# Art Blakey discography

Art Blakey was an American jazz drummer and bandleader. "Art Blakey" and "Jazz Messengers" became synonymous over the years, though Blakey led many non-Messenger recording sessions. In addition to the 76 albums which he recorded as a leader or co-leader of the Jazz Messengers, Blakey also led 10 studio albums, 3 live albums and 4 compilation sessions. A relentless performer, he continued to record as a sideman on dozens of albums, throughout his career—frequently for Messengers alumni. He also led several percussion-centric albums with many of his peers.

## Studio albums

| Album | Album details |
| Blakey | Released: 1954 Recorded: May 20, 1954 Label: Emarcy (MG 26030) Format: 10" LP |
| Orgy in Rhythm, Vols. 1 & 2 | Released: 1957 Recorded: March 7, 1957 Label: Blue Note (BLP 1554 [Mono], BST 1554 [Stereo]; BLP 1555) Format: LP |
| Art Blakey Big Band | Released: 1958 Recorded: December, 1957 Label: Bethlehem (BCP 6027) Format: LP |
| Holiday for Skins, Vols. 1 & 2 | Released: 1959 Recorded: November 8, 1958 Label: Blue Note (BLP 4004, BLP 4005) Format: LP |
| The African Beat | Released: November 1962 Recorded: January 24, 1962 Label: Blue Note (BLP 4097 [Mono], BST 84097 [Stereo]) Format: LP |
| A Jazz Message | Released: October 1963 Recorded: July 16, 1963 Label: Impulse! (A 45) Format: LP |
| Hold On, I'm Coming | Released: 1966 Recorded: May 12 and May 27, 1966 Label: Limelight (LM 82038) Format: LP |
| Killer Joe | with George Kawaguchi Released: 1982 Recorded: December 4, 1981 Label: Union Jazz (ULP 5001) Format: LP |
| Feel the Wind | with Freddie Hubbard Released: 1989 Recorded: October 31 & November 1, 1988 Label: Timeless (SJP 307) Format: LP/CD |
| Bluesiana Triangle | Released: 1990 Recorded: March, 1990 Label: Windham Hill Jazz (WD 0125) Format: CD |
| Just Coolin' | Released: July 17, 2020 Recorded: March 8, 1959 Label: Blue Note (64201) Format: CD, Vinyl LP |

## Live albums

| Album | Album details |
| A Night at Birdland, Vols. 1–3 | Released: June, October, November 1954 Recorded: February 21, 1954 Label: Blue Note (BLP 5037, BLP 5038, BLP 5039) Format: 10" LP |
| A Night at Birdland, Vols. 1 & 2 | Released: 1956 Recorded: February 21, 1954 Label: Blue Note (BLP 1521, BLP 1522) Format: LP |
| A Night at Birdland, Vol. 3 | Released: 1984 Recorded: February 21, 1954 Label: Toshiba Format: LP |

## Compilation albums

| Album | Album details | Notes |
| New Sounds | Released: 1952 Recorded: December 22, 1947 Label: Blue Note (BLP 5010) Format: 10" LP | |
| Horace Silver Trio, Vol. 2/Art Blakey-Sabu – Spotlight On Drums | Released: 1954 Recorded: November 23, 1953 Label: Blue Note (BLP 5034) Format: 10" LP | Blakey and Sabu collaborated on two songs on this LP, which is filled out with the Horace Silver Trio, also including Blakey. Reissued on 12" LP BLP 1520. |
| Live Messengers | Released: 1978 Recorded: February 21, 1954 Label: Blue Note (BN-LA472-J2) Format: LP | This 2 record set contains unreleased tracks from the Night at Birdland session along with other, later, live Jazz Messengers live tracks. |
| Drum Suite | Released: 1957 Recorded: February 22, 1957 Label: Columbia (CL 1002) Format: LP | Side one is the Art Blakey Percussion Ensemble, side two is the Jazz Messengers. |
| Drums Around the Corner | Released: October 19, 1999 Recorded: November 2, 1958, and March 29, 1959 Label: Blue Note (21455) Format: CD | |

## Albums recorded as a side musician

| Year | Title | Leader | Label |
| 1950 | Dexter Gordon and His Boys | Dexter Gordon | Savoy (MG 9003) |
| 1950 | New Sound in Modern Music, Vol. 3 | Dexter Gordon | Savoy (MG 9015) |
| 1950 | New Sound in Modern Music, Vol. 6 | Fats Navarro | Savoy (MG 9019) |
| 1950 | Battle of the Saxes | Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt | Prestige (PRLP 107) |
| 1950 | Tenor Sax, Vol. 1 | Gene Ammons | Prestige (PRLP 112) |
| 1951 | Genius of Modern Music | Thelonious Monk | Blue Note (BLP 5002) |
| 1951 | Mr. Saxophone | Sonny Stitt | Prestige (PRLP 111) |
| 1951 | Sonny Stitt Favorites, Vol. 2 | Sonny Stitt | Prestige (PRLP 126) |
| 1951 | Gene Ammons Favorites, Vol. 2 | Gene Ammons | Prestige (PRLP 127) |
| 1951 | Dizzy Gillespie, Vol. 1 | Dizzy Gillespie | Dee Gee (MG 1000) |
| 1951 | Collates | Illinois Jacquet | Clef (MGC 112) |
| 1951 | Collates #2 | Illinois Jacquet | Clef (MGC 129) |
| 1951 | Wizard of the Vibes | Milt Jackson | Blue Note (BLP 5011) |
| 1951 | Swingin' with Zoot Sims | Zoot Sims | Prestige (PRLP 117) |
| 1951 | Tenor Sax Favorites | Zoot Sims | Prestige (PRLP 118) |
| 1951 | Modern Jazz Trombones, Vol. 2 | Bennie Green, J. J. Johnson | Prestige (PRLP 123) |
| 1951 | The New Sounds | Miles Davis | Prestige (PRLP 124) |
| 1951 | Mambo Jazz | Sonny Rollins, Sonny Stitt, Joe Holiday, Kenny Graham | Prestige (PRLP 135) |
| 1951 | Sonny Rollins Quartet | Sonny Rollins | Prestige (PRLP 137) |
| 1951 | Blue Period | Miles Davis | Prestige (PRLP 140) |
| 1952 | James Moody and his Modernists with Chano Pozo | James Moody | Blue Note (BLP 5006) |
| 1952 | Genius of Modern Music: Volume 2 | Thelonious Monk | Blue Note (BLP 5009) |
| 1952 | King of the Clarinet | Buddy DeFranco | MGM (E 177) |
| 1952 | Zoot Sims All Stars with Kai Winding and Al Cohn | Zoot Sims | Prestige (PRLP 138) |
| 1952 | King Pleasure Sings/Annie Ross Sings | Annie Ross | Prestige (PRLP 7128) |
| 1952 | Introducing the Horace Silver Trio | Horace Silver | Blue Note (BLP 5018) |
| 1952 | Thelonious Monk Trio | Thelonious Monk | Prestige (PRLP 142) |
| 1952 | New Faces-New Sounds | Lou Donaldson | Blue Note (BLP 5021) |
| 1952 | Disorder at the Border | Coleman Hawkins | Spotlite (SPJ 121) [1973] |
| 1953 | Buddy DeFranco with Strings | Buddy DeFranco | MGM (E 253) |
| 1953 | Introducing the Kenny Drew Trio | Kenny Drew | Blue Note (BLP 5023) |
| 1953 | Buddy DeFranco Quartet | Buddy DeFranco | Clef (MGC 149) |
| 1953 | Miles Davis Volume 2 | Miles Davis | Blue Note (BLP 5022) |
| 1953 | Buddy DeFranco Takes You to the Stars | Buddy DeFranco | Gene Norman Presents (Vol. 2) |
| 1953 | New Star on the Horizon | Clifford Brown | Blue Note (BLP 5032) |
| 1953 | Introducing Paul Bley | Paul Bley | Debut (DLP 7) |
| 1954 | Miles Davis Volume 3 | Miles Davis | Blue Note (BLP 5040) |
| 1954 | Miles Davis Quartet | Miles Davis | Prestige (PRLP 161) |
| 1954 | Elmo Hope Quintet | Elmo Hope | Blue Note (BLP 5044) |
| 1954 | Thelonious Monk Quintet | Thelonious Monk | Prestige (PRLP 180) |
| 1954 | Sonny Rollins Quintet | Sonny Rollins | Prestige (PRLP 186) |
| 1954 | Lou Donaldson Sextet, Vol. 2 | Lou Donaldson | Blue Note (BLP 5055) |
| 1954 | Introducing Joe Gordon | Joe Gordon | EmArcy (MG 26046) |
| 1954 | Thelonious Monk Trio | Thelonious Monk | Prestige (PRLP 189) |
| 1955 | Clark Terry | Clark Terry | EmArcy (MG 36007) |
| 1955 | Jazz Original | Bud Powell | Norgran (MGN 1017) |
| 1955 | The Randy Weston Trio | Randy Weston | Riverside (RLP 2515) |
| 1955 | Afro-Cuban | Kenny Dorham | Blue Note (BLP5065, BLP 1535) |
| 1955 | Julius Watkins Sextet, Vol. 2 | Julius Watkins | Blue Note (BLP 5064) |
| 1955 | Hank Mobley Quartet | Hank Mobley | Blue Note (BLP 5066) |
| 1955 | The Prophetic Herbie Nichols Vol. 2 | Herbie Nichols | Blue Note (BLP 5069) |
| 1955 | Duke Jordan Trio and Quintet | Duke Jordan | Signal (S 1202) |
| 1955 | Gigi Gryce and Orchestra | Gigi Gryce | Signal (S 1201) |
| 1955 | Byrd's Eye View | Donald Byrd | Transition (TRLP J-4) |
| 1956 | The Unique Thelonious Monk | Thelonious Monk | Riverside (RLP 12-209) |
| 1956 | Metronome All-Stars 1956 | Metronome All-Stars | Clef (MGC 743) |
| 1957 | Plenty, Plenty Soul | Milt Jackson | Atlantic (LP 1269) |
| 1957 | Hank Mobley and His All Stars | Hank Mobley | Blue Note (BLP 1544) |
| 1957 | A Date with Jimmy Smith Volume One | Jimmy Smith | Blue Note (BLP 1547) |
| 1957 | A Date with Jimmy Smith Volume Two | Jimmy Smith | Blue Note (BLP 1548) |
| 1957 | Blowing in from Chicago | Clifford Jordan, John Gilmore | Blue Note (BLP 1549) |
| 1957 | Hank Mobley Quintet | Hank Mobley | Blue Note (BLP 1550) |
| 1957 | Jimmy Smith at the Organ, Vol. 1 | Jimmy Smith | Blue Note (BLP 1551) |
| 1957 | Jimmy Smith at the Organ, Vol. 2 | Jimmy Smith | Blue Note (BLP 1552) |
| 1957 | The Sounds of Jimmy Smith | Jimmy Smith | Blue Note (BLP 1556) |
| 1957 | Sonny Rollins, Vol. 2 | Sonny Rollins | Blue Note (BLP 1558) |
| 1957 | A Blowing Session | Johnny Griffin | Blue Note (BLP 1559) |
| 1957 | Monk's Music | Thelonious Monk | Riverside (RLP 12-242) |
| 1958 | House Party | Jimmy Smith | Blue Note (BLP 4002) |
| 1958 | Somethin' Else | Cannonball Adderley | Blue Note (BLP 1595) |
| 1958 | Minor Move | Tina Brooks | King (Japan) (GXF-3072) |
| 1958 | New Bottle Old Wine | Gil Evans | World Pacific (WP-1246) |
| 1958 | Blue Lights Volume 1 | Kenny Burrell | Blue Note (BLP 1596) |
| 1958 | Blue Lights Volume 2 | Kenny Burrell | Blue Note (BLP 1597) |
| 1958 | Things Are Getting Better | Cannonball Adderley, Milt Jackson | Riverside (RLP 12-286) |
| 1959 | Out of the Blue | Blue Mitchell | Riverside (RLP 12-293) |
| 1959 | My Conception | Sonny Clark | King (Japan) (GXF-3056) |
| 1959 | Swingin' | Kenny Burrell | King (Japan) (GXF-3070) |
| 1959 | On View at the Five Spot Cafe | Kenny Burrell | Blue Note (BLP 4021) |
| 1959 | Groovin' with Golson | Benny Golson | New Jazz (NJLP 8220) |
| 1960 | Here's Lee Morgan | Lee Morgan | Vee-Jay (NVJ2-910) |
| 1960 | Soul Station | Hank Mobley | Blue Note (BLP 4031) |
| 1960 | Comin' On! | Dizzy Reece | Blue Note (7243 5 22019 2) |
| 1960 | Lee-Way | Lee Morgan | Blue Note (BLP 4034) |
| 1960 | Soul Time | Bobby Timmons | Riverside (RLP 334) |
| 1960 | Second Genesis | Wayne Shorter | Vee-Jay (VJS 3057) |
| 1960 | Expoobident | Lee Morgan | Vee-Jay (VJLP 3015) |
| 1960 | Roll Call | Hank Mobley | Blue Note (BLP 4058) |
| 1962 | Nigeria | Grant Green | Blue Note (LT-1032) |
| 1962 | Congo Lament | Ike Quebec | Blue Note (LT-1089) |
| 1964 | Tom Cat | Lee Morgan | Blue Note (LT-1058) |
| 1964 | Blues Bag | Buddy DeFranco | Vee-Jay (VJLP 2506) |
| 1964 | I/We Had a Ball | Quincy Jones | Limelight (LM 82002) |
| 1971 | Giants of Jazz | Various Artists | Concord Jazz (GW 3004) |
| 1971 | The Giants of Jazz | Various Artists | Atlantic (SD 2-905) |
| 1971 | Something in Blue | Thelonious Monk | Black Lion (BL 152) |
| 1971 | The Man I Love | Thelonious Monk | Black Lion (BL 197) |
| 1977 | Illumination | Walter Davis, Jr. | Denon (DC-8553) |
| 1980 | Gotham City | Dexter Gordon | Columbia (JC 36853) |
| 1987 | Magical Trio 1 | James Williams | EmArcy (832 859 2) |

## Filmography

* 1965 Live in '65 (DVD)
* 1983 Jazz at the Smithsonian
* 1986 At Ronnie Scott's London (Video)
* 1995 The Jazz Messenger (Video/DVD)
* 1998 Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers
* 2001 Jazz Life, Vol. 2
* 2003 Modern Jazz at the Village Vanguard
* 2003 Live from Ronnie Scott's (DVD)
* 2003 Live at the Smithsonian
* 2004 Live at Village Vanguard