Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
JulianR 
Hey!
I am quite excited to discuss literally anything about music ("literal" used in the literal, not figurative sense). I don't really know anyone that listens to the breadth and depth of music that I do. So if you disagree with something I say, or just want to talk about music, totally message me. Also if you want recommendations, or have some for me, totally message me or comment. Thank you!
Just as a heads up, the descriptions for these albums could have been written yesterday, or 18 months ago. They may not be totally reflective of my opinions on them now, though they were at one point at least.
Chart of the Day: 2/21/18, 4/23/19
Questions, comments, concerns, and especially recommendations are all heavily encouraged
Thanks
- Julian
- Chart updated: 02/07/2020 06:45
- (Created: 12/14/2016 01:31).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 72 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 92 out of 100 (from 106 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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Art Rock • Prog Rock
90/100
CA: 8/10
"You radiate cold shafts of broken glass"
This is such a wonderful album. I grew up on Pink Floyd, and this album was always the standard Pink Floyd album. It has a great flow; starting and ending with two parts of the beautiful little "Pigs on the Wing", and with three epic prog rock masterpieces in the middle. It's some of the cooler songwriting and guitar work ever recorded. [First added to this chart: 12/13/2016]
90/100
CA: 8/10
"You radiate cold shafts of broken glass"
This is such a wonderful album. I grew up on Pink Floyd, and this album was always the standard Pink Floyd album. It has a great flow; starting and ending with two parts of the beautiful little "Pigs on the Wing", and with three epic prog rock masterpieces in the middle. It's some of the cooler songwriting and guitar work ever recorded. [First added to this chart: 12/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
25,525
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
198
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90/100
[First added to this chart: 01/16/2018]
Year of Release:
2013
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,062
Rank in 2013:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Art Rock • Rock
90/100
CA: 6/10
"Wakey wakey
Rise and shine
It's on again, off again, on again"
-Check out "What In Rainbows should have been" on spotify to see what I think the tracklisting of this album should have really been.-
It took me a long time to enjoy this album as a unit. I've gotta honestly say that the track-listing here kinda sucks. It opens so jarringly with the beat of 15 Step (a song that I never have been able to really appreciate fully, likely becuase of its placement), and has the two loudest songs as the first two. But then it mellows out and gets really pretty. I usually just start the album at Nude when I'm listening to it. Aside from that, some of the B-sides on the disk 2 are definitely better. "4 minute warning" and "last flowers" both should have been on this album.
However it's still gorgeous in its own right. Such beautiful songs. I don't know how Radiohead creates such a unique atmosphere with their songs but this is peak form for that. Nude and Weird Fishes/Arpeggi are both excellent in this sense. All I Need creates a whirling and intensely emotional ambiance. Faust Arp, while small, is pretty and functions as a nice transition. Many people love either Reckoner or Jigsaw Falling into Place, but I think they are both probably the weaker tracks on the album. Reckoner is far too drums heavy, and I have frankly never heard anything compelling in Jigsaw. It just seems like a boring song. But the album gets a little stronger with Videotape, a nice way to close the album, though just a mediocre track in my opinion.
BM:
the instrumental intro to nude
when the drums kick in to start weird fishes / arpeggi [First added to this chart: 03/23/2017]
90/100
CA: 6/10
"Wakey wakey
Rise and shine
It's on again, off again, on again"
-Check out "What In Rainbows should have been" on spotify to see what I think the tracklisting of this album should have really been.-
It took me a long time to enjoy this album as a unit. I've gotta honestly say that the track-listing here kinda sucks. It opens so jarringly with the beat of 15 Step (a song that I never have been able to really appreciate fully, likely becuase of its placement), and has the two loudest songs as the first two. But then it mellows out and gets really pretty. I usually just start the album at Nude when I'm listening to it. Aside from that, some of the B-sides on the disk 2 are definitely better. "4 minute warning" and "last flowers" both should have been on this album.
However it's still gorgeous in its own right. Such beautiful songs. I don't know how Radiohead creates such a unique atmosphere with their songs but this is peak form for that. Nude and Weird Fishes/Arpeggi are both excellent in this sense. All I Need creates a whirling and intensely emotional ambiance. Faust Arp, while small, is pretty and functions as a nice transition. Many people love either Reckoner or Jigsaw Falling into Place, but I think they are both probably the weaker tracks on the album. Reckoner is far too drums heavy, and I have frankly never heard anything compelling in Jigsaw. It just seems like a boring song. But the album gets a little stronger with Videotape, a nice way to close the album, though just a mediocre track in my opinion.
BM:
the instrumental intro to nude
when the drums kick in to start weird fishes / arpeggi [First added to this chart: 03/23/2017]
Year of Release:
2007
Appears in:
Rank Score:
50,929
Rank in 2007:
Rank in 2000s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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90/100
[First added to this chart: 03/28/2018]
Year of Release:
2011
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,495
Rank in 2011:
Rank in 2010s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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90/100
[First added to this chart: 07/10/2017]
Year of Release:
2005
Appears in:
Rank Score:
23,058
Rank in 2005:
Rank in 2000s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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90/100
[First added to this chart: 04/16/2019]
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Blues Rock • Hard Rock
90/100
CA: 8/10
"I can hear it callin' me the way it used to do
I can hear it callin' me back home"
Blues rock at its finest. This album, their first and greatest work, actually rocks, and rolls. Some of these songs are just so fun to listen to, especially 'good times bad times'. Don't like the blatant sexism of this band, but they make such amazing music.
BM:
Good Times Bad Times, when it just starts out so strong [First added to this chart: 12/13/2016]
90/100
CA: 8/10
"I can hear it callin' me the way it used to do
I can hear it callin' me back home"
Blues rock at its finest. This album, their first and greatest work, actually rocks, and rolls. Some of these songs are just so fun to listen to, especially 'good times bad times'. Don't like the blatant sexism of this band, but they make such amazing music.
BM:
Good Times Bad Times, when it just starts out so strong [First added to this chart: 12/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
18,662
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Noise Rock • Lo-Fi
90/100
CA: 7/10
"There you are
And you drive in your car
And you wish for the stars
And you end up face down in the road
Dead as fuck"
In A Priest Driven Ambulance is a genuine album. It's not artsy, over-thought, or pretentious at all. Just the opposite in fact. All of it comes from an earnest place, and it makes for an amazing piece of music. Some of it is gorgeous: There You Are is one of my favorite songs of all time, philosophical, melancholy, and wistful. Many other songs, like Unconsciously Screaming, are loud, wild, raucous, fun, and just as heartfelt. And it closes with a great mixture of both: a cover of What a Wonderful World, equal parts a genuine homage to the original, and a dissonant, abrasive, and ultimately unique take on it. [First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
90/100
CA: 7/10
"There you are
And you drive in your car
And you wish for the stars
And you end up face down in the road
Dead as fuck"
In A Priest Driven Ambulance is a genuine album. It's not artsy, over-thought, or pretentious at all. Just the opposite in fact. All of it comes from an earnest place, and it makes for an amazing piece of music. Some of it is gorgeous: There You Are is one of my favorite songs of all time, philosophical, melancholy, and wistful. Many other songs, like Unconsciously Screaming, are loud, wild, raucous, fun, and just as heartfelt. And it closes with a great mixture of both: a cover of What a Wonderful World, equal parts a genuine homage to the original, and a dissonant, abrasive, and ultimately unique take on it. [First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
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Jazz Fusion
90/100
CA: 9/10
IYLT: Herbie Hancock - Sextant (it starts off a little odd; keep going)
"(Keep it tight)"
Bitches Brew is a game changer. It was, but more importantly it still is. Some albums were very influential when they were released, but their impact now has been diluted by imitators and modern technological advancements. The Velvet Underground and Nico comes to mind. This album does not. If it were released today, it would blow people's socks off just as much as it did in 1970. It's so unique, and literally impossible to recreate. Miles tried.
This album is so full of ideas it's nearly impossible to contain on just two disks. If you like this album, you should definitely check out the Complete Bitches Brew Sessions. They really add a lot of depth to what Miles was trying to do, and there's literally enough good material there to have released a stellar quadruple album. Anyway, all the tracks on this album don't have a single boring moment. Something is always happening, changing, evolving. I think the standout for me is the stellar Spanish Key, a writhing mass of undulating layers of keyboards, hectic drumming, and amazing guitar and trumpet sprayed all over the top. [First added to this chart: 09/19/2017]
90/100
CA: 9/10
IYLT: Herbie Hancock - Sextant (it starts off a little odd; keep going)
"(Keep it tight)"
Bitches Brew is a game changer. It was, but more importantly it still is. Some albums were very influential when they were released, but their impact now has been diluted by imitators and modern technological advancements. The Velvet Underground and Nico comes to mind. This album does not. If it were released today, it would blow people's socks off just as much as it did in 1970. It's so unique, and literally impossible to recreate. Miles tried.
This album is so full of ideas it's nearly impossible to contain on just two disks. If you like this album, you should definitely check out the Complete Bitches Brew Sessions. They really add a lot of depth to what Miles was trying to do, and there's literally enough good material there to have released a stellar quadruple album. Anyway, all the tracks on this album don't have a single boring moment. Something is always happening, changing, evolving. I think the standout for me is the stellar Spanish Key, a writhing mass of undulating layers of keyboards, hectic drumming, and amazing guitar and trumpet sprayed all over the top. [First added to this chart: 09/19/2017]
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10,114
Rank in 1970:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
80. (79) 
1
1
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90/100
[First added to this chart: 08/20/2019]
Year of Release:
2001
Appears in:
Rank Score:
32,943
Rank in 2001:
Rank in 2000s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 8 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 13 | 13% | |
| 1970s | 12 | 12% | |
| 1980s | 8 | 8% | |
| 1990s | 25 | 25% | |
| 2000s | 21 | 21% | |
| 2010s | 21 | 21% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| The Flaming Lips | 5 | 5% | |
| Pink Floyd | 4 | 4% | |
| Kendrick Lamar | 3 | 3% | |
| Kanye West | 3 | 3% | |
| Talk Talk | 3 | 3% | |
| Radiohead | 3 | 3% | |
| Bob Dylan | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
58 | 58% | |
 |
26 | 26% | |
 |
5 | 5% | |
 |
5 | 5% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 60th to 61st The Glow Pt. 2 by The Microphones |
| Down 1 from 61st to 62nd Souvlaki by Slowdive |
| Down 1 from 62nd to 63rd Yank Crime by Drive Like Jehu |
| New entries |
|---|
 Turn On The Bright Lightsby Interpol |
| In The Flat Field by Bauhaus |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
92/100 (from 106 votes)
where:
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 106 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
100/100  | 01/22/2023 22:16 | Rm12398 | | 89/100 |
80/100 | 07/13/2022 22:08 |  Applerill | | 75/100 |
85/100 | 12/10/2020 00:38 | ars2458 | | 78/100 |
100/100 | 06/14/2020 12:47 | BraddlesHendo | | 91/100 |
90/100 | 03/30/2020 09:20 | RomanRelic | | 84/100 |
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 1% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 92.0/100, a mean average of 92.0/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 92.6/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 10.3.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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100/100
From Rm12398 01/22/2023 22:17
What a chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From Juneof44 04/29/2021 06:58
I really appreciate your effort, a solid chart and i love the rating to the cover
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Foxforce5 02/05/2021 03:26
Thanks for the hard work. I came to your chart after reading your comments about Rubber Soul and Bringing It All Back Home being ‘transitional’ albums and thought to myself ‘there’s someone with a similar pair of ears’!
Anyhow, your comments inspired me to listen to the ‘transitional’ Bon Iver album, and I’ll give Lorde another go. I mean listening is what it’s all about, right?
In answer to your question on Mezzanine, Pet Sounds is better produced, so now you know.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From ars2458 12/10/2020 00:38
Wow, I truly love FEFEA and Age of Adz, but I don't have the depth on older stuff. I am going to give those specific albums a chance. I have listened to Bowie and Pink Floyd, but not those albums, so maybe I will hear something different this time.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From Vegetariat 02/03/2020 10:16
Great list with wonderful notes and recommendations. Your description of Loveless and Shoegaze is as touching as it is true. You're right about Touched, haha
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
80/100
From mianfei 12/16/2019 13:05
Although the list is really an odd mix of soul/hip of and progressive rock/post-rock (if I am not mistaken, I did see a similar combination somewhere else on this site on an earlier browse last autumn), there is not that much of real note in the chart.
However, the lack of really unusual albums and a grouping of genres that is merely on the “eccentric” side is certainly compensated for by some impressive notes, which substantially add to the rating.
Some albums you might not have heard that I could attempt to recommend based on your taste:
— ‘Yeti’ by Amon Düül II
— ‘H to He Who Am the Only One’ and ‘Pawn Hearts’ by Van der Graaf Generator
— ‘A Return to the Inner Experience’, ‘This Timeless Turning’ and ‘Moonbathing on Sleeping Leaves’ by Sky Cries Mary
— ‘Gala’ and ‘Spooky’ by Lush
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From bonnequestion 12/04/2019 12:41
Very nice and unique chart, very inspiring! And also, good job on all those comments.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From Timooosterink 12/04/2019 10:20
Really nice chart, maybe you like Gorillaz?
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From 
kynes 12/04/2019 09:07
kynes 12/04/2019 09:07
the final cut getting some deserved appreciation is nice to see! i will always have respect for users who take the time to write significant blurbs for many of the records in their charts
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From pctrooper 11/12/2019 23:34
Not a huge fan of all these albums, but I really like the chart with its descriptions and stuff.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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