Blue Note: Uncompromising Expression

Each disc represents a distinct era in Blue Note's evolution:

Early boogie-woogie piano recordings segue into pioneering bebop sessions.

1. "Melancholy" by Meade "Lux" Lewis – 4:07
2. "Reminiscing at Blue Note" by Earl "Fatha" Hines – 4:28
3. "Summertime" by the Sidney Bechet Quintet – 4:10
4. "Profoundly Blue" by the Edmond Hall Celeste Quartet – 4:08
5. "Doctor Jazz" by Art Hodes and His Chicagoans – 3:09
6. "Topsy" by the Ike Quebec Swing Seven – 3:03
7. "Tiny's Boogie-Woogie" by the Tiny Grimes Swingtet – 2:59
8. "Oop-Pop-A-Da" by Babs's 3 Bips and a Bop – 2:53
9. "Thelonious" by Thelonious Monk – 3:00
10. "The Thin Man" by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers – 3:00
11. "Moody's All Frantic" by James Moody and His Bop Men – 2:35
12. "Double Talk" by the Howard McGhee–Fats Navarro Boptet – 5:35
13. "Bouncing with Bud" by Bud Powell's Modernists – 3:04
14. "Born to Be Blue" by the Wynton Kelly Trio – 3:28
15. "Straight, No Chaser" by the Thelonious Monk Quintet – 2:58
16. "Bags' Groove" by the Milt Jackson Quintet – 3:05
17. "Yesterdays" by the Miles Davis All-Stars – 3:45
18. "Roccus" by the Lou Donaldson Quartet – 3:24
19. "Safari" by the Horace Silver Trio – 2:51
20. "Tempus Fugit" by the Miles Davis All-Stars – 3:52
21. "Carvin' the Rock" by the Clifford Brown Quartet – 3:56

Focuses on the emergence of hard bop—a jazz style blending blues, gospel, and R&B influences.

1. "Message from Kenya" by Art Blakey and Sabu Martinez – 4:35
2. "The Preacher" by Horace Silver and the Jazz Messengers – 4:18
3. "The High and the Mighty" by Jimmy Smith – 4:21
4. "Brownie Speaks" by the Clifford Brown Quintet – 3:49
5. "Jay" by J.J. Johnson – 3:41
6. "Wee Dot" by the Art Blakey Quintet – 6:52
7. "Decision" by Sonny Rollins – 8:02
8. "D.B. Blues" by Kenny Burrell – 5:49
9. "Funk in Deep Freeze" by the Hank Mobley Quintet – 6:48
10. "Oscalypso" by Curtis Fuller – 5:41
11. "Blue Train, Pt. 1" by John Coltrane – 5:17
12. "Abdallah's Deight" by the Art Blakey Percussion Ensemble – 9:48
13. "Señor Blues" by Bill Henderson and the Horace Silver Quintet – 6:13

Showcases quintessential hard bop recordings alongside early soul jazz experiments.

1. "Cool Struttin'" by Sonny Clark – 9:25
2. "Tenderly" by The 3 Sounds – 4:36
3. "Ain't No Use" by Bill Henderson and Jimmy Smith – 2:44
4. "Ain't No Use" by the Sonny Clark Trio – 4:48
5. "Encore" by the Bennie Green Quintet – 4:17
6. "Moanin', Pts. 1 and 2" by Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers – 9:35
7. "Somethin' Else, Pts. 1 and 2" by Cannonball Adderley and Miles Davis – 8:15
8. "The Rake" by Dizzy Reece – 6:04
9. "What's New" by Jackie McLean – 5:18
10. "One Mint Julep" by Freddie Hubbard – 6:03
11. "Little Cheri" by Stanley Turrentine – 5:41
12. "True Blue" by Tina Brooks – 4:54

Highlights include bossa nova fusions, blues-based tracks, and crossover hits.

1. "Miss Ann's Tempo" by Grant Green – 5:40
2. "Midnight Special" by Jimmy Smith – 9:56
3. "One O'Clock Jump" by Jimmy Smith – 7:01
4. "Ernie's Tune" by Dexter Gordon – 4:16
5. "Watermelon Man" by Herbie Hancock – 7:10
6. "Back at the Chicken Shack, Pts. 1 and 2" by Jimmy Smith – 8:05
7. "The Good Life" by Kenny Burrell – 2:36
8. "Our Miss Brooks" by Harold Vick – 2:46
9. "Blue Bossa" by Joe Henderson – 8:00
10. "Elijah" by Donald Byrd – 9:19
11. "Blue Frenzy" by Freddie Hubbard – 3:17
12. "The Sidewinder, Pt. 1" by Lee Morgan – 3:07
13. "Cape Verdean Blues" by the Horace Silver Quintet – 4:58

Covers later developments including fusion, acid jazz revivalism, neo-soul inflections, and contemporary vocalists.

1. "Theme from Electric Surfboard" by "Brother" Jack McDuff – 3:33
2. "Black Byrd" by Donald Byrd – 7:18
3. "Chicago, Damn" by Bobbi Humphrey – 6:35
4. "Change (Makes You Want to Hustle)" by Donald Byrd – 5:08
5. "Always There" by Ronnie Laws and Pressure – 4:47
6. "It's Better than Walking Out" by Marlena Shaw – 4:21
7. "Thinkin' About Your Body" by Bobby McFerrin – 3:16
8. "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)" by Us3 – 4:41
9. "Better Days" by Dianne Reeves – 5:28
10. "I Can't Stand the Rain" by Cassandra Wilson
11. "Don't Know Why" by Norah Jones – 3:05
12. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Robert Glasper – 7:22
13. "It's All Over Your Body" by José James – 5:30
14. "Modern Blue" by Rosanne Cash – 3:02
15. "Liquid Spirit" by Gregory Porter – 3:37
16. "Holding Onto You" by Derek Hodge and the American String Quartet – 4:49

The companion book of the same name, by Richard Havers, was released by Thames & Hudson, on November 4, 2014.^[8]