Top 100 Greatest Music Albums
by PurpleHazel 
Two albums per artist limit -- slipped in three for Zappa/MOI on a technicality.
- Chart updated: 04/09/2021 10:45
- (Created: 09/03/2017 02:47).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 14 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 91 out of 100 (from 22 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
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[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,658
Rank in 1970:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
15,716
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
541
Rank in 1973:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Year of Release:
1968
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,154
Rank in 1968:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 02/07/2018]
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
422
Rank in 1972:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,683
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,448
Rank in 1975:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 09/03/2017]
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 8 | 8% | |
| 1960s | 36 | 36% | |
| 1970s | 37 | 37% | |
| 1980s | 6 | 6% | |
| 1990s | 8 | 8% | |
| 2000s | 4 | 4% | |
| 2010s | 1 | 1% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Charles Mingus | 2 | 2% | |
| The Beatles | 2 | 2% | |
| The Meters | 2 | 2% | |
| John Coltrane | 2 | 2% | |
| Sly & The Family Stone | 2 | 2% | |
| The Mothers Of Invention | 2 | 2% | |
| Jeff Beck | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 8 from 13th to 5th The Cellar Door Sessions 1970 by Miles Davis |
| Up 1 from 100th to 99th Revue by World Saxophone Quartet |
| Up 1 from 99th to 98th Lenox Avenue Breakdown by Arthur Blythe |
| New entries |
|---|
| Fill It Up With Ghosts by TrioVD |
| Leavers |
|---|
| Miles Smiles by Miles Davis Quintet |
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | PurpleHazel | 1960s decade chart | 2018 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s | PurpleHazel | 1970s decade chart | 2019 | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | musicologist97 | Overall chart | 2019 |  |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | Seventiesfan | Overall chart | 2020 | |
| Top 99 Greatest Music Albums | sonicdiscourse | Overall chart | 2017 | |
| Top 500 Albums of All Time | Rolling Stone | Overall chart | 2003 | |
| Top 500 Albums of All Time | Rolling Stone | Overall chart | 2005 | |
| Top 500 Albums of All Time | Rolling Stone | Overall chart | 2012 | |
| Die 100 besten Platten des Jahrhunderts | Wiener | Overall chart | 1999 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  RFNAPLES | 1960s decade chart | 2013 | |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums 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 22 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 03/20/2025 15:19 |  SomethingSpecial | 1,104 | 85/100 |
| ! | 06/13/2021 04:32 |  seb7 | 115 | 91/100 |
| ! | 02/08/2021 05:08 | RioBravo | 201 | 84/100 |
| ! | 06/22/2020 08:31 |  mickilennial | 715 | 77/100 |
| ! | 03/23/2020 19:13 | 1d410Arthur | 3 | 100/100 |
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 91.1/100, a mean average of 93.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 93.4/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 6.3.
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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From 
melisandre 04/03/2023 12:30 | #295739
melisandre 04/03/2023 12:30 | #295739
not exactly my vibe but this does seem like a cool vibe. big on the funky psychedelia. ill make a note of that miles album in the top ten and I might come back to check put a few others you have picked here
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From seb7 06/13/2021 04:32 | #270584
seb7 06/13/2021 04:32 | #270584
Your new is great
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 1d410Arthur 03/23/2020 19:13 | #249044
Could you please fix the dates of my Jazz albums I am very frustrated by Scaruffi ruining my data.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
BARDAMU 03/15/2020 17:44 | #248762
BARDAMU 03/15/2020 17:44 | #248762
fuck yeah, this chart is funky as shit
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Boltzmann 12/20/2019 22:51 | #245849
Boltzmann 12/20/2019 22:51 | #245849
I'm not a jazz fan at all, so I can't say anything about that. But the rest looks really great.
It is only logical for someone who listens a lot of jazz that the genre that takes second place is funk, followed by soul. In that aspect this chart makes sense, but picks like The Beatles show plenty open-mindedness.
I see less predictable album choices of the big artists, which is what I like to see the most; it shows personality (and I'm not like "who's this?", but that could be blamed on lack of education on my part). And that's what this chart has a lot: personality. You also don't seem to just go over all the usual artists to not step on any toes, which proves you actually regularly listen and enjoy the more predictable picks when they do pop up.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From FelipeBoorkes 12/20/2019 17:28 | #245843
Awesome jazz chart!
I would love to hear some recommendations for specific songs to start with.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
ForegroundNoise 12/20/2019 09:38 | #245834
ForegroundNoise 12/20/2019 09:38 | #245834
Wow, a really nice collection of albums here, especially the abundance of jazz picks. Not sure I'd agree with such a resounding exclusion of the 21st century, maybe some notes justifying your choices would improve the chart a little?
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From pctrooper 10/04/2019 18:02 | #243381
Nice unique chart. "Unrest" is a killer album.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Ledgin72 09/30/2019 13:28 | #243226
Ledgin72 09/30/2019 13:28 | #243226
Great list! Especially interested in digging into your jazz taste
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
doubleA 09/20/2019 23:29 | #242866
doubleA 09/20/2019 23:29 | #242866
The very tight focus on the 60's and 70's and 77% American picks along with the absence of notes is usually multiple red flags for me. This chart shows that you can have all of these three boxes ticked and still have something inherently personal and unique. This is a great inspiration and I'll most certainly come back to find some jazz!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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