Top 50 Greatest Music Albums
by micah88800

These are albums I have spent literally years of my life obsessing over, so this chart is obviously subjective. Still, they are albums I believe are of the highest possible quality. I'm going to attempt to write a small review/comment on every album and what it means to me. I've noticed some of these albums having aged a bit for me, so I'm going to start updating this more often to reflect my current tastes.

• Chart updated: 04/30/2021 23:15
• (Created: 12/01/2016 19:20).
• Chart size: 50 albums.

• Summary
• Composition
• Ratings
• Favourites
• Comments
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1. (=)

Carrie & Lowell 

 Sufjan Stevens

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Such a beautiful record. Stevens keeps the instrumentation to an absolute minimum to truly flesh out pure expression. Touching as hell from beginning to end. The vulnerability and sentiment felt here is so raw and natural, its impossible not to get dragged in. This album is his Nebraska, only a lot better [First added to this chart: 12/13/2017]

Year of Release:

2015

Appears in:

1,250 charts

Rank Score:

16,286

Rank in 2015:

2

Rank in 2010s:

5

Overall Rank:

68

Average Rating:

 86 (1,483 votes)

Comments:

161

2. (=)

Disintegration 

 The Cure

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The Cure made one the moodiest records of all time with this one. Perfect for days when you want to feel sorry for yourself. Expansive soundscapes meet great song writing. No other output from the Cure affects me too much. I like Pornography and Head on the Door just fine, and Kiss Me has some solid tunes, but this album is perfection. It’s very hard for to say one thing critical about this album. I don’t like Fascination Street and Last Dance all that much if I’m being critical, but I love the rest of the record so much that this is a very minor discrepancy. It is also home to what I believe is the greatest song ever written "Pictures of You". I love both the album long-version as well as the single cut, they both have their own charm. Its such a heartbreaking song but done in optimistic and touching way. Its the quickest 7 min in music and is the core of why I love music so much. [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

1989

Appears in:

1,842 charts

Rank Score:

26,171

Rank in 1989:

2

Rank in 1980s:

4

Overall Rank:

30

Average Rating:

 86 (2,058 votes)

Comments:

152

3. (=)

The Queen Is Dead 

 The Smiths

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The Smiths are my favorite band of the 80s hands down, and this is their true masterpiece. Not putting this at number 1 was a hard decision for me, because I literally cant count how many times I've hard all these songs. And they dont get old. Its weird, I literally cannont get tired of this album, no matter how much I hear it. Its just too perfect. I could probably write an essay on each and every song. If I had to pick one song for you to take from this masterpiece, it would probably be "I Know Its Over". One of those songs where the lyrics and the music couldn't be more in unison. Its heartbreaking and uplifting and were eerily relate able to me at the time I was getting into the Smiths. This record has Johnny Marr is at his absolute best with his Jangle Style and lofty guitar work. You can't not love this album. Period. [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

1986

Appears in:

2,496 charts

Rank Score:

33,867

Rank in 1986:

1

Rank in 1980s:

1

Overall Rank:

16

Average Rating:

 88 (2,920 votes)

Comments:

265

4. (=)

Stadium Arcadium 

 Red Hot Chili Peppers

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The first album I ever truly fell in love with. It may be nostalgia, but this album rocks like no other album ive heard. It is the perfect alternative rock album. This is Part 1 of albums that shaped my musical taste. [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

2006

Appears in:

477 charts

Rank Score:

3,054

Rank in 2006:

9

Rank in 2000s:

91

Overall Rank:

565

Average Rating:

 73 (947 votes)

Comments:

55

5. (=)

Bon Iver, Bon Iver 

 Bon Iver

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This album brought me back from a funk where I fell out of love with music. Its one of those albums for me where there is a before Bon Iver and after Bon Iver. For that reason it qualified for a top 10 record.

What a beautiful recording. I was late in the game in discovering Bon Iver(didnt give them a solid chance until 2019) but I made up for it by playing this record on repeat for months. Its the perfect balance between quiet sentimentalism(For emma) and studio-produced experimentation(22, a million). The songs are exceptionally written and produced. Top songs for me are Perth, Holocene, Michicant, Calgary, and Beth/Rest...though it really is an album that should be swallowed whole. 10/10 [First added to this chart: 11/13/2019]

Year of Release:

2011

Appears in:

961 charts

Rank Score:

8,407

Rank in 2011:

2

Rank in 2010s:

17

Overall Rank:

179

Average Rating:

 80 (1,358 votes)

Comments:

105

6. (=)

Lost In The Dream 

 The War On Drugs

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It wears its influences on its sleave, but at the same time this album sounds incredibly original and new. Id call this some kind of marriage between Heartland Rock/shoegaze/indie rock/synth pop, though it doesnt really delve to deep in any one area. This album is perfect in every way. The production, the song writing, the raw emotion. War on Drugs struck gold on this record. From the opening tapping pattern of "Under the Pressure" to the closing sweeping epic "In Reverse", theres never a dull moment [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

2014

Appears in:

949 charts

Rank Score:

8,759

Rank in 2014:

1

Rank in 2010s:

15

Overall Rank:

169

Average Rating:

 82 (1,161 votes)

Comments:

105

7. (=)

The Suburbs 

 Arcade Fire

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This is the highwater mark for indie rock. Arcade Fire grabbed all the best of 00s indie rock and gave it a proper send off. Indie rock has since faded from relevance, but this record should be the staging point for that genre. [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

2010

Appears in:

1,869 charts

Rank Score:

19,105

Rank in 2010:

2

Rank in 2010s:

4

Overall Rank:

48

Average Rating:

 84 (2,736 votes)

Comments:

255

8. (=)

Loveless 

 My Bloody Valentine

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Love love love this record. The sounds are so grainy and the melodies are often list in the murky production, but every time you listen it gets better and better. At some point this album may bump up to #1. The opening track is a terrific, explosive opener and the quality just keeps going, without ever letting up. The closing chords send off he record in such a heavenly way, you usually restart the album after you finished. This album is why music exists [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

1991

Appears in:

2,162 charts

Rank Score:

28,530

Rank in 1991:

2

Rank in 1990s:

5

Overall Rank:

23

Average Rating:

 86 (2,482 votes)

Comments:

312

9. (=)

(What's The Story) Morning Glory? 

 Oasis

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Before this record, I listened to almost strictly american music. This record was so freaking good that it turned me on to britsh rock. All the alternative british artists I love such as the Smiths or Stone Roses, root back how much this album blew me away. [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

1995

Appears in:

1,773 charts

Rank Score:

17,475

Rank in 1995:

2

Rank in 1990s:

11

Overall Rank:

58

Average Rating:

 81 (2,484 votes)

Comments:

235

10. (=)

Modern Vampires Of The City 

 Vampire Weekend

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The sound of a band coming into maturity. This album keeps the lighthearted fun and preppy aura of the first 2 records, but steps into some deeper, more adult themes. Death, struggles with religion, the vanity of capitalistic achievement; these are all issues that are addressed in this record. The songwriting and production are better than ever too. Vampire Weekend perfected their sound on this one. If they never make another record, this is one hell of send off. [First added to this chart: 12/01/2016]

Year of Release:

2013

Appears in:

1,065 charts

Rank Score:

10,308

Rank in 2013:

1

Rank in 2010s:

11

Overall Rank:

128

Average Rating:

 82 (1,388 votes)

Comments:

134

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Total albums: 50. Page 1 of 5

Top 50 Greatest Music Albums composition

Country	Albums	%
	31	62%
	15	30%
	2	4%
	1	2%
	1	2%

Top 50 Greatest Music Albums chart changes

Top 50 Greatest Music Albums similar charts

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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums	RubenFrusciante	Overall chart	2021
Top 40 Greatest Music Albums	Stefan123456	Overall chart	2015
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums	blandt	Overall chart	2015
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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums similarity to your chart(s)

Top 50 Greatest Music Albums ratings

Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 18 ratings for this chart.

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• Date updated
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Rating	Date updated	Member	Chart ratings	Avg. chart rating
100/100  !	05/03/2021 04:43	mjp11	36	96/100
100/100  !	05/02/2021 20:25	jnfbn	310	96/100
90/100  !	12/08/2020 08:01	DriftingOrpheus	78	91/100
100/100  !	05/19/2020 22:50	Rhyner	1,457	99/100
90/100  !	05/19/2020 18:45	desh79	1,278	93/100

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 2% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 90.6/100, a mean average of 92.8/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 93.2/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 7.9.

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Top 50 Greatest Music Albums comments

Showing all 8 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  

90/100

From DriftingOrpheus 12/08/2020 08:02 | #262251

We have a lot in common! The National and Vampire Weekend are certainly two of my favorite artists of this generation!

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

100/100

From 911Turbo 05/19/2020 13:22 | #251728

great list-reviewing it was a joy.
love your descriptions.
absolute 100/100.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

100/100

From martinjaa 04/08/2020 04:19 | #249655

Loved your list. Good job!

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

75/100

From Thad 11/13/2019 17:43 | #244778

I love some of these albums, overall it does seem a bit bland to me though. Very good #1.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

100/100

From Keatownrodriguez 05/06/2019 19:40 | #235916

Great chart, glad to see someone appreciating Congratulations by MGMT

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

100/100

From DommeDamian 12/02/2018 19:53 | #226055

Magnificent.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

85/100

From LedZep 03/22/2018 23:37 | #211521

Fantastic picks, love the number one!

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

80/100

From SamNassiri98 03/04/2018 19:17 | #210096

Good chart although a bit too one-dimensional... (Maybe check out my charts?)

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

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