La carriera di James Brown, considerato uno degli artisti più influenti di sempre, si estende dal 1958 fino al 2006, anno della sua morte.

La sua discografia comprende 59 album in studio, oltre a numerosi dischi live e raccolte.

Album in studio +AnnoTitoloMassima posizione in classificaUSUS R&BCANSWIUK1958Please Please Please ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")—————1959Try Me! ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")—————1960Think! ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")—————1961The Amazing James Brown ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")—————1962James Brown and His Famous Flames Tour the U.S.A. ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")—————1963Prisoner of Love73————1964Showtime61————1964Grits & Soul1249———1964Out of Sight—————1965James Brown Plays James Brown Today & Yesterday423———1966Mighty Instrumentals—————1966James Brown Plays New Breed (The Boo-Ga-Loo)101————1966James Brown Sings Christmas Songs—————1966Handful of Soul13524———1967James Brown Sings Raw Soul88————1967James Brown Plays the Real Thing16427———1967Cold Sweat (sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")355———1968I Can't Stand Myself When You Touch Me174———1968I Got the Feelin'135————1968James Brown Plays Nothing But Soul150————1968Thinking About Little Willie John and a Few Nice Things—————1968A Soulful Christmas—————1969Say It Loud – I'm Black and I'm Proud536———1969Gettin' Down to It9926———1969The Popcorn—————1969It's a Mother26—49——1970Ain't It Funky435———1970Soul on Top12512———1970It's a New Day – Let a Man Come In—19———1970Hey America—————1971Sho Is Funky Down Here13726———1971Hot Pants224———1972There It Is6010———1972Get on the Good Foot688———1973Black Caesar312———1973Slaughter's Big Rip-Off9215———1973The Payback34192——1974Hell35278——1974Reality5611———1975Sex Machine Today1032460——1975Everybody's Doin' the Hustle & Dead on the Double Bump—————1976Hot—————1976Get Up Offa That Thing1472412——1976Bodyheat12620———1977Mutha's Nature—38———1978Jam 1980's—32———1978Take a Look at Those Cakes—————1979The Original Disco Man15237———1980People—————1980Soul Syndrome—————1981Nonstop!—————1983Bring It On!—————1986Gravity15639——851988I'm Real9615—19271991Love Over-Due—51—35—1993Universal James—68—34—1998I'm Back—————1999The Merry Christmas Album—————2002The Next Step—72———

Album dal vivo +AnnoTitoloMassima posizione in classificaUSUS R&BGER1963Live at the Apollo ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")2——1964Pure Dynamite!, Live at the Royal ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")10——1967The James Brown Show———1967Live at the Garden ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")416—1968Live at the Apollo, Volume II ( sotto il nome "James Brown and The Famous Flames")322321970Sex Machine294—1971Super Bad614—1971Revolution of the Mind, Live at the Apollo, Volume III397—1980Hot on the One———1981Live in New York———1988Live at Chastain Park———1989Soul Session Live———1992Love, Power, Peace, Live at the Olympia, Paris 1971———1995Live at the Apollo 1995———1998Say It Live and Loud, Live in Dallas 08.26.68———2016Live at the Apollo, Volume IV: September 13–14, 1972—45—2019Live at Home with His Bad Self———

Raccolte {| class="wikitable" |+ ! rowspan="2" |Anno ! rowspan="2" |Titolo ! colspan="4" |Massima posizione in classifica |- !US !US R&B !SWI !UK |- |1961 !James Brown Presents His Band |— |— |— |— |- |1962 !Good, Good, Twistin''' |— |— |— |— |- |1965 !Papa's Got a Brand New Bag|26 |2 |— |— |- |1966 !I Got You (I Feel Good)|36 |3 |— |— |- |1966 !It's a Man's Man's Man's World|90 |— |— |— |- |1972 !Soul Classics|83 |13 |— |— |- |1973 !Soul Classics, Volume II|— |31 |— |— |- |1977 !Solid Gold, 30 Golden Hits|— |— |— |— |- |1977 !The Fabulous James Brown|— |— |— |— |- |1981 !Can Your Heart Stand It?|— |— |— |— |- |1981 !The Best of James Brown|— |— |— |— |- |1984 !The Federal Years, Part I|— |— |— |— |- |1984 !The Federal Years, Part II|— |— |— |— |- |1984 !Roots of a Revolution, 1956–1965|— |— |— |— |- |1984 !Ain't That a Groove, 1966–1969|— |— |— |— |- |1984 !Doing It to Death, 1970–1973|— |— |— |— |- |1985 !Dead on the Heavy Funk, 1974–1976|— |— |— |— |- |1985 !The CD of JB: (Sex Machine and Other Soul Classics)|— |— |— |— |- |1986 !The LP of JB|— |— |— |— |- |1986 !In the Jungle Groove|— |— |— |— |- |1987 !The CD of JB II, Cold Sweat and Other Soul Classics|— |— |— |— |- |1987 !The Best of James Brown|— |— |— |17 |- |1988 !Motherlode|— |— |— |— |- |1988 !The Great James Brown, Soul Brother Number One|— |— |— |— |- |1990 !Dance Machine|— |— |— |— |- |1991 !Messin' with the Blues|— |— |— |— |- |1991 !Star Time|— |89 |— |— |- |1991 !20 All-Time Greatest Hits!|133 |99 |— |— |- |1991 !Sex Machine, The Very Best of James Brown|— |— |— |19 |- |1992 !Greatest Hits of the Fourth Decade|— |— |— |— |- |1995 !Living in America|— |— |— |— |- |1995 !Roots of a Revolution 1956–1963|— |— |— |— |- |1995 !Roots of a Revolution 1956–1963|— |— |— |— |- |1995 !James Brown's Funky Christmas|— |— |— |— |- |1996 !Foundations of Funk, A Brand New Bag, 1964–1969|— |— |— |— |- |1996 !Funk Power 1970, A Brand New Thang|— |— |— |— |- |1996 !Make It Funky, The Big Payback, 1971–1975|— |— |— |— |- |1996 !JB40 - 40th Anniversary Collection|— |— |— |— |- |1998 !Dead on the Heavy Funk, 1975–1983|— |— |— |— |- |2001 !Classic James Brown, Universal Masters Collection|— |— |— |— |- |2002 !The Godfather, The Very Best of James Brown|— |— |61 |30 |- |2003 !Classic James Brown, Volume II, Universal Masters Collection|— |— |— |— |- |2003 !20th Century Masters, The Christmas Collection|— |— |— |— |- |2003 !50th Anniversary Collection|— |— |— |— |- |2006 !The Singles, Volume I: The Federal Years, 1956–1960|— |— |— |— |- |2007 !The Singles, Volume II: 1960–1963|— |— |— |— |- |2007 !The Singles, Volume III: 1964–1965|— |— |— |— |- |2007 !A Family Affair(con le figlie Yamma e Venisha) |— |— |— |— |- |2007 !The Singles, Volume IV: 1966–1967|— |— |— |— |- |2007 !Number 1's|— |— |— |— |- |2008 !Soul Brother No. 1|170 |— |— |— |- |2008 !The Singles, Volume V: 1967–1969|— |— |— |— |- |2009 !The Singles, Volume VI: 1969–1970|— |— |— |— |- |2009 !The Singles, Volume VII: 1970–1972|— |— |— |— |- |2009 !The Singles, Volume VIII: 1972–1973|— |— |— |— |- |2010 !Icon|— |— |— |— |- |2010 !The Singles, Volume IX: 1973–1975|— |— |— |— |- |2010 !The Complete James Brown Christmas|— |— |— |— |- |2011 !The Singles, Volume X: 1975–1979|— |— |— |— |- |2011 !The Singles, Volume XI: 1979–1981|— |— |— |— |- |2014 !Get On Up, The James Brown Story|61 |9 |— |—

Singoli (parziale)

1956 - Please, Please, Please/Why Do You Do Me (Federal Records, 12258) 1956 - I Don't Know/I Feel That Old Feeling Coming On (Federal Records, 12264) 1956 - No, No, No, No/Hold My Baby's Hand (Federal Records, 12277) 1957 - Just Won't Do Right/Let's Make It (Federal Records, 12289) 1957 - Chonnie-On-Chon/I Won't Plead No More (Federal Records, 12290) 1957 - Gonna Try/Can't Be The Same (Federal Records, 12292) 1957 - You're Mine, You're Mine/I Walked Alone (Federal Records, 12300) 1957 - That Dood It/Baby Cries Over The Ocean (Federal Records, 12311) 1958 - Begging, Begging/That's When I Lost My Heart (Federal Records, 12316) 1958 - Try Me (I Need You)/Tell Me What I Did Wrong (Federal Records, 12337) 1959 - There Must Be A Reason/I Want You So Bad (Federal Records, 12348) 1959 - I've Got To Change/It Hurts To Tell You (Federal Records, 12352) 1959 - Good Good Lovin'/Don't Let It Happen To Me (Federal Records, 12361) 1960 - (Do The) Mashed Potatoes (Part 1) [a nome "Nat Kendrick & Swans"] (R&B N° 8) 1960 - I'll Go Crazy/I Know It's True 1960 - Think (R&B N° 5, U.S. N° 33) 1960 - You've Got the Power (R&B N° 14, U.S. N° 86) 1960 - This Old Heart (R&B N° 18, U.S. N° 79) 1960 - The Bells (R&B N° 11, U.S. N° 68) 1961 - Bewildered (R&B N° 8, U.S. N° 40) 1961 - I Don't Mind (R&B N° 4, U.S. N° 47) 1961 - Baby, You're Right (R&B N° 2 [1 week], U.S. N° 49) 1961 - Just You and Me, Darling (R&B N° 17) 1961 - Lost Someone (R&B N° 2 [4 weeks]) 1962 - Night Train (R&B N° 5, U.S. N° 35) 1962 - Shout and Shimmy (R&B N° 13, U.S. N° 61) 1962 - Mashed Potatoes U.S.A. (R&B N° 15, U.S. N° 82) 1962 - Three Hearts in a Tangle (A-side) (U.S. N° 18) 1962 - I've Got Money (B-side) (U.S. N° 93) 1963 - Like a Baby (U.S. N° 24) 1963 - Every Beat of My Heart (U.S. N° 99) 1963 - Prisoner of Love (R&B N° 6, U.S. N° 9) 1963 - These Foolish Things (R&B N° 25, U.S. 55) 1963 - Signed, Sealed and Delivered (U.S. N° 77) 1963 - Oh Baby Don't You Weep – Pt. 1 (R&B N° 4, U.S. N° 23) 1964 - Please, Please, Please (overdubbed) (U.S. N° 95) 1964 - Have Mercy Baby 1965 - Papa's Got a Brand New Bag – Pt. 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 8) 1965 - I Got You (I Feel Good) (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 3) 1965 - Lost Someone (live) (U.S. N° 94) 1965 - I'll Go Crazy (live) (R&B N° 28, U.S. N° 73) 1966 - Ain't That a Groove – Pts. 1 & 2 (R&B N° 6, U.S. N° 42) 1966 - It's a Man's Man's Man's World (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 8) 1966 - Money Won't Change You – Pt. 1 (U.S. N° 53) 1966 - Don't Be a Drop-Out (R&B N° 4, U.S. 50) 1966 - Sweet Little Baby Boy – Pt. 1 (U.S. N° 8) 1966 - Bring It Up (Hipster's Avenue) (R&B N° 7, U.S. N° 29) 1967 - Kansas City (R&B N° 21, U.S. N° 55) 1967 - Think (duetto con Vicki Anderson) (U.S. N° 100) 1967 - Let Yourself Go (R&B N° 5, U.S. N° 46) 1967 - Cold Sweat – Pt. 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 7) - Grammy Hall of Fame Award 2016 1967 - Get It Together – Pt. 1 (R&B N° 11, U.S. 40) 1967 - I Can't Stand Myself (When You Touch Me) (R&B N° 4, U.S. N° 28) 1967 - There Was a Time (R&B N° 3, U.S. N° 36) 1968 - America Is My Home, Pt. 1 (R&B N° 13, U.S. N° 52) 1968 - Goodbye My Love (U.S. N° 31) 1968 - I Can't Stand Myself (When You Touch Me) (R&B N° 4, U.S. N° 28) 1968 - I Got the Feelin' (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 6) 1968 - I Guess I'll Have to Cry, Cry, Cry (R&B N° 15, U.S. N° 55) 1968 - Licking Stick - Licking Stick - Part 1 (R&B N° 2, U.S. N° 14) 1968 - Say It Loud - I'm Black and I'm Proud - Part 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 10) 1968 - There Was a Time (R&B N° 3, U.S. N° 36) 1968 - Tit For Tat (Ain't No Taking Back) (U.S. N° 86) 1968 - You've Got to Change Your Mind (R&B N° 47) 1969 - Ain't It Funky Now (R&B N° 3, U.S. N° 24) 1969 - Give It Up or Turnit a Loose (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 15) 1969 - I Don't Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing (Open Up the Door, I'll Get It Myself) (R&B N° 3, U.S. N° 20) 1969 - Let a Man Come In and Do the Popcorn - Part One (R&B N° 2, U.S. N° 21) 1969 - Lowdown Popcorn (R&B N° 16, U.S. N° 41) 1969 - Mother Popcorn (You Got To Have A Mother For Me) Part 1(R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 11) 1969 - The Popcorn (R&B N° 11, U.S. N° 30) 1970 - Ain't It Funky Now (U.S. N° 24) 1970 - Brother Rapp - Part 1 & Part 2 (U.S. N° 32) 1970 - Funky Drummer - Part 1 (R&B N° 20, U.S. N° 51) 1970 - Get Up (I Feel like Being a) Sex Machine (Part 1) (R&B N° 2, U.S. N° 15) 1970 - It's a New Day - Part 1 & Part 2 (U.S. N° 32) 1970 - Santa Claus Is Definitely Here to Stay (U.S. N° 7) 1970 - Super Bad - Part 1 & Part 2 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 13) 1970 - Get Up, Get into It, Get Involved (R&B N° 26) 1971 - Escape-ism - Part 1 (R&B N° 6, U.S. N° 35) 1971 - Hot Pants - Part 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 15) 1971 - Make It Funky - Part 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 22) 1971 - My Part/Make It Funky - Part 3 (R&B N° 68) 1971 - I'm a Greedy Man - Part 1 (R&B N° 7, U.S. N° 35) 1972 - Talkin' Loud and Sayin' Nothing (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 27) 1972 - King Heroin (R&B N° 6, U.S. N° 40) 1972 - There It Is - Part 1 (R&B N° 4, U.S. N° 43) 1972 - Honky Tonk - Part 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 2) 1972 - Get on the Good Foot - Part 1 (R&B N° 1, U.S. N° 18) 1972 - I Got a Bag of My Own (R&B N° 3, U.S. N° 44) 1972 - What My Baby Needs Now Is a Little More Lovin' (R&B N° 17, U.S. N° 56) 1972 - I Got Ants in My Pants - Part 1 (R&B N° 4, U.S. N° 27) 1973 - Down and Out in New York City (R&B N° 13, U.S. N° 50) 1973 - Think (nuova versione)