Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by PeterSmith

I've been listening to lots of albums new to me over the last few years having grown up to late 70's and 80's soundtrack. I had foolishly chucked learning new music as we entered the 90's thinking I had my bands and albums that I would need. I missed so much excellent stuff.
I recall liking a lot of stuff I was hearing on the radio as we moved into the 2000's but didn't follow up with who they were - I have since found many of these songs on albums that I have since listened to.
Takes a wee bit to shift the albums and artists you've grown up with and loved for years, but slowly working through many classic albums and some more obscure stuff getting highlighted on this web site - loving the journey and some of it is shifting my old favourites for sure.

Grew up with Pink Floyd, Bowie, Queen, Lou Reed, Iggy Pop, U2, Bob Marley.
Loving the Rap and Hip Hop of NWA, Kanye West, Public Enemy & Jay Z.
Loving the Alt Rock, Indie Rock , Space and Electronic Rock of the likes of Grandaddy, Interpol, The Killers, White Stripes, REM, MGMT, Muse, Franz Ferdinand amongst others.
Loving the more ambient and folky sound of Bon Iver, Fleet Foxes, Grandaddy, Sigur Ros, Air.
Loving the more punky sound of Greenday, Pixies, Jane's Addiction and Modest Mouse

And finding some old classics with The Beatles, Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Carole King.

Also finding that familiarity does play a big part - don't often love albums straight away and need to give them half dozen listens before I start to get it.
I have revamped the results and removed the 2 artist max and just went for my favourites. Meant it has pushed out artists like Paul Weller, Garbage, Bob Marley, Elliot Smith, The Cure, The National, Beck, Foo Fighters, Beatles, Bob Dylan, Adele, The Band, Leftfield and Akon to name but a few - sorry folks.

• Chart updated: 12/28/2021 22:15
• (Created: 11/13/2017 23:37).
• Chart size: 100 albums.

There are 24 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 88 out of 100 (from 38 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.

• Summary
• Composition
• Ratings
• Favourites
• Comments
• Your feedback

View the complete list of 56,000 charts on BestEverAlbums.com from The Charts page.

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

Sort by

• Overall Rank
• Num. Charts
• Avg. Rating
• Num. Ratings
• Release Date
• Title
• Artist
• Date Added

1. (=)

Wish You Were Here 

 Pink Floyd

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Progressive Rock - Art Rock - Experimental Rock
Floyd are immense - every track on here is excellent with Shine On You Crazy Diamond and the title track outstanding. I love Pink Floyd and Gilmour's solo's and Waters lyrics and delivery. [First added to this chart: 11/13/2017]

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

2,994 charts

Rank Score:

46,109

Rank in 1975:

1

Rank in 1970s:

2

Overall Rank:

5

Average Rating:

 91 (4,038 votes)

Comments:

312

2. (=)

The Dark Side Of The Moon 

 Pink Floyd

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Progressive Rock
Touch and go between this and Wish You Were Here.
Us And Them, Brian Damage and Eclipse are highlights amongst a set of other excellent songs. The space in the songs and the solo's just immerse you. The whole album just hangs together and it is hard to just listen to a single song without going all-in. [First added to this chart: 11/13/2017]

Year of Release:

1973

Appears in:

4,123 charts

Rank Score:

62,914

Rank in 1973:

1

Rank in 1970s:

1

Overall Rank:

2

Average Rating:

 92 (5,315 votes)

Comments:

591

5. (=)

Brian Davison's Every Which Way 

 Brian Davison's Every Which Way

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Progressive Rock
I remember hearing this album when I was about 16 from my mates big older sister and I've only recently got a copy (2017) and listened to it again. It takes your mind on a journey. There are wind instruments in here - but they rock. [First added to this chart: 02/17/2018]

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

10 charts

Rank Score:

88

Rank in 1970:

175

Rank in 1970s:

1,796

Overall Rank:

12,960

Average Rating:

 72 (10 votes)

Comments:

1

6. (=)

Harvest 

 Neil Young

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Folk Rock - Country Rock
I've only found Neil Young in 2016 and this album is superb.
Out For The Weekend, Heart of Gold and Words - outstanding. Love his song writing - the songs are intelligent and from the heart and delivered in quite a dead pan style that suits the song [First added to this chart: 11/13/2017]

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,374 charts

Rank Score:

12,812

Rank in 1972:

5

Rank in 1970s:

26

Overall Rank:

97

Average Rating:

 85 (1,719 votes)

Comments:

96

9. (=)

The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 

 David Bowie

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Glam Rock - Art rock - Proto-punk
Bowie has been my main man and this album is just such a stand out. Fav tracks are Five Years (great drum intro, story and big finish); Moonage Daydream (Ronson's solo and the echo affect on the voice at the end); Lady Stardust (Bowie's vocal); Rock n Roll Suicide (great ending with the anguished delivery) [First added to this chart: 11/13/2017]

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

3,009 charts

Rank Score:

45,309

Rank in 1972:

1

Rank in 1970s:

3

Overall Rank:

7

Average Rating:

 90 (3,529 votes)

Comments:

304

10. (=)

Station To Station 

 David Bowie

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Art Rock - Funk Rock - Soul - R&B - Space Rock
Only 6 tracks but each a gem - his vocals particularly on Wild Is The Wind and Word on a Wing are about the best he has delivered.
Saw the great man live on a number of occasions. [First added to this chart: 11/13/2017]

Year of Release:

1976

Appears in:

1,094 charts

Rank Score:

12,353

Rank in 1976:

2

Rank in 1970s:

29

Overall Rank:

106

Average Rating:

 85 (1,543 votes)

Comments:

97

14. (=)

Electric Warrior 

 T. Rex

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Glam Rock - Rock and Roll
I love every track on this album - and although Bolan has a distinctive and set sound, if you love it, you love it. [First added to this chart: 11/13/2017]

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

765 charts

Rank Score:

4,923

Rank in 1971:

16

Rank in 1970s:

88

Overall Rank:

353

Average Rating:

 82 (839 votes)

Comments:

44

30. (=)

Here Come The Warm Jets 

 Eno

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Art Rock / Glam Rock?
Only heard this is 2020 - had really only heard snippets of Eno although knew mostly through Bowie. I expected this to be more ambient and electronic but was surprised with this but in a really good way. Just love Dead Finks Don't Talk [First added to this chart: 08/13/2020]

Year of Release:

1974

Appears in:

455 charts

Rank Score:

3,013

Rank in 1974:

7

Rank in 1970s:

133

Overall Rank:

578

Average Rating:

 81 (566 votes)

Comments:

27

32. (=)

Surf's Up 

 The Beach Boys

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Rock
This was a new listen in 2020 and totally took me by surprise. All I knew of the Beach Boys was their California surfing sound - and expected with a title about the Surf that this was gonna be more of the same. That would not have been a bad thing, and although I enjoy the technical complexity of that style, I found this set of tunes much more enjoyable and accessible for me. Yeah there are still some of their signature close harmonies but it is a much more straight forward album with nearly every tune strong. [First added to this chart: 06/14/2020]

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

382 charts

Rank Score:

2,356

Rank in 1971:

26

Rank in 1970s:

169

Overall Rank:

744

Average Rating:

 79 (557 votes)

Comments:

31

35. (=)

Let It Be 

 The Beatles

Buy album

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 
• #Sponsored

Rock
Only got round to listening to this album in 2020 - recognised many of the classic tracks and quickly took to the others. It has a more mature sound and sounds like a jam going on. [First added to this chart: 08/13/2020]

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

1,080 charts

Rank Score:

7,446

Rank in 1970:

11

Rank in 1970s:

51

Overall Rank:

214

Average Rating:

 80 (2,149 votes)

Comments:

127

• « prev
• 1
• 2
• 3
• next »

Total albums: 25. Page 1 of 3

Don't agree with this chart? Create your own from the My Charts page!

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition

Decade	Albums	%
1930s	0	0%
1940s	0	0%
1950s	1	1%
1960s	5	5%
1970s	25	25%
1980s	16	16%
1990s	17	17%
2000s	25	25%
2010s	11	11%
2020s	0	0%

Artist	Albums	%
Arcade Fire	3	3%
U2	3	3%
Queen	2	2%
Stevie Wonder	2	2%
Neutral Milk Hotel	2	2%
David Bowie	2	2%
The Beatles	2	2%
Show all

Country	Albums	%
	51	51%
	34	34%
	5	5%
	3	3%
	3	3%
	2	2%
	1	1%
Show all

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes

Biggest climbers
Up 1 from 100th to 99th Bloom by Beach House
Up 1 from 99th to 98th Violator by Depeche Mode
Up 1 from 98th to 97th An Awesome Wave by alt-J

New entries
Jeff Wayne's Musical Version Of The War Of The Worlds by Jeff Wayne

Leavers
Fleet Foxes by Fleet Foxes

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similar charts

Title	Source	Type	Published	Country
If The BEA Overall Chart Had A One Album Per Artist Rule...	Romanelli	Custom chart	2015
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	Kettwig	Overall chart	2025
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	dmercado	Overall chart	2024
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	elton229	Overall chart	2023
BEA 100 (One Album per Artist)	BozoTyrannus	Custom chart	2020
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	pdapperens	Overall chart	2015
ranking the overall top 100	OKC1	Custom chart	2016
Overall Top 100 Ranked Correctly	Mother Nature's Son	Custom chart	2014
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums	Hattori300	Overall chart	2014
BEA's Top 100 re-ranked	EyeKanFly	Custom chart	2020

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 38 ratings for this chart.

Sort ratings

• Rating
• Date updated
• Member

Rating	Date updated	Member	Chart ratings	Avg. chart rating
90/100	04/12/2023 17:47	chavaloricardin	16	83/100
85/100	09/04/2022 11:28	Thearei30ee	17	88/100
95/100	07/03/2022 18:38	ffudnebbuh	655	91/100
85/100	06/25/2022 23:42	Rm12398	98	89/100
100/100	01/17/2022 20:46	wizardalien	31	88/100

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 10% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 87.8/100, a mean average of 88.3/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 88.3/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 6.8.

• Related links:
• Top charts

Please log in or register if you want to be able to leave a rating

Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 24 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Maximum Rated First | Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)

Rating:  

90/100

From chavaloricardin 04/08/2023 05:49

Siempre es bueno ver "Hopes And Fears" incluido en los charts... Tenemos 18 álbumes en común y en general, me gustaron mucho tus elecciones. Hay un par de álbumes que no he escuchado todavía pero lo haré.

English review
It's always good to see "Hopes And Fears" included in the charts... We have 18 albums in common and overall, I really liked your choices. There are a couple of albums I haven't heard yet but I will.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

95/100

From ffudnebbuh 07/03/2022 18:40

Like your chart, am familiar with most of it and the artists that I am not, I will put on Pandora or Spotify. That is the only way that I can keep up with everything going on.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

100/100

From wizardalien 01/17/2022 20:49

Very nice. It's actually very similar to mine despite us clearly being of different eras. There's still a lot of yours that I haven't even listened to, so I think I might have to listen to some of your top 100 as it seems we have similar tastes...

Got to love anyone's chart that also has Inform Educate Entertain, Seldom Seen Kid, An Awesome Wave and Sleeping with Ghosts - all four are underrated on this site overall.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

85/100

From CharlieBarley 12/29/2021 09:59

Great chart mate. I used to have Wish You Were Here as my number one for years. It is my favourite album really but I like to mix it up.
You have a broad and eclectic taste in music.
All my peeps like Amy McDonald.
Good to see War of the Worlds. We did that at school too . Back in 85.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

85/100

From Goliath 12/28/2021 10:52

Nothing wrong with having Pink Floyd at number 1 and 2. Slightly too many in the 2000's for me, otherwise interesting chart.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

90/100

From rockbluesfolkjaz 12/19/2021 20:57

Interesting list. I love seeing Floyd's Wish You Were Here at or close to the top. Having Dark Side beneath it is daring for sure. There's nothing wrong with being 2 of course, and personal taste is what individual lists are all about anyway.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

100/100

From StreakyNuno 12/19/2021 16:32

Great albuns!!! Pink Floyd in first and second?
Fantastic?

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

From craab 11/25/2021 05:03

Great comments. I love your chart. Got some leads off it to for my own listening, e.g. Amy McDonald.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

85/100

From Larcx13 10/27/2020 08:23

Some really good picks. im not a big fan of kanye and coldplay. I really dont understand the appeal. To each their own..

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Rating:  

85/100

From pctrooper 05/04/2020 00:06

Have to say, many picks are a bit too hip for myself (if maybe that is the right word). Arcade Fire, Modest Mouse, Coldplay for example I usually can't be bothered with. Nevertheless, there is a good batch of mutually respected albums between you and I, and I appreciate all your words of describing music and sharing your perspective. I really like your #1 choice a lot.

Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

Please log in or register if you want to be able to add a comment

Your feedback for Top 100 Greatest Music Albums

Let us know what you think of this chart by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!