Top 100 Greatest Music Albums
by daftpunter

When I was five my mom bought me a 45 of Pleasant Valley Sunday that I played on my little multi-disk player with my Peter Pan 45's. In the fifth grade my buddy Owen turned me on to Kiss and Queen. Some guy at a record store recommended to my Mom Sweet's Desolation Boulevard and K.C. and the Sunshine Band. My high school buddy's dad owned an AOR station so we had access to a ton of music (though half the albums were worthless because Dad would put finger nail polish on the album cuts to control the dj's). That's also where I developed my nervous twitch when I hear the Beatles too often. We discovered the Rolling Stone Record Guide, The Trouser Press Record Guide, and Robert Christgau (the 1001 albums/songs books have been added to the reference of late). For my freshman year in college Grandmom gave me $1000 for spending money for the year that I blew in about three weeks at the local record store(ooh, that reminds me, I've GOT to listen to Damn the Torpedoes soon!). Over the past thirty years I've put together a collection of music reflecting the eclectic and clasic, usually without ever having heard the music I'd purchased. But the collection is diverse, consisting of about 2500 pieces of vinyl and 1500 cd's. I've discovered the Public library system that has given me access to inumerable albums. And you'll notice that the list doesn't have a bunch of surprises, accepting maybe the order. Because great is still great. The top 20 have been pretty consistant over the years. The next 80 are an incomplete and ever changing array. As far as the more recent albums not making the charts, I direct you to the decade (and soon yearly) charts. Albums that supplant truly classic works have a truly high standard to achieve. It's taken decades for some albums to click.
I'm beginning to warm to Cage The Elephant, The Black Keys, King Gizzard and The Lizard Wizard ...some other similar bands so there's still hope for some 2000's to make it to the list. Thanks to my boys for their recommendations.
Alright...it's time. 10 year anniversary of this list and it's a bit stale. Maybe not a great word...how about dated. Commenters are right...there IS great music made in this century. Great albums? I'm going to start working through the year album charts and find some gems I've recently discovered. Probably 1500 albums....maybe more since...and note...I won't subscribe to a music service. I have to OWN an album before I rate it. Are YOU that into albums? Damn that was pretentious. New list coming! Midway through another year and I STILL can't touch my top ten...

• Chart updated: 10/12/2022 05:45
• (Created: 09/16/2011 08:34).
• Chart size: 100 albums.

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2. (=)

Pet Sounds 

 The Beach Boys

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24, as full of ideas as Mozart, as full of mind expanding drugs as a pharmacy and a facination with Phil Spector's production. A masteful solo album with a terrific set of guest vocalists. If not the greatest album ever (and depending on a night when it's on my turntable it is)then it's the most beautiful. Thank you, Brian. I love you. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1966

Appears in:

2,857 charts

Rank Score:

38,974

Rank in 1966:

2

Rank in 1960s:

5

Overall Rank:

11

Average Rating:

 88 (3,280 votes)

Comments:

360

8. (=)

Blood On The Tracks 

 Bob Dylan

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Misery in the marital house of Bob. A good thing for us all. BTW, he recovered. As we all do. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

1,866 charts

Rank Score:

20,796

Rank in 1975:

2

Rank in 1970s:

11

Overall Rank:

42

Average Rating:

 87 (2,200 votes)

Comments:

168

9. (=)

Songs For Swingin' Lovers! 

 Frank Sinatra

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In the late 80's and 90's I wouldn't listen to ANYTHING with horns, ok maybe Skynyrd...once. Ok, maybe Chicago. Then Mom told me about her stash of old records in the basement. I heard this old wop was good, so I put "Swinging Lovers" on the turntable. Revelation. It's THE voice. Nelson Riddle is the bomb! The tunes rock. Literally. Powerful. From that point on all music got a chance, becuause I wasn't going to risk missing out on another classic I was too ignorant to really listen to. Thanks, Mom. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1956

Appears in:

328 charts

Rank Score:

2,869

Rank in 1956:

2

Rank in 1950s:

14

Overall Rank:

596

Average Rating:

 79 (383 votes)

Comments:

20

10. (=)

Elvis Presley 

 Elvis Presley

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The reason all us white boys rock and roll instead of listening to Pat Boone. The King! [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1956

Appears in:

602 charts

Rank Score:

4,952

Rank in 1956:

1

Rank in 1950s:

5

Overall Rank:

347

Average Rating:

 79 (776 votes)

Comments:

37

12. (=)

Born To Run 

 Bruce Springsteen

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I listen to this album more than any other album. Though I'm nearing 50 I'm always a teenager when this is on. "Show a little faith, there's magic in the night...you ain't a beauty, but eh, you're all right." Seriously? Did he just say what every punk that settles for a girl thinks on a Saturday night? When she says yes: "From your front door to my front seat, the door's open but the ride ain't free." The new Dylan? Dylan NEVER had a lyric that great, and that's only ONE song (Thunder Road). [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

1,609 charts

Rank Score:

15,357

Rank in 1975:

3

Rank in 1970s:

22

Overall Rank:

77

Average Rating:

 83 (1,978 votes)

Comments:

132

14. (=)

Document 

 R.E.M.

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I remember riding the team bus to football games in college and having some muscle headed defensive lineman fratboy taking my earphones off my head, listening for a couple of seconds, and asking me what was this crap I had in my walkman. When I said R.E.M. flipside Aztec Camera he asked me why I listened to that ***t. Thirty years later he's probably bald, fat, sitting in a bar with his schwantz in one hand and a beer in the other listening to Cinderella play on the same friggin jukebox his dad listened to. Their best album. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1987

Appears in:

699 charts

Rank Score:

4,614

Rank in 1987:

6

Rank in 1980s:

49

Overall Rank:

366

Average Rating:

 80 (933 votes)

Comments:

48

15. (=)

Loaded 

 The Velvet Underground

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Why this and not The Velvet Underground and Nico? Because I believe Sweet Jane and Rock & Roll are the best two songs ever put on one piece of plastic. How come Lou became such a miserbable cuss? Those two songs alone affirm the beauty of the genre: Rock and Roll! The rest of the album is brilliant also, btw. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

873 charts

Rank Score:

6,235

Rank in 1970:

13

Rank in 1970s:

63

Overall Rank:

263

Average Rating:

 82 (1,250 votes)

Comments:

67

17. (=)

At Fillmore East 
Live

 The Allman Brothers Band

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For almost thirty years I put this album on only in spurts. I'm not a fan of jam bands. The dead make me ill. Who is Phish again? It's not Southern Rock like Skynyrd. I thought of putting Idlewind South in place of this disc, then I went back and listened again, and again... it's the best live album ever. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

600 charts

Rank Score:

3,717

Rank in 1971:

20

Rank in 1970s:

106

Overall Rank:

461

Average Rating:

 81 (720 votes)

Comments:

43

18. (=)

Paul's Boutique 

 Beastie Boys

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Best rap album ever made. Not because they're white and Jewish (ok, so it helps me relate) but because it's smart, funny, and the best sample album ever. I catch a riff i've never heard before each listen. Party idea: Put the album on and see who can name each song riff they ripp off. Winner calls out the shots. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1989

Appears in:

869 charts

Rank Score:

6,554

Rank in 1989:

4

Rank in 1980s:

30

Overall Rank:

246

Average Rating:

 82 (1,043 votes)

Comments:

54

20. (=)

The Blasters 

 The Blasters

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In 1983 we needed a shot of rockabilly NOT played by the stray cats. The Blasters play American Roots rock. With a voice, the voice, Phil Alvin, that should have launched them into the stratosphere of stardom. Lucky for us you can catch them playing in front of 200 people on a tour (without brother Dave, of course). Tight, jumpy, intellegent, fun with no pretentions. Just rock and roll. [First added to this chart: 09/16/2011]

Year of Release:

1981

Appears in:

29 charts

Rank Score:

164

Rank in 1981:

131

Rank in 1980s:

1,106

Overall Rank:

7,658

Average Rating:

 70 (42 votes)

Comments:

2

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Total albums: 49. Page 1 of 5

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition

Country	Albums	%
	49	49%
	40	40%
	3	3%
	3	3%
	2	2%
	2	2%
	1	1%

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similar charts

Title	Source	Type	Published	Country
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s	daftpunter	1970s decade chart	2014
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	Madrocker	Overall chart	2019
The Top 100 Albums	VH1	Overall chart	2001
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s	Madrocker	1970s decade chart	2019
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	P H Dias	Overall chart	2012
Top 100 Albums (Online Amalgam)	musicologist97	Custom chart	2019
The Greatest Rock Albums	uDiscoverMusic	Overall chart	2015
Virgin All-Time Top 1000 Albums	Virgin	Overall chart	2000
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	ekingshill	Overall chart	2017
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	jeffrey-hodgson	Overall chart	2018

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similarity to your chart(s)

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings

Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 98 ratings for this chart.

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Rating	Date updated	Member	Chart ratings	Avg. chart rating
85/100  !	03/20/2025 16:45	SomethingSpecial	1,104	85/100
95/100  !	07/03/2024 17:43	C0NB9NN	20	85/100
80/100  !	06/19/2023 20:06	MadhattanJack	264	85/100
90/100  !	06/19/2023 10:40	Tamthebam	649	85/100
95/100  !	10/11/2022 05:20	leniad	673	85/100

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 6% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 88.5/100, a mean average of 86.5/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 88.7/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 16.9.

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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites

Showing latest 20 members who have added this chart as a favourite | Show all 21 members

C0NB9NN

Larcx13

JoeyBones1986

Dankel

TrekkiELO

joathome

WildHorses

sammac

Cymro2011

btener11

pecan3141

ProfessorSquid

Facetious

astelioeswills

jhuik

Daminoutrek76

Johnnyo

Triple Seis

BrandonB

GARY

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 75 comments |
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Rating:  

95/100

From C0NB9NN 07/03/2024 17:42 | #304153

Brilliant picks. Finally someone who sees My Aim Is True as such a great album. And shout out to ranking Queen up there. The boys sure did know how to perform an album. Dark Side, London Calling, Born To Run, all the greats up there. And who cares if you don’t have enough “modern” albums up there. Agree on a lot of your points too, especially about The Rolling Stones. And I can’t believe how much we match we Abbey Road being my number one. All this being said, great list.

27 albums in common.

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Rating:  

95/100

From leniad 10/11/2022 05:20 | #290352

great picks

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Rating:  

85/100

From Moondance 10/10/2022 21:29 | #290343

Loved the commentary on the soundtrack of your life + music. I can appreciate the joy and wonder of your journey. Good to see Aztec Camera among the usual suspects.

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Rating:  

100/100

From Larcx13 10/10/2022 11:26 | #290324

Great work put on here ?

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Rating:  

95/100

From stuartdurrant 10/22/2020 18:28 | #259585

Best List I've seen

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Rating:  

100/100

From BraddlesHendo 10/22/2020 18:05 | #259584

Great commentary and one of the better lists here

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Rating:  

100/100

From DommeDamian 10/22/2020 09:12 | #259558

better than last time.

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Rating:  

100/100

From DommeDamian 05/10/2018 20:26 | #214549

Small amount in common, but still a fair bunch of great albums. Very good descriptions too, sir.

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Rating:  

85/100

From LedZep 01/15/2018 15:58 | #205742

So nice and diverse. Loveit

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Rating:  

100/100

From Arthurknight 01/07/2018 10:51 | #204788

Ah thank you for the very kind words! The descriptions are in progress, the other 90 will be eventually covered; I’m very gradual with these things, I’m sure you’d be the one to understand.
I very much like your chart too. Your opening description I find very eloquent, and I much adore anyone who takes the time to tell the stories about their experiences of music because it is so vital in the sharing of ones love and appreciation of an artform that carries as much value in when, where and how we listen to it as the songs themselves. Many of the albums you have here were once on my chart since supplanted - to use your words. Shoot out the Lights, for instance, is a long favourite of mine. Thank you for sharing what only years and years of dedicate listening could produce.

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