Top 100 Greatest Music Albums
by replacementlevel 
I published a book documenting a prior ranking of my 1,000 favorite albums from 1957 to 2017. Learn more here: https://fortherecord1000.home.blog/
- Chart updated: 01/17/2025 21:15
- (Created: 07/30/2013 19:29).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 49 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 90 out of 100 (from 90 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
View the complete list of 58,000 charts on BestEverAlbums.com from The Charts page.
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
15,894
Rank in 1971:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
62,021
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Year of Release:
2019
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,643
Rank in 2019:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1959
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21,615
Rank in 1959:
Rank in 1950s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,940
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
55,773
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
37,754
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/30/2013]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
38,625
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,800
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 07/31/2013]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,390
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 5 | 5% | |
| 1960s | 20 | 20% | |
| 1970s | 17 | 17% | |
| 1980s | 11 | 11% | |
| 1990s | 23 | 23% | |
| 2000s | 16 | 16% | |
| 2010s | 7 | 7% | |
| 2020s | 1 | 1% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Beatles | 4 | 4% | |
| Radiohead | 3 | 3% | |
| The Rolling Stones | 3 | 3% | |
| Public Enemy | 2 | 2% | |
| Bob Dylan | 2 | 2% | |
| R.E.M. | 2 | 2% | |
| Charles Mingus | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 56 from 90th to 34thWhen The Pawn... by Fiona Apple |
| Up 52 from 81st to 29thHorses by Patti Smith |
| Up 37 from 86th to 49thPretenders by Pretenders |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 62 from 24th to 86thHissing Fauna, Are You The Destroyer? by of Montreal |
| Down 43 from 47th to 90thRitual De Lo Habitual by Jane's Addiction |
| Down 41 from 9th to 50thFuneral by Arcade Fire |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similarity to your chart(s)
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Top 100 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 90 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 03/03/2026 12:04 | Juneof44 | 56 | 83/100 | |
| 10/11/2025 17:51 | BorderFreeAndrew | 110 | 81/100 | |
| 02/24/2025 19:45 | C0NB9NN | 20 | 85/100 | |
| 02/24/2025 14:16 |  NowhereMan | 292 | 82/100 | |
| 02/24/2025 11:27 |  DommeDamian | 1,004 | 89/100 |
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 is rated in the top 3% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 89.7/100, a mean average of 89.6/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 90.1/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 8.8.
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites
Showing all 7 members who have added this chart as a favourite
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 49 comments |
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From Juneof44 03/03/2026 12:06 | #313423
Great chart, i like the attempt to include records from different eras; i'm not gicing it a 10 only because there's too much hip-hop for my taste.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From BorderFreeAndrew 10/11/2025 17:54 | #311322
Nice to see Andrew Bird, Cat Power, Moby Grape, Sinéad O'Connor, and Terry Callier getting some well-deserved Top 100 love.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Johnnyo 08/25/2023 21:21 | #298850
Top notch chart
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
flyingcitrus 03/25/2019 19:17 | #234015
flyingcitrus 03/25/2019 19:17 | #234015
This looks like a very informed and varied list. I like seeing Highway 61 and Marquee Moon get some love
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
ForegroundNoise 03/25/2019 15:50 | #234009
ForegroundNoise 03/25/2019 15:50 | #234009
Lots of great albums here (if a little safe, only six outside the BEA top 1,000). Would love to see your written opinions of some of these in note form!!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Rivera 03/25/2019 13:05 | #234004
Great chart, I'd like to see that 1,000 list as well.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Lgk21 12/12/2017 22:44 | #203032
Great chart, we have a lot in common. I would love to see that full top 1,000 list.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From DommeDamian 12/12/2017 10:19 | #203008
DommeDamian 12/12/2017 10:19 | #203008
Loads in common, great to see OutKast in the top 10. I may not always agree, but it's still classy
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
JulianR 08/26/2017 20:53 | #196776
JulianR 08/26/2017 20:53 | #196776
good stuff! very well thought out
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
flamingyesdept 12/07/2016 18:50 | #179723
flamingyesdept 12/07/2016 18:50 | #179723
Excellent chart. 21 albums in common and more than a few in my 101-200. Great stuff! Also woo Terry Callier :)
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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