1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums
by 
Mercury 
NOTE: I actually did rank this. Some of these ranks go against where they were initially ranked in my Music Diary. But Here ya go. I did not rank the honorable mentions YET. They are in order of when they appeared on the Music Diary.
I had a Diary, maybe even still do, where I listened to a bunch of Singer/Songwriter albums. First from pre 66, then 67, then 68, and then I went absolutely nuts deep dive into 69. This chart basically lists out every album mentioned with its corresponding review or note in that September-October 2017 Music Diary project. That is why some things won't make sense, references to videos posted in that thread won't make sense. References to rank won't make much sense. My system even changed, the number of albums ranked per year changed. The first thing though was I essentially pointed out that Dylan 63-66 dominated. After the dylan you have my top 10 pre 67 singer songwriter albums, then some albums which were honorable mentions for that period, then top 8 1967 albums, then some honorable mentions, then top 5 1968, followed by honorable mentions, then you have hella honorable mentions for 69 followed by the top 25(!) 69 singer songwriter albums ranked.
The total number of albums mentioned came out to 95. I added 5 albums i hadn't mentioned to get it to an even number.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments, and okay bye.
- Chart updated: 10/17/2017 20:15
- (Created: 10/14/2017 06:40).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 3 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and 1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums has an average rating of 90 out of 100 (from 5 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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This chart is currently filtered to only show albums from Townes Van Zandt. (Remove this filter)
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#4 of 1969, Part II
here we are. His 3rd album, and his second of 1969. Townes output in 69 was better than anyone else. It was bonkers. And the production here is nearly perfect! Its so bare and breezy and simple and this gives TVZ's songs room to breathe, to float into your ears and heart and make you weep. The lyrics and the actual songs, THE SONGS!!!! are even better here than on Our Mother The Mountain. TVZ had really turned the corner in the intervening few months and turned on his next gear. To keep that sports analogy going just a bit more (I hear your groans, I'm sorry, just one second) This album represents the age 27 season of that star QB, when he is still putting up the big numbers, still scrambling aorund and showing off his gifts, still throwing it deep, but now he's throwing less interceptions, he's reading the game next level, and he goes to the championship! But he loses... and its not close. In this case cuz of a couple 30 somethings who just act as killjoys to his glory and poke holes in his schemes. But he moves onto the next season to regroup and hopefully break through. With Townes, he just continues honing his craft and makes 3 or 4 more classics and wins a couple championships.
Okay, and I am done with that. Thank gawd.
What I think is amazing about this Self titled Townes album is how effortless it feels. Right from the jump you are treated with one of the breeziest and subtly morunful and confused songwriting feats ever. "For The Sake of the Song" features a gorgeous guitar line from Townes (who much like Joni, is an underrated guitarist). There's a very subdued little bass line. Some pretty percussion. And over the top of this beautiful and again Breezy sound, Townes just seems to be talking to a friend about his predicament with a relationship. The internal rhyme pattern is detailed but not over the top. And you are just sitting there as the audience marvelling at how deeply thought out and intricate the observations are and how quickly the5+ minute song goes by.
And this is true of the whole album. You go through this subtle, shimmering, at times deeply emotional, at other times just comfortably familiar, journey with TVZ, and you enjoy every second being in its presence.
The songs here don't jump out at me. When I look at the tracklist for Our Mother The Mountain or his debut, or even Delta Momma Blues, The Late Great Townes Van Zandt or even High Low and In Between, I am struck by 3 or 4 absolute stand outs, totally memorable and singular Townes moments. With this album though, the whole album coalesces and plays just right, one song to the next, that I just know when I finish the album there is not a less than stellar track here, and I wanna push play again, and again.
That is probably due to just how warm and simple the production is. There are some more flashy parts, like the groove of the bass on "Waitin' Round To Die" (oh and I suppose this song does stick out on the tracklist, so there is a correction from last paragraph). But those more fl;ashy moments are rare, and they are all in beautiful service to the songs. They make sense. The harmonica and bass groove, so dark and ominous, absolutely pushes this song over the top. It seems like Townes and his producer at the time finally realized the earthy genius of Townes, and that you didn't need bells and whistles to make these songs move mountains. The lone voice and guitar and minimal other things alone can just overcome a listener. This album is proof of that.
Other examples of the extra ornamentation working beautfully here is the strangely timed bass drum rhythm on the stunning blues reimagining of "Lungs". And the gorgeous violin backing, and tambourine fun of "(Quicksilver Daydreams of) Maria".
Songs like "Don't Take It Too Bad", "Colorado Girl", "None But The Rain", "I'll Be Here In the Morning" and "For The sake of the Song" seem to me like perfect examples of that distinctly Townes way of just being the most inviting, sensitive, singer/songwriter of folk/country (Forum review too long, cuts off he [First added to this chart: 10/14/2017]
here we are. His 3rd album, and his second of 1969. Townes output in 69 was better than anyone else. It was bonkers. And the production here is nearly perfect! Its so bare and breezy and simple and this gives TVZ's songs room to breathe, to float into your ears and heart and make you weep. The lyrics and the actual songs, THE SONGS!!!! are even better here than on Our Mother The Mountain. TVZ had really turned the corner in the intervening few months and turned on his next gear. To keep that sports analogy going just a bit more (I hear your groans, I'm sorry, just one second) This album represents the age 27 season of that star QB, when he is still putting up the big numbers, still scrambling aorund and showing off his gifts, still throwing it deep, but now he's throwing less interceptions, he's reading the game next level, and he goes to the championship! But he loses... and its not close. In this case cuz of a couple 30 somethings who just act as killjoys to his glory and poke holes in his schemes. But he moves onto the next season to regroup and hopefully break through. With Townes, he just continues honing his craft and makes 3 or 4 more classics and wins a couple championships.
Okay, and I am done with that. Thank gawd.
What I think is amazing about this Self titled Townes album is how effortless it feels. Right from the jump you are treated with one of the breeziest and subtly morunful and confused songwriting feats ever. "For The Sake of the Song" features a gorgeous guitar line from Townes (who much like Joni, is an underrated guitarist). There's a very subdued little bass line. Some pretty percussion. And over the top of this beautiful and again Breezy sound, Townes just seems to be talking to a friend about his predicament with a relationship. The internal rhyme pattern is detailed but not over the top. And you are just sitting there as the audience marvelling at how deeply thought out and intricate the observations are and how quickly the5+ minute song goes by.
And this is true of the whole album. You go through this subtle, shimmering, at times deeply emotional, at other times just comfortably familiar, journey with TVZ, and you enjoy every second being in its presence.
The songs here don't jump out at me. When I look at the tracklist for Our Mother The Mountain or his debut, or even Delta Momma Blues, The Late Great Townes Van Zandt or even High Low and In Between, I am struck by 3 or 4 absolute stand outs, totally memorable and singular Townes moments. With this album though, the whole album coalesces and plays just right, one song to the next, that I just know when I finish the album there is not a less than stellar track here, and I wanna push play again, and again.
That is probably due to just how warm and simple the production is. There are some more flashy parts, like the groove of the bass on "Waitin' Round To Die" (oh and I suppose this song does stick out on the tracklist, so there is a correction from last paragraph). But those more fl;ashy moments are rare, and they are all in beautiful service to the songs. They make sense. The harmonica and bass groove, so dark and ominous, absolutely pushes this song over the top. It seems like Townes and his producer at the time finally realized the earthy genius of Townes, and that you didn't need bells and whistles to make these songs move mountains. The lone voice and guitar and minimal other things alone can just overcome a listener. This album is proof of that.
Other examples of the extra ornamentation working beautfully here is the strangely timed bass drum rhythm on the stunning blues reimagining of "Lungs". And the gorgeous violin backing, and tambourine fun of "(Quicksilver Daydreams of) Maria".
Songs like "Don't Take It Too Bad", "Colorado Girl", "None But The Rain", "I'll Be Here In the Morning" and "For The sake of the Song" seem to me like perfect examples of that distinctly Townes way of just being the most inviting, sensitive, singer/songwriter of folk/country (Forum review too long, cuts off he [First added to this chart: 10/14/2017]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,377
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
11
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#4 of 1969, Part I
This is TVZ's second album and is often considered his first classic. And I agree its amazing in mnay ways. But much of what I wasn't a huge fan of on his debut, "For The sake of the Song", is still prevalent here. Namely, the production is still a bit much. The flutes and the orchestras and gizzards and wizards and smizzards...okay not those last 3. But yeah, I mean, the SONGs, THE SONGSSSS, are amazing. Townes, its well know, was one of the most stunning lyricists and poets of all time. The poet laureate of the texas troubadours, the plain spoken soothe sayer. The man who gave us detailed looks into the hearts and sould, both the light and dark, of the human being.
But for example on the great opening track "Be Here To Love Me", do I really need that flute and that intrusive tambourine? Not really. But its still, despite the overzealous aspects, a 9/10 song, a great one. On other classics, like the absolutely haunting "Kathleen" and "St. John The Gambler" the orchestral parts are actually pretty fabulous. There are styill some points in those songs when I think "That's a bit much".
Gosh, why am I being so negative!?
Okay, so this albums flaws are thoroughly outnumbered by the positives. For example, is there a bad song or even a merely good song here? Lyrically? NO! This set of songs is astounding, "Kathleen", "Like A Summer Thursday", Tecumsah Valley", "My Proud Mountains", "Our Mother The Mountain", "St. John The Gambler", are all amazing.
I look at TVZ's discog kinda like I do a star athlete. With an athlete, their prime is usually right at about 26-29. Their athletic freak prime is usually at its height when they're wee boys or girls, when they're 21-24. They're wisdom and their smarts are at their best when they are older and before they have been dulled by concussions and beatings, so maybe their smarts peak is 30-33. So that prime is just when those 2 peaks come closest toegther. This is just my theoryy and may be complete BS by the by. Okay so, with Townes, the 2 factors are 1. The quality of the songs, the poetry, the truth of the songs, and the vitality of his voice etc and 2. the stripped down aspect of the songs and the recordings. So with his debut, the songs are great, vibrant, not yet his best, but pretty good and his voice is great, but the production is cartoonish by and large. But his Live at the old quarter is when he's still got a strong voice and vitality but his songs are at their best, and the sound is blissfully stripped down and raw, just him a guitar and some harmonica. So where does this second album lie? His voice kills and the songs are really good, and the production is less cartoonish but still a bit overboard. Not his "athletic peak" (to keep that going). This is the equivalent of that Basketball SF at the age of 23 with insane natural gifts, putting up mondo stats, but just not yet having the court vision to bolster his teammates yet and so they lose in the 1st round of the playoffs. But just wait until next season!!!!
Rating: 8.7/10 [First added to this chart: 10/14/2017]
This is TVZ's second album and is often considered his first classic. And I agree its amazing in mnay ways. But much of what I wasn't a huge fan of on his debut, "For The sake of the Song", is still prevalent here. Namely, the production is still a bit much. The flutes and the orchestras and gizzards and wizards and smizzards...okay not those last 3. But yeah, I mean, the SONGs, THE SONGSSSS, are amazing. Townes, its well know, was one of the most stunning lyricists and poets of all time. The poet laureate of the texas troubadours, the plain spoken soothe sayer. The man who gave us detailed looks into the hearts and sould, both the light and dark, of the human being.
But for example on the great opening track "Be Here To Love Me", do I really need that flute and that intrusive tambourine? Not really. But its still, despite the overzealous aspects, a 9/10 song, a great one. On other classics, like the absolutely haunting "Kathleen" and "St. John The Gambler" the orchestral parts are actually pretty fabulous. There are styill some points in those songs when I think "That's a bit much".
Gosh, why am I being so negative!?
Okay, so this albums flaws are thoroughly outnumbered by the positives. For example, is there a bad song or even a merely good song here? Lyrically? NO! This set of songs is astounding, "Kathleen", "Like A Summer Thursday", Tecumsah Valley", "My Proud Mountains", "Our Mother The Mountain", "St. John The Gambler", are all amazing.
I look at TVZ's discog kinda like I do a star athlete. With an athlete, their prime is usually right at about 26-29. Their athletic freak prime is usually at its height when they're wee boys or girls, when they're 21-24. They're wisdom and their smarts are at their best when they are older and before they have been dulled by concussions and beatings, so maybe their smarts peak is 30-33. So that prime is just when those 2 peaks come closest toegther. This is just my theoryy and may be complete BS by the by. Okay so, with Townes, the 2 factors are 1. The quality of the songs, the poetry, the truth of the songs, and the vitality of his voice etc and 2. the stripped down aspect of the songs and the recordings. So with his debut, the songs are great, vibrant, not yet his best, but pretty good and his voice is great, but the production is cartoonish by and large. But his Live at the old quarter is when he's still got a strong voice and vitality but his songs are at their best, and the sound is blissfully stripped down and raw, just him a guitar and some harmonica. So where does this second album lie? His voice kills and the songs are really good, and the production is less cartoonish but still a bit overboard. Not his "athletic peak" (to keep that going). This is the equivalent of that Basketball SF at the age of 23 with insane natural gifts, putting up mondo stats, but just not yet having the court vision to bolster his teammates yet and so they lose in the 1st round of the playoffs. But just wait until next season!!!!
Rating: 8.7/10 [First added to this chart: 10/14/2017]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
699
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Honorable Mention for 1968
[First added to this chart: 10/14/2017]
Total albums: 3. Page 1 of 1
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1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1960 | 0 | 0% | |
| 1961 | 0 | 0% | |
| 1962 | 0 | 0% | |
| 1963 | 3 | 3% | |
| 1964 | 7 | 7% | |
| 1965 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1966 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1967 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1968 | 22 | 22% | |
| 1969 | 38 | 38% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Bob Dylan | 8 | 8% | |
| Phil Ochs | 5 | 5% | |
| Fred Neil | 3 | 3% | |
| Townes Van Zandt | 3 | 3% | |
| Roger Miller | 3 | 3% | |
| Tim Hardin | 3 | 3% | |
| Bert Jansch | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 99 from 100th to 1st Looks Like Rain by Mickey Newbury |
| Up 93 from 99th to 6th John by John Phillips (ZW) |
| Up 91 from 98th to 7th Songs From A Room by Leonard Cohen |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 45 from 8th to 53rd The Paul Simon Songbook by Paul Simon |
| Down 41 from 17th to 58th Songs Of Our Times by P.F. Sloan |
| Down 41 from 18th to 59th Songs Of Protest And Anti-Protest by Chris Lucey |
1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums similar charts
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| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | Moondance | 1960s decade chart | 2025 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | WilliamFrayer | 1960s decade chart | 2021 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  jnfbn | 1960s decade chart | 2020 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | Norman Bates | 1960s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  samistake2ice | 1960s decade chart | 2016 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  bertrandu | 1960s decade chart | 2017 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  MrFrogger | 1960s decade chart | 2015 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | BorderFreeAndrew | 1960s decade chart | 2025 | |
1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums similarity to your chart(s)
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1960s Singer/Songwriter Albums ratings
90/100 (from 5 votes)
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N.B. The average rating for this chart will not be reliable as it has been rated very few times.
Showing all 5 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
95/100  | 08/11/2024 19:15 |  DommeDamian | | 89/100 |
100/100 | 12/03/2023 01:52 | Moondance | | 85/100 |
 100/100 | 10/14/2017 17:52 |  baystateoftheart | | 96/100 |
| 100/100 | 10/14/2017 11:33 |  Repo | | 100/100 |
| 90/100 | 10/14/2017 07:09 |  bobbyb5 | | 90/100 |
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100/100
From Moondance 12/03/2023 01:53
Absolutely love this chart - I can feel the passion you had in creating it. I came to this chart via exploring Vince Martin's anthology - and I will certainly return here as I notice a few artists that have escaped me to date on my own journey through singer/songwriters.
#300280 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From Repo 10/14/2017 11:33
Repo 10/14/2017 11:33
I think the biggest surprise for me is how low you rank Nick Drake's debut which I consider a masterpiece. I know that you are just getting into Tim Buckley and his charms take a little time, but I know that you've adored Drake for a long time.
But, there is so much stuff here I do not know that's it's impossible to really argue with these ratings. You've become the master in a genre and time period that I thought I knew rather well. Proving yet again that I know nothing. Damn you for that, Mercury. lol
But, yeah this is really, really great stuff. You should definitely continue this project for as long as it still inspires you. Just don't feel compelled to move at such a breakneck speed. lol. When you do, well hop on over to my Mellow Zone. lol.
Peace, brother. Truly phenomenal work, here! Keep it up!!!
#199479 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From bobbyb5 10/14/2017 07:12
bobbyb5 10/14/2017 07:12
Awesome. I'm going to make one right now myself. It's going to look very different from yours. I'm more of a pop/rock singer songwriter type of guy. But your chart is awesome anyway, just different than mine will be.
#199477 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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