Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s
by 
~SMiLE~ 
- Chart updated: 04/09/2013 19:09
- (Created: 03/09/2012 02:22).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 10 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s has an average rating of 88 out of 100 (from 13 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
View the complete list of 57,000 charts on BestEverAlbums.com from The Charts page.
Buy album 
- #Sponsored
The Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band was the turning point in music. A groundbreaking exploration in concept, sound, songwriting, cover art and studio technology. It's impact was unprecedented.
To think this was done with a primitive four-track analogue recording equipment... no high tech state of the art studio and digital editing.
George Martin, producer for The Beatles, actually believed that the limitations of the four-track stimulated creativity and that the album would not have been as good if recorded on a 24-track. By using a multi-channel mixer several parts could be recorded to one channel. This however meant that any processing such as equalisation and compression would have to be applied during recording, as the tracks could not be separated once recorded. This yielded a far narrower margin for error than is available with modern digital recording.
This innovative adventure changed the musical landscape forever. [First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
To think this was done with a primitive four-track analogue recording equipment... no high tech state of the art studio and digital editing.
George Martin, producer for The Beatles, actually believed that the limitations of the four-track stimulated creativity and that the album would not have been as good if recorded on a 24-track. By using a multi-channel mixer several parts could be recorded to one channel. This however meant that any processing such as equalisation and compression would have to be applied during recording, as the tracks could not be separated once recorded. This yielded a far narrower margin for error than is available with modern digital recording.
This innovative adventure changed the musical landscape forever. [First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
43,329
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
On the heals of the radiant textures of "California Girls","Pet Sounds" was an evolutionary masterpiece in which Brian Wilson reached a whole new level in terms of both composition and production.
This emotionally powerful album contains elaborate layers of lush vocal harmonies with stunning melodies, extravagant orchestration, unorthodox instrumentation (bicycle bells, harpsichords, Electro-Theremin, dog whistles, trains, Coca-Cola cans and barking dogs) , baroque arrangements, and technological advances in recording that heralded the psychedelic era and set a new standard for musical creativity. [First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
This emotionally powerful album contains elaborate layers of lush vocal harmonies with stunning melodies, extravagant orchestration, unorthodox instrumentation (bicycle bells, harpsichords, Electro-Theremin, dog whistles, trains, Coca-Cola cans and barking dogs) , baroque arrangements, and technological advances in recording that heralded the psychedelic era and set a new standard for musical creativity. [First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
39,129
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
"Abbey Road" the last album the group recorded together and is an outstanding imaginative farewell. It features two of George's finest songs "Here Comes The Sun" & "Something"; John's outstanding "Come Together" and the simply economy of language number "I Want You" as well as the stylishly medley of short songs skilfully woven together by Paul. Overall a very tightly constructed album.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
57,307
Rank in 1969:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
This album has more electric guitar-rock, in contrast with their previous the folk rock inspired "Rubber Soul". From the 1-2-3-4 count in of "Taxman" to the climax "Tomorrow Never Knows", "Revolver" is a proclamation that the Beatles had grown well beyond those lovable mop-tops of old. Revolver paved the way for the extensive experimentation yet to to come.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
49,608
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
"Rubber Soul" marks a considerable period of transition. An exploration of fresh sounds and subject matter. George on Sitar, Paul's fuzz bass and tampering with tapes to create an effect. They expanded their sound with influences from the folk-rock. This is the start of the group's self-conscious period and an exceeding artistic achievement.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,799
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
An enthralling musical experience. "The White Album" confounded expectations due to it's simplicity and stripped down production, it was the exact opposite of Sgt.Pepper. Each song is an entity unto itself. It feel like a collection of solo songs rather than a Beatles album.It maneuvers through rock,blues,folk,country,avant-garde and beyond. An eccentric patchwork of twists and turns.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1968
Appears in:
Rank Score:
37,294
Rank in 1968:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
Ludicrous, fantastic and strange. A singular album.
Material that was both poppy and deeply out there.
An incredibly influential psychedelic album, full of surprising and inventive music. These surrealistic textures recommended to anyone with an open mind. Pink Floyd never made an album which even approached being this trippy. [First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Material that was both poppy and deeply out there.
An incredibly influential psychedelic album, full of surprising and inventive music. These surrealistic textures recommended to anyone with an open mind. Pink Floyd never made an album which even approached being this trippy. [First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
9,017
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
"Forever Changes" is built around interwoven acoustic guitar textures amidst strings and horns with subtle orchestrations, without softening the band's surreal power. An album of enduring beauty, which recognized the dark clouds looming on the era's cultural horizon. The music flows, balanced between it's narcotic textures and misleading beauty; the combination is remarkably captivating yet disquieting.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
15,379
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
A stunning debut of divine madness. It was futuristic and traditionally rooted in rock, blues, pop, and soul. Hendrix's unique mastery of the electric guitar with the astonishing rhythmic pulse of drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Noel Redding created a musical labyrinth that was a vanguard of the psychedelic sound. This is truly a period piece that stands the test of time. An essential album.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21,556
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
"Magical Mystery Tour" is a very underrated album. Opening the album is title track, an effervescent gem and “All You Need Is Love” closes things out with arguably the anthem of the Summer of Love with great songs in between. The psychedelic sound is very much in the vein of Sgt. Pepper's. Lots of orchestration, backwards cymbals, unusual instruments, with each song being unique. "Strawberry Fields Forever" edited together two completely different arrangements because John couldn't choose just one and this resulted in an incredible innovative recording. The sprawling disjointed personality of "I Am The Walrus" flows in images of words and sounds. The music you get on "Magical Mystery Tour" is pure delight.
[First added to this chart: 03/09/2012]
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
14,847
Rank in 1967:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
Don't agree with this chart? Create your own from the My Charts page!
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960 | 1 | 1% | |
| 1961 | 0 | 0% | |
| 1962 | 0 | 0% | |
| 1963 | 5 | 5% | |
| 1964 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1965 | 11 | 11% | |
| 1966 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1967 | 25 | 25% | |
| 1968 | 22 | 22% | |
| 1969 | 20 | 20% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Beatles | 12 | 12% | |
| The Beach Boys | 10 | 10% | |
| The Kinks | 7 | 7% | |
| The Rolling Stones | 4 | 4% | |
| Otis Redding | 4 | 4% | |
| Creedence Clearwater Revival | 4 | 4% | |
| The Yardbirds | 4 | 4% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 1 from 19th to 18th Help! by The Beatles |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 18th to 19th Otis Blue / Otis Redding Sings Soul by Otis Redding |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | nas062080 | 1960s decade chart | 2013 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | bruno74200 | 1960s decade chart | 2011 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  skelter54 | 1960s decade chart | 2013 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | dwils0891 | 1960s decade chart | 2012 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  JuicyJohnPink | 1960s decade chart | 2013 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | album guru joe | 1960s decade chart | 2013 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  btener11 | 1960s decade chart | 2012 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | matterhornrider | 1960s decade chart | 2025 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s |  unwound | 1960s decade chart | 2012 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | 247joelnetwork | 1960s decade chart | 2013 | |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s similarity to your chart(s)
Not a member? Registering is quick, easy and FREE!
Why register?
- Join a passionate community of over 50,000 music fans.
- Create & share your own charts.
- Have your say in the overall rankings.
- Post comments in the forums and vote on polls.
- Comment on or rate any album, artist, track or chart.
- Discover new music & improve your music collection.
- Customise the overall chart using a variety of different filters & metrics.
- Create a wishlist of albums.
- Help maintain the BEA database.
- Earn member points and gain access to increasing levels of functionality!
- ... And lots more!
Register now - it only takes a moment!
Other decade charts by ~SMiLE~
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 99 Music Albums of the 2010s | ~SMiLE~ | 2010s decade chart | 2014 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2000s | ~SMiLE~ | 2000s decade chart | 2013 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | ~SMiLE~ | 1990s decade chart | 2013 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | ~SMiLE~ | 1980s decade chart | 2013 | |
~SMiLE~ has created 4 other 1960s decade charts - click here to explore them all.
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s 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 13 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 12/31/2015 18:46 |  Applerill | 974 | 75/100 |
| ! | 12/29/2013 21:22 |  serpico | 155 | 80/100 |
| ! | 12/29/2013 15:26 | davidhuret | 56 | 85/100 |
| ! | 12/29/2013 14:47 |  tgarritsen | 375 | 86/100 |
| ! | 05/24/2013 16:56 | 5thbeatle | 216 | 74/100 |
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 12% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 87.7/100, a mean average of 88.8/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 88.9/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 10.6.
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s favourites
Showing all 2 members who have added this chart as a favourite
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s comments
Showing all 10 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Positive Sentiment First |
Longest Comments First
(Only showing comments with -2 votes or higher. You can alter this threshold from your profile page. Manage Profile)
From davidhuret 12/29/2013 15:26 | #99075
Beautiful chart.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From tgarritsen 12/29/2013 14:49 | #99071
tgarritsen 12/29/2013 14:49 | #99071
Perfect choices and great comments. Maybe too much dominated by the Beatles but I love the Beatles so you won't hear me complain.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 5thbeatle 05/24/2013 16:56 | #77019
Sweeeet chart! 42 in common with mine which is only 66 favs of the 60's
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
Mother Nature's Son 03/18/2013 13:21 | #68796
Mother Nature's Son 03/18/2013 13:21 | #68796
Very good, many surprising choices!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
RoundTheBend 01/11/2013 10:35 | #61073
RoundTheBend 01/11/2013 10:35 | #61073
wow 36 in common.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
C_Krug2009 11/06/2012 02:08 | #54357
C_Krug2009 11/06/2012 02:08 | #54357
Great choices! Especially Jefferson Airplane and Velvet Underground!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
junodog4 04/06/2012 03:33 | #39519
junodog4 04/06/2012 03:33 | #39519
Scary - it's just like mine. Hooray for Otis Redding!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From ~SMiLE~ 03/28/2012 03:03 | #39065
~SMiLE~ 03/28/2012 03:03 | #39065
Thanks ... I will have to check them out. I remember my older brother listening to "Nice" once upon a time, he was a big fan of ELP.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From TracyJacks 03/27/2012 21:14 | #39038
Very good list! Many Kinks, Floyd, Beach Boys, Beatles, Yardbirds records, very good. Thanks for putting Wonderwall by G.H., that's a cool stuff. I'd recommend the Pretty Things, the Incredible String Band, the Soft MAchine or the Nice if you haven't listened to their records yet.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From alansarchives 03/10/2012 16:38 | #38094
We have almost a quarter of our charts the same - and not the albums I was expecting either! An excellent list!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Your feedback for Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s
Let us know what you think of this chart by adding a comment or assigning a rating below!
If you enjoy our site, please consider supporting us by sparing a few seconds to disable your ad blocker.
A lot of hard work happens in the background to keep BEA running, and it's especially difficult to do this when we can't pay our hosting fees :(
We work very hard to ensure our site is as fast (and FREE!) as possible, and we respect your privacy.
A lot of hard work happens in the background to keep BEA running, and it's especially difficult to do this when we can't pay our hosting fees :(
We work very hard to ensure our site is as fast (and FREE!) as possible, and we respect your privacy.
