Essential albums to start a swing music collection

This is my personal list of essential jazz recordings for listening and dancing. The first list includes essential DJ material for any aspiring Swing DJ. Actually, all of these albums are must-haves. The second list has what dancers call "groove" swing music, with a more modern, bass-driven sound.

Twelve jazz albums to start a music collection for swing dancing

1. Count Basie - The Best of Early Basie - 1936-1939 - Decca
2. Chick Webb and Ella Fitzgerald - The Quintessence 1929-1939 - 2 discs - Frémeaux et Associés
3. Count Basie and Ella Fitzgerald - Ella and Basie! - 1963 - Verve
4. Jimmie Lunceford - For Dancers Only - 1935-1937 - Decca
5. Maxine Sullivan - A Tribute to Andy Razaf (discontinued) / (reissue) My Memories of You by Maxine Sullivan - 1955-1956 - Re
6. Duke Ellington - Blues in Orbit - 1959 - Columbia
7. Sidney Bechet - The Fabulous Sidney Bechet - 1951-1953 - Blue Note
8. Lucky Millinder - Apollo Jump - 2 disques - 1941-1951 - Proper
9. Artie Shaw - The Complete Gramercy Five Sessions - 1940 - Bluebird/RCA
10. Louis Armstrong - Satch plays Fats - 1955 - Columbia/Legacy
11. Benny Goodman - B.G. in Hi-Fi - 1954 - Blue Note
12. Andy Kirk - The 12 Clouds of Joy - 1929-1940 - ASV/Living Era

Music with a more modern sound to dance Lindy Hop

1. Gene Harris - Best of the Concord Years - 1985-1999 - 2 discs - Concord
2. Oscar Peterson - Night Train - 1962 - Verve
3. Ray Charles - Blues + Jazz - 1953-1958 - Atlantic
4. Lou Rawls avec Les McCann - Stormy Monday - 1962 - Blue Note
5. Clarence Gatemouth Brown - Gate Swings - 1997 - Verve
6. Barbara Morrison - Live at the 9:20 Special - 2002 - Springboard

Top compilation albums

1. Frankie Manning's Really Swingin' Big Band Favorites
2. An Anthology of Big Band Swing 1930-1955 - 2 disques - Decca
3. Oscillatin' Rhythm - Great Swing Hits in Hi-Fi (discontinued) - Blue Note