Surfacing
by Sarah McLachlan
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Sarah McLachlan bestography
Surfacing is ranked 2nd best out of 19 albums by Sarah McLachlan on BestEverAlbums.com.
The best album by Sarah McLachlan is Fumbling Towards Ecstasy which is ranked number 3255 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 467.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
Listen to Surfacing on YouTube
Surfacing track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Surfacing rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 28 minutes ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |  Romanelli | Top 94 Music Albums of 1997 | 27/94 | 4 |
| 2026 | stevengnz | Top 100 Music Albums of 1997 | 71/100 | 2 |
| 2026 | fabm0 | Platinum decade 1990s Pt 2 | 29/100 | - |
| 2026 | fabm0 | All Time Pt 5 | 90/100 | - |
| 2026 |  Patman360 | Top 99 Music Albums of 1997 | 72/99 | 1 |
| 2026 | fabm0 | List Zone 31 America Canada | 25/100 | - |
| 2026 |  EyeKanFly | Top 94 Music Albums of 1997 | 38/94 | 3 |
| 2026 | Romanelli | My Overall Chart: 801-900 | 97/100 | - |
| 2026 | 100IDream | Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | 13/100 | 86 |
| 2026 | fabm0 | Platinum albums Pt 4 | 23/100 | - |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 120 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 435 | |||
Surfacing collection
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Surfacing ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 3 ratings for this album. | Show all 121 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 05/28/2026 15:52 | Exist-en-ciel | 15,905 | 70/100 |
| ! | 05/11/2026 19:30 | Jakor | 5,550 | 70/100 |
| ! | 01/21/2026 14:37 | cicadelic | 14,076 | 73/100 |
Rating metrics:
Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
(*In practice, some albums can have several thousand ratings)
This album is rated in the top 14% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 74.2/100, a mean average of 74.0/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 74.4/100. The standard deviation for this album is 12.6.
Surfacing favourites
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Surfacing forum mentions
dihansse 01/15/2019 20:57 in My discoveries per year Romanelli 09/02/2016 12:15 in The Romanelli Music Diary: The Milk Of Human KindnessSurfacing comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
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junodog4 TOP 100 COMMENTER 08/08/2012 14:57 | #48100 | TOP COMMENT
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It's funny: Canadian artists usually hone their craft in Canada, unknown to the big market south of the border. They usually peak right before going stateside, and then release a huge album that catches fire in the charts. Funny thing, it's not usually their best. (See Barenaked Ladies - Gordon is better than Stunt, or Shania Twain - Woman in Me is better than Come on Over) Surfacing is a great album. Sarah McLachlan's vocals soar, her songwriting is solid, and there are memorable melodies and hooks. She is feeling confident and it sounds that way. It's a great album. It's just that Fumbling Towards Ecstasy is better.
Robert Anton Wilson TOP 100 COMMENTER 11/07/2011 18:45 | #30060 | TOP COMMENT
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Totally partial to this album as it accompanied the first kiss of a very significant relationship, to the song "I Love You" - how perfect is that! Anyway, I still think the music is quite alright dear.
Good album. Not quite as brilliant as, solace, and, fumbling towards ecstasy, but fine songs here, especially, Adia, which has got to be Mcclachlan's greatest composition. Absolutely beautiful, and the rest isn't bad either.
lightmyway TOP 100 COMMENTER 05/17/2012 20:59 | #42573 | TOP COMMENT
Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.
This was her biggest hit album, it's about on par with Fumbling Towards Ecstacy in terms of quality. More diverse and such.
Knew I had grown up when I heard this album
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