Top 100 Greatest Music Albums
by jackbrown8786 
REMEMBER TO CLICK "ADD CHART" FREQUENTLY IN THE MIDDLE OF EDITING YOUR CHARTS!!!!!!!! I LOST HOURS OF PROGRESS OF ADDING ALBUMS TO THIS SITE!
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- Chart updated: 02/03/2024 22:45
- (Created: 07/18/2016 14:06).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 24 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 84 out of 100 (from 21 votes). Please log in or create an account to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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August 1966. You can't find a song like Taxman before that. There was no punk. No anti-government lyrics in any significant release. No nails-on-chalkboard guitar solos like that. Punk records today don't typically have a bite like this. And that's just the opening track. Who would have thought that was a good idea? Who wants to hear nails on a chalkboard? They didn't care - it fit their mood, the lyrics, and sound. You couldn't have done this if you wanted to. If you went to a record producer with this in 1966, they'd tell you to fuck off. The Beatles could do it b/c they were the biggest band in the world - and as TWENTY YEAR OLDS they said, "hey guys, let's stop touring the world and getting all the girls and everything else that we want - let's sit in the studio instead and just create art unlike anyone's ever heard." Who does that in their 20's? Everyone I know would just keep touring and sleeping around well into their 40's, releasing the same pretty hits and making mountains of cash. Why gamble on this? Who would? These guys, they're gods. And this finally opened the door for other bands. NOW someone could go to a record producer with ugly shit and he'd say, "okay, let's go." How much dumber and prettier The Velvet Underground & Nico might have been without this, we'll never know. No more "Tutti Fruiti." No more "Rock Around The Clock." No more Buddy Holly. As good as it was, this marked the end of it.
To follow that track with Eleanor Rigby? Where was the orchestral rock before that? The blasphemous lyrics? Nonexistent. Next - I'm Only Sleeping.... The 60's are known for psychedelic rock, but where was this before August 1966? It wasn't around. This is where it started. They use brand new production techniques here too - playing riffs back backwards. Sounds like nothing special now but it's only been done so many times b/c of this.
The next track, Love You To... find another rock song/Indian music before this. Find another song that lyrically and musically puts you in the middle of a drugged orgy, even today that would be controversial. Back before the puritan times this was released in, it was entirely unheard of. I mean... whether or not John Lennon literally pissed on nuns is still debated. No one has these balls today.
Look at Yellow Submarine - you take that cinematic middle section for granted today but it had never been done before - nothing like it in the middle of a song. The lyrical content is again focused on the mind-opening power of drugs and continues in She Said and Doctor Robert. Look at the closing track - yet more brand new, drug-fueled production techniques.
Rock was cookie cutter before this, not art. Music was a product to be bought and sold. It played to a simple feeling like happiness or sadness. There was no complexity of this level in rock music. In classical, yeah. Jazz, yeah. Blues? Arguably also yeah. And this record comes from what was basically a glorified boy band in comparison before this. Imagine if the Backstreet Boys just suddenly released an album full of songs each in brand new genres. It doesn't even make sense that this came out in August 1966.
I didn't even mention how good the songs actually are. I just mentioned how brand new and all-encompassing the sounds are. But yeah, every layer is far better than they should be, considering how high they must have been. It's not like they were just the first to paint a fucking square, or something lame like that. Most songs are perfect and will never stop seeing play. A couple others are 9/10 at least.
At #4 in the overall chart, I think it's HIGHLY underrated. There is a gulf between this and everything else. [First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
To follow that track with Eleanor Rigby? Where was the orchestral rock before that? The blasphemous lyrics? Nonexistent. Next - I'm Only Sleeping.... The 60's are known for psychedelic rock, but where was this before August 1966? It wasn't around. This is where it started. They use brand new production techniques here too - playing riffs back backwards. Sounds like nothing special now but it's only been done so many times b/c of this.
The next track, Love You To... find another rock song/Indian music before this. Find another song that lyrically and musically puts you in the middle of a drugged orgy, even today that would be controversial. Back before the puritan times this was released in, it was entirely unheard of. I mean... whether or not John Lennon literally pissed on nuns is still debated. No one has these balls today.
Look at Yellow Submarine - you take that cinematic middle section for granted today but it had never been done before - nothing like it in the middle of a song. The lyrical content is again focused on the mind-opening power of drugs and continues in She Said and Doctor Robert. Look at the closing track - yet more brand new, drug-fueled production techniques.
Rock was cookie cutter before this, not art. Music was a product to be bought and sold. It played to a simple feeling like happiness or sadness. There was no complexity of this level in rock music. In classical, yeah. Jazz, yeah. Blues? Arguably also yeah. And this record comes from what was basically a glorified boy band in comparison before this. Imagine if the Backstreet Boys just suddenly released an album full of songs each in brand new genres. It doesn't even make sense that this came out in August 1966.
I didn't even mention how good the songs actually are. I just mentioned how brand new and all-encompassing the sounds are. But yeah, every layer is far better than they should be, considering how high they must have been. It's not like they were just the first to paint a fucking square, or something lame like that. Most songs are perfect and will never stop seeing play. A couple others are 9/10 at least.
At #4 in the overall chart, I think it's HIGHLY underrated. There is a gulf between this and everything else. [First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
45,966
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
55,653
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
58,942
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
40,434
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[First added to this chart: 05/05/2022]
Year of Release:
1991
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,605
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,457
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1975
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Rank Score:
41,477
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
2000
Appears in:
Rank Score:
38,499
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
53,417
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[First added to this chart: 05/25/2017]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,264
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Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 1 | 1% | |
| 1960s | 18 | 18% | |
| 1970s | 31 | 31% | |
| 1980s | 17 | 17% | |
| 1990s | 17 | 17% | |
| 2000s | 9 | 9% | |
| 2010s | 6 | 6% | |
| 2020s | 1 | 1% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Radiohead | 8 | 8% | |
| The Beatles | 6 | 6% | |
| Pink Floyd | 4 | 4% | |
| Led Zeppelin | 4 | 4% | |
| The Rolling Stones | 4 | 4% | |
| Swans | 4 | 4% | |
| David Bowie | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
Up 29 from 66th to 37th |
Up 24 from 41st to 17th |
Up 12 from 96th to 84th |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
Down 12 from 63rd to 75th |
Down 12 from 80th to 92nd |
Down 12 from 81st to 93rd |
| New entries |
|---|
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Top 100 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 21 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 10/09/2024 13:59 | DrewHamster | 314 | 79/100 |
| ! | 10/09/2024 08:03 |  MadhattanJack | 362 | 86/100 |
| ! | 02/01/2023 08:01 | KineticEchoes02 | 110 | 88/100 |
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 83.9/100, a mean average of 79.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 83.0/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 22.4.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites
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Top 100 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 Johnnyo 08/07/2026 05:23 in Darkness On The Edge Of Tow by Bruce Springsteen
“for $90, and the CD version is $45, but you can stream the whole thing too. I'm not much of a Springsteen fan, but I do know that the so-called "electric" version of Nebraska isn't particularly electric, at least by most people's standards. If it were my favorite album by anyone ever, I would…”
View topic (2 mentions) →From 
BestEverAlbums 10/09/2024 08:00 in Chart of the day (#4732): By jackbrown8786
BestEverAlbums 10/09/2024 08:00 in Chart of the day (#4732): By jackbrown8786“Today's chart of the day Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by jackbrown8786 () 1. Revolver by The Beatles (1966) 2. The Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd (1973) 3. OK Computer by Radiohead (1997) 4. The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars by David Bowie (1972) 5. Loveless by My…”
(4 mentions across Chart of the Day topics)View latest topic →
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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From
jackbrown8786 TOP 100 COMMENTER 05/25/2017 08:55 | #191370
the below comments were made back when this chart was a collection of my favorite extreme metal albums. it really wasn't fair at all so I put a little more thought into it this time. I was trying to think of all the albums that I get in the mood to listen to on a regular basis and ordered them by how much I've listened to them.
I found that's unfair though b/c it gets some albums that are the best of their genre way higher than they deserve to be so I had to move some albums down to compensate. it also makes it hard for some great albums like Srgnt Peppers simply b/c they're too much like Revolver to listen to as often as I surely would if Revolver didn't exist. Peppers would prob be #1 w/o Revolver but now it's like #12. I don't know how fair that is, but w/e. It's higher in comparison with how much I actually listen to it than most other albums on here, that's not fair either so I put it in the middle of where it could be w/o Revolver and where it was. it's really hard to objectively determine where they should be with so many factors going into it but this is alright I guess.
anyway, in case you're wondering, the albums that used to be here:
The Ruins of Beverast - Rain Upon the Impure
Morbid Angel - Altars of Madness
Satyricon - Nemesis Divina
Anthrax - Among the Living
Atheist - Unquestionable Presence
Exodus - Bonded By Blood
Death - Scream Bloody Gore
Bathory - Bathory
Entombed - The Left Hand Path
Pestilence - Consuming Impulse
Carcass - Heartwork
Mercyful Fate - Don't Break the Oath
Emperor -In the Nightside Eclipse
Borknagar - The Olden Domain
Autopsy - Severed Survival
Sepultura - Arise
Venom - Black Metal
Mayhem - De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
Samael - Ceremony of Opposites
Mortician - House By the Cemetery
Celtic Frost - To Mega Therion
Darkthrone - Transilvanian Hunger
Marduk - Opus Nocturne
Metal Church - Metal Church
Testament - The Legacy
Gorgoroth - Antichrist
Burzum - Hvis Lyset Tar Oss
Immortal - Pure Holocaust
Enslaved - Vikingligr Veldi
Judas Iscariot - Thy Dying Light
Nargaroth - Herbstleyd
Aura Noir - Black Thrash Attack
Deicide - Deicide
At the Gates - Slaughter of the Soul
Possessed - Seven Churches
Obituary - Cause of Death
Dissection - Storm of the Light's Bane
Kreator - Coma of Souls
It's just for fun. I taped it there for fun.
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From
mozzmozz 12/15/2017 10:38 | #203146
mozzmozz 12/15/2017 10:38 | #203146
I'm afraid, Jack, that you have missed the purpose of this website. It is designed so that the world can gain an appreciation of what our collective best ever albums are. It is not to add "unfavourite" albums "so that I could add them to my collection".
This is a misuse of this site.
"#51-75 aren't actually my next favorite albums, I just needed to get them added to this site so that I could add them to my collection." ???
If that is the case then they really should be removed from your chart.
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From
jackbrown8786 TOP 100 COMMENTER 02/03/2024 22:03 | #301713
@Kinetic I could never restrict myself to just 1 album per artist, I don't even think that's fair. If I did that, I couldn't have Abbey Road on the chart, just b/c it's by the Beatles (?!?!?!?). That's not fair or honest. Unfortunately, this is going to become even more unsurprising and "samey" as I absolutely need to add The Wall and The White album now. The more familiar I am with all the albums in this site's overall chart, the more my tastes align with it. I wouldn't even know most of this shit if it wasn't for this site. I don't believe in opinions really - I'm a nihilist and I'm absolutely convinced that if you ask a million ppl any question, the correct answer will be provided more often than any specific incorrect answer, whether that question is "what is 2+2" or "who's better between Brittney Spears and Madonna?" This site has given us a better top 1000 than I could have ever come up with. It's absurd to think one knows better than the combination of everyone combined. No way is it just an opinion that Beethoven is better than Insane Clown Posse, for example, and if this is a matter of fact then there's no reason that anything else would truly be an opinion; that is to say, no way are they "equal" and Beethoven is only preferred to ICP randomly or perhaps due to a "more common bias." I have my biases for sure (noise rock and extreme metal for the most part), but I know that's all they are: biases. Some ppl, for some reason, consider this stance "arrogant" or "elitist," but it's not even my own "opinions" that I believe are correct, so I don't understand where they're coming from. I mean, I'm a guy who listens to Ramones more often than Beethoven and I can admit Beethoven's better, so they can get lost with that. I believe the opposite - it's truly arrogant to think that your opinion that "some 3rd rate band is better than The Beatles" is equally valid as the consensus. (Edited)
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From
jackbrown8786 TOP 100 COMMENTER 04/14/2022 18:53 | #284253
I haven't looked at this in years. I don't even remember putting the Con Air soundtrack at #1, that is hilarious. I was probably drunk. I've never even listened to it, what a troll.... Con Air is the best worst movie of all time though. Back in 6th grade, decades ago now, me or my friends or all of us (I don't even remember) would go to the local video store and swap the VHS tapes of classics like The Godfather with that of Con Air... good times.
Anyway, I've fallen completely in love with Tom Waits since my 2nd most recent trip through his older stuff now and I have no clue where he belongs in the midst of this. How could I?..... Is he better than Metallica, The Beatles, MBV, Swans, Nas?! Impossible to say, they just aren't comparable. Tips, please? I listen to Waits more NOW, but I've heard them more throughout my life. I don't even know where to start. The more I appreciate different genres, the more hopeless I feel attempting to rank these. The very concept of ranking them is just absurd and laughable at this point, I don't know why I still care to.
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From
mozzmozz 01/19/2018 19:11 | #206001
mozzmozz 01/19/2018 19:11 | #206001
Hi Jack, I know it's a bit nerdy, but I put everything on a spreadsheet first, then transpose it to BEA afterwards.
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