Top 9 Music Albums of 1964
by 
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 09/09/2026 17:15
- (Created: 04/12/2012 02:54).
- Chart size: 9 albums.
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Produced by George Martin. The first Beatles album to contain all original songs, A Hard Day's Night is the album most dominated by John Lennon. With only three McCartney tracks and one by Harrison, the rest is all John. Into his band, into being a songwriter, and cranking out classics. Paul may have peaked later on, but Lennon peaked here. For this one album, The Beatles really WERE John's band. And it was a great album. "I'll Cry Instead". "You Can't Do That". "If I Fell". John at his very best.
[First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,859
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
[First added to this chart: 12/14/2014]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
666
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
[First added to this chart: 08/14/2012]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,443
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
1964-COLUMBIA
Produced By TOM WILSON
1. All I Really Want To Do
2. Black Crow Blues
3. Spanish Harlem Incident
4. Chimes Of Freedom
5. I Shall Be Free No. 10
6. To Ramona
7. Motorpsycho Nitemare
8. My Back Pages
9. I Don’t Believe You
10. Ballad In Plain D
11. It Ain’t Me Babe
Looking back at it now, it’s kind of humorous to see how outraged Bob Dylan’s fans and the press were at his wanting to simply evolve as a musician. Dylan plugged in and went electric on his fifth album, Bringing It All Back Home, but the seeds of change were planted with the album before that. Another Side Of Bob Dylan was his last album of just him, a guitar (or piano) and folk songs, but you could hear the changes coming. The songs on Another Side are more personal, and Dylan begins taking more chances both in subject matter and with his voice. On songs like “All I Really Want To Do”, Dylan sounds downright gleeful and ranges into a falsetto that would stun critics who have sworn for years that he cannot sing. And while it is still technically a folk album, the changes in attitude, songwriting and overall feeling suggest that this is really the first Dylan rock album.
Several classics are pulled from this album. “Spanish Harlem Incident”, “Chimes Of Freedom”, “My Back Pages” and “It Ain’t Me Babe” all rank among Dylan’s most respected (and most covered) songs. He pulls out a piano for “Black Crow Blues”. And clearly, this was the album that The Byrds were most inspired by, as they covered four songs along with reworking a recording they had heard of the outtake “Mr. Tambourine Man”. And although Dylan himself has said that he is not thoroughly pleased with this record, it does stand as an important step in his evolution into what he ultimately became. Critics be damned…had Bob Dylan not changed in these critical mid 1960’s years, we would have missed out on a lot of great music, and on a lot of the evolution of rock music itself. And it all starts right here…you just can’t definitively hear it yet. An important and entertaining album. [First added to this chart: 07/25/2012]
Produced By TOM WILSON
1. All I Really Want To Do
2. Black Crow Blues
3. Spanish Harlem Incident
4. Chimes Of Freedom
5. I Shall Be Free No. 10
6. To Ramona
7. Motorpsycho Nitemare
8. My Back Pages
9. I Don’t Believe You
10. Ballad In Plain D
11. It Ain’t Me Babe
Looking back at it now, it’s kind of humorous to see how outraged Bob Dylan’s fans and the press were at his wanting to simply evolve as a musician. Dylan plugged in and went electric on his fifth album, Bringing It All Back Home, but the seeds of change were planted with the album before that. Another Side Of Bob Dylan was his last album of just him, a guitar (or piano) and folk songs, but you could hear the changes coming. The songs on Another Side are more personal, and Dylan begins taking more chances both in subject matter and with his voice. On songs like “All I Really Want To Do”, Dylan sounds downright gleeful and ranges into a falsetto that would stun critics who have sworn for years that he cannot sing. And while it is still technically a folk album, the changes in attitude, songwriting and overall feeling suggest that this is really the first Dylan rock album.
Several classics are pulled from this album. “Spanish Harlem Incident”, “Chimes Of Freedom”, “My Back Pages” and “It Ain’t Me Babe” all rank among Dylan’s most respected (and most covered) songs. He pulls out a piano for “Black Crow Blues”. And clearly, this was the album that The Byrds were most inspired by, as they covered four songs along with reworking a recording they had heard of the outtake “Mr. Tambourine Man”. And although Dylan himself has said that he is not thoroughly pleased with this record, it does stand as an important step in his evolution into what he ultimately became. Critics be damned…had Bob Dylan not changed in these critical mid 1960’s years, we would have missed out on a lot of great music, and on a lot of the evolution of rock music itself. And it all starts right here…you just can’t definitively hear it yet. An important and entertaining album. [First added to this chart: 07/25/2012]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,998
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
1964 – ATCO
Produced By JIM STEWART
1. Pain In My Heart
2. The Dog
3. Stand By Me
4. Hey Hey Baby
5. You Send Me
6. I Need Your Lovin’
7. These Arms Of Mine
8. Louie Louie
9. Something Is Worrying Me
10. Security
11. That’s What My Heart Needs
12. Lucille
Otis Redding was not a Motown artist. In fact, he was the absolute alternative to the wall of sound production and string laden cleanliness of Detroit music. Redding came from Memphis, and his albums were more gospel and blues oriented, with horns over strings. He sounded, at times, like a calmer version of Little Richard (who he had worked for early in his career), and he was the master of expressing pain in his music. He was artistic, and he was prolific: between this, his 1964 debut and 1967, he put out six studio albums, each one showing growth and increasing maturity. Pain In My Heart, his debut, had been recorded in 1962 and 1963, and started Redding’s career off with a bang. “These Arms Of Mine” was from 1962, and was the song that got Redding signed. The title track was also a hit for him, jump starting his early career and helping the album cross over to white audiences.
The first half is mostly covers, except for the Little Richard soundalike Redding composition “Hey Hey Baby”. He takes on Rufus Thomas (“The Dog”), Ben E. King (“Stand By Me”), and Sam Cooke (You Send Me”). The second half is where Redding shines. He covers “Louie Louie” and Richard’s “Lucille”, but the rest are his own, including “These Arms Of Mine” and the excellent “Security”. This album is not Otis Redding’s best, but it’s a great place to start. It’s the building block for his greatest albums, including the amazing Otis Blue. Redding was killed in a plane crash in late 1967, just three days after recording the song “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay”. His legacy is that of one of the greatest soul singers we have ever heard. Pain In My Heart has flaws, but it also has one undeniably great ingredient…the voice of the great Otis Redding. [First added to this chart: 04/06/2018]
Produced By JIM STEWART
1. Pain In My Heart
2. The Dog
3. Stand By Me
4. Hey Hey Baby
5. You Send Me
6. I Need Your Lovin’
7. These Arms Of Mine
8. Louie Louie
9. Something Is Worrying Me
10. Security
11. That’s What My Heart Needs
12. Lucille
Otis Redding was not a Motown artist. In fact, he was the absolute alternative to the wall of sound production and string laden cleanliness of Detroit music. Redding came from Memphis, and his albums were more gospel and blues oriented, with horns over strings. He sounded, at times, like a calmer version of Little Richard (who he had worked for early in his career), and he was the master of expressing pain in his music. He was artistic, and he was prolific: between this, his 1964 debut and 1967, he put out six studio albums, each one showing growth and increasing maturity. Pain In My Heart, his debut, had been recorded in 1962 and 1963, and started Redding’s career off with a bang. “These Arms Of Mine” was from 1962, and was the song that got Redding signed. The title track was also a hit for him, jump starting his early career and helping the album cross over to white audiences.
The first half is mostly covers, except for the Little Richard soundalike Redding composition “Hey Hey Baby”. He takes on Rufus Thomas (“The Dog”), Ben E. King (“Stand By Me”), and Sam Cooke (You Send Me”). The second half is where Redding shines. He covers “Louie Louie” and Richard’s “Lucille”, but the rest are his own, including “These Arms Of Mine” and the excellent “Security”. This album is not Otis Redding’s best, but it’s a great place to start. It’s the building block for his greatest albums, including the amazing Otis Blue. Redding was killed in a plane crash in late 1967, just three days after recording the song “(Sittin’ On) The Dock Of The Bay”. His legacy is that of one of the greatest soul singers we have ever heard. Pain In My Heart has flaws, but it also has one undeniably great ingredient…the voice of the great Otis Redding. [First added to this chart: 04/06/2018]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
458
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
1964 – COLUMBIA
Produced By TOM WILSON
1. The Times They Are A-Changin’
2. Ballad Of Hollis Brown
3. With God On Our Side
4. One Too Many Mornings
5. North Country Blues
6. Only A Pawn In Their Game
7. Boots Of Spanish Leather
8. When The Ship Comes In
9. The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll
10. Restless Farewell
Bob Dylan just kept on breaking new ground. His first two albums were mixes of originals and cover songs…The Times They Are A-Changin’, his third, was all Dylan songs, to go along with the music being played by only Bob Dylan. While it lacks the diversity and humor of the previous records, this is Dylan at his political and topical best, and is captures the political atmosphere of the decade better than maybe any other album. The title track itself is maybe the most important description of the sixties ever recorded. But that’s not all that’s important here. This album contains several tracks that helped define Dylan’s legend, and is central to his legendary folk singer years. His writing is sharp, as is his playing. His singing is as good as any of his earlier records.
He was a songwriting machine at this time. “With God On Our Side”, “Boots Of Spanish Leather” and “When The Ship Comes In” are just such great examples of how fully matured a writer he already was, and point towards even greater tracks. It was regarded at the time as being the lesser of his first three efforts, but today, it’s marvel that showcases everything great about the man. Like so many of his recordings from the sixties, it’s a pure classic album, brimming with perfection and excellence that musicians to this day are still trying to match. All of Bob Dylan’s early albums are essential, and this one is no exception. In less than a year, he would begin bringing electric instruments into his music, but this was Dylan still at his acoustic best. [First added to this chart: 02/07/2022]
Produced By TOM WILSON
1. The Times They Are A-Changin’
2. Ballad Of Hollis Brown
3. With God On Our Side
4. One Too Many Mornings
5. North Country Blues
6. Only A Pawn In Their Game
7. Boots Of Spanish Leather
8. When The Ship Comes In
9. The Lonesome Death Of Hattie Carroll
10. Restless Farewell
Bob Dylan just kept on breaking new ground. His first two albums were mixes of originals and cover songs…The Times They Are A-Changin’, his third, was all Dylan songs, to go along with the music being played by only Bob Dylan. While it lacks the diversity and humor of the previous records, this is Dylan at his political and topical best, and is captures the political atmosphere of the decade better than maybe any other album. The title track itself is maybe the most important description of the sixties ever recorded. But that’s not all that’s important here. This album contains several tracks that helped define Dylan’s legend, and is central to his legendary folk singer years. His writing is sharp, as is his playing. His singing is as good as any of his earlier records.
He was a songwriting machine at this time. “With God On Our Side”, “Boots Of Spanish Leather” and “When The Ship Comes In” are just such great examples of how fully matured a writer he already was, and point towards even greater tracks. It was regarded at the time as being the lesser of his first three efforts, but today, it’s marvel that showcases everything great about the man. Like so many of his recordings from the sixties, it’s a pure classic album, brimming with perfection and excellence that musicians to this day are still trying to match. All of Bob Dylan’s early albums are essential, and this one is no exception. In less than a year, he would begin bringing electric instruments into his music, but this was Dylan still at his acoustic best. [First added to this chart: 02/07/2022]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,381
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
[First added to this chart: 09/02/2012]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
579
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
[First added to this chart: 05/02/2020]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,927
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Available from
[First added to this chart: 01/19/2023]
Total albums: 9. Page 1 of 1
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Top 9 Music Albums of 1964 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Beatles | 2 | 22% | |
| Bob Dylan | 2 | 22% | |
| Otis Redding | 1 | 11% | |
| The Rolling Stones | 1 | 11% | |
| Eric Dolphy | 1 | 11% | |
| Frank Sinatra | 1 | 11% | |
| The Animals | 1 | 11% |
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