Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by Kurtco

Honorable mentions:
- Arcade Fire - Funeral
- The Beatles - Abbey Road
- Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
- Bob Marley & The Wailers - Exodus
- Burial - Untrue
- CAN - Ege Bamyasi
- Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band - Trout Mask Replica
- Charles Mingus - The Black Saint And The Skinner Lady
- David Bowie - Low
- Dr. Dre - The Chronic
- Eminem - The Marshall Mathers LP
- Eric B. & Rakim - Paid In Full
- Frank Ocean - Blonde
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced ?
- Kanye West - My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
- Kany West & Kid Cudi - Kids See Ghosts
- Kendrick Lamar - Good Kid, m.A.A.d City
- Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV
- Miles Davis - In A Silent Way
- Nirvana - Nevermind
- Pink Floyd - Animals
- Portishead - Dummy
- Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
- Tyler, The Creator - Flower Boy
- The Who - Who's Next ?

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Rock, Singer-Songwriter

In 1985, Tom Waits released "Rain Dogs". The album is unclassifiable: it is both jazzy and rock. This album offers us 19 short titles assembled strangely. I'm a big fan of Tom Waits: his music is weird but really interesting. His voice is extremely special and creates a reel universe around his music. This album is a real musical experience to live at least once in this life. The guitarist Keith Richards is present on some songs of the album. "Rain Dogs" is one of my favorite albums of the 80s, it is really excellent and creative.

10/10

Best track: "Time"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
13,195
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Lo-fi, Indie Folk, Psychedelic Folk

Microphones is an extraordinary band led by the genius Phil Elvrum who works on the experimentation in the lo-fi music. The very special art of Phil Elvrum and his band reaches its peak on this album of 2001. The sonic research started on "It Was Hot We Stayed in the Water" here reach an impressive maturity. It is nevertheless a matter of pure lo-fi but of so sophisticated lo-fi that one has to listen to it with the headphones to appreciate all the complexity. We must not believe that we are here in pure sound of experimentation. "The Glow, Pt. 2" is above all an "indie-pop" album full of shattering songs of simplicity and sincerity. It is clear that Phil Elvrum wanted to make a "complete" album: at once conceptual, experimental, melodic, modest and ambitious. Clearly one of the best independent rock albums of all time.

10/10

Best track: "The Glow, Pt. 2"
[First added to this chart: 02/10/2019]
Year of Release:
2001
Appears in:
Rank Score:
8,562
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Hip-Hop

After "GKMC" everyone thought that Kendrick had released his "Illmatic" and that he would start to decline. But, on the contrary, with TPAB, Kendrick has just established itself as the best rapper of the decade. Lamar proposes a work as much political as musical. The music serving the purpose beautifully. Besides, it's reassuring to see that some commercial albums with a big success can still be well written. Kendrick's collaborators include Flying Lotus, who, along with Thundercat, signs "Wesley's Theory", an excellent piece to launch "To Pimp A Butterfly". The best tracks of the album are: "King Kunta", "These Walls", "The Blacker The Berry" and "I". But the best in my opinion is "U" which is really very original and is one of my favorite songs of all time. This album is innovative for hip-hop and for music in general. Kendrick is now one of my favorite rappers of all time and TPAB is surely the best rap album of the decade.

10/10

Best track: "U"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
2015
Appears in:
Rank Score:
37,326
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Shoegaze, Noise Pop

I am a child of the 90s so of course many of my favorite albums come from these years. Im an Hip-hop lover, I discovered rock by band of alternative rock of my generation such as RATM, Pixies, Nirvana, Radiohead but also the Icelandic band My Bloody Valentine. "Loveless" is Shoegaze's most important, most essential album for any shoegazer purist. This album mixes perfectly noise (chaotic guitar) and melody (chilling and cold). The virtuosity of the sound, the textures, the melodies, the rhythmic structures make this album a timeless classic. It is also the battle of the organic against the machine, of the sensuality even of the sexuality represented by the duo of Shields - Butcher singers, against the impassive coldness of the waves. "Loveless" is an album difficult to access but remains one of the most important record in the history of Rock. This album marked my adolescence.

10/10

Best track: "When You Sleep"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
1991
Appears in:
Rank Score:
33,962
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Art Pop, Electronic, Progressive Pop

I am a big fan of Icelandic music and Björk is for me the perfect pop artist. "Vespertine" marks once again an evolution in the music of the artist, the album is cold and yet so warm, the beauty is at its peak! Björk writes with "Vespertine" his own fairy tale. It is not about poverty but about an album that aims on the contrary homogeneity, where Homogenic paradoxically spread on an extremely varied musical panel. This homogeneity is a richness, Vespertine listening as a story for children. Often the choirs carry the melody to peaks of emotion, it's magic. This is a wonderful album, magical and moving, which differs from the Icelandic discography by its extremely bright side. "Vespertine" is, for me, Björk's best album.
 
10/10

Best track: "Pagan Poetry"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
2001
Appears in:
Rank Score:
9,611
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Post-Rock

I discovered Godspeed not long ago and it's one of the biggest slap I've had in recent years. The third opus of the uncompromising Canadians is a marvel. On a double album and in four tracks, they compiled all the songs played on stage the past year and a half, interspersed with sound collages. The first track, "Storm", begins as dissonant Wagner, and evolves to Sonic Youth, before ending on scary piano notes. On the second track, after the magnificent violin solo of "Chord # 3", we find the incredible "World Police And Friendly Fire", one of the most impressive musical climbs in the history of rock. Later, on "Mohneim", a saturated violin makes the race with a dynamic rhythm, creating the most epic piece of the band. The fourth track, closer to concrete experiments, is just great and underrated. If the useless term 'post-rock' was to serve something, it would surely qualify this record, located light years away from the production of past productions and current productions. The band composed of 3 guitars, a bass, a violin, a cello and two drummers ensures the feeding of our brains for a very long time.

10/10

Best track: "Storm"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
2000
Appears in:
Rank Score:
14,885
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Progressive Rock, Art Rock

I was not born in the 60s and 70s, but I agree that "In The Court Of The Crimson King" is an excellent masterpiece despite the poor recording quality of the album. King Crimson is above all Robert Fripp, a hacker sounds, a genius who will constantly question the structure of his group and its musical orientations. With this disc, it is a genre in its own right that will dazzle the musical world of the 70s: the progressive rock. "In The Court Of The Crimson King" is one of those masterpieces that have brought music to life and made a lasting impression. Each of the songs in this album is an entity in its own right, and the whole thing is beautiful. The first track, "21st Century Schizoid Man", is violent, fast and overbearing, the second, "I talk to the wind", is a sublime, light and poetic ballad, the third, "Epitaph", is dark and beautiful, the fourth "Moonchild" is lyrical, dreamlike and mysterious, and the last, "In The Court Of The Crimson King, gloriously completes this album which will remain engraved in history, the great History, whether we like it or not .
 
10/10

Best track: "Epitath"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
31,852
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Comments:
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Alternative Rock

We are in 1992 when "Henry's Dream" - Nick Cave's seventh album - is born. Two years after "The Good Son", on which the Australian singer seemed soothed and in love, "Henry's Dream" arrives as its exact opposite: violent, visceral, black and particularly Rock 'n' Roll. Nick Cave is for me one of the best artists of all time. Henry's Dream is one of the few Bad Seeds albums that divide so much. The band itself rejects it - clearly showing their disagreement with a production they do not take and even remix a part of it - while the fans love it. Remains a major disc in the discography of the group, marking by its titles and the atmosphere that emerges. Personally, this album is my favorite Bad Seeds. Obviously this is not their absolute masterpiece such as "The Boatman's Call", "Blues Slaughterhouse / The Lyre of Orpheus", "Dig, Lazarus, Dig !!!" or "The Good Son". But this album will remain forever in the history of music and in the heart of the Bad Seeds fan.

10/10

Best track: "Straight To You"
[First added to this chart: 02/10/2019]
Year of Release:
1992
Appears in:
Rank Score:
992
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Post-Rock

I am a big fan of Icelandic music, especially drone and post-rock music by Sigur Rós. "Agætis byrjun" translates to "A good start" or "A new start". And this album is really an excellent debut album. This music, which evokes a Joy Division produced by Arvo Pärt, does not know on Earth any worthy listener. From the outset, it is of course this voice that terrace, destabilizes. We say that this voice can only be natural, born of a secret pact with elves. Church organ with psychedelism, guitars in bursts, martial rhythm: the dynamics of these songs is really staggering, this music reminds us of the peaceful plain of Snæefellsjökull at the jagged volcanic heights of Hvannadalshnjúkur. An ability to take everything away rarely crossed in recent years? only Radiohead, Buckley, Spiritualized or My Bloody Valentine have been able to answer calls to disobey their guitars. In these songs, one quickly realizes that the symphonic is siphoned, that the lyricism becomes, released in the hostile nature of Iceland, a wild beast.

10/10

Best track: "Svefn-G-Englar"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
1999
Appears in:
Rank Score:
17,325
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Hip-Hop

Beastie Boys are one of my favorite band (All genre confused). Despite being a commercial failure at the time, "Paul's Boutique" is the best album of the Beasties.
Absolute masterpiece, production model, deluge of samples, the album is an indisputable reference to rock culture composed of archive samples and that's why I love it. Each title of "Paul's Boutique" is extremely punchy with dynamic beats and cult hip-hop vocals. The Beastie Boys confirm, with "Paul's Boutique", a style of their own, mix of rap and rock, particularly inventive. Over time, this album has truly transformed into an absolute reference of the rap of the eighties, far from calibrated, formatted and standardized rap. It remains, after more than a quarter of a century, a unifying album, audacious, effective, completely unclassifiable and really essential for the music.

10/10

Best track: "Shake Your Rump"
[First added to this chart: 01/21/2019]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,250
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Total albums: 100. Page 3 of 10

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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition

Decade Albums %


1930s 0 0%
1940s 0 0%
1950s 1 1%
1960s 16 16%
1970s 24 24%
1980s 13 13%
1990s 25 25%
2000s 14 14%
2010s 7 7%
2020s 0 0%
Artist Albums %


Bob Dylan 3 3%
Radiohead 3 3%
Pink Floyd 2 2%
Ween 2 2%
Björk 2 2%
The Beatles 2 2%
David Bowie 2 2%
Show all
Country Albums %


United States 53 53%
United Kingdom 27 27%
Australia 4 4%
Mixed Nationality 4 4%
Canada 3 3%
Iceland 3 3%
Germany 2 2%
Show all
Live? Albums %
No 99 99%
Yes 1 1%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 99 99%
Yes 1 1%

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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings

Average Rating: 
92/100 (from 24 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
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n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
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11/07/2022 09:48 ForegroundNoise  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 47587/100
 
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07/13/2022 22:09 Applerill  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 97675/100
 
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11/23/2021 12:58 Cytoma  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 17190/100
 
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06/29/2020 15:01 Larcx13  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,07286/100
 
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02/01/2020 17:20 LedZep  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,07784/100

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).
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This chart is rated in the top 1% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 91.6/100, a mean average of 94.0/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 94.0/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 6.9.

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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments

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Rating:  
100/100
From 11/07/2022 09:49
This chart is perfectly presented, especially for the first 30 entries. It's clear how deeply you adore these albums and your enthusiasm is infectious. Looks like you haven't touched this in a few years, would love to see how your opinion on these records has changed since 2019!
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Rating:  
100/100
From 06/29/2020 15:01
Amazing list!!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 06/24/2019 17:21
Great chart, thoughtful comments.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 06/16/2019 22:52
Detailed, original, and interesting picks, great taste in music, this chart is perfect!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 06/16/2019 22:16
I like your chart. Love people finding Ziggy saw impressive so long after its release and glad that it isn't just a moment in time. Just found RATM recently and it blew me away.
Finish off your comments
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Rating:  
100/100
From 03/17/2019 08:30
Why. Have. I. Not. Discovered. This. Classy. Ass. Chart. Until. Now???
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 03/03/2019 22:53
Undeniably a great, classic chart! Maybe add one album that is a bit more out of left field and personal ;)
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 02/22/2019 14:14
We have similar tastes. really like the variety...great chart.
I am surprised that everyone still appreciate the "velvet underground and nico" album.. That came out when I was in 7th grade..so great. never gets old. Came out during the 'summer of love' with 'are you experienced" (may 31st), "sgt pepper"(june 1st) and "surrealistic pillow". amazing
summer for music. and then there was all of the singles being released on AM radio..every day was something new. I can't explain it..I was lucky to have been a kid then.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 02/09/2019 18:17
Amazing top 10, even if I'd keep the same artist and swap another album of theirs. Well balanced and fine choices. 29 artists in common.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
85/100
From 01/27/2019 08:58
This strikes me as a very well thought out objective Greatest Albums chart. You have found 3 albums outside the top 500 on this site and all of those three are inside the top 1000. Do you have some less acclaimed favourites that you believe warrant being in the company of some of these classics? I reckon music appreciation is largely a subjective experience. The objective stuff is important in assessing the best of the best, of course, but surely you have more outliers beyond the top 500 that warrant a call out.

Nonetheless I agree with many of your choices. It’s good to see you have an appreciation for the Icelandic beauty of Sigur Ros and Björk amongst the acclaimed classics.
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Best Ever Artists
1. The Beatles
2. Radiohead
3. Pink Floyd
4. David Bowie
5. Bob Dylan
6. Led Zeppelin
7. The Rolling Stones
8. Arcade Fire
9. The Velvet Underground
10. Kendrick Lamar
11. Nirvana
12. Neil Young
13. The Smiths
14. Miles Davis
15. The Beach Boys
16. Kanye West
17. Pixies
18. R.E.M.
19. Jimi Hendrix
20. Bruce Springsteen
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