Top 50 Greatest Music Albums
by SwampThing 
This is my chart for the greatest 80's albums of all time. Also, please read the notes. Thanks.
- Chart updated: 10/26/2010 03:06
- (Created: 10/24/2010 05:34).
- Chart size: 50 albums.
There are 11 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 50 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 84 out of 100 (from 14 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
The entries in this chart have a zero rank score because the chart has not been updated within the last ten years (points from overall charts are decayed over a ten year period).
View the complete list of 57,000 charts on BestEverAlbums.com from The Charts page.
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A landmark album. One critic likened it, as a debut, to Shakespeare's Hamlet. Timeless, brilliant, and original: a "Dead Souls" for post-punk.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,258
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
A haunting greatness: "Over the Wall," "Turquoise Days," and "I, Zimbo" are all stunning and better than anything by U2 or The Police.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,512
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
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- #Sponsored
Robert Smith's masterpiece.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,864
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
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Buy album
- #Sponsored
New Musical Express called "Waiting For A Miracle" the greatest debut in rock history, but this was superior. "Gone" might be better than anything Ian Curtis ever did.
[First added to this chart: 10/25/2010]
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- #Sponsored
Presaged a generation. Still sounds refreshing.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21,816
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
Widely considered one of the decade's greatest, with the best cover of "Tommorow Never Knows" EVER.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
724
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Average Rating:
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- #Sponsored
Raw and elegant, uncompromising and naked. Personally, I like this better than Unknown Pleasures.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,043
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
One of the great albums no one has heard. Because it belongs to the genre French Cold Wave, it is virtually impossible to find in the US, yet is perhaps the best album from 1987 to 1990.
[First added to this chart: 10/25/2010]
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Widely considered the best of the genre. Elegy and romance unrivalled for the past 25 years. Many critics cite "Smash Palace" as one of the greatest songs ever recorded.
[First added to this chart: 10/25/2010]
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- #Sponsored
One of the most important documents (and manifestos) of the era.
[First added to this chart: 10/23/2010]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,663
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 50. Page 1 of 5
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1970s | 4 | 8% | |
| 1980s | 45 | 90% | |
| 1990s | 1 | 2% | |
| 2000s | 0 | 0% | |
| 2010s | 0 | 0% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Echo & The Bunnymen | 4 | 8% | |
| The Chameleons | 3 | 6% | |
| Depeche Mode | 2 | 4% | |
| Cocteau Twins | 2 | 4% | |
| The Smiths | 2 | 4% | |
| The Cure | 2 | 4% | |
| The Comsat Angels | 2 | 4% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums | rockthe80s | Overall chart | 2010 |  |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums |  KneadSilentedTheDeep | Overall chart | 2010 | |
| Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s |  ShaneSpear | 1980s decade chart | 2013 | |
| Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s | 0129114 | 1980s decade chart | 2021 | |
| Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s |  cartoken | 1980s decade chart | 2015 |  |
| Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s | marleykeys | 1980s decade chart | 2023 |  |
| Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s | acematt51090 | 1980s decade chart | 2017 |  |
| Top 50 Music Albums of the 1980s | F1Aaron | 1980s decade chart | 2021 | |
| Top 50 Greatest Music Albums |  mmaattyy92 | Overall chart | 2011 |  |
| Top 60 Music Albums of the 1980s |  Necharsian | 1980s decade chart | 2013 |  |
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums similarity to your chart(s)
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Top 50 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 14 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 02/20/2018 05:21 |  thirstyDog | 106 | 86/100 |
| ! | 02/06/2017 15:43 |  bobbyb5 | 725 | 90/100 |
| ! | 12/06/2015 19:31 |  Nobodyisemo | 19 | 72/100 |
| ! | 11/30/2013 11:47 | Timo | 20 | 80/100 |
| ! | 04/13/2013 17:19 |  Secondsoul | 46 | 94/100 |
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 has a Bayesian average rating of 83.7/100, a mean average of 82.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 82.3/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 13.6.
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums favourites
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums comments
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From Timo 11/30/2013 11:51 | #95601
So similar to my list and record collection that it's almost creepy. I will check out the bands on this list I'm not yet familiar with.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Secondsoul 04/13/2013 17:20 | #72828
Secondsoul 04/13/2013 17:20 | #72828
Impeccable taste. I love this chart, so similar to my own. And we both agree about what the greatest album ever is!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
joedec 06/29/2012 20:08 | #45603
joedec 06/29/2012 20:08 | #45603
Great list
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Mr.Music 11/10/2011 19:57 | #30305
Crazy Rhythms by the Feelies? Los Angeles by X?, Doc at Radar Station by Captain Beefheart?, Minor Threat?,Swordfishtrombones by Tom Waits?, Double Nickels on the Dime by the Minutemen, Reign in Blood by Slayer?, Paul's Boutique by Beastie Boys? Bad Brains?
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
btener11 08/28/2011 19:37 | #26746
btener11 08/28/2011 19:37 | #26746
I've gotta check out Comsat Angels...they sound right up my alley. Love your chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From chris lancaster 03/10/2011 22:37 | #19097
You can't go wrong with Unknown Pleasures!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Leonar 03/09/2011 23:25 | #19054
No concuerdo demasiado, pero me gusta que expliques cada una de tus elecciones. Seguiré tu ejemplo.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From KneadSilentedTheDeep 10/27/2010 22:30 | #16043
KneadSilentedTheDeep 10/27/2010 22:30 | #16043
Extraordinary taste!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
CellarDoor 10/24/2010 11:07 | #15946
CellarDoor 10/24/2010 11:07 | #15946
I have to agree with cartoken, no Pixies or Sonic Youth in an 80s chart is a joke. Love the Chameleons though ! Used to have "Strange Times" on my chart a while back.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From cartoken 10/25/2010 22:40 | #15943
cartoken 10/25/2010 22:40 | #15943
nice ! but some of the greatest band of the 80s are missing : Pixies and Sonic Youth.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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