Top 14 Music Albums of 1996
by zdwyatt

Member feedback is NOT allowed on this chart.

View the complete list of 58,000 charts on BestEverAlbums.com from The Charts page.

Share this chart
Collector's summary Help The maximum rank used by the Collector's Summary is configurable from your profile (top 14 is currently selected). Log in or register to discover the great albums that are missing from your music collection!
Sort Sort by
1. (=)
This is a must-have. Lateralus might edge this out for overall effect, but this is a perfect album.

Favorite tracks: Pushit, Third Eye, Forty-Six & 2
[First added to this chart: 06/09/2015]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,514
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
It's insane that this came out in 1996; it's from a different time and place entirely. It is a stunning debut album.

Favorite tracks: Annabelle, One More Dollar, Tear My Stillhouse Down
[First added to this chart: 06/09/2015]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
492
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
This is an amazing album. She never quite returned to this style, so it gets treated like a misstep by a lot of critics. But it's lush and beautiful, and makes for a stellar debut.

Favorite tracks: Shadowboxer, Never Is A Promise, Carrion
[First added to this chart: 06/09/2015]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,641
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
DMB are one of those bands that you have to see live to fully appreciate. And this album comes closest to capturing their live sound. The interplay between the instruments feels more spontaneous than on Under the Table and Dreaming (which is also excellent).

Favorite tracks: Two Step, Crash Into Me, Tripping Billies
[First added to this chart: 06/09/2015]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,006
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
The opening 10 seconds of this album are so great. It's this great blend of acoustic and electric and it just gets me excited for the album every time I hear it. The first half of the record is every bit as good as Mighty Joe Moon and includes what is probably my favorite Grant Lee Buffalo song, "Bethlehem Steel." The album does lose steam in the second half, though there are still a couple of really strong tracks. In fact, if the album ended on the dreamy "Hyperion and Sunset," it would be just about perfect.

Favorite tracks: Bethlehem Steel, Arousing Thunder, Homespun
[First added to this chart: 04/05/2018]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
48
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
This is one of my favorite albums to come out of the late 90s explosion in interest in trip-hop. The band quickly moved beyond this sound (and this singer), making this a real standout in their catalogue.

Favorite tracks: Two Step, Crash Into Me, Tripping Billies
[First added to this chart: 03/23/2016]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
136
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
7. (=)
Once you get over the fact that this is not a thrash metal album (and, really, why expect that after the Black album?), you should be able to see this is a really solid hard rock album. No, it's not as good as old Metallica. But what is?

Favorite tracks: Mama Said, Bleeding Me, 2x4
[First added to this chart: 06/09/2015]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
392
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
525
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
9. (8) Down 1
[First added to this chart: 06/09/2015]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
876
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
10. (9) Down 1
[First added to this chart: 06/10/2016]
Year of Release:
1996
Appears in:
Rank Score:
9,106
Rank in 1996:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 14. Page 1 of 2
Don't agree with this chart? Create your own from the My Charts page!

Top 14 Music Albums of 1996 composition

Top 14 Music Albums of 1996 chart changes

Biggest fallers
Faller Down 1 from 8th to 9thBoys For Pele
by Tori Amos
Faller Down 1 from 9th to 10thEndtroducing.....
by DJ Shadow
Faller Down 1 from 10th to 11thMurder Ballads
by Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
New entries
New entry Fantastic Planet
by Failure

Top 14 Music Albums of 1996 similarity to your chart(s)


Not a member? Registering is quick, easy and FREE!


Why register?


Register now - it only takes a moment!

Best Albums of the 2010s
1. To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar
2. My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy by Kanye West
3. Good Kid, M.A.A.D City by Kendrick Lamar
4. The Suburbs by Arcade Fire
5. Carrie & Lowell by Sufjan Stevens
6. A Moon Shaped Pool by Radiohead
7. Lonerism by Tame Impala
8. ★ [Blackstar] by David Bowie
9. Blond by Frank Ocean
10. High Violet by The National
11. Teen Dream by Beach House
12. Modern Vampires Of The City by Vampire Weekend
13. Currents by Tame Impala
14. Lost In The Dream by The War On Drugs
15. Channel Orange by Frank Ocean
16. Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes
17. Bon Iver, Bon Iver by Bon Iver
18. AM by Arctic Monkeys
19. Random Access Memories by Daft Punk
20. Bloom by Beach House