Top 100 Greatest Music Albums
by 
buzzdainer 
There are so many ways to make a "100 Greatest Albums" list. What do we mean, after all, by "greatest"? Do we mean most important? Most popular? Most influential? I'd end up with very different lists for each of those questions. What I've done is select the albums that are most meaningful to me personally, the ones I keep wanting to hear time and time again. These are the albums that have fed my soul in some way, often riding in the car or spacing out on my bed. My tastes lean toward Americana, but you'll see multiple genres represented here. In general, I prefer sincerity over sarcasm, earnestness over cynicism, sentiment over cleverness, and subtlety over bombast (though I'm sure you'll see exceptions). I've included no more than one album by any primary artist, which is an accurate reflection of my tastes: I like to listen to many different artists as opposed to concentrating on only a few. That's the college DJ in me coming out, I suppose. I invite your feedback and (especially) your music recommendations. Enjoy!
As difficult as it is to rank albums, it's probably even more difficult to rate other people's charts. Really, it all comes down to taste, which is subjective, or at least a product of our own individual listening experiences, preferences, biases, phobias, and desires. If you like the Cramps and I don't, who's to say who's correct? As Public Image Ltd. put it so many years ago, "I could be right; I could be wrong." Originally I tried to evaluate the quality of the albums on user charts, but I have learned that doing so was basically impossible. Now it seems to me that charts that are lovingly created, and with a sense of some depth and breadth of knowledge, are, by definition, good. I don't use my ratings and comments to try to police other people's tastes, but instead to seek common ground and spark conversation.
- Chart updated: 01/01/2025 18:45
- (Created: 09/24/2013 01:36).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 127 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 92 out of 100 (from 119 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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"The Blue album, there's hardly a dishonest note in the vocals," Joni Mitchell told Rolling Stone in 1979. "At that period of my life, I had no persona defenses. I felt like a cellophane wrapper on a pack of cigarettes. I felt like I had absolutely no secrets from the world, and I couldn't pretend in my life to be strong. Or to be happy." To be sure, there's a lot of delicate vulnerability in Blue's minimalist Canadian folk. But there's also a kind of reckless joy that surfaces here from time to time, as in these lines from the gorgeous "Carey": "And we'll laugh and toast to nothing / And smash our empty glasses down." Maybe vulnerability is less about sadness and more about openness to a wide range of emotions--and letting them pour forth, as she does here on song after song. It's quite a gift to offer to the world.
[First added to this chart: 06/05/2017]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,111
Rank in 1971:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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A grand, life-affirming statement encompassing both childhood and mortality. Several of the band members had lost close family members in the year or so preceding the release of this album, and they poured their love and soul into making this album. It shows. I remember hearing this album for the first time, sitting on an old couch--the same old couch that once resided in my parents' living room when I was a teenager--in my new apartment in Bennington, Vermont, and being completely entranced both by how new and innovative this album seemed, and also how nostalgic and familiar. Maybe that's what the greatest albums do. "Indie rock" doesn't do justice to the ambitiousness of their sound, but I'm not sure there's an appropriate label out there for this one. Check out "Rebellion (Lies)" to get a sense of the power of this album.
[First added to this chart: 09/25/2013]
Year of Release:
2004
Appears in:
Rank Score:
34,087
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Rank in 2000s:
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Average Rating:
Comments:
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Year of Release:
2024
Appears in:
Rank Score:
877
Rank in 2024:
Rank in 2020s:
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Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 3. Page 1 of 1
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 4 | 4% | |
| 1970s | 14 | 14% | |
| 1980s | 16 | 16% | |
| 1990s | 19 | 19% | |
| 2000s | 17 | 17% | |
| 2010s | 22 | 22% | |
| 2020s | 8 | 8% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Buffalo Tom | 1 | 1% | |
| Lord Huron | 1 | 1% | |
| alt-J | 1 | 1% | |
| The Police | 1 | 1% | |
| Pixies | 1 | 1% | |
| Devendra Banhart | 1 | 1% | |
| The War On Drugs | 1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| |
77 | 77% | |
 |
10 | 10% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 82nd to 83rdMonoflora by River Whyless |
| Down 1 from 83rd to 84thIndigo Girls by Indigo Girls |
| Down 1 from 84th to 85thLove by The Cult |
| New entries |
|---|
| Diamond Jubilee by Cindy Lee |
| Leavers |
|---|
| Massachusetts by Scud Mountain Boys |
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2010s | buzzdainer | 2010s decade chart | 2024 | |
| If The BEA Overall Chart Had A One Album Per Artist Rule... |  Romanelli | Custom chart | 2025 | |
| Albums To LIsten To for One Peach Martine Pt 1 | smrtboi2120 | Custom chart | 2022 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | buzzdainer | 1990s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | tim0505 | Overall chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums |  Freddie55 | Overall chart | 2016 | |
| BEA 100 (One Album per Artist) |  BozoTyrannus | Custom chart | 2020 |  |
| My Most Scrobbled Artists |  Rhyner | Custom chart | 2021 | |
| My Ranking of the BEA top 100 |  sszwalbenest | Custom chart | 2021 | |
| Overall for yours truly |  RoundTheBend | Custom chart | 2020 | |
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 119 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 01/25/2025 14:17 |  SomethingSpecial | 1,104 | 85/100 |
| ! | 01/02/2025 00:35 | Exist-en-ciel | 147 | 98/100 |
| ! | 09/19/2024 12:41 |  LedZep | 1,105 | 84/100 |
| ! | 07/20/2024 08:46 | Musyahid | 31 | 92/100 |
| ! | 04/23/2024 11:28 |  Larcx13 | 1,145 | 86/100 |
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 1% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 91.9/100, a mean average of 91.1/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 92.5/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 12.0.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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From Musyahid 07/20/2024 08:53 | #304428
I like the way you write, my hundred will get lower as I start to listen to your run-down, round and round it might stay, cause I know nothing of those all albums you've been put it through.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Larcx13 04/23/2024 11:35 | #303140
Larcx13 04/23/2024 11:35 | #303140
I honestly can't stand Taylor Swift... But this chart is quite original and I appreciate the fact that there was a lot of work put into it too. I love that Digable Planets and Parliament are somewhere in there. Cool stuff!
At this point I feel I can only recommend one thing: check out more foreign music, if you haven't already. Personally, I got into Ukraine, Brazil, Russia and Japan. Maybe I can push it a little and recommend music from my home province of Quebec.
Peace
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Mercury 09/18/2021 18:12 | #273898
Mercury 09/18/2021 18:12 | #273898
Well, jeez, not sure how I have never come by your chart, my friend. Considering how many time while scrolling all 100 albums I was nodding appreciatively I am surprised we *only* have 8 albums in common. This is a downright excellent chart, and especially love the down and gritty americana/alt-country/folk tradition that is so beautifully shown throughout this album. Oh and that tasty tasty Gram Parsons run from 24 to 26 was beautiful to see :). Love this, truly.
And yeah, Anodyne is a great record. I may slightly prefer March 16-20 1992, but they are neck and neck. I consider Tweedy/Farrar royalty in the alt-country kingdom. the last guy who commented is a character lol.
Oh and I meant to leave a comment on your 2020s chart but its not open for such at this time, and I wanted to thank you for the kind and enthusiastic comment on my 2020s chart. Agreed Stapleton and Starting Over are treasures. I need to listen to it a few more times, as I think I am not giving it nearly enough love and attention. A Truly resonant album and indeed a great stable rock in music form for these crazy times we are all experiencing. The album I've gleaned the most comfort and reassurance from in this young and chaotic decade so far is ... hmm, none from the decade lol. My top albums have been pretty damn bleak, harsh or escapist.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From StreakyNuno 07/18/2021 20:08 | #271707
Anodyne by Uncle tupelo ........best album ever.ahahahahaahaha
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
From StreakyNuno 07/07/2021 16:23 | #271419
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Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -3 votes (0 helpful | 3 unhelpful)
From StreakyNuno 04/19/2021 18:45 | #268750
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Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -3 votes (1 helpful | 4 unhelpful)
From StreakyNuno 04/19/2021 18:44 | #268749
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Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -4 votes (0 helpful | 4 unhelpful)
From Johnnyo 04/11/2021 06:20 | #268435
Without question one of the best chart on BEA. Not simply because we have very similar musical taste so I can relate to the music. it’s the work that you have put into the comments and the stories are great. Very personal chart. Absolutely love it.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Purplepash 04/11/2021 04:15 | #268434
Purplepash 04/11/2021 04:15 | #268434
We have different musical tastes but I loved reading the personal stories mixed with informative comments throughout this chart. Much respect to you and this chart.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From StreakyNuno 04/10/2021 15:16 | #268421
Uncle tupelo anodyne best ever album and buffalo tom in second ???? Sorry, I respect but I don't feel like listening to the other albums in your chart
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -2 votes (0 helpful | 2 unhelpful)
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