Nightclubbing
by Grace Jones

Nightclubbing by Grace Jones
Year: 1981
Release date: 1981-05-11
Overall rank: 1,458th   Overall chart history
Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 216 votes)
  Ratings distribution   Average rating history
Accolades:
Award Top 20 albums of 1981 (18th)
Award Top albums of of the 1980s (225th)
Award Best albums of all time (1,458th)

Listen on Spotify SPOTIFY

Grace Jones bestography

Nightclubbing is ranked as the best album by Grace Jones.

Grace Jones album bestography « Higher ranked
-
This album (1,458th)
Nightclubbing
Lower ranked (5,825th) »
Living My Life

(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 Nightclubbing on YouTube

Loading content from YouTube...

Nightclubbing rankings

Rankings summary
Overall rank: 1,458th | 1980s rank: 225th | 1981 rank: 18th
Filter Filter
Sort Sort by
YearSourceChartRankRank Score
2026 cestuneblagueTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s69/1006
2026 zags7000Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s89/1002
2026GrymerTop 33 Greatest Music Albums22/3336
2026 WasinskiTop 100 Music Albums of 198173/1001
2026matterhornriderTop 50 Music Albums of 19817/504
2026matterhornriderTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s93/1002
2026mrmcrookTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s54/1009
2026 imacgillTop 100 Music Albums of 198122/1004
2026bjorndedrijTop 100 Greatest Music Albums81/10020
2026 zags7000Top 100 Music Albums of 19819/1005
2026JakorTop 90 Music Albums of 198119/904
2026 ExTeaSeaTop 79 Music Albums of 198115/794
2026juanr1096Top 56 Music Albums of 198124/563
2026saltysurpriseTop 52 Music Albums of 198130/522
2026jtrizzle35Top 23 Music Albums of the 1980s7/2315
2026 Patman360Top 100 Music Albums of 19815/1005
2026 videoheadcleanervideoheadcleaner's 401-50076/100 -
2026 ExTeaSeaTop 100 Music Albums of the 1980s86/1003
2026KettwigJoeFM's Album top 500 (401-500)93/100 -
2026JohnnyoGreatest albums of 1981 by Ultimate Record Collector16/55 -
Total Charts: Help The total number of charts that this album has appeared in. 244
Total Rank Score: Help The total rank score. 1,174
You can include this album in your own chart from the My Charts page!

Nightclubbing collection

Nightclubbing ratings

Average Rating: 
79/100 (from 216 votes)
  Ratings distribution Help Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
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 5 ratings for this album.  | Show all 216 ratings for this album.

Sort Sort by
RatingDate updatedMemberAlbum ratingsAvg. album rating
 
30/100
 !
07/01/2026 19:32 wizardalien  Ratings distribution  85348/100
 
70/100
 !
05/20/2026 23:45 thepardunk  Ratings distribution  2,58769/100
 
85/100
 !
05/08/2026 20:02 Jakor  Ratings distribution  5,43770/100
 
75/100
 !
03/13/2026 19:24 Exist-en-ciel  Ratings distribution  13,82470/100
 
15/100
 !
02/24/2026 12:54 Leonard  Ratings distribution  6,61870/100

Rating metrics: Help 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 2% of all albums on BestEverAlbums.com. This album has a Bayesian average rating of 78.7/100, a mean average of 77.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 79.0/100. The standard deviation for this album is 15.1.

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

Nightclubbing comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 11 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  
30/100
From 07/01/2026 19:34 | #315136
Pull Up To The Bumper is a great tune, but the rest of the album really didn't excite me at all. The covers of Use Me and Demolition Man are not enjoyable and the rest of the tunes that weren't covers had very little quality.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 02/13/2026 00:25 | #313118
Such a cool album, funky rhythms, pulling influence from all directions, and creating a legend that is Grace Jones
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 02/08/2024 09:05 | #301796
One of the coolest albums ever. Really original and compelling..
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 06/06/2023 16:53 | #297417
Great production and perfect singing for the style. The album's cool factor has aged it far better than most 80s albums. The only thing keeping it from being an essential album is that it contains no memorable hit songs. 8.5/10.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
Sounds amazing, great band and production (and vocals obviously), but its so slow - sends me into a stupor instead of up on the dance floor. Ironic for a album called Nightclubbing it makes you more likely to sit on a couch and nod your head. Quite a lot of filler as well. 'I've Seen That Face Before' and 'Demolition Man' are highlights for me.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 02/28/2021 14:32 | #266780
Bem experimental esse post-disco. Brinca com ritmo eletrônicos e latinos.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
80/100
From 09/09/2020 01:08 | #257932
Great album. Very top heavy but still worthy of a full listen. A style and sound of her own makes Grace Jones one you pull out regularly and this is the album with her two most well known songs on it.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
The best Grace Jones album includes Walking In The Rain & Pull Up To The Bumper two of her best ever vocals. Backed by Sly & Robbie this album has had an influence on such diverse acts as Lady Gaga, Grimes, LCD Soundsystem & Massive Attack. Described as New Wave it is now recognised as one of the first in the Art Pop genre.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
An essential piece of post-disco and art pop. For an album that is essentially a collection of covers, it feels incredibly personal and cohesive, combining excellent variation within its sound with brilliant execution and good structure.

Jones cements herself here as one of the most interesting artists of the 1980s with her rich blend of dub and disco beats that underlay new wave-inspired synth and dance melodies. Balancing the slick sexiness of Pull Up To The Bumper with the minute vulnerability of I've Done It Again and making room for the effortless suaveness of I've Seen That Face Before and the dark, 4-in-the-morning feel of Nightclubbing, she manages to find and fully explore an incredibly unique sound that she totally owns, despite having only one truly original song on the tracklist.

That lack of originality doesn't matter though. What matters is the image that is projected by Jones on this album: her potent mix of hyper-androgyny, rich lustiness and cool, sharp sound is both irresistible and sublime.

An excellent album that proudly stands alone from its contemporaries much like Jones herself.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +7 votes (7 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
A great dance pop album. Funky grooves over great little songs make this album a classic of it's kind. Pull up to the bumper, is a brilliant dance track. Full of attitude and totally infectious.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for Nightclubbing

Anonymous
Let us know what you think of this album by adding a comment or assigning a rating below.
The top comments are featured on our aggregated charts!
Log in or create a FREE account to assign a rating or leave a comment for this album.