Pontiac
by Lyle Lovett
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Lyle Lovett bestography
Pontiac is ranked as the best album by Lyle Lovett.
(N.B. Bestographies include all albums by an artist (and their variations), but do not include albums ranked outside the top 100,000).
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Pontiac track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 78 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Pontiac rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 2 hours ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Moondance | Top 100 Music Albums of 1987 | 86/100 | 1 |
| 2026 |  Tamthebam | Top 100 Music Albums of 1987 | 69/100 | 2 |
| 2026 |  zags7000 | Overall 401-500 | 67/100 | - |
| 2026 | matterhornrider | Top 50 Music Albums of 1987 | 38/50 | 1 |
| 2026 | shanelovesyou1111 | Top 73 Music Albums of 1987 | 54/73 | 1 |
| 2026 |  Romanelli | My Overall Chart: 101-200 | 12/100 | - |
| 2026 | Johnnyo | Top 100 Music Albums of 1987 | 32/100 | 3 |
| 2026 |  covecove | Top 50 Music Albums of 1987 | 46/50 | 1 |
| 2026 | Romanelli | Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | 16/100 | 17 |
| 2026 | zags7000 | Top 100 Music Albums of 1987 | 9/100 | 5 |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 62 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 191 | |||
Pontiac collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 30 members
Pontiac 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 64 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 10/12/2025 12:31 | Tamthebam | 23,249 | 69/100 |
| ! | 09/17/2023 14:08 | joewooley24 | 2,995 | 80/100 |
| ! | 08/21/2023 01:01 | matterhornrider | 5,158 | 81/100 |
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 25% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 73.4/100, a mean average of 72.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 73.6/100. The standard deviation for this album is 16.3.
Pontiac favourites
Showing all 8 members who have added this album as a favourite
Forum mentions
Romanelli 09/27/2025 00:42 in What album are you listening to? (cont.) Romanelli 06/20/2025 18:21 in What album are you listening to? (cont.)Pontiac comments
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Lyle Lovett was signed to MCA with Nanci Griffith and Steve Earle and other left-of-center singer-songwriters in the "great credibility scare" of the mid 1980s. Like the other artists I mentioned, he was a folk singer-songwriter from Texas that was marketed as a mainstream country artist with the help of producer Tony Brown.
Lovett's biggest strength is his sense of style. I respect his efforts to incorporate many American genres in his music, including jazz, classic R&B, western swing, gospel and blues. It's all combined here but executed even better on his Joshua Judges Ruth record.
It's the lyrics that might turn you off.
Right off the bat, Lovett sings about Tonto telling the Lone Ranger to kiss his ass as he takes his horse to sea. Next he calls an attractive female a "s--tkicker redneck woman." Weird stuff.
The guy is as strange and unpredictable as his hair, but it comes off as bad more often than good. He tries to be original, but comes off boring. He tries to be witty but comes off weird. When he's sassy, he comes off corny. And when he tries to be sexy he just sounds creepy.
Nevertheless, the combined styles are truly unique and the production will keep you entertained, even if you find yourself scratching your head over the lyrics.
Check out Joshua Judges Ruth for some needed relief
A Side: LA County
B Side: Walk Through the Bottomland
His best record.
Bork 04/30/2010 22:52 | #11243 | TOP COMMENT
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Lyle Lovett makes another record of his trademark mix of jazzy western swing, coffee house ballads, and clever lyrics. Not quite as good as the previous outing but highly enjoyable. Recommended especially for those looking for something that sounds original.
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