Top 70 Greatest Music Albums by indieshins

UPDATE 2022: Slowly going through the process of updating this chart - I thought I'd do that rather than create an entirely new one. This new chart will hopefully give a more complete picture of my musical tastes and the development of it since I first made this chart. I hope to have a good variety of eras and genres, and a good mix of objective and subjective picks.

I have two sides to my musical identity: first, left-field, experimental, artsy, alternative, cerebral. Second, accessible, catchy, fun, possibly mainstream (though not necessarily). Often, a favourite album will have elements of both. In any case, I intend to represent both sides amply here.

Notes will be added gradually over time.

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This chart is currently filtered to only show albums from the 1970s. (Remove this filter)

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Buy album United States
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To me, the tightest and best album of the Dan's initial run (though I haven't heard Aja and Gaucho yet). It features many of my favourite Steely Dan songs, including Razor Boy, My Old School and Your Gold Teeth. As usual, the songwriting and playing are fantastic, but I feel it has a bit more of an overt edge than some of their later work, particularly through "Skunk" Baxter's guitar solos. I enjoy every moment on this album. It's wonderful. [First added to this chart: 06/09/2017]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,263
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Comments:
26. (=)
Low 
Buy album United States
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I could have picked Ziggy, my other favourite. But the weirdness of the pop side here is irresistible, and the instrumental side is also haunting and beautiful. I love the use of synths here - the razor sharp tones used on Breaking Glass, the watery sheen of the guitars and keys on Sound and Vision. Overall, an experimental pop masterpiece that saw Bowie continue his domination of the '70s. [First added to this chart: 06/09/2017]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
19,554
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Buy album United States
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This is a really angry album - except that you wouldn't know it for how uplifting it feels. The grooves on this thing are irresistible - Living For The City and Higher Ground in particular hold down a really shaking beat. The ballads are really good too. Certainly the album of his I've enjoyed most so far! [First added to this chart: 12/03/2023]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
12,884
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Buy album United States
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This is a difficult album, relentlessly dark, a product of the dying days of 1960s optimism. The muddy production and ragged playing give a sense of the exhaustion felt by Sly as he struggled to create his masterpiece. The few moments of bright pop here are the all the effective for the relieving effect they have in context. This is a grim slab of psychedelic funk that proved enormously influential on the coming decades. [First added to this chart: 06/09/2017]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,341
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Buy album United States
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I found her voice hard to appreciate at first, but now I really like it. It helps that the songwriting is so strong, and paired so perfectly with the sparse, intimate production. Case of You, My Old Man, Carey. All classics. There's really not a bad song here. While Joni would soon go on to more radical sounds, what she achieved here was perhaps the quintessential confessional songwriter record, and is deservedly revered today. [First added to this chart: 06/09/2017]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
17,100
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Buy album United States
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Ah Macca! Genius of pop songcraft and lightweight lyrics. Of course, he's capable when he tries, but the old assessment of him stands - he is a melodist at heart, whilst Lennon was about the words. When you're able to come up with a set of tunes as indelible as this, though, it really doesn't matter. There are so many great songs here - side one is perfect, but there are plenty of gems on the second side as well. His best post-Beatles effort. [First added to this chart: 06/09/2017]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,618
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Buy album United States
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I'm not a huge Springsteen fan - not yet anyway. But this album, damn is it sexy, damn is it emotional, romantic and so beautiful. There's so much passion here, likely a result of Springsteen going for broke to try and score some sort of hit. Needless to say, it worked. What an album! [First added to this chart: 04/08/2018]
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
17,342
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Buy album United States
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I avoided Genesis for a long time, just because they didn't seem like my sort of band. I suppose I was thinking of the Phil Collins era though, because this is amazing. I had a hard time liking progressive rock for a long time, but this was part of what converted me. I love the instrumentals here - Steve Hackett in particular impresses me (but then I am a guitarist). More than that, the songs are really catchy, making them greater than simple displays of virtuosity. [First added to this chart: 04/08/2018]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,701
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Buy album United States
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Just got into this recently, but its so good. Robert Christgau wrote that Blondie still hadn't written the perfect single in his review of the album, but this just makes it seem like he hadn't listened to it - nearly every song here is catchy and could easily have been a single. I love the smart, sexy sound of this record, and the subversion of '60's pop tropes. Songs about being in love with a woman are sung by a woman, and songs that are about being in love with a man are delivered with a wonderful mix of sass and sincerity. Not a bad song here! [First added to this chart: 04/08/2018]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,308
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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I guess I just love new wave - I wouldn't be surprised if the 70's and particularly the late '70's, were dominant in this chart. Joe Jackson is sometimes thought of as a lesser Elvis Costello, and as a fanatic of the latter I can kind of understand. Costello's melodies are more creative and unusual, his lyrics are much denser and more poetic, and on the whole he transitioned to "serious" composing much better than Jackson. But, in fact, Joe Jackson is his own thing and it sells him short to compare him to Costello, even if the hit Is She Really Going Out With Him? sounds dead close to a Costello tune. The sound of this record is one thing to love - the dry, upfront mix gives these songs a huge punch and every instrument is perfectly defined. The songs are also really danceable and upbeat, and Jackson is no melodic or lyrical slouch - his lyrics are clever, and often funny, and he makes the things stick in your head. That aforementioned hit is only one instance of this on the record - the things full of them. If you like new wave, or if you like clever, nerdy songwriters like Elvis Costello, check this out. [First added to this chart: 04/08/2018]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
839
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Total albums: 13. Page 1 of 2

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Top 70 Greatest Music Albums composition

Decade Albums %


1930s 0 0%
1940s 0 0%
1950s 2 3%
1960s 9 13%
1970s 13 19%
1980s 10 14%
1990s 10 14%
2000s 16 23%
2010s 10 14%
2020s 0 0%
Country Albums %


United States 45 64%
United Kingdom 16 23%
Australia 4 6%
Canada 2 3%
Mixed Nationality 2 3%
Sweden 1 1%

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Top 70 Greatest Music Albums ratings

Average Rating: 
89/100 (from 14 votes)
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03/18/2023 22:49 Moondance  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 45084/100
  
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10/20/2021 22:19 Rhyner  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,38299/100
  
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10/20/2021 19:04 gregthealien  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1387/100

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This chart is rated in the top 4% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 89.2/100, a mean average of 91.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 91.3/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 9.7.

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Top 70 Greatest Music Albums comments

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Rating:  
80/100
From 03/18/2023 22:51
Cool chart - cool comments. Continue to enjoy your adventure through the amazing albums of the past 60+ years. Looking forward to seeing you complete a top 100.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 04/15/2018 06:41
This is a very good chart and I particularly like the time that you have dedicated to explaining why each album qualifies.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 10/24/2017 08:19
Love the unique picks with the comments to justify them, what I look for in a great chart!!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

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