Vince Guaraldi was an American jazz pianist and composer whose discography encompasses albums released as a leader, collaborative recordings, soundtrack albums, live albums, compilation and archival releases, singles, and numerous appearances as a sideman. His commercially released recording career began in the early 1950s with ensembles led by Cal Tjader, followed by work as a bandleader and sessions with other West Coast jazz musicians.

Guaraldi began recording under his own name in the mid-1950s. His early albums included Vince Guaraldi Trio (1956) and A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing (1957), followed by Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus (1962). The latter included "Cast Your Fate to the Wind", which became a crossover hit and won the Grammy Award for Best Original Jazz Composition.

During the 1960s, Guaraldi also recorded extensively with Brazilian guitarist Bola Sete. Their jointly billed releases are treated separately from Guaraldi's principal studio albums because of their collaborative billing and performance history.

Beginning in 1963, Guaraldi composed music for animated productions based on Charles M. Schulz's Peanuts comic strip. After scoring the unaired documentary A Boy Named Charlie Brown, he became closely associated with the franchise's holiday television specials. A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) featured "Linus and Lucy", "Christmas Time Is Here", "Skating" and "Christmas Is Coming"; It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966) introduced "The Great Pumpkin Waltz"; and A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) included "Thanksgiving Theme" and "Little Birdie".

Guaraldi ultimately composed music for fifteen Peanuts television specials and the 1969 feature film A Boy Named Charlie Brown. Only a portion of this material was issued commercially during his lifetime. Posthumous releases have included recovered television scores, expanded soundtrack albums, and archival editions drawn from rediscovered session materials.

Because Guaraldi's catalog spans conventional jazz albums, jointly billed collaborations, soundtrack records, posthumously assembled archival releases and sideman appearances, the classifications below distinguish original billing and release format from the underlying film or television production. In particular, soundtrack albums are separated from soundtrack work, and archival releases are distinguished conceptually from conventional compilations.

Albums

Studio albums + Studio albums released under Guaraldi's name Title Released Label Format Modern Music from San Francisco 1956Fantasy LP Vince Guaraldi Trio A Flower Is a Lovesome Thing 1957 Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus 1962 LP, reel-to-reel The Latin Side of Vince Guaraldi 1964 LP Vince Guaraldi with the San Francisco Boys Chorus 1967 D & D Oh Good Grief! 1968Warner Bros.-Seven Arts LP, reel-to-reel The Eclectic Vince Guaraldi 1969 Alma-Ville LP

Collaborative albums Jointly billed releases with Brazilian guitarist Bola Sete are separated from Guaraldi's principal studio albums because of their collaborative billing and performance history.

+Collaborative albums Title Released Label Format Vince Guaraldi, Bola Sete and Friends 1964Fantasy LP From All Sides 1965 Live at El Matador 1966 LP, reel-to-reel Jazz Casual: Paul Winter/Bola Sete and Vince Guaraldi 2001 Koch Jazz CD The Navy Swings 2010 V.A.G. Publishing LP, CD

Soundtrack albums

This table lists commercially issued soundtrack albums. The underlying film or television productions are listed separately under Soundtrack work.

+ Soundtrack albums Title Released Label Format Certifications Associated production Jazz Impressions of A Boy Named Charlie Brown December 1964 Fantasy LP, reel-to-reel A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1963 unsold television special) A Charlie Brown Christmas: Original Soundtrack (1965) December 1965 LP, 8-track RIAA: 6× Platinum MC: 2× Platinum A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) A Boy Named Charlie Brown: Selections from the Film Soundtrack 1970 Columbia Masterworks LP A Boy Named Charlie Brown (1969 feature film) A Boy Named Charlie Brown: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack March 2017 Kritzerland CD It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording October 5, 2018 Craft Recordings LP, CD, digital It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (1966) A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving: Original Soundtrack Recording October 20, 2023 Lee Mendelson Film Productions A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording July 5, 2024 It Was a Short Summer, Charlie Brown (1969) You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording September 6, 2024 You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown (1972) Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording January 17, 2025 Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown (1975) It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording March 21, 2025 It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (1974) You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording July 11, 2025 You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown (1975) It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown/Charlie Brown's All Stars!: Original Soundtrack Recordings March 20, 2026 It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown (1976) / Charlie Brown's All Stars! (1966) It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording September 18, 2026 It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown (1974)

Live albums

+ Live albums Title Released Label Format Notes In Person 1963 Fantasy LP At Grace Cathedral 1965 Live on the Air 2008 D & DCD recorded February 6, 1974 An Afternoon with the Vince Guaraldi Quartet 2011 V.A.G. Publishing recorded October 17–29, 1967

Compilation albums

+ Compilation albums Title Released Label Format Jazz Impressions 1964 Fantasy LP Greatest Hits 1980 LP, cassette Charlie Brown's Holiday Hits 1998 CD, cassette Essential Standards 2009 Concord/Original Jazz Classics CD, digital The Definitive Vince Guaraldi Fantasy/Concord LP, CD, digital Peanuts Portraits 2010 The Very Best of Vince Guaraldi 2012 CD, digital Peanuts Greatest Hits 2015 LP, CD, digital

Archival albums Posthumous releases consisting principally of previously unreleased, newly recovered or historically assembled recordings are classified as archival albums rather than conventional compilations.

+ Archival albums Title Released Label Format Notes The Charlie Brown Suite & Other Favorites 2003 RCA/Bluebird CD The Charlie Brown Suite – Trio; with Peter Marshall (bass), Bob Belanski (drums); "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" (live) – Quartet; with Eddie Duran (guitar), Fred Marshall (bass), John Waller (drums); mix of unreleased live and studio-based tracks; The Charlie Brown Suite recorded live with Amici Della Musica at Mr. D's, San Francisco, California, May 18, 1969 Oaxaca 2004 D & D Quartet; with Vince Denham (saxophone), Koji Kataoka (bass), Mike Clark (drums); mix of unreleased live and studio-based tracks; live tracks recorded at In Your Ear Jazz Club in Palo Alto, California and The Matrix in San Francisco, California North Beach 2006 Quartet; with Eddie Duran (guitar), Seward McCain (acoustic bass), Peter Marshall (electric bass), Al Coster, Jerry Granelli, Eliot Zigmund (drums); mix of unreleased live and studio-based tracks Vince Guaraldi and the Lost Cues from the Charlie Brown Television Specials 2007 CD, digital Sextet; with Tom Harrell (trumpet), Chuck Bennett (trombone), Pat O'Hara (flute), Seward McCain (bass), Mike Clark, Glenn Cronkite, Mark Rosengarden (drums); includes music cues from You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown (1972), There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown (1973), A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973) and You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown (1975) Vince Guaraldi and the Lost Cues from the Charlie Brown Television Specials, Volume 2 2008 Sextet; with Tom Harrell (trumpet), Chuck Bennett (trombone), Pat O'Hara (flute), Seward McCain, Peter Marshall (bass), Mike Clark, Glenn Cronkite, Mark Rosengarden, Al Coster (drums); includes music cues from You're Not Elected, Charlie Brown (1972), There's No Time for Love, Charlie Brown (1973), A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (1973), It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown (1974), It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown (1974) and Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown (1975)

Box sets

+ Box sets Title Released Label Format Contents The Complete Warner Bros.–Seven Arts Recordings 2018 Omnivore CD, digital where applicable Includes Guaraldi's final three studio albums remastered: Oh Good Grief!, The Eclectic Vince Guaraldi and Alma-Ville The Peanuts Collection, Vol. 1 2025 Lee Mendelson Film Productions CD Includes six Peanuts television soundtracks released by Lee Mendelson Film Productions between 2023 and 2025.

Singles TitleB-sideYearPeak chart positionsCertificationsAlbum Hot 100 MOR Holiday 100 "Samba de Orpheus" "Cast Your Fate to the Wind" 1962 22 9 — Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus "Zelao" "Jitterbug Waltz" 1963 — — — In Person "Treat Street" "Mr. Lucky" 1964 — — — The Latin Side of Vince Guaraldi "Days of Wine and Roses" "Star Song" — — — Vince Guaraldi, Bola Sete and Friends "Oh, Good Grief" "Linus and Lucy" — — — Jazz Impressions of A Boy Named Charlie Brown "Theme to Grace" "Adore Devote (Humbly I Adore Thee)" 1965 — — — At Grace Cathedral "Christmas Time Is Here" (vocal) "What Child Is This" — — — A Charlie Brown Christmas "I'm a Loser" "Favela" (aka "O Morro Não Tem Vez (Somewhere in the Hills)") 1966 — — — Live at El Matador "Eleanor Rigby" "Peppermint Patty" 1967 — — —Vince Guaraldi with the San Francisco Boys Chorus "Blowin' in the Wind" "Monterey" — — — "Linus and Lucy" "Oh, Good Grief" 2012 37 — 17 RIAA: Gold MC: PlatinumA Charlie Brown Christmas "Christmas Time Is Here" "Christmas Time Is Here" (alternate vocal Take 5) 2017 23 — 17 RIAA: Platinum BPI: Silver MC: 4× Platinum "O Tannenbaum" — 2019 — — 29 MC: Platinum "Baseball Theme" "Baseball Theme" (alternate take) 2021 — — — Jazz Impressions of A Boy Named Charlie Brown "Paw Pet Overture" — 2024 — — — Be My Valentine, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording "Woodstock's Dream" —2025 — — — It's the Easter Beagle, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording "Motocross" — — — — You're a Good Sport, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording "Young Man's Fancy" —2026 — — —It's Arbor Day, Charlie Brown/Charlie Brown's All Stars!: Original Soundtrack Recordings "Sprinkle Your Bird" — — — — "Rain, Rain, Go Away (Rain, Gentle Rain)" — — — — "The Great Pumpkin Waltz" "Graveyard Theme" — — — It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording "It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown" — — — — It's a Mystery, Charlie Brown: Original Soundtrack Recording

Other charted and certified songs TitleYearCertificationsAlbum "Skating" 1965MC: GoldA Charlie Brown Christmas

As sideman