The BEA Winners and Losers: 2011 Rankings Report

[Mr. Shankly]

Last night, I thought it would be fun to check which albums have gone up and down over the last year. For this report, I am only going to focus on the top 200 (with one or two exceptions) as the albums move a lot once you get past that point. Anyway, there have been interesting changes this year.

First off, the band that appears to be growing endlessly in popularity appears to be Arcade Fire. They are the big winners of 2011. Why?

The Suburbs- went up 79 points in one year's time, from 123 to 79! How far up do you think it will go in 2012? Movement is usually much smaller in the top 20, but as I'm sure you all know, Funeral moved from 14 to 11. Interestingly, Neon Bible hasn't moved from #84 though. I do think Arcade Fire might be on their way to being the next Beatles or Radiohead in terms of BEA popularity, although Neon Bible appears to be their Hail to the Thief.

Arcade Fire's album was not the one that went up the most in rank though, That honor goes to Mr. Kanye West. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy went up an astonishing 191 points! On December 10, 2010, close to its release date, it was ranked 327. It's now at 136. How far up will that one go?

Some other newer albums that are gaining in popularity include:
1) High Violet- The National (went up 84 points from 250 to 166)
2) The XX- (went up 57 points from 244 to 197)
3) Fleet Foxes-Fleet Foxes (went up 33 points from 125 to 92)
4) For Emma, Forever Ago- Bon Iver (went up 26 points from 141 to 115)
5) Oracular Spectacular- MGMT (went up 27 points from 204 to 177)

Some older albums that have gained in popularity:
1) Piper at the Gates of Dawn- Pink Floyd (went up 37 points from 175 to 138)
2) LA Woman- The Doors (went up 54 points from 246 to 192)
3) Simon and Garfunkel (went up 24 points from 154 to 130)
4) All Things Must Pass- George Harrison- (went up 28 points from 181 to 153)
5) Screamadelica- Primal Scream (went up 43 points from 191 to 148)
6) Songs for the Deaf- Queens of the Stone Age (went up 41 points from 193 to 152)
7) Dummy- Portishead (went up 28 points from 117 to 89)
8. White Blood Cells- The White Stripes (went up 21 points from 156 to 135)
9) Close to the Edge- Yes (went up 25 points from 174 to 149)
10) Unknown Pleasures- Joy Division (went up 16 points from 59 to 43)
11) In Utero- Nirvana (went up 10 points from 52 to 42)
12) Black Saint and the Sinner- Charles Mingus (went up 31 points from 213 to 182)


Now for the Big Losers of 2011:
1) At Folsom Prison- Johnny Cash (Dropped 51 points from 151 to 204)
2) It Takes a Nation of Millions- Public Enemy (Dropped 34 points from 127 to 161)
3) The Clash-The Clash (Dropped 25 points from 135 to 160)
4) Sign O' the Times- Prince (Dropped 56 points from 202 to 258)
5) Definitely Maybe- Oasis (Dropped 10 points from 41 to 51)

There are also some really big drops that happened above the top 200. For example, Hybrid Theory by Linken Park dropped 75 points from 241 to 316.

There hasn't been a lot of movement overall in the top 40 with a few notable exceptions. The biggest of which this year was this one:

Doolittle- The Pixies (Went up six points from 25 to 19 to crack the top 20!)

Other interesting changes in the top 40 include:
1) Kid A-Radiohead (moved from 12 to 10 meaning Radiohead is just behind the Beatles on BEA, but you already knew that)
2) Nevermind-Nirvana (moved up two points from 8 to 6)
3) The Joshua Tree (dropped five points from 19 to 24) I know Jhereko likes this.
4) Is This is It- The Strokes (went up six points from 34 to 28 )
5) Abbey Road and Sgt Pepper switched places, which I know Pam and others like.

So those have been the big movers and shakers of the top 200 in 2011. Let me know if I forgot any major ones. So what will happen in 2012? How high up will the Suburbs go? MBDTF? Which albums will continue to rise and which ones are on the way down? Which changes surprised you the most? What do you think are the most notable changes in rank? What are the albums to watch? Which albums released this year are headed to the top 200 or above? Discuss.

[Jackwc]

[paladisiac]

overall, i can understand these moves.
_________________
fav artists NOW | ALL-TIME favs | i listen 2 more music than u so u don't have 2!

[M Hurley]

Hooray for Piper at the Gates of Dawn!!

[fellow]

[Mr. Shankly]

[Mr. Shankly]

[cartoken]

i noticed that Doolittle has became the new Nevermind. why this sudden popularity ?

[Polythene Pam]

It's because Dummy, Piper, Doolittle, Unknown Pleasures and Black Saint And The Sinner Lady have all been in my top 10 before

[Wombi]