Blue Bell Knoll
by Cocteau Twins
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Cocteau Twins bestography
Blue Bell Knoll is ranked 5th best out of 16 albums by Cocteau Twins on BestEverAlbums.com.
The best album by Cocteau Twins is Heaven Or Las Vegas which is ranked number 142 in the list of all-time albums with a total rank score of 9,413.
(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 Blue Bell Knoll on YouTube
Blue Bell Knoll track list
The tracks on this album have an average rating of 81 out of 100 (all tracks have been rated).
Top-rated track as rated by BestEverAlbums.com members.
Blue Bell Knoll rankings
Calculated from aggregate positions across 60,000 charts (2 million album rankings). Click to see how the rankings are calculated (Last updated: 3 hours ago)
| Year | Source | Chart | Rank | Rank Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 |  slatsheit | Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | 59/100 | 8 |
| 2026 | bonnequestion | Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | 85/100 | 3 |
| 2026 | occasionalrain | Top 75 Greatest Music Albums | 20/75 | 74 |
| 2026 | Skerns | Top 83 Music Albums of 1988 | 12/83 | 4 |
| 2026 |  Rhyner | Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | 18/100 | 17 |
| 2026 |  Tamthebam | Top 100 Music Albums of 1988 | 14/100 | 4 |
| 2026 |  MadhattanJack | Top 64 Music Albums of 1988 | 1/64 | 5 |
| 2026 | bonnequestion | Top 14 Music Albums of 1988 | 6/14 | 3 |
| 2026 | juanr1096 | Top 47 Music Albums of 1988 | 14/47 | 4 |
| 2026 | slatsheit | My Top 202-243 (The Rest of the 5 Stars) | 21/41 | - |
| Total Charts: The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. | 210 | |||
| Total Rank Score: The total rank score. | 1,037 | |||
Blue Bell Knoll collection
Showing latest 20 members who have this album in their collection | Show all 100 members
Blue Bell Knoll 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 252 ratings for this album.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Album ratings | Avg. album rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 09/22/2026 15:04 | emiro | 73 | 84/100 |
| ! | 07/04/2026 17:28 |  DommeDamian | 7,794 | 48/100 |
| ! | 06/15/2026 23:19 |  serpico | 912 | 85/100 |
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 3% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 77.5/100, a mean average of 76.6/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 77.7/100. The standard deviation for this album is 14.7.
Blue Bell Knoll favourites
Showing latest 10 members who have added this album as a favourite | Show all 31 members
Blue Bell Knoll forum mentions
BestEverAlbums 09/14/2026 08:00 in Chart of the day (#5435): By flamingyesdept
neilgee 08/01/2026 09:02 in What album are you listening to? (cont.)Blue Bell Knoll comments
Top Comments First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Showing comments with any number of votes. Manage Profile)
philbutrin 09/01/2014 03:59 | #120913 | TOP COMMENT
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in 1991, my music tastes were pretty bland and top-40. i had a friend whose musical horizons were considerably broader, and he told me i should check out a band called Cocteau Twins. so i went into a record store and looked through the CT section, but i didn't know which release do try. i asked one of the employees, and she suggested that rather than starting with their first album (Garlands), i should try Blue Bell Knoll. it was a great choice, because i loved it from the first song, and from there i went on to explore the rest of the CT catalog and a lot more 4AD bands. many of my all-time favorites are from that era.
This is a great record! The production is heavily layered yet easily assessable. Probably their best album.
Secondsoul 01/13/2013 21:06 | #61399 | TOP COMMENT
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This is now my favourite Cocteau Twins album. It takes a good few listens to appreciate it's brilliance. Great sound and great song titles!!
benpaco 09/29/2013 03:16 | #87144 | TOP COMMENT
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Anyone who tries to rate a song on this is doing it wrong. This is an album, the songs don't deserve or need reviews, it's just one whole experience.
This is, from start to finish, a masterpiece of psychedelic dream pop. A must have record from the 80s and, having just recently discovered it, a new personal favorite.
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