Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
Repo 
- Chart updated: 07/14/2023 11:15
- (Created: 06/17/2014 23:52).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
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THE BETTER HALF
Remember way back when. Back on my first post. When I compared the first half of Donovan’s double LP as being some of the best folk rock EVER released. As good as The Byrd’s Mr. Tamborine Man. As good as Love’s Forever Changes. I meant it. I really did. I LOVE those ten songs with all my heart. But, you know what? The second half is even better! It’s just completely different. Gone are the catchy fun sing-a-long pop songs. Instead Donovan delves into something mystical. Something enchanted.
It casts a spell transporting you to a small fishing village on the craggy shore from a long, long time ago. From a land & culture that is no more and has been lost. When elves still had power and fairies ruled the woods. These are sea songs for a shire. It’s a bewitching listen when life was simple and better for it. When life was still tied to the land and the tides dictated chores. Not time. Not clocks. It’s as if Donovan feels not just born in the wrong decade, but the wrong era altogether. And the spell he casts with both the music & lyrics is seamless. Nothing breaks it. You can actually smell the salt of the sea. Feel the spray of the ocean mist. Nothing reminds you that these songs were written in the sixties. Because these songs don’t even know that radio exists.
Grade: A+. Simply one of the greatest double albums of all time. I would put this up against anything in the rock canon. Anything. That means you The White Album. That means you Blonde on Blonde. And Donovan shoots back to number one where he belongs. [First added to this chart: 08/20/2016]
Remember way back when. Back on my first post. When I compared the first half of Donovan’s double LP as being some of the best folk rock EVER released. As good as The Byrd’s Mr. Tamborine Man. As good as Love’s Forever Changes. I meant it. I really did. I LOVE those ten songs with all my heart. But, you know what? The second half is even better! It’s just completely different. Gone are the catchy fun sing-a-long pop songs. Instead Donovan delves into something mystical. Something enchanted.
It casts a spell transporting you to a small fishing village on the craggy shore from a long, long time ago. From a land & culture that is no more and has been lost. When elves still had power and fairies ruled the woods. These are sea songs for a shire. It’s a bewitching listen when life was simple and better for it. When life was still tied to the land and the tides dictated chores. Not time. Not clocks. It’s as if Donovan feels not just born in the wrong decade, but the wrong era altogether. And the spell he casts with both the music & lyrics is seamless. Nothing breaks it. You can actually smell the salt of the sea. Feel the spray of the ocean mist. Nothing reminds you that these songs were written in the sixties. Because these songs don’t even know that radio exists.
Grade: A+. Simply one of the greatest double albums of all time. I would put this up against anything in the rock canon. Anything. That means you The White Album. That means you Blonde on Blonde. And Donovan shoots back to number one where he belongs. [First added to this chart: 08/20/2016]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
635
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
10
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'63:c It Always Rains in This City
The Setting: It always rains in this city. And it's always nighttime. I have to keep a cigarette lit just to keep warm. Warmth is life. At least, that’s what I tell myself. Maybe I'm just addicted to cigarettes. I see a corner bar up the block. It’s neon sign welcoming me in like the smile of a chorus girl. And I never could resist a chorus girl. I head down the stairs. The tables are arranged around the stage. A red glassed candle on each flickering at me to sit down. “Alright,” I says. “Just one”. At least this place has heat. The band starts playing up on the stage. They feel just like this city. Just like this bar. Ripped from some 40ish black & white film noir. The kind where there’s dames and broads and guys who always have a good quip at the ready. I want to be those guys. And, I want to be with those dames. So I stay. One leads to two. And two naturally leads to three. The cold is gone. A small smile even manages to cross my lips. “This ain’t so bad,” I say to myself. Guess I’ll stay for one more.
The Listen: This is the kind of jazz I picture in my head in those scenes in those old black & whites. You know. The ones on TCM. I don’t care if it’s historically accurate. It’s my head. My picture. It’s what gives those scenes on late night tv that something extra. A certain timelessness. The coolest cats playing the coolest blue jazz. The city is their music. And their music is the city. Interchangeable. Interlinked. You can't have one without the other. Just like this rain. Just like this night. Which is why it always rains in this city. And it's always nighttime.
The Rating: Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil
The Setting: It always rains in this city. And it's always nighttime. I have to keep a cigarette lit just to keep warm. Warmth is life. At least, that’s what I tell myself. Maybe I'm just addicted to cigarettes. I see a corner bar up the block. It’s neon sign welcoming me in like the smile of a chorus girl. And I never could resist a chorus girl. I head down the stairs. The tables are arranged around the stage. A red glassed candle on each flickering at me to sit down. “Alright,” I says. “Just one”. At least this place has heat. The band starts playing up on the stage. They feel just like this city. Just like this bar. Ripped from some 40ish black & white film noir. The kind where there’s dames and broads and guys who always have a good quip at the ready. I want to be those guys. And, I want to be with those dames. So I stay. One leads to two. And two naturally leads to three. The cold is gone. A small smile even manages to cross my lips. “This ain’t so bad,” I say to myself. Guess I’ll stay for one more.
The Listen: This is the kind of jazz I picture in my head in those scenes in those old black & whites. You know. The ones on TCM. I don’t care if it’s historically accurate. It’s my head. My picture. It’s what gives those scenes on late night tv that something extra. A certain timelessness. The coolest cats playing the coolest blue jazz. The city is their music. And their music is the city. Interchangeable. Interlinked. You can't have one without the other. Just like this rain. Just like this night. Which is why it always rains in this city. And it's always nighttime.
The Rating: Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil Twisted Evil
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LET IT BLEED
These songs spill blood. They shed tears. Simple, unadorned. Often just vocals and a picking guitar, these songs dig deep into your soul. And bring out the loneliness and pain. The loneliness and heartbreak you thought you had buried. From that girl. From this life. There’s a romance to the loneliness of these songs. Of the love that had to end. Had to die.
Grade: A+. One of the greatest singer-songwriter albums of all time. The lyrics are second to none. But it’s the feeling of the songs that make it something special. Songs that make you reach for that whiskey jar to dull the pain and make you forget that special love you once had. Few albums bare your soul like this one, and it vaults all the way to number one. [First added to this chart: 04/10/2017]
These songs spill blood. They shed tears. Simple, unadorned. Often just vocals and a picking guitar, these songs dig deep into your soul. And bring out the loneliness and pain. The loneliness and heartbreak you thought you had buried. From that girl. From this life. There’s a romance to the loneliness of these songs. Of the love that had to end. Had to die.
Grade: A+. One of the greatest singer-songwriter albums of all time. The lyrics are second to none. But it’s the feeling of the songs that make it something special. Songs that make you reach for that whiskey jar to dull the pain and make you forget that special love you once had. Few albums bare your soul like this one, and it vaults all the way to number one. [First added to this chart: 04/10/2017]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,296
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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THE CONVERSATION (1963)
It’s not sex. It’s just a conversation. Three people. Telling stories on the spot. Ellington, the gregarious one. Mingus ever the contrarian. And the ever flowing host of the party, Roach. Pouring drinks for everyone. “Can’t we all just get along, fellas!" Smooth. Mellow. There with that gentle, affirming laugh or "Oh yeah!" just when the conversation needed it. Keeping the glasses filled. But not TOO fill.
The Verdict: I can already tell this might be my gold standard. Three legends at the top of their respective games. Ellington pushing everyone just enough [First added to this chart: 08/23/2022]
It’s not sex. It’s just a conversation. Three people. Telling stories on the spot. Ellington, the gregarious one. Mingus ever the contrarian. And the ever flowing host of the party, Roach. Pouring drinks for everyone. “Can’t we all just get along, fellas!" Smooth. Mellow. There with that gentle, affirming laugh or "Oh yeah!" just when the conversation needed it. Keeping the glasses filled. But not TOO fill.
The Verdict: I can already tell this might be my gold standard. Three legends at the top of their respective games. Ellington pushing everyone just enough [First added to this chart: 08/23/2022]
Year of Release:
1963
Appears in:
Rank Score:
624
Rank in 1963:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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TO LOVE AND LET IT GO
Here I am believin' words again
Here I am tryin' to find your love again
Here I am down on my knees again
Prayin' for a love
That we used to know
Both of us know
How hard it is to love
And let it go
Both of us know
How hard it is to go on living that way - I Must Have Been Blind
Then just like the river
I can change my ways - The River
To love and let it go. All of us have to go through this. It is part of being human. And it is one of the hardest things to do. And it is the central theme of this incredible album. Loving & letting go. And how we can blind ourselves. Deceive ourselves for a long, long time of the necessity to move on. But just like the river that provides the setting for so many of these beautiful, mournful songs - we can change our ways. We can move on. It can be so hard to believe that someone we feel so strongly about does not feel the same way. Does not reciprocate that love that we feel so deeply in our bones. We go into denial. And get stuck. Stagnate. And that’s disastrous for our soul. For our spirit. Luckily, Tim made this album for us during these these difficult times. Its an album that proves that we are not alone in this plight. That everyone loses love. That the feeling of love lost is universal. And we can go to that river that runs through all of us. Dance by the river's edge. And move on. Because just like the river, we can change our ways.
Grade: A+. I don’t know what this is. Is it Jazz? Folk? Who cares! Albums that bend and blur the genre lines are so often the best and this of course is no exception. Tim shows yet again that he was (by far!) the best vocalist of the folk rock kingdom for that era or really any era. His vocal prowess has really been unmatched. ( And if it has, school me! Please.) It was a singular instrument - sensuous yet longing. Full of vitality yet also vulnerable. Especially on Blue Afternoon - which even though he’s venturing even further into jazz terrain, it’s actually his most accessible and mellow album. Accessible is sometimes used as a four letter word. But, it really shouldn’t be. It just means it’s a natural fit. Like love should be! So sure Buckley has more challenging albums, more avant-garde albums such as BEA/Scaruffi faves like Lorca and Starsailor, but this is by far my favorite. It’s the perfect album to snuggle up with on this rainy, overcast morning with a cup of Numi's Aged Earl Gray. (I’m off coffee. Aargh!… Doctor’s orders, I’m afraid. Thanks for the tea recs, Paul & Jimmy!). And it meanders like a river all the way up to number six. [First added to this chart: 08/29/2016]
Here I am believin' words again
Here I am tryin' to find your love again
Here I am down on my knees again
Prayin' for a love
That we used to know
Both of us know
How hard it is to love
And let it go
Both of us know
How hard it is to go on living that way - I Must Have Been Blind
Then just like the river
I can change my ways - The River
To love and let it go. All of us have to go through this. It is part of being human. And it is one of the hardest things to do. And it is the central theme of this incredible album. Loving & letting go. And how we can blind ourselves. Deceive ourselves for a long, long time of the necessity to move on. But just like the river that provides the setting for so many of these beautiful, mournful songs - we can change our ways. We can move on. It can be so hard to believe that someone we feel so strongly about does not feel the same way. Does not reciprocate that love that we feel so deeply in our bones. We go into denial. And get stuck. Stagnate. And that’s disastrous for our soul. For our spirit. Luckily, Tim made this album for us during these these difficult times. Its an album that proves that we are not alone in this plight. That everyone loses love. That the feeling of love lost is universal. And we can go to that river that runs through all of us. Dance by the river's edge. And move on. Because just like the river, we can change our ways.
Grade: A+. I don’t know what this is. Is it Jazz? Folk? Who cares! Albums that bend and blur the genre lines are so often the best and this of course is no exception. Tim shows yet again that he was (by far!) the best vocalist of the folk rock kingdom for that era or really any era. His vocal prowess has really been unmatched. ( And if it has, school me! Please.) It was a singular instrument - sensuous yet longing. Full of vitality yet also vulnerable. Especially on Blue Afternoon - which even though he’s venturing even further into jazz terrain, it’s actually his most accessible and mellow album. Accessible is sometimes used as a four letter word. But, it really shouldn’t be. It just means it’s a natural fit. Like love should be! So sure Buckley has more challenging albums, more avant-garde albums such as BEA/Scaruffi faves like Lorca and Starsailor, but this is by far my favorite. It’s the perfect album to snuggle up with on this rainy, overcast morning with a cup of Numi's Aged Earl Gray. (I’m off coffee. Aargh!… Doctor’s orders, I’m afraid. Thanks for the tea recs, Paul & Jimmy!). And it meanders like a river all the way up to number six. [First added to this chart: 08/29/2016]
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Guitar. Piano. Fiddle. (1956)
Forget what you knew
We’ll start life anew
Down on the corner of love - Buck Owens (1956)
Sometimes life just needs to be pared back to the basics. In Buck Owens case, it was a simple, catchy melody with guitar, piano, & fiddle. The bedrock of a good country song with a simple BUT much needed message.
Forget the past. You have to have faith in yourself. That you tried your best. And this is where life has taken you. A place to start anew.
It’s at these times when it’s good to get back to the basics. A good country song. A cold beer. Just chilling in a comfortable and well-worn lawn chair and watching the clouds go by. The bees dancing amongst the flowers getting their last taste of summer.
A good nights sleep. A nice walk along the lake. Take in that fresh morning air. These are the basics of life => Guitar. Piano. Fiddle.
ps. I'm just a startin' to worship Buck Owens, and this is his very first song!!! [First added to this chart: 08/28/2022]
Forget what you knew
We’ll start life anew
Down on the corner of love - Buck Owens (1956)
Sometimes life just needs to be pared back to the basics. In Buck Owens case, it was a simple, catchy melody with guitar, piano, & fiddle. The bedrock of a good country song with a simple BUT much needed message.
Forget the past. You have to have faith in yourself. That you tried your best. And this is where life has taken you. A place to start anew.
It’s at these times when it’s good to get back to the basics. A good country song. A cold beer. Just chilling in a comfortable and well-worn lawn chair and watching the clouds go by. The bees dancing amongst the flowers getting their last taste of summer.
A good nights sleep. A nice walk along the lake. Take in that fresh morning air. These are the basics of life => Guitar. Piano. Fiddle.
ps. I'm just a startin' to worship Buck Owens, and this is his very first song!!! [First added to this chart: 08/28/2022]
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ON THE ROAD
Strollin' down the highway
I'm going to get there my way
Dusk till dawn I'm walkin'
Can hear my guitar rocking? (Strolling Down The Highway)
If Neil Cassady & the gang (from Jack Kerrouc’s classic On The Road) weren’t so into jazz - if they had been born perhaps just five years years later - Jansch is the kind of music they would have been into. Music about the inherent conflict born of being human and having human desires. Between freedom & responsibility. Safety and comfort vs. excitement and adventure and the desire for something new. The freedom to explore and not be tied down while searching for the ultimate expression of who your are. In a way, this is the folk equivalent of that Southern Rock archetype that The Allmans' & Skynyrd loved to wax poetic about - The Ramblin' Man. The Renegade. The Outlaw. “Ain’t no girl going to tie me down.”
Hey girl, oh how my heart is torn
Hey girl, now that your baby's born
What shall it cost? Is my freedom lost?
What is the price of nature's own way (Oh How Your Love is Strong)
But there’s a weariness in this album. A realization that this particular path is not the easiest. There’s an internal conflict. That maybe he’s got it all wrong. That maybe he’d been better off - happier, more content, even more self-realized - if he had just stuck back home. Married that love that he knocked up back in his early twenties. Settled down & relaxed. Been a good father. Because life on the road ain’t easy. Loneliness ain’t easy.
Because restlessness is just greed in another form. It’s an impatience. An inability to surrender to the moment and just be.
Ask me why a rambler ain't got no home
Ask me why I sit and cry alone
I wish I knew
I wish I knew
If I knew, I'd know what to do (Rambling’s Going To Be the Death of Me)
But like Cassidy and the rest of the beats, Jansch probably had no other choice. And this is THE album for embracing those regrets you’ve made along the way with a kindred spirit. For accepting that a part of you never would have been satisfied with that orthodox life. The wife you no longer found attractive. The 2.5 kids and the hour commute to that cubicle 8 floors up in the sky. It’s an album that helps you embrace the randomness of life. Accepting that life doesn’t go according to expectations. For accepting the regret. For accepting that you’ve probably made your life a whole lot more difficult than it had to be because that’s part of who you are. That’s part of being human. We’re never satisfied. Never content. And that Jansch is able to capture this uniquely human quality and the conflict born of it in a folk album is staggering. And makes it one of the true great masterpieces of 60s music.
I love what I wrote about this album a few years back when I first heard it shortly after joining BEA…
Herein lies sparse, finger-picked folk songs on acoustic guitar mostly about how one's quest for personal freedom can sometimes be the very cause of our loneliness & isolation. In a sense one's quest for freedom to find the ultimate can leave you old and exhausted at the side of the road. Wearied. Jealous of all the smart folks who were satisfied with less.
Because less is almost always more. But some of us alas need to go On The Road to learn this.
Grade: A+. Do you want a kickass record collection? Of course you do! Why else would you be here, right? Well then there are two folk albums from 60s that EVERY music aficionado NEEDS. One has to be Dylan. Duh. So take your pick between Freewheelin’ and Another Side. It doesn’t really matter. They’re both Dylan at his folk peak before he plugged in. And then get THIS. Jansch’s debut. England’s true answer to Dylan (it certainly wasn’t Donovan. Donovan was something else completely.) Jansch was already rocking on just a acoustic guitar on this here album. His guitar playing lightyears beyond what most of The Village doing across the pond. And then you’ll be set. Sated. Satisfied to have two of the best folk albums of all time.
Until you’re not. [First added to this chart: 03/14/2016]
Strollin' down the highway
I'm going to get there my way
Dusk till dawn I'm walkin'
Can hear my guitar rocking? (Strolling Down The Highway)
If Neil Cassady & the gang (from Jack Kerrouc’s classic On The Road) weren’t so into jazz - if they had been born perhaps just five years years later - Jansch is the kind of music they would have been into. Music about the inherent conflict born of being human and having human desires. Between freedom & responsibility. Safety and comfort vs. excitement and adventure and the desire for something new. The freedom to explore and not be tied down while searching for the ultimate expression of who your are. In a way, this is the folk equivalent of that Southern Rock archetype that The Allmans' & Skynyrd loved to wax poetic about - The Ramblin' Man. The Renegade. The Outlaw. “Ain’t no girl going to tie me down.”
Hey girl, oh how my heart is torn
Hey girl, now that your baby's born
What shall it cost? Is my freedom lost?
What is the price of nature's own way (Oh How Your Love is Strong)
But there’s a weariness in this album. A realization that this particular path is not the easiest. There’s an internal conflict. That maybe he’s got it all wrong. That maybe he’d been better off - happier, more content, even more self-realized - if he had just stuck back home. Married that love that he knocked up back in his early twenties. Settled down & relaxed. Been a good father. Because life on the road ain’t easy. Loneliness ain’t easy.
Because restlessness is just greed in another form. It’s an impatience. An inability to surrender to the moment and just be.
Ask me why a rambler ain't got no home
Ask me why I sit and cry alone
I wish I knew
I wish I knew
If I knew, I'd know what to do (Rambling’s Going To Be the Death of Me)
But like Cassidy and the rest of the beats, Jansch probably had no other choice. And this is THE album for embracing those regrets you’ve made along the way with a kindred spirit. For accepting that a part of you never would have been satisfied with that orthodox life. The wife you no longer found attractive. The 2.5 kids and the hour commute to that cubicle 8 floors up in the sky. It’s an album that helps you embrace the randomness of life. Accepting that life doesn’t go according to expectations. For accepting the regret. For accepting that you’ve probably made your life a whole lot more difficult than it had to be because that’s part of who you are. That’s part of being human. We’re never satisfied. Never content. And that Jansch is able to capture this uniquely human quality and the conflict born of it in a folk album is staggering. And makes it one of the true great masterpieces of 60s music.
I love what I wrote about this album a few years back when I first heard it shortly after joining BEA…
Herein lies sparse, finger-picked folk songs on acoustic guitar mostly about how one's quest for personal freedom can sometimes be the very cause of our loneliness & isolation. In a sense one's quest for freedom to find the ultimate can leave you old and exhausted at the side of the road. Wearied. Jealous of all the smart folks who were satisfied with less.
Because less is almost always more. But some of us alas need to go On The Road to learn this.
Grade: A+. Do you want a kickass record collection? Of course you do! Why else would you be here, right? Well then there are two folk albums from 60s that EVERY music aficionado NEEDS. One has to be Dylan. Duh. So take your pick between Freewheelin’ and Another Side. It doesn’t really matter. They’re both Dylan at his folk peak before he plugged in. And then get THIS. Jansch’s debut. England’s true answer to Dylan (it certainly wasn’t Donovan. Donovan was something else completely.) Jansch was already rocking on just a acoustic guitar on this here album. His guitar playing lightyears beyond what most of The Village doing across the pond. And then you’ll be set. Sated. Satisfied to have two of the best folk albums of all time.
Until you’re not. [First added to this chart: 03/14/2016]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
800
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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HAVE A NICE DAY!
Hey there sunshine!
Don't let me down
Hey there sunshine!
Please come around
Hey there sunshine!
My friend! (Hello Sunshine)
As anyone who’s seen The Trolls movie knows, moods are contagious. And no one knew this better than Jimmy Cliff. His early career was one giant happy face emoticon. Bursting with positive vibrations. He was the perfect artist to christian the 70s as the decade of Sunshine Pop (just stole this from Baystate. Thanks, Baystate! Go Pats!). At the time when The Smiley Face icon beamed from a thousand coffee mugs and the parting phrase “Have a Nice Day” greeted you from virtually every bumper sticker on that family truckster station wagon just in front of you. These icons became ubiquitous parts of the 70s culture. Hell, even my cookie jar was one big giant yellow smiley face growing up (typically filled with my Dad’s homemade oatmeal raisin cookies! Yum!). Before the 70s, no one said “Have a Nice Day” as a parting remark. It’s true!. It was just “Goodbye.” Or maybe “See you later”. Have a Nice Day and the Smiley face were inescapable & quintessential pieces of 70s culture. Like the guerrilla art of those Andre the Giant stickers in the late 80s, you just couldn’t escape it.
I'm gonna use what I got
To get what I need
I'm gonna use what I got, use all I got
To get what I need, yeah (Use What I Got)
And Jimmy Cliff was the embodiment of this 70s spirit. That a smile & a healthy dose of moxie could make your life better. Make your dreams come true. As the real life Don Draper ingeniously framed it - “Have a Coke and a smile.” And suddenly all things are possible. This was the ethos of the 70s. 60s Hippies culture made accessible, commodified & mass marketed. Making the world feel better about themselves and their possibilities while collecting a tidy profit on the side. Everybody wins. Everybody smiles. And Jimmy Cliff was the embodiment of this - part happy go lucky shaman, part cunning, street smart rude boy.
I've got a hard road to travel
And a rough rough way to go
Said it's a hard road to travel
And a rough rough way to go
But I can't turn back, my heart is fixed
My mind's made up, I'll never stop
My faith will see, see me through (Hard Road To Travel)
For the 1972 film The Harder They Come, you were initially hired to write the films score. How is it you ended with the lead role?
When Perry Henzell [films director] saw me, and I answered him to one question, he asked, Do you think that you can write some music for a movie I am making? I answered him, What do you mean if I think? I can do it.” [Laughs.] So, that answer made him say, This is the man that I want to do my movie.
And that, ladies & gentleman is Jimmy Cliff in a nutshell. Eternal optimism. Despite living in abject poverty and being from the “cliffs” of Jamaica, he totally believed in himself. In his possibilities. And there is immense spiritual power in that. If you ask any star athlete if they’re the best [enter position here]. They all unreservedly boast “YES!”. And they all believe it. Really, really believe it. Most may sound at best a tad delusional and at worst like total cocky assholes, but without that belief , they wouldn't be a professional athlete to begin with. The day they lose that belief is the day they’re no longer kicking field goals through the uprights from 60 yards out (Go Gostkowski!). If you don’t think you can guard Steph Curry… well you can’t. And Jimmy believed. Really, really believed. And basically browbeat record store clerks up and down the streets of Kingston to produce him at the age of fourteen until he at last found someone who believed in him as much as he did.
“He was the one who said to me first, Youve got the best voice that Ive ever heard in Jamaica. And when he said that to me, I said somebody believes like I believe. [Laughs.]”
And that’s the secret to success for anything. Not having any doubt. And finding kindred spirits. Finding people who believe in you. People who can pick you back up when the tides knock you down. People who can put you on a whole new beach & gift you an entirely new horizon. (Thanks, Komo!) A whole new way of seeing yourself and your situation. Because if a hayseed from the cliffs of Jamaica could become a movie star and inducted into the rock n’ roll hall fame, what’s to stop YOU!
2 Timothy 1:7 … For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Grade: A-. I actually own two versions of this album. They’re both entitled Wonderful World, Beautiful People (its title for its American release). But they have completely different track listings. One it turns out is a hodgepodge comp of Jimmy’s work during this period with Leslie Kong released on the Castle Pie label in 1999. And ya know what? I just ordered more. That’s right. I just splurged twenty bucks for yet another CD comp entitled Harder Road To Travel: The Collection (Truth be told I thought I was getting a double LP of all his 60s singles AND this album! Read the fine print, Repo!!! (Or really. Just read!)) for even more of his work with Leslie Kong. And this is on top of already owning the super deluxe double cd collection of The Harder They Come soundtrack. Overkill? Not even close. Because this stuff is maybe the most life affirming, positive thinking music out there.
The album that epitomizes the Have a Nice Day, Smiley Faced mind state that I need to be all about. Songs about prevailing. NO MATTER WHAT. Staying positive. NO MATTER WHAT. So find your Leslie Kong, people. Believe in yourself. No matter what. Because that’s not just half the battle. It is the battle.
And this ray of sunshine pop beams down to to somewhere in the 30s on my Essentials chart. Along with The Harder They Come soundtrack, this is the Jimmy Cliff album that every fan of 70s rock should own. [First added to this chart: 11/20/2017]
Hey there sunshine!
Don't let me down
Hey there sunshine!
Please come around
Hey there sunshine!
My friend! (Hello Sunshine)
As anyone who’s seen The Trolls movie knows, moods are contagious. And no one knew this better than Jimmy Cliff. His early career was one giant happy face emoticon. Bursting with positive vibrations. He was the perfect artist to christian the 70s as the decade of Sunshine Pop (just stole this from Baystate. Thanks, Baystate! Go Pats!). At the time when The Smiley Face icon beamed from a thousand coffee mugs and the parting phrase “Have a Nice Day” greeted you from virtually every bumper sticker on that family truckster station wagon just in front of you. These icons became ubiquitous parts of the 70s culture. Hell, even my cookie jar was one big giant yellow smiley face growing up (typically filled with my Dad’s homemade oatmeal raisin cookies! Yum!). Before the 70s, no one said “Have a Nice Day” as a parting remark. It’s true!. It was just “Goodbye.” Or maybe “See you later”. Have a Nice Day and the Smiley face were inescapable & quintessential pieces of 70s culture. Like the guerrilla art of those Andre the Giant stickers in the late 80s, you just couldn’t escape it.
I'm gonna use what I got
To get what I need
I'm gonna use what I got, use all I got
To get what I need, yeah (Use What I Got)
And Jimmy Cliff was the embodiment of this 70s spirit. That a smile & a healthy dose of moxie could make your life better. Make your dreams come true. As the real life Don Draper ingeniously framed it - “Have a Coke and a smile.” And suddenly all things are possible. This was the ethos of the 70s. 60s Hippies culture made accessible, commodified & mass marketed. Making the world feel better about themselves and their possibilities while collecting a tidy profit on the side. Everybody wins. Everybody smiles. And Jimmy Cliff was the embodiment of this - part happy go lucky shaman, part cunning, street smart rude boy.
I've got a hard road to travel
And a rough rough way to go
Said it's a hard road to travel
And a rough rough way to go
But I can't turn back, my heart is fixed
My mind's made up, I'll never stop
My faith will see, see me through (Hard Road To Travel)
For the 1972 film The Harder They Come, you were initially hired to write the films score. How is it you ended with the lead role?
When Perry Henzell [films director] saw me, and I answered him to one question, he asked, Do you think that you can write some music for a movie I am making? I answered him, What do you mean if I think? I can do it.” [Laughs.] So, that answer made him say, This is the man that I want to do my movie.
And that, ladies & gentleman is Jimmy Cliff in a nutshell. Eternal optimism. Despite living in abject poverty and being from the “cliffs” of Jamaica, he totally believed in himself. In his possibilities. And there is immense spiritual power in that. If you ask any star athlete if they’re the best [enter position here]. They all unreservedly boast “YES!”. And they all believe it. Really, really believe it. Most may sound at best a tad delusional and at worst like total cocky assholes, but without that belief , they wouldn't be a professional athlete to begin with. The day they lose that belief is the day they’re no longer kicking field goals through the uprights from 60 yards out (Go Gostkowski!). If you don’t think you can guard Steph Curry… well you can’t. And Jimmy believed. Really, really believed. And basically browbeat record store clerks up and down the streets of Kingston to produce him at the age of fourteen until he at last found someone who believed in him as much as he did.
“He was the one who said to me first, Youve got the best voice that Ive ever heard in Jamaica. And when he said that to me, I said somebody believes like I believe. [Laughs.]”
And that’s the secret to success for anything. Not having any doubt. And finding kindred spirits. Finding people who believe in you. People who can pick you back up when the tides knock you down. People who can put you on a whole new beach & gift you an entirely new horizon. (Thanks, Komo!) A whole new way of seeing yourself and your situation. Because if a hayseed from the cliffs of Jamaica could become a movie star and inducted into the rock n’ roll hall fame, what’s to stop YOU!
2 Timothy 1:7 … For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.
Grade: A-. I actually own two versions of this album. They’re both entitled Wonderful World, Beautiful People (its title for its American release). But they have completely different track listings. One it turns out is a hodgepodge comp of Jimmy’s work during this period with Leslie Kong released on the Castle Pie label in 1999. And ya know what? I just ordered more. That’s right. I just splurged twenty bucks for yet another CD comp entitled Harder Road To Travel: The Collection (Truth be told I thought I was getting a double LP of all his 60s singles AND this album! Read the fine print, Repo!!! (Or really. Just read!)) for even more of his work with Leslie Kong. And this is on top of already owning the super deluxe double cd collection of The Harder They Come soundtrack. Overkill? Not even close. Because this stuff is maybe the most life affirming, positive thinking music out there.
The album that epitomizes the Have a Nice Day, Smiley Faced mind state that I need to be all about. Songs about prevailing. NO MATTER WHAT. Staying positive. NO MATTER WHAT. So find your Leslie Kong, people. Believe in yourself. No matter what. Because that’s not just half the battle. It is the battle.
And this ray of sunshine pop beams down to to somewhere in the 30s on my Essentials chart. Along with The Harder They Come soundtrack, this is the Jimmy Cliff album that every fan of 70s rock should own. [First added to this chart: 11/20/2017]
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FOLK ROCK GUITAR HERO
Let's get this out of the way right from the start. This is nowhere near as essential or awesome as his self-titled debut. That's not really too much a knock. I consider his debut one of the greatest albums of all time, and it could easily sit in my top 100. The guitar playing is awesome (of course), but the sound of the record all feels sort of samey and one-dimensional. Still you can tell that Jimmy Page used this album as a massive crib sheet, and since I'm a huge Zep fan that's really cool. It's certainly not a bad album. Just not one that gets me too excited.
Before people start thinking I'm totally daft, I should point out that the first two tracks on Jack Orion are totally killer. Wagoner's Lad is badass mountain folk that positively rocks. And The First Time I Ever Saw Her Face is a lovely country ballad with heart. I positively love those two songs.
Grade: B+ [First added to this chart: 02/06/2017]
Let's get this out of the way right from the start. This is nowhere near as essential or awesome as his self-titled debut. That's not really too much a knock. I consider his debut one of the greatest albums of all time, and it could easily sit in my top 100. The guitar playing is awesome (of course), but the sound of the record all feels sort of samey and one-dimensional. Still you can tell that Jimmy Page used this album as a massive crib sheet, and since I'm a huge Zep fan that's really cool. It's certainly not a bad album. Just not one that gets me too excited.
Before people start thinking I'm totally daft, I should point out that the first two tracks on Jack Orion are totally killer. Wagoner's Lad is badass mountain folk that positively rocks. And The First Time I Ever Saw Her Face is a lovely country ballad with heart. I positively love those two songs.
Grade: B+ [First added to this chart: 02/06/2017]
Total albums: 9. Page 1 of 1
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
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| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 1 | 1% | |
| 1950s | 3 | 3% | |
| 1960s | 9 | 9% | |
| 1970s | 29 | 29% | |
| 1980s | 37 | 37% | |
| 1990s | 3 | 3% | |
| 2000s | 9 | 9% | |
| 2010s | 9 | 9% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Real Estate | 3 | 3% | |
| Venom | 2 | 2% | |
| Scorpions | 2 | 2% | |
| Beach House | 2 | 2% | |
| Bert Jansch | 2 | 2% | |
| Bob Dylan | 2 | 2% | |
| Townes Van Zandt | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
49 | 49% | |
 |
29 | 29% | |
 |
5 | 5% | |
 |
4 | 4% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 88 from 94th to 6th Self Portrait by Bob Dylan |
| Up 81 from 93rd to 12th Fading Frontier by Deerhunter |
| Up 43 from 62nd to 19th Cluster & Eno by Cluster & Eno |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 39 from 60th to 99th Rock Until You Drop by Raven (UK) |
| Down 4 from 16th to 20th Hank Williams Sings by Hank Williams With His Drifting Cowboys |
| Down 4 from 17th to 21st Johnny Burnette And The Rock N' Roll Trio by Johnny Burnette & The Rock 'n Roll Trio |
| New entries |
|---|
 Midnight Blueby Kenny Burrell |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
95/100 (from 72 votes)
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 chart. | Show all 72 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 85/100  | 10/09/2023 08:40 | Moondance | | 84/100 |
| 85/100 | 10/28/2022 03:30 | mianfei | | 61/100 |
| 100/100 | 08/29/2022 05:28 |  seb7 | | 91/100 |
| 100/100 | 06/20/2022 08:31 |  Applerill | | 75/100 |
| 100/100 | 04/04/2022 13:11 |  arthurbittencour | | 90/100 |
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 95.2/100, a mean average of 95.2/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 96.5/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 9.2.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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Most Helpful First | Newest First | Maximum Rated First |
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100/100
From 
DommeDamian 10/09/2023 09:56
DommeDamian 10/09/2023 09:56
Have I ever properly thanked you for making me check out Mazzy Star, Yo La Tengo, Real Estate early 70s-era Dylan, as well as revisiting Townes Van Zandt? Either way, thank you again.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Foxforce5 06/28/2023 09:46
There are 3 elements to a great chart for me.
1. Some great words to tell us why the album is there.
2. A similar taste to your own - a musical message in a bottle
3. Some new picks for my own wish list.
This chart is bristling with new recommendations for my playlist. Whole genres I’ve never explored.
2 out of 3 ain’t bad.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From mianfei 10/28/2022 03:50
One really interesting and diverse list, quite unlike anything I have ever seen here or anywhere else! Many very unusual choices and genres make this a great list. The chart has virtually nothing in common with my own chart or other lists by major magazines, Joe S. Harrington, David Keenan or Piero Scaruffi.
The notes are better than anything I have seen outside of Harrington or Keenan, too.
A minor quibble of mine is the way in which albums of the same genre are clustered together. (When I see that I always wonder if the compiler is not being careful enough to be sure they are being ranked as accurately as thought possible.) even with this reservation, it is an exceptionally interesting and well-written list.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From DommeDamian 10/25/2022 08:24
DommeDamian 10/25/2022 08:24
Still wanna the greatest charts ever made on both this site and others like RYM. I think you've inspired me to do the same one day by making a chart of lesser known records, and outta those picks, create an alternate universe so flamboyant, colorful, and exciting based on descriptions and stuff.
I think something in the beautiful Donovan description summed it up "these songs doesn't know that radio exists", because some of the favorites on this chart raises this question; what would musicians/artists do if radio never existed". The answer lies in that they probably would make something so flamboyantly authentic as a lotta these wondrous records, and we could only listen to music by hand and choice etc.
God bless!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From Moondance 10/24/2022 03:20
What I like about this chart:
1. we have ZERO albums in common:
2. we have only 4 artists in common, and that may very well become 1 artist in common when I do a review of my chart over the next month;
3. the 1 artist we have in common is Dylan - although our album preferences differ significantly (I am sure that doesn't come as any surprise - you can check out my '64 Dylan albums rated' chart if you have time :));
4. this chart oozes someone who actually breathes, eats, smells, tastes, touches, feels music more than hears it;
5. knowing the effort needed to make even short comments on album choices, the EFFORT in this chart is EXTRAordinary;
6. rather than a regurgitation of the BEA top 100, this chart has only 6 albums rated in the top 1000! and the highest ranking album is at #197 on the overall chart;
7. this chart actually made me go on a wild musical album/artist discovery hunt - I didn't actually find anything that I 'fell in love with' but sometimes the journey is more valuable than the end point ~ at least it gave me a few hours of hope; that maybe out there, somewhere, there is an artist/album undiscovered in my musical universe who will excite me in ways that I cannot explain;
8. ...and finally, the 2 Australian albums - excellent choices!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From seb7 08/29/2022 05:28
seb7 08/29/2022 05:28
super frikin interesting. love this chart!!!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
SuedeSwede 07/11/2022 09:17
SuedeSwede 07/11/2022 09:17
naang naang!! <3 hope ur doing well friend
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From seb7 02/16/2022 00:47
seb7 02/16/2022 00:47
man this is great. I can't even say I agree with A SINGLE ONE of your picks but damn this is very well put together chart. Just the passion you seem to have for music is insane and I love it!!!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
Timestarter 08/05/2021 09:25
Timestarter 08/05/2021 09:25
What a unique list :)
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
StefanR10 04/03/2021 23:24
StefanR10 04/03/2021 23:24
Interesting choices, the number 1 is very unique and the rest is metal at the most. I know much of them and i like them some kind of diversive chart. Nice to see such things here.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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