Top 50 Greatest Music Albums
by 
radiofreespike 
This is a work in progress, a subjective listing based on years of listening and spinning a few records. This is NOT exact science! (Joel, in case you read this.)
The ranking is not necessarily a perfect reflection of my opinion. Moods change, eh? Although I did not intentionally set out to do so, I note that 32% of my current picks have significant female content. Not that high, but more than most other lists. Fascinating.
- Chart updated: 04/06/2010 12:52
- (Created: 06/30/2009 04:56).
- Chart size: 50 albums.
There are 6 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 50 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 78 out of 100 (from 11 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
The entries in this chart have a zero rank score because the chart has not been updated within the last ten years (points from overall charts are decayed over a ten year period).
View the complete list of 58,000 charts on BestEverAlbums.com from The Charts page.
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,013
Rank in 1973:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
42,407
Rank in 1972:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
579
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
33,169
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
38,210
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3
Rank in 1972:
Rank in 1970s:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
[First added to this chart: 11/12/2009]
Total albums: 50. Page 1 of 5
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 1 | 2% | |
| 1960s | 7 | 14% | |
| 1970s | 14 | 28% | |
| 1980s | 7 | 14% | |
| 1990s | 16 | 32% | |
| 2000s | 5 | 10% | |
| 2010s | 0 | 0% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Steely Dan | 2 | 4% | |
| Marianne Faithfull | 2 | 4% | |
| Black Sabbath | 1 | 2% | |
| Lynda Barry | 1 | 2% | |
| Iris DeMent | 1 | 2% | |
| Otis Taylor | 1 | 2% | |
| Elton John | 1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
 |
25 | 50% | |
 |
17 | 34% | |
 |
2 | 4% | |
 |
2 | 4% | |
 |
1 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 2 from 43rd to 41stTroubled By The Fire by Laura Veirs |
| Up 2 from 13th to 11thPink Moon by Nick Drake |
| Up 1 from 33rd to 32ndFreedom Highway by The Staple Singers |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 2 from 17th to 19thAbsolutely Free by The Mothers Of Invention |
| Down 1 from 9th to 10thThe Raven by The Stranglers |
| Down 1 from 11th to 12thThe Lynda Barry Experience by Lynda Barry |
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | Channel 4 | Overall chart | 2005 | |
| Top 100 Albums Ever | Consequence of Sound | Overall chart | 2010 | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums |  Omid | Overall chart | 2011 |  |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums |  1234567890 | Overall chart | 2011 | |
| Virgin All-Time Top 1000 Albums | Virgin | Overall chart | 2000 | |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums |  SimulatedProphet | Overall chart | 2009 | |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums | amin67 | Overall chart | 2011 | |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums | villagegreen831 | Overall chart | 2025 | |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums | dtomovski2 | Overall chart | 2024 | |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums | McGill93 | Overall chart | 2015 | |
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums similarity to your chart(s)
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums 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 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 11 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 07/16/2016 13:03 | garycottier | 30 | 82/100 | |
| 03/19/2016 06:13 |  serpico | 155 | 80/100 | |
| 02/06/2014 15:03 | patvyn | 32 | 78/100 | |
| 09/17/2013 01:46 |  junodog4 | 712 | 73/100 | |
| 05/23/2010 22:41 | kvaughn | 6 | 88/100 |
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 charts can have several thousand ratings)
This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 78.0/100, a mean average of 70.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 70.9/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 22.2.
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums favourites
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums comments
Showing all 6 comments |
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From garycottier 07/16/2016 13:03 | #171400
Good chart, nice to see Laura Veirs', troubled by the fire, in there. The chart is certainly interesting, just a pity you didn't go for a top 100.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From serpico 03/19/2016 06:14 | #162190
serpico 03/19/2016 06:14 | #162190
Gran chart, deberías poner el Top 100.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From junodog4 09/17/2013 01:46 | #86165
junodog4 09/17/2013 01:46 | #86165
What a sultry list... and it has some comedy on there. Eccentric, and very interesting.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From kvaughn 05/24/2010 05:39 | #12046
"Countdown.." was a huge album for me in the 70's. I can close my eyes and hear every one of those songs, start to finish. Your chart has music that's new to me, which is great. I like seeing local groups (local to you) which I wouldn't otherwise find, like Hammerbox. You list the Staple Singers and the Persuasions. Do you know the Fairfield Four? A friend of mine saw them in NY a few years ago, and make me buy "Standing in the Safety Zone," which is a freakishly good album.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
cartoken 03/05/2010 03:58 | #9590
cartoken 03/05/2010 03:58 | #9590
Nice chart ! good to see DIWAN in there.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Mr. Shankly 11/20/2009 13:03 | #7256
Mr. Shankly 11/20/2009 13:03 | #7256
Interesting chart. Some unique picks here.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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| Best Artists of the 1980s | |
|---|---|
| 1. The Smiths | |
| 2. Prince | |
| 3. The Cure | |
| 4. Pixies | |
| 5. Talking Heads | |
| 6. U2 | |
| 7. Metallica | |
| 8. Kate Bush | |
| 9. R.E.M. | |
| 10. The Stone Roses | |
| 11. Sonic Youth | |
| 12. Michael Jackson | |
| 13. Bruce Springsteen | |
| 14. Iron Maiden | |
| 15. Prince And The Revolution | |
| 16. Tom Waits | |
| 17. Joy Division | |
| 18. New Order | |
| 19. Talk Talk | |
| 20. Rush |
