Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s
by 
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 18 hours ago
- (Created: 12/04/2011 20:30).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 22 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s has an average rating of 87 out of 100 (from 45 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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Overall chart rating: #2. Produced by Jim Scott. Strangers Almanac is the crowning achievement of Whiskeytoen. Ryan Adams gets pushed aside as a country artist by a lot of people, but he is a really brilliant songwriter, and his music is, in many cases, moe alt than country. Whiskeytown didn't last long, but it yielded this masterpiece. "Inn Town" and "Dancing With The Women At The Bar" are beautiful, but "Losering" is one of the greatest songs ever. Yes, I have a lot of Ryan Adams high on my chart. For good reason.
[First added to this chart: 12/04/2011]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
527
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Produced by Stephan Jenkins and Eric Valentine. Third Eye Blind doesn't get a whole lot of love, but tell me...what would the 90's have been without this gem of a record? "Semi-Charmed Life", "Jumper", and "How's It Gonna Be" surrounded by a cast of great rock songs. People often wonder why they like this, then they hear it again and remember all of the good tunes and great sounds. That's why. Because it's simply a well made, well written collection of great songs.
[First added to this chart: 03/05/2013]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,009
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Produced by The Verve, Chris Potter and Youth. The legal proceedings that netted the crooks who used to manage The Rolling Stones all of the royalties from "Bittersweet Symphony" should not take away from the fact that The Verve actually made a really great album. Urban Hymns is anchored by "Symphony", but there's so much more to it. The story of the song will always make the band a footnote in rock history, but Urban Hymns is some infectious stuff. A terrific and under appreciated album.
[First added to this chart: 05/14/2012]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,621
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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1997-ROSWELL
Produced By GIL NORTON
1. Doll
2. Monkey Wrench
3. Hey, Johnny Park!
4. My Poor Brain
5. Wind Up
6. Up In Arms
7. My Hero
8. See You
9. Enough Space
10. February Stars
11. Everlong
12. Walking After You
13. New Way Home
Bonus
14. Requiem
15. Drive Me Wild
16. Down In The Park
17. Baker Street
18. Dear Lover
19. The Colour And The Shape
The first Foo Fighters album was really a Dave Grohl solo album on which he wrote and played almost everything. The Colour And The Shape is the beginning of Foo Fighters as a band. Even the songwriting becomes a shared effort, as Grohl wrote only three of the songs by himself: the rest are band efforts. Guitarist Pat Smear left at the end of the tour for the album, replaced by Franz Stahl, and Taylor Hawkins, who played on Jagged Little Pill, became the drummer as the album was being finished (Grohl plays most of the drums here).The sound of The Colour And The Shape is much more developed than on the debut: the expectation for the album was that it would be grunge, but that is put to rest early on. The album is inspired mainly by Grohl’s divorce a couple of years earlier.
“My Hero” is the most memorable song here, but “Monkey Wrench”, “Everlong” and “Walking After You” are excellent as well. The real highlight, though, is Grohl himself. This is the hardest rocking Foo Fighters album, thanks in large part to Grohl’s insistent drumming, and maybe the most consistent songwriting of any of their albums. Although the band was still in transition, this is the Foo album, alongside the debut, to have. You’ll wish Grohl could go back to doing it all…the truth is, the more he’s all over it, the better they are. The bonus tracks featured here are mostly covers (Killing Joke, Vanity 6, Gary Numan) and a couple of non-album tracks, and none are remarkable, except for the Gerry Rafferty cover, “Baker Street”, which replaces the classic sax solo with screeching guitar. Nonsense. Skip the bonus tracks. Enjoy the rest. [First added to this chart: 01/20/2019]
Produced By GIL NORTON
1. Doll
2. Monkey Wrench
3. Hey, Johnny Park!
4. My Poor Brain
5. Wind Up
6. Up In Arms
7. My Hero
8. See You
9. Enough Space
10. February Stars
11. Everlong
12. Walking After You
13. New Way Home
Bonus
14. Requiem
15. Drive Me Wild
16. Down In The Park
17. Baker Street
18. Dear Lover
19. The Colour And The Shape
The first Foo Fighters album was really a Dave Grohl solo album on which he wrote and played almost everything. The Colour And The Shape is the beginning of Foo Fighters as a band. Even the songwriting becomes a shared effort, as Grohl wrote only three of the songs by himself: the rest are band efforts. Guitarist Pat Smear left at the end of the tour for the album, replaced by Franz Stahl, and Taylor Hawkins, who played on Jagged Little Pill, became the drummer as the album was being finished (Grohl plays most of the drums here).The sound of The Colour And The Shape is much more developed than on the debut: the expectation for the album was that it would be grunge, but that is put to rest early on. The album is inspired mainly by Grohl’s divorce a couple of years earlier.
“My Hero” is the most memorable song here, but “Monkey Wrench”, “Everlong” and “Walking After You” are excellent as well. The real highlight, though, is Grohl himself. This is the hardest rocking Foo Fighters album, thanks in large part to Grohl’s insistent drumming, and maybe the most consistent songwriting of any of their albums. Although the band was still in transition, this is the Foo album, alongside the debut, to have. You’ll wish Grohl could go back to doing it all…the truth is, the more he’s all over it, the better they are. The bonus tracks featured here are mostly covers (Killing Joke, Vanity 6, Gary Numan) and a couple of non-album tracks, and none are remarkable, except for the Gerry Rafferty cover, “Baker Street”, which replaces the classic sax solo with screeching guitar. Nonsense. Skip the bonus tracks. Enjoy the rest. [First added to this chart: 01/20/2019]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,632
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Produced by Radiohead and Nigel Godrich. OK Computer is a great album, but to say it's the greatest of all time...that's just not in me. It really is amazing, and every listen is satisfying. It's loaded with great songs and great instrumental moments, and it really is Radiohead discovering what they are really capable of. But there are so many incredible albums worthy of that number one spot...I just don't see OK Computer as THAT excellent. But I still could not imagine my collection without it.
[First added to this chart: 12/16/2011]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
63,496
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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1997 – UNIVERSAL
Produced By PAUL EBERSOLD
1. Just Remember
2. Happy
3. All For You (Full Band Version)
4. Look To The Children
5. Wanted It To Be
6. Think About Me
7. So Long
8. Superman
9. Concede
10. Cerilene
11. We’ll Find It
12. Starfish
Remember back in 1997, when Counting Crows released that big hit “All For You”? Well, as much as it sounds exactly like them, that was actually Sister Hazel. And as catchy and perfect as that chorus is, the song still has that grating, almost stolen quality. It’s also their only notable hit to date, even though they have released nine albums and are still quite active. Fortunately, the rest of …Somewhere More Familiar sounds more like Sister Hazel and less like that other more successful band, but it was still that sound that put them on the map. They play upbeat rock that has a taste of their Southern roots, and that translates well to the stage. They play well, and vocally, they are quite good. Where this band is limited is in the songwriting department. The songs here are as good as they have ever been, which stands squarely at average. So what you get with this album is a batch of good sounding forgettable tunes.
To be fair, “We’ll Find It” and “Cerilene” are pretty good. But everything else will fade from memory as soon as the next track begins. So, let’s get back to “All For You”. It was originally on their debut album (a different version). The chorus is the best bit of songwriting the band has ever produced: “It’s hard to say what it is I see in you / Wonder if I’ll always be with you / But words can’t say, and I can’t do / Enough to prove it’s all for you”. Nicely done. It’s too bad that they have never been able to build on that. These guys are solid, and the band has not changed in over 20 years (so they are definitely tight with each other)…they just lack strong original material. And even their one big break came on the heels of sounding like somebody else. This is their best album, but it stands squarely as the standard of average. Which is exactly what their entire career has turned out to be. [First added to this chart: 10/09/2024]
Produced By PAUL EBERSOLD
1. Just Remember
2. Happy
3. All For You (Full Band Version)
4. Look To The Children
5. Wanted It To Be
6. Think About Me
7. So Long
8. Superman
9. Concede
10. Cerilene
11. We’ll Find It
12. Starfish
Remember back in 1997, when Counting Crows released that big hit “All For You”? Well, as much as it sounds exactly like them, that was actually Sister Hazel. And as catchy and perfect as that chorus is, the song still has that grating, almost stolen quality. It’s also their only notable hit to date, even though they have released nine albums and are still quite active. Fortunately, the rest of …Somewhere More Familiar sounds more like Sister Hazel and less like that other more successful band, but it was still that sound that put them on the map. They play upbeat rock that has a taste of their Southern roots, and that translates well to the stage. They play well, and vocally, they are quite good. Where this band is limited is in the songwriting department. The songs here are as good as they have ever been, which stands squarely at average. So what you get with this album is a batch of good sounding forgettable tunes.
To be fair, “We’ll Find It” and “Cerilene” are pretty good. But everything else will fade from memory as soon as the next track begins. So, let’s get back to “All For You”. It was originally on their debut album (a different version). The chorus is the best bit of songwriting the band has ever produced: “It’s hard to say what it is I see in you / Wonder if I’ll always be with you / But words can’t say, and I can’t do / Enough to prove it’s all for you”. Nicely done. It’s too bad that they have never been able to build on that. These guys are solid, and the band has not changed in over 20 years (so they are definitely tight with each other)…they just lack strong original material. And even their one big break came on the heels of sounding like somebody else. This is their best album, but it stands squarely as the standard of average. Which is exactly what their entire career has turned out to be. [First added to this chart: 10/09/2024]
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[First added to this chart: 12/11/2011]
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1997 – MATADOR
Produced By ROGER MOUTENOT
1. Return To Hot Chicken
2. Moby Octopad
3. Sugarcube
4. Damage
5. Deeper Into Movies
6. Shadows
7. Stockholm Syndrome
8. Autumn Sweater
9. Little Honda
10. Green Arrow
11. One PM Again
12. The Lie And How We Told It
13. Center Of Gravity
14. Spec Bebop
15. We’re An American Band
16. My Little Corner Of The World
Yo La Tengo has successfully flown under the radar of stardom for a long time. A very long time. Formed in 1984 by the couple Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley, almost everything about this band is interesting. They are named for a humorous story involving the 1962 New York Mets. They have had 14 bass players in their history, but only one since 1992. They are loved by critics, and have a small but fiercely loyal fan base. They played the Velvet Underground in a film, and they played a Night Ranger tribute band on Parks And Recreation. Their taste in cover songs is impeccable. And they have made mostly pretty great albums. I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One is maybe their finest…if not, it’s one of their very best. Kaplan and Hubley trade lead vocals, all of them low key and deep down in the mix almost as far as the guitars. And the result is that they sound undeniably cool. Undeniably.
The appeal of this album over their other great efforts is that this one branches out and tries the most different sounds. And almost everything works like a charm. The heaviest track is a surprise cover of The Beach Boy’s “Little Honda”. It sounds nothing like the original. Which makes it so cool. This album changes sound almost track by track, showing a stunning versatility. It also shows how good their songwriting is, and how unafraid they are to step out of their comfort zone. This album stands alongside the best of the longtime indie bands like Sonic Youth, and shows that even after so many years together, they were nowhere close to running out of ideas. This is a band and an album that gets lost in the shuffle way too often. They deserve to be heard, and this album, along with a few others by them, should be essential parts of a good rock collection. Take a listen, if you haven’t already. You’ll be happy you did. [First added to this chart: 05/06/2025]
Produced By ROGER MOUTENOT
1. Return To Hot Chicken
2. Moby Octopad
3. Sugarcube
4. Damage
5. Deeper Into Movies
6. Shadows
7. Stockholm Syndrome
8. Autumn Sweater
9. Little Honda
10. Green Arrow
11. One PM Again
12. The Lie And How We Told It
13. Center Of Gravity
14. Spec Bebop
15. We’re An American Band
16. My Little Corner Of The World
Yo La Tengo has successfully flown under the radar of stardom for a long time. A very long time. Formed in 1984 by the couple Ira Kaplan and Georgia Hubley, almost everything about this band is interesting. They are named for a humorous story involving the 1962 New York Mets. They have had 14 bass players in their history, but only one since 1992. They are loved by critics, and have a small but fiercely loyal fan base. They played the Velvet Underground in a film, and they played a Night Ranger tribute band on Parks And Recreation. Their taste in cover songs is impeccable. And they have made mostly pretty great albums. I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One is maybe their finest…if not, it’s one of their very best. Kaplan and Hubley trade lead vocals, all of them low key and deep down in the mix almost as far as the guitars. And the result is that they sound undeniably cool. Undeniably.
The appeal of this album over their other great efforts is that this one branches out and tries the most different sounds. And almost everything works like a charm. The heaviest track is a surprise cover of The Beach Boy’s “Little Honda”. It sounds nothing like the original. Which makes it so cool. This album changes sound almost track by track, showing a stunning versatility. It also shows how good their songwriting is, and how unafraid they are to step out of their comfort zone. This album stands alongside the best of the longtime indie bands like Sonic Youth, and shows that even after so many years together, they were nowhere close to running out of ideas. This is a band and an album that gets lost in the shuffle way too often. They deserve to be heard, and this album, along with a few others by them, should be essential parts of a good rock collection. Take a listen, if you haven’t already. You’ll be happy you did. [First added to this chart: 05/06/2025]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,564
Rank in 1997:
Rank in 1990s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 8. Page 1 of 1
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1991 | 10 | 10% | |
| 1992 | 15 | 15% | |
| 1993 | 17 | 17% | |
| 1994 | 13 | 13% | |
| 1995 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1996 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1997 | 8 | 8% | |
| 1998 | 8 | 8% | |
| 1999 | 2 | 2% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Uncle Tupelo | 4 | 4% | |
| Nirvana | 3 | 3% | |
| Pearl Jam | 3 | 3% | |
| The Jayhawks | 2 | 2% | |
| The Lemonheads | 2 | 2% | |
| Yo La Tengo | 2 | 2% | |
| Radiohead | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s chart changes
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 95th to 96thSixteen Stone by Bush |
| Down 1 from 96th to 97thPizza Deliverance by Drive-By Truckers |
| Down 1 from 97th to 98thEye by Robyn Hitchcock |
| New entries |
|---|
| Aggregates 1-26 by Arto Lindsay Trio |
| Leavers |
|---|
| Desireless by Eagle Eye Cherry |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s |  Brandon8 | 1990s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | Finky | 1990s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 83 Music Albums of the 1990s | maverick470 | 1990s decade chart | 2015 |  |
| Los 100 mejores discos de los años 90 | Diariocrítico | 1990s decade chart | 2016 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | edubs | 1990s decade chart | 2016 | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | Romanelli | Overall chart | 2026 | |
| My Overall Chart: 201-300 | Romanelli | Custom chart | 2026 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s |  StefanR10 | 1990s decade chart | 2020 |  |
| Rolling Stone 100 Best Albums Of The 1990s | WayneMC | Custom chart | 2019 |  |
| 100 Best Albums of the Nineties | Rolling Stone | 1990s decade chart | 2010 | |
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Other decade charts by Romanelli
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 7 Music Albums of the 2020s | Romanelli | 2020s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2010s | Romanelli | 2010s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2000s | Romanelli | 2000s decade chart | 2025 | |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s 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 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 45 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 02/09/2023 22:04 |  pedro1976 | 107 | 85/100 |
| ! | 02/06/2023 02:26 | jonatascv1990 | 14 | 78/100 |
| ! | 02/10/2022 00:40 |  Larcx13 | 1,145 | 86/100 |
| ! | 06/26/2021 23:01 |  zwiebel | 189 | 86/100 |
| ! | 05/03/2021 09:53 |  jnfbn | 310 | 96/100 |
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 86.9/100, a mean average of 85.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 87.1/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 17.1.
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s comments
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From jonatascv1990 02/06/2023 02:27 | #293622
Good chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Larcx13 02/10/2022 00:44 | #281051
Larcx13 02/10/2022 00:44 | #281051
Good descriptions and a bunch of new records for me to check out. Favorited.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From henrygreen0203 05/04/2021 18:49 | #269358
This is an excellent list. Lots of "alt-country" here, which is much more Replacements-Meets-Bruce Springsteen than traditional folk or country.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Johnnyo 05/03/2021 09:28 | #269302
Great chart
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
ExTeaSea 01/18/2020 16:05 | #246969
ExTeaSea 01/18/2020 16:05 | #246969
I really appreciate some of the more personal picks. This is a really good chart. 14 albums in common is pretty good. Perhaps one day I'll check out Uncle Tupelo.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
ForegroundNoise 05/30/2019 07:36 | #236903
ForegroundNoise 05/30/2019 07:36 | #236903
Really love the detailed notes and careful selections!! I still feel it's a little too focused on American alt-rock for my liking however, would be nice to see some electronic releases/more hip hop besides Public Enemy at no.73!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
RoundTheBend 05/30/2019 02:57 | #236900
RoundTheBend 05/30/2019 02:57 | #236900
23 albums in common. Solid other picks!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From edubs 05/29/2019 20:20 | #236889
awesome chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
HoldenM 10/01/2017 05:52 | #198955
HoldenM 10/01/2017 05:52 | #198955
Ahhh... That's a great chart right there.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
ObsoleteEntity 09/30/2017 15:39 | #198926
ObsoleteEntity 09/30/2017 15:39 | #198926
I, too, am a big Uncle Tupelo fan. When they broke I preferred the way of Son Volt rather than Wilco, not that it needs to be one or the other. I like your picks. I will check out your other charts. Peace.
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| Best Ever Artists | |
|---|---|
| 1. The Beatles | |
| 2. Radiohead | |
| 3. Pink Floyd | |
| 4. David Bowie | |
| 5. Bob Dylan | |
| 6. Led Zeppelin | |
| 7. The Rolling Stones | |
| 8. Arcade Fire | |
| 9. Nirvana | |
| 10. Neil Young | |
| 11. The Velvet Underground | |
| 12. Kendrick Lamar | |
| 13. Miles Davis | |
| 14. The Smiths | |
| 15. The Beach Boys | |
| 16. R.E.M. | |
| 17. Kanye West | |
| 18. Bruce Springsteen | |
| 19. Pixies | |
| 20. Jimi Hendrix |
