Penguin Guide to Jazz: Crown Albums List

The following is a table of all of the albums that have been given a crown (or coronet) designation in the various editions of The Penguin Guide to Jazz by Richard Cook & Brian Morton. The first two editions (1992, 1994) included LPs and cassettes; all subsequent volumes (1996, 1998, 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006) have been limited to CD. The Guide switched from a one-column to a two-column format for the 5th edition (2000), and grew from 1195 pages in 1992 to 1725 pages in 2004. (The 2006 edition is 1534 pages, accomplished through smaller print.) Through these editions records, and in some cases whole artist entries, have come and gone, while some records have remained consistently available.

Starting with the 7th edition there is also a larger Core Collection List.

Artist: Title	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9
John Abercrombie: The Third Quartet [06, ECM]									x
Jan Allan: Jan Allan - 70 [68-69, Phono Suecia]					x	x	x	x	x
Amalgam: Prayer for Peace [69, FMR]							x	x	x
Louis Armstrong: The Hot Fives and Sevens Vol. 1 [25-26, JSP]	x	x	x
Louis Armstrong: The Hot Fives and Sevens Vol. 2 [27, JSP]	x	x	x
Louis Armstrong: The Hot Fives and Sevens Vol. 3 [28-29, JSP]	x	x	x
Louis Armstrong: The Hot Fives and Hot Sevens Vol. III [27, Columbia]				x
Louis Armstrong: The Hot Fives & Sevens [25-30, JSP, 4CD]					x	x	x	x	x
Louis Armstrong: The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings [25-30, Columbia, 4CD]						x	x	x	x
Albert Ayler: Spiritual Unity [64, ESP]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Leonardo 'Gato' Barbieri: Chapter 4: Alive in New York [75, Impulse]									x
Count Basie: The Original American Decca Recordings [37-39, MCA, 3CD]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Ran Blake: All That Is Tied [03, Tompkins Square]								x	x
Art Blakey: Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers With Thelonious Monk [57, Atlantic/Rhino]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Arthur Blythe: Lenox Avenue Breakdown [79, Koch]					x	x	x	x	x
Anthony Braxton: For Alto [68, Delmark]						x	x	x	x
Peter Brötzmann: Machine Gun [68, FMP]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Betty Carter: The Audience With Betty Carter [80, Verve]	x	x	x	x	x	x		x	x
Oscar 'Papa' Celestin & Sam Morgan: Papa Celestin & Sam Morgan [25-28, Azure]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
June Christy: Something Cool: The Complete Mono and Stereo Versions [53-60, Capitol]						x	x	x	x
Ornette Coleman: Beauty Is a Rare Thing [59-61, Atlantic, 6CD]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Ornette Coleman: The Shape of Jazz to Come [59-60, Atlantic]									x
John Coltrane: The Heavyweight Champion [Atlantic/Rhino, 7CD]			x
John Coltrane: A Love Supreme [64, Impulse]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
John Coltrane: The Major Works of John Coltrane [65, Impulse, 2CD]	x	x	x	x
John Coltrane: Ascension [65, Impulse]					x	x	x	x	x
Miles Davis: Kind of Blue [59, Columbia]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Miles Davis: The Complete Live at the Plugged Nickel [65, Columbia, 8CD]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Miles Davis: Miles Davis and Gil Evans: The Complete Columbia Studio Recordings [57-68, Columbia, 6CD]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Eric Dolphy: Out to Lunch [64, Blue Note]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Duke Ellington: The Blanton-Webster Band [40-42, RCA Bluebird, 3CD]	x	x	x	x
Duke Ellington: The Duke at Fargo 1940 [Storyville]						x	x	x	x
Duke Ellington: The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse [OJC]	x
Bill Evans: Sunday Night at the Village Vanguard [61, OJC]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Bill Evans: Waltz for Debby [61, OJC]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Art Farmer: Blame It on My Youth [88, Contemporary]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Ganelin Trio: Catalogue: Live in East Germany [77-82, Leo]	x	x	x
Ganelin Trio: Ancora Da Capo [80, Leo]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Charles Gayle: Touchin' on Trane [91, FMP]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Stan Getz: The Complete Roost Recordings [50-54, Roulette, 3CD]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Dizzy Gillespie: The Complete RCA Victor Recordings [37-49, RCA, 2CD]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Jimmy Giuffre: Free Fall [62, Columbia]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Lars Gullin: The Great Lars Gullin Vol. 5 [54-55, Dragon]	x
Al Haig: The Al Haig Trio Esoteric [54, Fresh Sound]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Herbie Hancock: Maiden Voyage [65, Blue Note]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Herbie Hancock: Head Hunters [73, Columbia]		x	x
Steve Harris & Zaum: Above Our Heads the Sky Splits Open [04, Slam]								x	x
Woody Herman: Woody's Winners [65, Columbia]		x	x
Woody Herman: Jazz Hoot/Woody's Winners [65-67, Collectables]						x	x	x	x
Andrew Hill: Point of Departure [64, Blue Note]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Bobby Hutcherson: Dialogue [65, Blue Note]	x	x
J.J. Johnson: The Eminent Jay Jay Johnson: Volume 1 [53-55, Blue Note]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
J.J. Johnson: The Eminent Jay Jay Johnson: Volume 2 [53-55, Blue Note]									x
Rahssan Roland Kirk: A Meeting of the Times [72, Atlantic]							x	x	x
Krzysztof Komeda: Astigmatic [65, Harkit]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Lee Konitz: Motion [61, Verve, 3CD]				x
Lee Konitz: Motion [61, Verve]							x	x	x
Peter Kowald: Was Da Ist [94, FMP]			x	x		x	x	x	x
George E Lewis: Homage to Charles Parker [79, Black Saint]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
John Lewis: The Modern Jazz Society Presents a Concert of Contemporary Music [55, Verve]					x	x
London Jazz Composers Orchestra: Ode [72, Intakt, 2CD]			x	x	x	x	x
Joe Lovano: From the Soul [91, Blue Note]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Shelly Manne: At the Black Hawk [59, OJC, 5CD]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
René Marie: Vertigo [01, MaxJazz]							x	x	x
John McLaughlin: Extrapolation [69, Polydor]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Charles Mingus: Mingus Ah Um [59, Columbia]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Charles Mingus: The Black Saint & the Sinner Lady [63, Impulse]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Modern Jazz Quartet: Dedicated to Connie [60, Atlantic, 2CD]			x	x
Thelonious Monk: Genius of Modern Music: Volume 1 [47-52, Blue Note]	x	x
Thelonious Monk: The Complete Blue Note Recordings [47-58, Blue Note, 4CD]			x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Thelonious Monk: With John Coltrane at Carnegie Hall [57, Blue Note]								x	x
Thelonious Monk: The Complete Riverside Recordings [55-61, Riverside, 15CD]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Lee Morgan: The Sidewinder [63, Blue Note]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Jelly Roll Morton: Volume One [26-27, JSP]	x	x	x
Jelly Roll Morton: Jelly Roll Morton Vols. 1-5 [26-30, JSP, 5CD]						x	x	x	x
Fats Navarro: The Fabulous Fats Navarro: Volume 1 [47, Blue Note]	x	x
New Orleans Rhythm Kings: The Complete Set [22-25, Retrieval, 2CD]							x	x	x
King Oliver: Volume One 1923 to 1929 [23-29, Jazz Classics in Digital Stereo]	x	x	x	x
King Oliver: King Oliver's Creole Jazz Band - The Complete Set [23-24, Retrieval, 2CD]					x	x	x	x	x
Tony Oxley: The Baptised Traveler [69, Columbia]					x	x	x		x
Charlie Parker: The Charlie Parker Story [45, Savoy]	x	x	x	x	x
Charlie Parker: On Dial: Volume 1 [46, Spotlite]	x
Charlie Parker: On Dial: Volume 4 [47, Spotlite]	x
Charlie Parker: On Dial: Volume 5 [45-47, Spotlite]	x
Charlie Parker: The Complete Dial Sessions [46-47, Spotlite, 4CD]		x
Charlie Parker: On Dial: The Complete Sessions [45-47, Spotlite/Dial, 4CD]			x	x
Charlie Parker: The Legendary Dial Masters: Volume 1 [Stash]	x		x	x	x
Charlie Parker: The Complete Savoy and Dial Studio Recordings [44-48, Savoy, 8CD]						x	x	x	x
Evan Parker: The Snake Decides [86, Psi]							x	x	x
Evan Parker: 50th Birthday Concert [94, Leo, 2CD]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Position Alpha: The Great Sound of Sound [84, Dragon]				x	x	x	x
Howard Riley: The Day Will Come [70, Columbia]					x	x	x		x
Max Roach: We Insist! Freedom Now Suite [60, Candid]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Sonny Rollins: Saxophone Colossus [56, OJC]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Sonny Rollins: A Night at the Village Vanguard [57, Blue Note, 2CD]					x	x	x	x	x
ROVA: Electric Ascension [03, Atavistic]								x	x
Alexander von Schlippenbach: Pakistani Pomade [72, FMP; Atavistic]	x							x	x
Alexander von Schlippenbach: Monk's Casino [03-04, Intakt, 3CD]								x	x
Silver Leaf Jazz Band: New Orleans Wiggle [98, GHB]						x	x	x	x
Muggsy Spanier: 1931 and 1939 [31-39, Jazz Classics in Digital Stereo]	x	x	x
Tomasz Stanko: Leosia [96, ECM]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Sun Ra: Jazz in Silhouette [58, Evidence]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
John Surman: Tales of the Algonquin [68, Deram]					x	x	x	x	x
Horace Tapscott: The Dark Tree [Vols. 1 & 2] [89, Hatology]					x	x	x		x
Art Tatum: The Complete Pablo Solo Masterpieces [53-55, Pablo, 7CD]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Cecil Taylor: Nefertiti, the Beautiful One Has Come [62, Revenant, 2CD]				x	x	x	x	x	x
Warren Vaché: 2Gether [00, Nagel Heyer]						x	x	x	x
Kid Thomas Valentine: [Kid Thomas-George Lewis] Ragtime Stompers [61, GHB]					x	x	x	x	x
Sarah Vaughan: Sarah Vaughan [54, Verve]					x	x	x	x	x
Edward Vesala: Lumi [86, ECM]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Vienna Art Orchestra: The Minimalism of Erik Satie [84, HatArt]	x	x	x	x
David S. Ware: Godspelized [96, DIW]				x	x	x
Bobby Watson: Love Remains [86, Red]		x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x
Larry Young: Unity [65, Blue Note]				x	x	x	x	x	x
John Zorn: The Big Gundown [84-85, Elektra/Asylum; Tzadik]	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x	x

Notes

The first edition (1992) used a fifth star instead of a crown. I've wondered whether Ellington's The Afro-Eurasian Eclipse was a typo there, since it only appears in that volume and the review does little to justify the fifth star. The first and second editions included LPs and cassettes, but they were dropped from the third edition, which was CD only. The third edition had a misprint where the crowns were blank space, and an addendum was provided with the album listings.

In some cases an album switched labels (e.g., Zorn, originally on Elektra/Asylum, later on Tzadik). The more recent label is listed (sometimes earlier ones as well). The Papa Celestin/George Morgan record has typically been listed under both artists, but has been combined (under Celestin) above. In some cases redundant names and/or dates have been removed from the titles.

Album counts per edition:

Edition 1	42
Edition 2	45
Edition 3	54
Edition 4	59
Edition 5	63
Edition 6	71
Edition 7	74
Edition 8	76
Edition 9	82