Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
CA Dreamin 
If BEA allowed unofficial releases, Songs From the Black Hole by Weezer would be on here.
Currently adding personal feedback on select albums. Always a work in progress.
Suggestions welcome.
- Chart updated: 09/03/2023 20:15
- (Created: 06/23/2014 04:23).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 41 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 89 out of 100 (from 79 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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[First added to this chart: 09/25/2020]
Year of Release:
1999
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,977
Rank in 1999:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
138
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[First added to this chart: 05/07/2016]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
45,667
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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"I've been locked inside your heart-shaped box, for weeks."
Metaphorically, I was locked in a box from a music standpoint...until I listened to In Utero. Before In Utero, I only listened to classic rock. And before In Utero, I only listened to songs and not entire albums. So you can see how influential how this album is. It may not the best album I've ever listened to. But simply put, In Utero was the most important musical experience of my life. For me, it opened the doors to grunge, post-grunge, all of the '90s, all of the '00s. And from that moment on, I mainly explored music in album format. I owe In Utero just about everything.
So how did I go from a classic rock song listener to a '90s rock album listener? Well sometime around 2004/2005, my mom and brother started taking guitar lessons. My brother didn't have any musical taste at the time. He took up guitar as a hobby to impress girls. But my mom on other hand is an avid music listener with a big album collection. They would listen to albums together, both to expand my brother's music taste and to practice playing actual songs. One of those CDs was In Utero, which caught my attention. So one day, I borrowed it from her CD collection and listened to it straight through.
The rest was history.
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. Scentless Apprentice
2. Serve the Servants
3. All Apologies [First added to this chart: 08/17/2014]
Metaphorically, I was locked in a box from a music standpoint...until I listened to In Utero. Before In Utero, I only listened to classic rock. And before In Utero, I only listened to songs and not entire albums. So you can see how influential how this album is. It may not the best album I've ever listened to. But simply put, In Utero was the most important musical experience of my life. For me, it opened the doors to grunge, post-grunge, all of the '90s, all of the '00s. And from that moment on, I mainly explored music in album format. I owe In Utero just about everything.
So how did I go from a classic rock song listener to a '90s rock album listener? Well sometime around 2004/2005, my mom and brother started taking guitar lessons. My brother didn't have any musical taste at the time. He took up guitar as a hobby to impress girls. But my mom on other hand is an avid music listener with a big album collection. They would listen to albums together, both to expand my brother's music taste and to practice playing actual songs. One of those CDs was In Utero, which caught my attention. So one day, I borrowed it from her CD collection and listened to it straight through.
The rest was history.
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. Scentless Apprentice
2. Serve the Servants
3. All Apologies [First added to this chart: 08/17/2014]
Year of Release:
1993
Appears in:
Rank Score:
19,228
Rank in 1993:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 08/10/2014]
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,203
Rank in 1970:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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"Politicians hide themselves away
They only started the war.
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor."
First listened to Paranoid during the Iraq War. Although War Pigs was overtly about Vietnam, the theme can be applied to Iraq. The lyrics carry a punch, as does the rest of song and album some 40+ years later.
By the way, I believe George Lucas was inspired by Paranoid's album cover. Has anyone else ever thought of Star Wars when they looked at the album cover?
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. War Pigs
2. Iron Man
3. Paranoid [First added to this chart: 08/10/2014]
They only started the war.
Why should they go out to fight?
They leave that role to the poor."
First listened to Paranoid during the Iraq War. Although War Pigs was overtly about Vietnam, the theme can be applied to Iraq. The lyrics carry a punch, as does the rest of song and album some 40+ years later.
By the way, I believe George Lucas was inspired by Paranoid's album cover. Has anyone else ever thought of Star Wars when they looked at the album cover?
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. War Pigs
2. Iron Man
3. Paranoid [First added to this chart: 08/10/2014]
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
19,565
Rank in 1970:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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"I'm gonna give you every inch of my love."
Led Zeppelin was so filthy. No wonder parents didn't want their kids listening to them.
But that's what we love about Zeppelin. And their Lord of the Rings references. And their blues-driven rock. We get the best of them all on Led Zeppelin II.
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. Ramble On
2. Livin' Lovin' Maid
3. Whole Lotta Love [First added to this chart: 08/10/2014]
Led Zeppelin was so filthy. No wonder parents didn't want their kids listening to them.
But that's what we love about Zeppelin. And their Lord of the Rings references. And their blues-driven rock. We get the best of them all on Led Zeppelin II.
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. Ramble On
2. Livin' Lovin' Maid
3. Whole Lotta Love [First added to this chart: 08/10/2014]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
22,903
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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"Drug money is used to rig elections and train brutal corporate sponsored dictators around the world."
Ok System of a Down, thanks for the bedtime story. Toxicity isn't always poetic. Sometimes it cuts straight to the message. A much needed message in fucked up times as they were in the early-2000s. Now that we're seemingly re-entering fucked up times, guess who's supposedly reuniting and putting out a new album soon? I hope it's true.
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. Chop Suey!
2. Prison Song
3. Deer Dance [First added to this chart: 08/17/2014]
Ok System of a Down, thanks for the bedtime story. Toxicity isn't always poetic. Sometimes it cuts straight to the message. A much needed message in fucked up times as they were in the early-2000s. Now that we're seemingly re-entering fucked up times, guess who's supposedly reuniting and putting out a new album soon? I hope it's true.
My Top 3 Tracks:
1. Chop Suey!
2. Prison Song
3. Deer Dance [First added to this chart: 08/17/2014]
Year of Release:
2001
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,149
Rank in 2001:
Rank in 2000s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 02/14/2021]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
38,412
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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"Bright and early for their daily races, going nowhere, going nowhere...When people run in circles it's a very very, mad world."
To me this song is about the lack of excitement in life for people who go through the same routines every day. For children, it's school. For adults it's work. Being at the same place at the same time every day, doing the same tasks and going through the same schedule. Imo, that isn't living; that's slowly dying. ("the dreams in which I'm dying are the best I ever had")
Most people disagree with me, but The Hurting is better than Songs From The Big Chair. It has better tracks, a more natural flow, and a better closer. Great album.
My Top 3 Tracks
1. Mad World
2. Suffer the Children
3. Pale Shelter [First added to this chart: 08/17/2014]
To me this song is about the lack of excitement in life for people who go through the same routines every day. For children, it's school. For adults it's work. Being at the same place at the same time every day, doing the same tasks and going through the same schedule. Imo, that isn't living; that's slowly dying. ("the dreams in which I'm dying are the best I ever had")
Most people disagree with me, but The Hurting is better than Songs From The Big Chair. It has better tracks, a more natural flow, and a better closer. Great album.
My Top 3 Tracks
1. Mad World
2. Suffer the Children
3. Pale Shelter [First added to this chart: 08/17/2014]
Year of Release:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,738
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 06/23/2014]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
56,337
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 4 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 17 | 17% | |
| 1970s | 17 | 17% | |
| 1980s | 20 | 20% | |
| 1990s | 30 | 30% | |
| 2000s | 14 | 14% | |
| 2010s | 2 | 2% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Radiohead | 3 | 3% | |
| Led Zeppelin | 3 | 3% | |
| The Beach Boys | 3 | 3% | |
| Simon & Garfunkel | 3 | 3% | |
| The Who | 3 | 3% | |
| The Cure | 3 | 3% | |
| The Police | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 5 from 12th to 7th The Stone Roses by The Stone Roses |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 7th to 8th The Doors by The Doors |
| Down 1 from 8th to 9th The Cars by The Cars |
| Down 1 from 9th to 10th The Stranger by Billy Joel |
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
89/100 (from 79 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 79 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 100/100  | 01/06/2024 23:11 |  RoundTheBend | | 92/100 |
| 100/100 | 08/31/2023 02:43 | Ranger | | 100/100 |
| 90/100 | 05/12/2023 13:12 |  Goliath | | 86/100 |
| 90/100 | 08/24/2022 16:19 | Johnnyo | | 80/100 |
| 100/100 | 06/18/2022 01:15 | Nkelleyslc | | 91/100 |
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 5% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 89.0/100, a mean average of 88.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 89.4/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 9.8.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 41 comments |
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100/100
From Ranger 08/31/2023 02:48
Great list and love the included commentary!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From Johnnyo 08/24/2022 16:21
Given your taste in music I’m surprise that there is no Hendrix in the start, or maybe I missed it. Despite that, great chart
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From RoundTheBend 12/24/2019 06:03
RoundTheBend 12/24/2019 06:03
Really dig the comments on this chart, and the selections.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
DommeDamian 12/23/2019 14:03
DommeDamian 12/23/2019 14:03
The way you've constructed your chart now has made it all unique. One Hundred%
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From 
ForegroundNoise 12/23/2019 10:47
ForegroundNoise 12/23/2019 10:47
Wow, previously had 70/100 for this chart but that was far too harsh a score. The effort you've gone into making this chart is hugely commendable - well done! That said, despite your great variety when it comes to time periods, it's a shame that (as far as I can tell) not a single person of colour managed to make it into your picks (and nothing outside of English speaking countries!). I wonder if maybe you gave some jazz/hip hop/electronic releases a try you might be pleasantly surprised, only time will tell xx
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (2 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
100/100
From Villain 01/26/2019 14:31
Great chart, nice to see a guy who likes to keep in the rock realm. I hope that I can develop my chart to this point someday. I still have a long way to go.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From Kuzh69 12/01/2018 00:00
very nice.... so glad to see i’m not the only one to remember how
awesome the cars were and are.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From jeffrey-hodgson 10/12/2018 13:05
Like Who's Next in the top 10
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
85/100
From 
NickGordons 09/01/2018 22:48
NickGordons 09/01/2018 22:48
Great chart, wow I just think about Billy Joel, he's legendary and popular musician in every country of this f*ckin world and so underrated...
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
CharlieBarley 08/03/2018 23:01
CharlieBarley 08/03/2018 23:01
I can't believe I haven't commented on your chart before! I thought I had. It makes excellent reading - your notes are warm, human and lively. I like your stories man. Its an honest chart too, just your favourite albums. No hipster posturing and I dig that. I haven't read it all yet but I will (its late). Definitely one of my favourite charts I've seen on BEA. It's right up there. Loving your work. Great to see someone else has the same 3 favourite Cure albums as me.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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