Epic jazz drumming albums?

Definitely check out Billy Cobham: Spectrum  or even some others in his discography.

Anything with Elvin Jones…but start with his work in John Coltrane's quartet.

If you can find the album "Gomez" by Eddie Gomez. It features a wonderful

combination of Eddie Gomez, Chic Corea and Steve Gadd. Here is a video

of a live version of one of the tracks.

 

You may want to also look for the Japanese group "soil and "pimp" sessions",

not trad jazz but some pretty fun music with the drums pretty upfront in the mix.

Edited by JadeEast - 11/19/10 at 9:08am

In addition to Billy Cobham, look for Ronald Shannon Jackson, and of course Jack DeJohnette.

Elvin Jones with Coltrane, Shorter, or Tyner, but especially with Coltrane. His work on "Afro-Blue" is astonishing.

My favorites such as Max Roach, Art Blakey or Hamid Drake would not qualify as "frenetic, technical drumming".  If you are looking for some playing that is over the top you might want to check out Charly Antolini - In The Groove. IMHO there is some truly "frenetic, technical drumming" on many of these tracks.
 

Paal Nilssen-Love.

 

I was about to say Roach too, but if you're looking for the more extreme kind it's Nilssen-Love you're looking for, he's a complete madman.

He collaborates all over the place and is involved with numerous projects, but one of the more well known are The Thing.

I'm not much into jazz, but these lists are usually helpful on such matters:

 

http://digitaldreamdoor.com/pages/best_jazz/best_jazzdrum.html

Checked out that Billy Cobham album last night(Spectrum) and oh my awesome! Tbh I'd never heard him before and well the keys on "To the women in my life" just blew me away, so serious thanks for that one folks!

Check out Dave Weckl's "Transition".  Great liner notes as well intimately describing the drumming technique(s) in each song.

 

This is a great video from jazz greatest drummer in the "under 40" age group, Antonio Sanchez.  Check out the video at the 4:20 mark.  The speed does not seem humanly possible.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=efERFCN0B_0

My favorite jazz album to listen to for the drums is "The Way Up" by Pat Metheny. Antonio Sanchez is an amazing drummer. 

Art Blakey's "Free For All".  It'll take your head off.  Literally.  I mean, not literally.  That wouldn't be good.  The first two tracks on that record ("Free For All" and "Hammerhead").  And I love falis' recommendations -- thought I'd posted specifically RJS's "Mandance" and Jack DeJohnette's "Special Edition" earlier, but I guess not.  Try those.  Also just because you'd never heard Billy Cobham and like him, try the first two Mahavishnu Orchestra records (Inner Mounting Flame and Birds of Fire).