Top 50 Greatest Music Albums
by 
jlancast1996 
This is very much a work in progress, but these are my favorite 50 albums at the moment. As I discover new music things are bound to move around a little bit. Let me know what you think, and any suggestions are much appreciated.
- Chart updated: 08/17/2021 17:15
- (Created: 04/14/2015 12:45).
- Chart size: 50 albums.
There are 19 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 50 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 88 out of 100 (from 45 votes). Please log in or create an account to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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The album that changed it all for me. Through high school, I pretty much listened to rap music and whatever my friends were listening to. Then, watching Parks and Rec, April mentioned Jeff Mangum and Neutral Milk Hotel. Out of curiosity to see if it was a real band, I found them on YouTube. When I heard that acoustic guitar come on in King Of Carrot Flowers, I was hooked. I was in love. This album is what made me explore and find music for myself, and is the reason I have heard the vast majority of albums on this list. After seeing them at Kalamazoo State Theatre, my love for the band and this album only grew. I may not listen to it as much as I used to, but it will always be number 1 to me for it's profound impact on my life. This is also the best album to sing along to in the car by yourself. So much power in Jeff's voice.
[First added to this chart: 04/15/2015]
Year of Release:
1998
Appears in:
Rank Score:
29,697
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Available from
Perfection. Very few albums can be described that way, but this is one of them. This album can be listened to any time, anywhere. It has humor, sadness, and melancholy wrapped into one fantastic album.
[First added to this chart: 04/15/2015]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
31,314
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Available from
An album that instantaneously grabbed me with a first half of beautiful pop hits, and then blew me away with in the second half that was almost scary on first listen. Truly gorgeous music.
[First added to this chart: 09/10/2018]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
17,716
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Everything that can be said about Radiohead has already been said, so I won't repeat it. Perfect album, 10/10.
[First added to this chart: 04/15/2015]
Year of Release:
2000
Appears in:
Rank Score:
38,582
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The most emotionally powerful album I've ever heard. Pictures Of You brought me to tears when I heard it after my dog died. I sobbed the whole song, but it made me feel better.
[First added to this chart: 09/10/2015]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
25,436
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The best album of the 2010s for me. Good Kid is an instant classic also, but the jazz beats really put this one over the edge for me. The best hip-hop/rap album ever created.
[First added to this chart: 04/15/2015]
Year of Release:
2015
Appears in:
Rank Score:
28,889
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Available from
Heard the song at the end of Fight Club off of Surfer Rosa. I knew it was the Pixies because my dad is a fan, but I had never listened to any other songs. I decided to listen to their albums, and Doolittle was on repeat for a few weeks.
[First added to this chart: 04/20/2015]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
29,909
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Available from
It has blown me away how much this album has grown on me. I absolutely love every song, and it always sounds great, no matter how many times I hear it.
[First added to this chart: 11/04/2020]
Year of Release:
2020
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,935
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Available from
My girlfriend introduced me to John Frusciante's solo material, and I'm so grateful she did. I think this blows away anything the Chili Peppers did.
[First added to this chart: 08/17/2021]
Available from
My first dive in a more punk direction of music. I wasn't a big fan of Ian's voice on first listen, but I loved everything about this record when I gave it another chance.
[First added to this chart: 12/04/2015]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
20,417
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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 | 11 | 22% | |
| 1990s | 6 | 12% | |
| 2000s | 11 | 22% | |
| 2010s | 16 | 32% | |
| 2020s | 2 | 4% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Radiohead | 2 | 4% | |
| Alex Cameron | 2 | 4% | |
| Arcade Fire | 2 | 4% | |
| Kendrick Lamar | 2 | 4% | |
| Pixies | 2 | 4% | |
| R.E.M. | 2 | 4% | |
| Queens Of The Stone Age | 2 | 4% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 50 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
There have been no changes to this chart.
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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 3 ratings for this chart. | Show all 45 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 03/25/2025 20:04 | DrewHamster | 314 | 79/100 |
| ! | 09/05/2021 01:06 | mrmcrook | 897 | 92/100 |
| ! | 01/09/2021 05:35 | areminder | 54 | 79/100 |
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 9% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 88.1/100, a mean average of 88.6/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 88.6/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 9.3.
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums favourites
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums forum mentions
This chart has been referenced 6 times on the forums, Explore the wider forum discussion to see what members have said about it.
From 
BestEverAlbums 06/20/2022 08:00 in Chart of the day (#3891): By jlancast1996
BestEverAlbums 06/20/2022 08:00 in Chart of the day (#3891): By jlancast1996“Today's chart of the day Top 50 Greatest Music Albums by jlancast1996 () 1. In The Aeroplane Over The Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel (1998) 2. The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths (1986) 3. Hounds Of Love by Kate Bush (1985) 4. Kid A by Radiohead (2000) 5. Disintegration by The Cure (1989) 6. To Pimp A…”
View forum post →From BestEverAlbums 01/08/2021 09:00 in Chart of the day (#3364): By jlancast1996
BestEverAlbums 01/08/2021 09:00 in Chart of the day (#3364): By jlancast1996“Today's chart of the day Top 50 Greatest Music Albums by jlancast1996 () 1. In The Aeroplane Over The Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel (1998) 2. The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths (1986) 3. To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar (2015) 4. Hounds Of Love by Kate Bush (1985) 5. Kid A by Radiohead (2000) 6.…”
View forum post →From BestEverAlbums 08/13/2019 08:00 in Chart of the day (#2851): By jlancast1996
BestEverAlbums 08/13/2019 08:00 in Chart of the day (#2851): By jlancast1996“Today's chart of the day Top 50 Greatest Music Albums by jlancast1996 () 1. In The Aeroplane Over The Sea by Neutral Milk Hotel (1998) 2. The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths (1986) 3. To Pimp A Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar (2015) 4. Hounds Of Love by Kate Bush (1985) 5. Kid A by Radiohead (2000) 6.…”
View forum post →Top 50 Greatest Music Albums comments
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From
mrmcrook 09/05/2021 01:07 | #273320
Love the chart. Good mix of bands and genres. Good little footnotes as well
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 0
From
areminder 01/09/2021 05:40 | #264089
Great picks, love to see REM and Protomartyr on the same list. I'm probably echoing what others have said but there many amazing rock albums out of the 60s-70s. Also many great jazz albums out of the 50s-60s.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 0
From
pjohnsongolf TOP 100 COMMENTER 01/08/2021 18:01 | #264043
pjohnsongolf TOP 100 COMMENTER 01/08/2021 18:01 | #264043
Great chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 1
From
leniad 11/05/2020 02:23 | #260200
good chart,
i hope you can dig into 60s (john coltrane, beatles, velvet undergound, love, jimi hendrix, beach boys )
and the 70s (pink floyd, led zeppelin, neil young, genesis, stevie wonder, marvin gaye, supertramp, joy division)
Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 1
gidgidi
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