Song Jamie Cullum – Twentysomething Al Jarreau – Accentuate the Positive Queen Latifah – The Dana Owens Album |
| 2006 | Dianne Reeves | Good Night, and Good Luck | Dee Dee Bridgewater – J'ai deux amours Nnenna Freelon – Blueprint of a Lady: Sketches of Billie Holiday Luciana Souza – Duos II Tierney Sutton – I'm with the Band |
| 2007 | Nancy Wilson | Turned to Blue | Diana Krall – From This Moment On Karrin Allyson – Footprints Roberta Gambarini – Easy to Love Nancy King – Live at Jazz Standard with Fred Hersch |
| 2008 | Patti Austin | Avant Gershwin | Dee Dee Bridgewater – Red Earth Freddy Cole – Music Maestro Please Kurt Elling – Nightmoves Tierney Sutton – On the Other Side |
| 2009 | Cassandra Wilson | Loverly | Karrin Allyson – Imagina: Songs of Brazil Stacey Kent – Breakfast on the Morning Tram Kate McGarry – If Less is More...Nothing is Everything Norma Winstone – Distances |
| 2010 | Kurt Elling | Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman | Randy Crawford and Joe Sample – No Regrets Roberta Gambarini – So in Love Luciana Souza – Tide Tierney Sutton – Desire |
| 2011 | Dee Dee Bridgewater | Eleanora Fagan (1915–1959): To Billie with Love from Dee Dee Bridgewater | Freddy Cole – Freddy Cole Sings Mr. B Denise Donatelli – When Lights are Low Lorraine Feather – Ages Gregory Porter – Water |
| 2012 | Terri Lyne Carrington & Various Artists | The Mosaic Project | Karrin Allyson – Round Midnight Kurt Elling – The Gate Tierney Sutton Band – American Road Roseanna Vitro – The Music of Randy Newman |
| 2013 | Esperanza Spalding | Radio Music Society | Denise Donatelli – Soul Shadows Kurt Elling – 1619 Broadway – The Brill Building Project Al Jarreau & Metropole Orchestra – Live Luciana Souza – The Book of Chet |
| 2014 | Gregory Porter | Liquid Spirit | Andy Bey – The World According to Andy Bey Lorraine Feather – Attachments Cécile McLorin Salvant – Womanchild Tierney Sutton – After Blue |
| 2015 | Dianne Reeves | Beautiful Life | Billy Childs and others – Map to the Treasure: Reimagining Laura Nyro René Marie – I Wanna Be Evil (With Love to Eartha Kitt Gretchen Parlato – Live in NYC Tierney Sutton – Paris Sessions |
| 2016 | Cécile McLorin Salvant | For One to Love | Karrin Allyson – Many a New Day: Karrin Allyson Sings Rodgers & Hammerstein Denise Donatelli – Find a Heart Lorraine Feather – Flirting with Disaster Jamison Ross – Jamison |
| 2017 | Gregory Porter | Take Me to the Alley | René Marie – Sound of Red Branford Marsalis Quartet & Kurt Elling – Upward Spiral Catherine Russell – Harlem on My Mind The Tierney Sutton Band – The Sting Variations |
| 2018 | Cécile McLorin Salvant | Dreams and Daggers | The Baylor Project - The Journey Jazzmeia Horn - A Social Call Raul Midón - Bad Ass and Blind Randy Porter Trio & Nancy King - Porter Plays Porter |
| 2019 | Cécile McLorin Salvant | The Window | Freddy Cole - My Mood Is You Kurt Elling - The Questions Kate McGarry with Keith Ganz & Gary Versace - The Subject Tonight Is Love Raul Midón with the Metropole Orkest conducted by Vince Mendoza - If You Really Want |
| 2020 | Esperanza Spalding | 12 Little Spells | Sara Gazarek - Thirsty Ghost Jazzmeia Horn - Love & Liberation Catherine Russell - Alone Together The Tierney Sutton Band - ScreenPlay |
| 2021 | Kurt Elling ft. Danilo Pérez | Secrets Are the Best Stories | Thana Alexa - ONA Carmen Lundy - Modern Ancestors Somi with the Frankfurt Radio Big Band - Holy Room: Live at Alte Oper Kenny Washington - What's the Hurry |
| 2022 | Esperanza Spalding | Songwrights Apothecary Lab | The Baylor Project – Generations Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter – SuperBlue Nnenna Freelon – Time Traveler Gretchen Parlato – Flor |
| 2023 | Samara Joy | Linger Awhile | The Baylor Project – The Evening: Live at APPARATUS Carmen Lundy – Fade to Black The Manhattan Transfer with the WDR Funkhausorchester – Fifty Cécile McLorin Salvant – Ghost Song |
| 2024 | Nicole Zuraitis | How Love Begins | Patti Austin ft. Gordon Goodwin's Big Phat Band - For Ella 2 Fred Hersch & Esperanza Spalding - Alive at the Village Vanguard Gretchen Parlato & Lionel Loueke - Lean In Cécile McLorin Salvant - Mélusine |
| 2025 | Samara Joy | A Joyful Holiday | Christie Dashiell - Journey in Black Kurt Elling and Sullivan Fortner - Wildflowers Vol 1 Milton Nascimento & Esperanza Spalding - Milton + Esperanza Catherine Russell & Sean Mason - My Ideal |