Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
DriftingOrpheus 
Subject to change (often). These are my personal favorite records...not necessarily a reflection of an objective musical hierarchy. (Wow. These write-ups have grown like weeds, particularly as you descend through the list. Only the slightest bit proud. 😌)
- Chart updated: 04/09/2024 04:15
- (Created: 04/25/2020 20:18).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
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Film director Todd Haynes once made a wonderful film entitled I'm Not There (2007). In it, a fabled troubadour, storyteller, prophet, father, icon and outlaw all follow an intersecting, snaking path of existence. They all went by the name of Bob Dylan. "A song is something that walks by itself" said the poet. Todd Haynes knew there was no single way to personify music's resident Shakespeare, but this album may be the finest summation of the man himself.
Laying out themes of love, loss, ambition, desolation, desire and drug use, all of which could apply to Dylan during his finest creative years, Blonde on Blonde serves as the magnum opus for one of music's finest artists. He's never been more cheeky than with Rainy Day Women #12 and #35. He's never been more bashfully in love than with I Want You and he's never been more appreciative than with Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands. Dylan never more clearly presented his thoughts through music and we have the LP to prove it.
A stunning collection of emotional highs and lows, one can't help but marvel at Dylan's wordplay and pension for lyrical brainstorm. Through all this, Dylan stayed tight-lipped while contemporaries such as the Fab Four themselves gawked at his greatness. The bard stayed playfully humble or ostentatiously coy for the entire duration. I suppose the truth comes down to how you view the man, or maybe more astutely, his music.
"Mona tried to tell me
To stay away from the train line
She said that all the railroad men
Just drink up your blood like wine
An' I said, "Oh, I didn't know that
But then again, there's only one I've met
An' he just smoked my eyelids
An' punched my cigarette"
- Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
Standout Tracks:
1. I Want You
2. Just Like a Woman
3. One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)
101.5 [First added to this chart: 04/26/2020]
Laying out themes of love, loss, ambition, desolation, desire and drug use, all of which could apply to Dylan during his finest creative years, Blonde on Blonde serves as the magnum opus for one of music's finest artists. He's never been more cheeky than with Rainy Day Women #12 and #35. He's never been more bashfully in love than with I Want You and he's never been more appreciative than with Sad-Eyed Lady of the Lowlands. Dylan never more clearly presented his thoughts through music and we have the LP to prove it.
A stunning collection of emotional highs and lows, one can't help but marvel at Dylan's wordplay and pension for lyrical brainstorm. Through all this, Dylan stayed tight-lipped while contemporaries such as the Fab Four themselves gawked at his greatness. The bard stayed playfully humble or ostentatiously coy for the entire duration. I suppose the truth comes down to how you view the man, or maybe more astutely, his music.
"Mona tried to tell me
To stay away from the train line
She said that all the railroad men
Just drink up your blood like wine
An' I said, "Oh, I didn't know that
But then again, there's only one I've met
An' he just smoked my eyelids
An' punched my cigarette"
- Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again
Standout Tracks:
1. I Want You
2. Just Like a Woman
3. One of Us Must Know (Sooner or Later)
101.5 [First added to this chart: 04/26/2020]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
27,801
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
173
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Bringing It All Back Home is often the odd one out when discussing Bob Dylan's legendary mid-1960's output. However, in the dead heat that ensues between Dylan's 1965 duo of albums, Bringing It All Back Home rings true most often. Yes, this is the much criticized moment when the folk icon developed a penchant for the electric guitar. Yet, we all know that revisionist history has now championed that decision, allowing Dylan to bloom into a multi-dimensional artist. He always claimed to had never written a protest song, likely to avoid the burden of a crown that would signify him as a social justice figurehead, but the tracks here echo sentiments of transcendentalism that leave behind the creative shackles that topical music left on him. Soon, staunch Dylan devotees refrained from professing, "This is a cause I can get behind". They now asked, with palms upturned, "What the hell is this man talking about?".
The thematic tonal shift is a far more interesting component than the well-publicized musical one. It created a chasm of occupiable space for interpretation, alchemizing Dylan into a philosopher instead of a prognosticator. It's no coincidence that his most lyrically lauded period runs parallel to the release of this record. Passages like, "And take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind, down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves, the haunted frightened trees, out to the windy beach, far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow", epitomize the ethereal nature on the treatises found on the album. Dylan, self-effacing as ever, regarded Mr. Tambourine Man as a simple number about a man with a tambourine. I'm inclined to agree with him, to a point. Somber track Love Minus Zero/No Limit touches on the complexion of unshakable true love and how it eludes scientific quantification. The insight and metaphorical precision preserved within the song implore suspicions of Dylan himself having visited Heaven in a past life. Finally, the formless, chorusless Subterranean Homesick Blues rattles on like a railroad car with a cargo full of organized confusion. All the while, Dylan notes that the "Pump don't work cause the vandals took the handles".
The track She Belongs to Me recounts a woman so lovely that she defies the very possibility of diminution. "She never stumbles, she's got no place to fall," he sings. Dylan's stream of consciousness approach to Bringing It All Back Home showcases an artist no longer concerned with those who desire to sociologically dissect his verses, rendering his music immune to debilitation. This is really the highest form of artistic nirvana. Not referring to the elitist worldview that refuses constructive criticism and indigenous thought, but rather the creative freedom to create work not clouded by the trepidation of condemnation. Many may not identify with Dylan's spacey, allegorical forays, which is more than admissible. What can't be rebuked, is the consummate method in which he internalizes his deepest thoughts and rearranges them in a manner so polished, an enviable trade coming from a fellow writer. That particular skill, unlike mastery of an instrument, can't be taught. You simply have to be born with it.
"My love she speaks like silence
Without ideals or violence
She doesn't have to say she's faithful
Yet she's true, like ice, like fire"
-Love Minus Zero/No Limit
Standout Tracks:
1. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
2. Mr. Tambourine Man
3. Bob Dylan's 115th Dream
95.3 [First added to this chart: 04/26/2020]
The thematic tonal shift is a far more interesting component than the well-publicized musical one. It created a chasm of occupiable space for interpretation, alchemizing Dylan into a philosopher instead of a prognosticator. It's no coincidence that his most lyrically lauded period runs parallel to the release of this record. Passages like, "And take me disappearing through the smoke rings of my mind, down the foggy ruins of time, far past the frozen leaves, the haunted frightened trees, out to the windy beach, far from the twisted reach of crazy sorrow", epitomize the ethereal nature on the treatises found on the album. Dylan, self-effacing as ever, regarded Mr. Tambourine Man as a simple number about a man with a tambourine. I'm inclined to agree with him, to a point. Somber track Love Minus Zero/No Limit touches on the complexion of unshakable true love and how it eludes scientific quantification. The insight and metaphorical precision preserved within the song implore suspicions of Dylan himself having visited Heaven in a past life. Finally, the formless, chorusless Subterranean Homesick Blues rattles on like a railroad car with a cargo full of organized confusion. All the while, Dylan notes that the "Pump don't work cause the vandals took the handles".
The track She Belongs to Me recounts a woman so lovely that she defies the very possibility of diminution. "She never stumbles, she's got no place to fall," he sings. Dylan's stream of consciousness approach to Bringing It All Back Home showcases an artist no longer concerned with those who desire to sociologically dissect his verses, rendering his music immune to debilitation. This is really the highest form of artistic nirvana. Not referring to the elitist worldview that refuses constructive criticism and indigenous thought, but rather the creative freedom to create work not clouded by the trepidation of condemnation. Many may not identify with Dylan's spacey, allegorical forays, which is more than admissible. What can't be rebuked, is the consummate method in which he internalizes his deepest thoughts and rearranges them in a manner so polished, an enviable trade coming from a fellow writer. That particular skill, unlike mastery of an instrument, can't be taught. You simply have to be born with it.
"My love she speaks like silence
Without ideals or violence
She doesn't have to say she's faithful
Yet she's true, like ice, like fire"
-Love Minus Zero/No Limit
Standout Tracks:
1. Love Minus Zero/No Limit
2. Mr. Tambourine Man
3. Bob Dylan's 115th Dream
95.3 [First added to this chart: 04/26/2020]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
13,376
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
Bob Dylan's 1965 output could account for what is possibly the finest calendar year any artist has ever experienced. His catalogue now brandishes two landmark records that elevated him from folk-raconteur royal to undefinable social enigma. Dylan's ability to rhapsodize was already at such an advanced level prior to these releases that advancement to his songwriting would just brand his ability as an embarrassment of riches. An exceptional place to window-shop for those riches would be Highway 61 Revisited. Kicking off the album with a well-documented contender for finest track ever recorded and closing it with one of Dylan's most labyrinthian, heart-rending lyrical voyages, the album boasts one of the most cherished collection of tunes in the discography.
Like a Rolling Stone's jangly electric guitar, amalgamated with Dylan's hypnotizing harmonica, ooze a vivid sensation of perpetual motion, both sonically and thematically. Seemingly quasi-reflectory of Dylan's decision to head in a different auditory direction but also a stern statement on his abnegation at the prospect of staying stagnant in a creative sense as well as a philosophical one. It's clear he didn't want to focus on sociological objection any further, trading in his picket sign for a collection of metaphysical and mythological texts. Now, less Woody Guthrie and more Friedrich Nietzsche, Dylan's work seems somehow more focused but less categorical, as if such a thing was even possible. During Ballad of a Thin Man, the character of 'Mr. Jones' is taken apart piece by piece. Speculation of the persona in question is often believed to be a real-life journalist determined to peel back Dylan's characteristic layers and inspirations. The enigmatic nature of the track and its scathing lyrical dissection have left the truth still uncovered. Lines such as, "Aw, you've been with the professors and they've all liked your looks, With great lawyers you have discussed lepers and crooks, You've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books, You are very well read, It's well known" seem to point to a learned individual trying to validate his judgements by flourishing his academic excursions. It's likely the most hazy track on the LP, but it may have the most to say bubbling under the surface.
The album ends with ten minute soul excursion, Desolation Row, a locale reserved for the downtrodden and those down on their luck. Often seen as a reflection of the turbulent state of the nation at the time, however, given Dylan's newfound disposition to avoid current affairs, it's very possible it could just be a fictional tale of woe. Regardless, the song burrows its way into the company of his most impressive artistic statements. The depressionist atmosphere on the track is typified by the line, "Cinderella, she seems so easy, "It takes one to know one, " she smiles, And puts her hands in her back pockets, Bette Davis style, And in comes Romeo, he's moaning. "You Belong to Me I Believe", And someone says, "You're in the wrong place, my friend, you'd better leave". The exclusively acoustic track conveys that Dylan's poetry is unaltered by the musical manner in which he chooses to propel it, rather, it just provides him with more sonic flexibility.
Highway 61 Revisited is routinely touted as Bob Dylan's crowning achievement. Released at a such chaotic chapter in his career, the record features angst, sorrow and beauty in equal measure. Certainly more musically polished than his previous work but simultaneously less tangible. 1965 was a year of immense evolution for the bard from Minnesota and he left two gargantuan records in his wake. Highway 61 Revisited is repeatedly used as the entry point for listeners to start enjoying Dylan and it's likely the sound that is most identifiable when people think of music's poet laureate.
"The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly
Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry"
And, dropping a barbell, he points to the sky
Saying, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken"
-Tombstone Blues
Standout Tracks:
1. Like a Rolling Stone
2. Desolation Row
3. Tombstone Blues
94.8 [First added to this chart: 04/26/2020]
Like a Rolling Stone's jangly electric guitar, amalgamated with Dylan's hypnotizing harmonica, ooze a vivid sensation of perpetual motion, both sonically and thematically. Seemingly quasi-reflectory of Dylan's decision to head in a different auditory direction but also a stern statement on his abnegation at the prospect of staying stagnant in a creative sense as well as a philosophical one. It's clear he didn't want to focus on sociological objection any further, trading in his picket sign for a collection of metaphysical and mythological texts. Now, less Woody Guthrie and more Friedrich Nietzsche, Dylan's work seems somehow more focused but less categorical, as if such a thing was even possible. During Ballad of a Thin Man, the character of 'Mr. Jones' is taken apart piece by piece. Speculation of the persona in question is often believed to be a real-life journalist determined to peel back Dylan's characteristic layers and inspirations. The enigmatic nature of the track and its scathing lyrical dissection have left the truth still uncovered. Lines such as, "Aw, you've been with the professors and they've all liked your looks, With great lawyers you have discussed lepers and crooks, You've been through all of F. Scott Fitzgerald's books, You are very well read, It's well known" seem to point to a learned individual trying to validate his judgements by flourishing his academic excursions. It's likely the most hazy track on the LP, but it may have the most to say bubbling under the surface.
The album ends with ten minute soul excursion, Desolation Row, a locale reserved for the downtrodden and those down on their luck. Often seen as a reflection of the turbulent state of the nation at the time, however, given Dylan's newfound disposition to avoid current affairs, it's very possible it could just be a fictional tale of woe. Regardless, the song burrows its way into the company of his most impressive artistic statements. The depressionist atmosphere on the track is typified by the line, "Cinderella, she seems so easy, "It takes one to know one, " she smiles, And puts her hands in her back pockets, Bette Davis style, And in comes Romeo, he's moaning. "You Belong to Me I Believe", And someone says, "You're in the wrong place, my friend, you'd better leave". The exclusively acoustic track conveys that Dylan's poetry is unaltered by the musical manner in which he chooses to propel it, rather, it just provides him with more sonic flexibility.
Highway 61 Revisited is routinely touted as Bob Dylan's crowning achievement. Released at a such chaotic chapter in his career, the record features angst, sorrow and beauty in equal measure. Certainly more musically polished than his previous work but simultaneously less tangible. 1965 was a year of immense evolution for the bard from Minnesota and he left two gargantuan records in his wake. Highway 61 Revisited is repeatedly used as the entry point for listeners to start enjoying Dylan and it's likely the sound that is most identifiable when people think of music's poet laureate.
"The Commander-in-Chief answers him while chasing a fly
Saying, "Death to all those who would whimper and cry"
And, dropping a barbell, he points to the sky
Saying, "The sun's not yellow, it's chicken"
-Tombstone Blues
Standout Tracks:
1. Like a Rolling Stone
2. Desolation Row
3. Tombstone Blues
94.8 [First added to this chart: 04/26/2020]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
31,075
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
The rhetoric around 1966's Pet Sounds tends to be reduced to white noise these days due to the sheer volume that it embodies. Brian Wilson's first pet project gets praised to the heavens long before he attempted his hand at a teenage symphony to God. However, it would be dishonest to champion the unbridled success that Pet Sounds is without applauding the contributions of Wilson's fellow Beach Boys, whose creative input and vocal dexterity helped shaped the spine of the record. Yes, Pet Sounds is and remains a supermassive footprint in the annals of popular music that remains uneroded by the passage of time. However, for me, a self-diagnosed diehard of a group that presently gets reduced to karaoke duty on seniors night at the local tavern (which is shame considering the remarkable legacy of The Beach Boys), the album represents something far different. It's a vivid snapshot of an ensemble that was firing on all cylinders, with (nearly) all of the Beach Boys full committed to Brian's madcap and daring artistic direction. A unshackled, fully energized Wilson, with help from the Wrecking Crew, captained a forward thinking, yet classically aligned project that would forever dwarf the rest of the band's output. Most importantly, the end product paints a picture of one of the last times that the Beach Boys were truly happy as a unit. This headspace helped produce the most beautiful pop album of all time.
The illustrious record begins with 12-string guitar twangs of "Wouldn't It Be Nice", a daydream yearning for romantic freedom, away from the restraints of being a youth. It's a premise seemingly rooted in the early days of the band, born of the triad of cars, girls and surfing. However, the lyrics mark a noticeable schism between eras, abandoning the face value nature of Girls on the Beach and Fun, Fun, Fun while having more in common with the metaphorical complexity of In My Room and Surfer Girl. Still, Wilson opts to live through his fantasies as opposed to acknowledging a murky future, a grim harbinger for the minimal staying power of young love, packaged within one of the most genial melodies in the band's canon. It's a formula that the Boys would employ later down the line in much darker, less disguised LP's. Track two, "You Still Believe in Me", commences with one of music's most tear-inducing introductions. The gorgeous prepared piano motif shimmers with fragility as the strings are plucked. Amidst the tempo changes, Wilson employs bike horns and harpsichord bathed in the trademark Beach Boys harmonies. The track celebrates the power of unconditional adoration and forgives the fallibility of human beings. "That's Not Me" deals with internal deliberation and self-diagnosis. Dennis Wilson's drums propel the track as lead vocals from Mike Love detail the prioritization of career success and remaining true to one's self. Track four, "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)" embodies the simplest song on the record thus far in terms of thematic weight. However, the song lends itself to projection from the listener, offering a figurative shoulder to rest during their own personal strife. It's a song of considerable intimacy, perpetually cascading downwards as considerate cymbal strikes and bass ease the listener into tranquility.
Track Five, "I'm Waiting for the Day" emphasizes emotional patience and perseverance as a bombastic drum sequence outlines the uptempo cut. The statement here is one of poignant understanding and the value of following your heart in lieu of settling. The dynamic nature of the track is exemplified as drums and woodwinds simultaneously flurry between vociferous and restrained passages. The album arrives at its first instrumental with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", a piece that Brian Wilson has called the "most satisfying of his life". The track smolders to start, escalating with precise drum hits as horns and strings hover carefully underneath. The final track of the first side owes its inclusion to Al Jardine, who pushed for Brian to record the song. What came of it was a remarkably vibrant, twinkling rendition of a well-traveled folk tune. Another appearance of the doubletracked bass provides "Sloop John B" with punch and affirms the song's place as one of the more jolly excursions on Pet Sounds. It also provides respite from the introspective nature of the tracks preceding it. It echoes the Beach Boys of the past, armed with a newfound sonic complexity and whimsy. Residing in the eighth spot on the record is a landmark, spawning a life of its own, far beyond the context of Pet Sounds as a whole. Hyperbole aside, "God Only Knows" remains the centerpiece of Pet Sounds, equal parts innocent, melodramatic and brilliant. Sleigh Bells kiss the air as Carl Wilson's vocals leave nothing to the imagination. The string arrangement that permeates throughout envelopes the piece in a cocoon of sonic sublimity acting as a conduit for the emotional heft of Wilson and Asher's lyrics.
Brian Wilson details his enlightenment during an LSD trip in a track that was originally known as "Hang On to Your Ego". What we now know as "I Know There's an Answer" marks somewhat of kaleidoscope of sonic flavor on the record, exemplified by a bass harmonica solo and hammond organ. The track initially dealt with the dangers of relying on LSD to pacify your troubles. After some internal pushback, Wilson and Terry Sachen were forced to rewrite. However, inklings of the original intent have remained. "They come on like they're peaceful, but inside they're so uptight; They trip through their day and waste all their thoughts at night." Tenth Track, "Here Today" partially subverts the themes of "I'm Waiting for the Day" while never compromising the latter's significance. The former paints a picture of a cautionary tale of love for love's sake. It carries a bit of sentiment from the pop balladry of the late 50's and early 60's but tunefully updates the spirit of the piece to accommodate to Pet Sound's lush, baroque sensibilities. The attitudes expressed in "Here Today" further accentuate reflections of an innocent, wide-eyed Beach Boys style from the past converging with a wiser, more pensive creative outlook for the band. Pet Sound's final trio alternate between reflective pieces and the psychedelic, sonic identity of the record. "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" explores one's place in society amidst anxiety-riddled theremin that colors the piece. "Pet Sounds" is a sonic, exotica-laced trip supported by four different kinds of saxophones and Coca-Cola cans. Finally, "Caroline, No" ends the record on a downtrodden note, reflecting on a former flame that can't be recognized anymore from his own vantage point as the ambience of barks and a chugging train ends the LP.
Pet Sounds leaves an impression in the musical terrain like an asteroid scar, forever altering its climate. As stated earlier, this has all been well-documented and explored. Inversely, listeners should see the album as a catalyst and less of an artifact, effortlessly as relevant today as it was then. It's the musical representation of the faith bestowed in others by trusted friends. It's a warm, inviting embrace awash in human fallibility and the subsequent understanding that should come with it. Brian Wilson would personally struggle soon after and his fellow Beach Boys would progressively diminish along with the fruits of their labor (despite a handful of gems). The cruelty of time would shroud their innovative accomplishments with only the gimmick that pigeon-holed them remaining. However, for one shining moment, five timid young men were at the forefront of musical expression and progression, in an era where the album as an artistic construct had not yet been fully realized. From "Little Deuce Coupe" to "God Only Knows", the Beach Boys had reached Nirvana with Pet Sounds as their guiding light.
"God only knows what I'd be without you."
- God Only Knows
Standout Tracks:
1. Wouldn't It Be Nice
2. Sloop John B
3. You Still Believe in Me
93 [First added to this chart: 04/30/2020]
The illustrious record begins with 12-string guitar twangs of "Wouldn't It Be Nice", a daydream yearning for romantic freedom, away from the restraints of being a youth. It's a premise seemingly rooted in the early days of the band, born of the triad of cars, girls and surfing. However, the lyrics mark a noticeable schism between eras, abandoning the face value nature of Girls on the Beach and Fun, Fun, Fun while having more in common with the metaphorical complexity of In My Room and Surfer Girl. Still, Wilson opts to live through his fantasies as opposed to acknowledging a murky future, a grim harbinger for the minimal staying power of young love, packaged within one of the most genial melodies in the band's canon. It's a formula that the Boys would employ later down the line in much darker, less disguised LP's. Track two, "You Still Believe in Me", commences with one of music's most tear-inducing introductions. The gorgeous prepared piano motif shimmers with fragility as the strings are plucked. Amidst the tempo changes, Wilson employs bike horns and harpsichord bathed in the trademark Beach Boys harmonies. The track celebrates the power of unconditional adoration and forgives the fallibility of human beings. "That's Not Me" deals with internal deliberation and self-diagnosis. Dennis Wilson's drums propel the track as lead vocals from Mike Love detail the prioritization of career success and remaining true to one's self. Track four, "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)" embodies the simplest song on the record thus far in terms of thematic weight. However, the song lends itself to projection from the listener, offering a figurative shoulder to rest during their own personal strife. It's a song of considerable intimacy, perpetually cascading downwards as considerate cymbal strikes and bass ease the listener into tranquility.
Track Five, "I'm Waiting for the Day" emphasizes emotional patience and perseverance as a bombastic drum sequence outlines the uptempo cut. The statement here is one of poignant understanding and the value of following your heart in lieu of settling. The dynamic nature of the track is exemplified as drums and woodwinds simultaneously flurry between vociferous and restrained passages. The album arrives at its first instrumental with "Let's Go Away for Awhile", a piece that Brian Wilson has called the "most satisfying of his life". The track smolders to start, escalating with precise drum hits as horns and strings hover carefully underneath. The final track of the first side owes its inclusion to Al Jardine, who pushed for Brian to record the song. What came of it was a remarkably vibrant, twinkling rendition of a well-traveled folk tune. Another appearance of the doubletracked bass provides "Sloop John B" with punch and affirms the song's place as one of the more jolly excursions on Pet Sounds. It also provides respite from the introspective nature of the tracks preceding it. It echoes the Beach Boys of the past, armed with a newfound sonic complexity and whimsy. Residing in the eighth spot on the record is a landmark, spawning a life of its own, far beyond the context of Pet Sounds as a whole. Hyperbole aside, "God Only Knows" remains the centerpiece of Pet Sounds, equal parts innocent, melodramatic and brilliant. Sleigh Bells kiss the air as Carl Wilson's vocals leave nothing to the imagination. The string arrangement that permeates throughout envelopes the piece in a cocoon of sonic sublimity acting as a conduit for the emotional heft of Wilson and Asher's lyrics.
Brian Wilson details his enlightenment during an LSD trip in a track that was originally known as "Hang On to Your Ego". What we now know as "I Know There's an Answer" marks somewhat of kaleidoscope of sonic flavor on the record, exemplified by a bass harmonica solo and hammond organ. The track initially dealt with the dangers of relying on LSD to pacify your troubles. After some internal pushback, Wilson and Terry Sachen were forced to rewrite. However, inklings of the original intent have remained. "They come on like they're peaceful, but inside they're so uptight; They trip through their day and waste all their thoughts at night." Tenth Track, "Here Today" partially subverts the themes of "I'm Waiting for the Day" while never compromising the latter's significance. The former paints a picture of a cautionary tale of love for love's sake. It carries a bit of sentiment from the pop balladry of the late 50's and early 60's but tunefully updates the spirit of the piece to accommodate to Pet Sound's lush, baroque sensibilities. The attitudes expressed in "Here Today" further accentuate reflections of an innocent, wide-eyed Beach Boys style from the past converging with a wiser, more pensive creative outlook for the band. Pet Sound's final trio alternate between reflective pieces and the psychedelic, sonic identity of the record. "I Just Wasn't Made for These Times" explores one's place in society amidst anxiety-riddled theremin that colors the piece. "Pet Sounds" is a sonic, exotica-laced trip supported by four different kinds of saxophones and Coca-Cola cans. Finally, "Caroline, No" ends the record on a downtrodden note, reflecting on a former flame that can't be recognized anymore from his own vantage point as the ambience of barks and a chugging train ends the LP.
Pet Sounds leaves an impression in the musical terrain like an asteroid scar, forever altering its climate. As stated earlier, this has all been well-documented and explored. Inversely, listeners should see the album as a catalyst and less of an artifact, effortlessly as relevant today as it was then. It's the musical representation of the faith bestowed in others by trusted friends. It's a warm, inviting embrace awash in human fallibility and the subsequent understanding that should come with it. Brian Wilson would personally struggle soon after and his fellow Beach Boys would progressively diminish along with the fruits of their labor (despite a handful of gems). The cruelty of time would shroud their innovative accomplishments with only the gimmick that pigeon-holed them remaining. However, for one shining moment, five timid young men were at the forefront of musical expression and progression, in an era where the album as an artistic construct had not yet been fully realized. From "Little Deuce Coupe" to "God Only Knows", the Beach Boys had reached Nirvana with Pet Sounds as their guiding light.
"God only knows what I'd be without you."
- God Only Knows
Standout Tracks:
1. Wouldn't It Be Nice
2. Sloop John B
3. You Still Believe in Me
93 [First added to this chart: 04/30/2020]
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
45,045
Rank in 1966:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
1964 was a turbulent year for the United States of America. Injustice violated the air with a stench that, at its best, resembled cigar smoke caked into waterlogged, whiskey-stained clothing. At its worst, it conjured the fragrance of rotting corpses piled into black plague mass graves. A societal powder keg was ready to burst, sending shrapnel in the form of violence and revolution across the land. Chronicles of this time in history are aplenty, but Bob Dylan's 'The Times They are A-Changin' occupies a place of poignance and societal relevance as our newest decade commences. The greatest art tends to come rocket-strapped with perennial staying power and universal application. Bob Dylan's third LP effort slides comfortably into those categories and classifications. It touches upon righteous, homely, American ethnocentrism, the painful ineffectiveness of the justice system and selective poverty. Despite Dylan rejecting the label of "Protest Songs", journalists flocked to confine his writing to an ideological box that they could present to the curious and quick-to-judge public. Dylan coyly sat on the fence during interviews which felt more like police interrogations, never confirming or denying anything. Still, the lyricism said more than Dylan ever could, surely illuminating the fact that the poet staunchly sympathized with the plight of the racially suppressed and disenfranchised. The inner shade of Dylan's heart was never in doubt with his position usually reserved for artists of color, those with intentions of questioning the status quo when it came to inequality in the United States. To hear a mid-western, white youth comment on the hypocrisy of American military conquest, the hideousness of white nationalism and imbalanced nature of wealth distribution was refreshing to millions and for thousands more fortunate, feather ruffling. 'The Times They are A-Changin' is concurrently a pinpoint, flaming arrow aimed at the controversial topics of the 1960's and a philosophical thought cloud of ideas and wisdom. All this from a scrawny, Minnesota-born New Yorker who could seemingly wear both hats and walk in all kinds of shoes.
The record greets us with the eternal strums of an acoustic guitar as Dylan's voice, strained and imperfect, a survivor of house fire, arrives with its own visage. The seminal opener chugs along at a fixed tempo, adorned with harmonica bursts that enliven the docile guitar tones. The harmonica, a humble and inexpensive instrument that acted as a trusted companion for many, was Dylan's weapon of choice during his early years. He declares, "Come mothers and fathers throughout the land and don't criticize what you can't understand." His prophetic and anthemic rallying cry has endured for nearly 60 years since it first graced ears. The album turns to a significantly grimmer beast with the introduction of second track, 'Ballad of Hollis Brown', a look at a poverty-stricken farmer in rural South Dakota. Dylan takes his tale of desperation and uses it as an allegory for those struggling with destitution. The metaphors are intentionally fatalistic, but many could view them as exaggerated. Here, Dylan's goal is to establish perspective, not provide a factual retelling. It's merely a painting of despair to be learned from. Dylan sings, "Your brain is a-bleedin' and your legs can’t seem to stand; Your eyes fix on the shotgun that you’re holding in your hand." The expanding wage distribution, in Dylan's estimation, provides a slow death with one alternative. One of Dylan's darkest, yet powerful statements. Next, he confronts an extremely prevalent bias during the middle of the 20th century in the United States. 'With God on Our Side' creates an image of an elitist America, one that can do no wrong and is justified, no matter the bloodshed. Dylan sees toxic patriotism acting as a slow, indoctrinating cancer (another contemporary issue). He wails, "The First World War, boys, it came and it went; The reason for fightin' I never did get but I learned to accept it, accept it with pride; For you don’t count the dead when God’s on your side." The arrogance needed to assume God identifies with a specific country's crusade is elephantine, however, it's a belief typified by the Pledge of Allegiance and by swearing upon a bible. Dylan's character comes to the realization that God's love is reserved for people and not places and that a country is just a plot of land and nothing more. Sadly, it's usually the prize for which fighting is done. The Vietnam War enveloped the decade and Dylan's parable is forever an unheeded warning.
The second half of the record begins with 'Only a Pawn in Their Game', another narration confronting hatred and prejudice, this time by way of propaganda and inculcation. The track examines lower-income, white southerners who are brainwashed into hating their black neighbors with an end goal of sustained oppression. Dylan illustrates this with syntax, "A South politician preaches to the poor white man “You got more than the blacks, don’t complain; You’re better than them, you been born with white skin." The simple instrumentation of 'Pawn' and the stressed rhyme repetition make sure that the message doesn't get clouded beneath the music. However, Dylan doesn't refuse the chance to include a romantic ballad on the LP. 'Boots of Spanish Leather' is a letter-exchanged anecdote of longing and gradual realization. The song is tinted by delicately plucked strings and alternating perspectives that create a gloomy overtone that comes to fruition when the narrator surmises the final fate of his crumbling union across a vast ocean. "I’m sure your mind is a-roamin'; I’m sure your thoughts are not with me but with the country to where you’re goin." The record arrives at an uptick in morale with 'When the Ship Comes In', an affirmative, inspirational testification that the future holds brighter days and that those who engage in tyranny and bigotry will eventually be overcome. Finally, LP centerpiece, 'The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll', draws inspiration from the murder of an African-American barmaid by the wealthy William Zantzinger. The track directs scrutiny at the murderer for devaluing the life of a woman he deemed "lesser than" and the justice system for (mostly) turning a blind eye. Dylan delivers the verdict, "And handed out strongly, for penalty and repentance, William Zanzinger with a six-month sentence." The track is a microcosm of the record's major themes and an unsettling reminder that justice remains imbalanced.
Dylan was just 23 years of age when 'Times' was first pressed, but his incredible perception was decades his senior. The clairvoyance of his prose is even parts astonishing and tragic given that little has changed since his pen first hit the paper. The poetry of these 10 tracks easily sit amongst the scribe's most visceral compositions. The album presents Dylan at perhaps his most uncompromising and forthright, functioning as his final, unabashed protest record. Oddly, the LP is often shunned from the 1960's landmark music rolodex with albums such as 'Highway 61 Revisited', 'Bringing It All Back Home' and even 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan' achieving a higher sense of reverence. Strangely enough, its content makes it a contender for his most topical, underrated and pertinent enterprise, both in 1964 and 2021. Dylan's uncanny ability to find the pulse of the given zeitgeist has never been in doubt, as he's strung together lyrical encapsulations at will for 60 years. Here, he weaves sorrow and hope into a homogeneous, digestible whole the likes of which none could reproduce. The power of 'Times' does not lie in division, but in a belief that human morality will win out. It's a beautiful sentiment and an eternal principle. In some ways, we're still waiting.
"And we’ll shout from the bow your days are numbered
And like Pharoah’s tribe they’ll be drowdned in the tide
and like Goliath, they’ll be conquered."
-When the Ship Comes In
Standout Tracks:
1. The Times They are A-Changin'
2. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
3. When the Ship Comes In
92.8 [First added to this chart: 04/29/2020]
The record greets us with the eternal strums of an acoustic guitar as Dylan's voice, strained and imperfect, a survivor of house fire, arrives with its own visage. The seminal opener chugs along at a fixed tempo, adorned with harmonica bursts that enliven the docile guitar tones. The harmonica, a humble and inexpensive instrument that acted as a trusted companion for many, was Dylan's weapon of choice during his early years. He declares, "Come mothers and fathers throughout the land and don't criticize what you can't understand." His prophetic and anthemic rallying cry has endured for nearly 60 years since it first graced ears. The album turns to a significantly grimmer beast with the introduction of second track, 'Ballad of Hollis Brown', a look at a poverty-stricken farmer in rural South Dakota. Dylan takes his tale of desperation and uses it as an allegory for those struggling with destitution. The metaphors are intentionally fatalistic, but many could view them as exaggerated. Here, Dylan's goal is to establish perspective, not provide a factual retelling. It's merely a painting of despair to be learned from. Dylan sings, "Your brain is a-bleedin' and your legs can’t seem to stand; Your eyes fix on the shotgun that you’re holding in your hand." The expanding wage distribution, in Dylan's estimation, provides a slow death with one alternative. One of Dylan's darkest, yet powerful statements. Next, he confronts an extremely prevalent bias during the middle of the 20th century in the United States. 'With God on Our Side' creates an image of an elitist America, one that can do no wrong and is justified, no matter the bloodshed. Dylan sees toxic patriotism acting as a slow, indoctrinating cancer (another contemporary issue). He wails, "The First World War, boys, it came and it went; The reason for fightin' I never did get but I learned to accept it, accept it with pride; For you don’t count the dead when God’s on your side." The arrogance needed to assume God identifies with a specific country's crusade is elephantine, however, it's a belief typified by the Pledge of Allegiance and by swearing upon a bible. Dylan's character comes to the realization that God's love is reserved for people and not places and that a country is just a plot of land and nothing more. Sadly, it's usually the prize for which fighting is done. The Vietnam War enveloped the decade and Dylan's parable is forever an unheeded warning.
The second half of the record begins with 'Only a Pawn in Their Game', another narration confronting hatred and prejudice, this time by way of propaganda and inculcation. The track examines lower-income, white southerners who are brainwashed into hating their black neighbors with an end goal of sustained oppression. Dylan illustrates this with syntax, "A South politician preaches to the poor white man “You got more than the blacks, don’t complain; You’re better than them, you been born with white skin." The simple instrumentation of 'Pawn' and the stressed rhyme repetition make sure that the message doesn't get clouded beneath the music. However, Dylan doesn't refuse the chance to include a romantic ballad on the LP. 'Boots of Spanish Leather' is a letter-exchanged anecdote of longing and gradual realization. The song is tinted by delicately plucked strings and alternating perspectives that create a gloomy overtone that comes to fruition when the narrator surmises the final fate of his crumbling union across a vast ocean. "I’m sure your mind is a-roamin'; I’m sure your thoughts are not with me but with the country to where you’re goin." The record arrives at an uptick in morale with 'When the Ship Comes In', an affirmative, inspirational testification that the future holds brighter days and that those who engage in tyranny and bigotry will eventually be overcome. Finally, LP centerpiece, 'The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll', draws inspiration from the murder of an African-American barmaid by the wealthy William Zantzinger. The track directs scrutiny at the murderer for devaluing the life of a woman he deemed "lesser than" and the justice system for (mostly) turning a blind eye. Dylan delivers the verdict, "And handed out strongly, for penalty and repentance, William Zanzinger with a six-month sentence." The track is a microcosm of the record's major themes and an unsettling reminder that justice remains imbalanced.
Dylan was just 23 years of age when 'Times' was first pressed, but his incredible perception was decades his senior. The clairvoyance of his prose is even parts astonishing and tragic given that little has changed since his pen first hit the paper. The poetry of these 10 tracks easily sit amongst the scribe's most visceral compositions. The album presents Dylan at perhaps his most uncompromising and forthright, functioning as his final, unabashed protest record. Oddly, the LP is often shunned from the 1960's landmark music rolodex with albums such as 'Highway 61 Revisited', 'Bringing It All Back Home' and even 'The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan' achieving a higher sense of reverence. Strangely enough, its content makes it a contender for his most topical, underrated and pertinent enterprise, both in 1964 and 2021. Dylan's uncanny ability to find the pulse of the given zeitgeist has never been in doubt, as he's strung together lyrical encapsulations at will for 60 years. Here, he weaves sorrow and hope into a homogeneous, digestible whole the likes of which none could reproduce. The power of 'Times' does not lie in division, but in a belief that human morality will win out. It's a beautiful sentiment and an eternal principle. In some ways, we're still waiting.
"And we’ll shout from the bow your days are numbered
And like Pharoah’s tribe they’ll be drowdned in the tide
and like Goliath, they’ll be conquered."
-When the Ship Comes In
Standout Tracks:
1. The Times They are A-Changin'
2. The Lonesome Death of Hattie Carroll
3. When the Ship Comes In
92.8 [First added to this chart: 04/29/2020]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,606
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
92.2
[First added to this chart: 07/21/2023]
Buy album
- #Sponsored
91.5
[First added to this chart: 07/15/2023]
Year of Release:
1964
Appears in:
Rank Score:
696
Rank in 1964:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
91.1
[First added to this chart: 05/12/2021]
Year of Release:
1968
Appears in:
Rank Score:
591
Rank in 1968:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
90.4
[First added to this chart: 12/22/2020]
Year of Release:
1963
Appears in:
Rank Score:
14,015
Rank in 1963:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
90.3
[First added to this chart: 02/28/2024]
Year of Release:
1960
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,230
Rank in 1960:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 16. Page 1 of 2
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 3 | 3% | |
| 1960s | 16 | 16% | |
| 1970s | 12 | 12% | |
| 1980s | 7 | 7% | |
| 1990s | 20 | 20% | |
| 2000s | 20 | 20% | |
| 2010s | 20 | 20% | |
| 2020s | 2 | 2% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| フィッシュマンズ [Fishmans] | 10 | 10% | |
| Radiohead | 7 | 7% | |
| Bob Dylan | 5 | 5% | |
| Swans | 5 | 5% | |
| Vampire Weekend | 4 | 4% | |
| Charles Mingus | 4 | 4% | |
| Joanna Newsom | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
56 | 56% | |
 |
22 | 22% | |
 |
10 | 10% | |
 |
4 | 4% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 2 from 94th to 92nd Only God Was Above Us by Vampire Weekend |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 92nd to 93rd Strawberry Jam by Animal Collective |
| Down 1 from 93rd to 94th Currents by Tame Impala |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
88/100 (from 32 votes)
where:
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 32 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 70/100  | 06/23/2023 05:13 |  Applerill | | 75/100 |
| 85/100 | 03/27/2023 17:55 | Johnnyo | | 80/100 |
| 85/100 | 03/27/2023 00:15 | Moondance | | 84/100 |
| 80/100 | 03/26/2023 12:00 |  Tamthebam | | 85/100 |
| 90/100 | 09/17/2022 23:03 | Rm12398 | | 89/100 |
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 9% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 88.2/100, a mean average of 88.9/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 88.9/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 11.6.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
Showing all 9 comments |
Most Helpful First | Newest First | Maximum Rated First |
Longest Comments First
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85/100
From Johnnyo 03/27/2023 17:55
Exceeding chart and a great read.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From Moondance 12/08/2022 00:11
We are 2 generations apart, so no surprise that our musical tastes/album preferences are not going to align. Totally respect your selections and appreciate your commentary - this chart is a definite labour of love. BTW - our one common album ~ Dark Side Of The Moon. BTW2 - thank you for introducing me to Night Beds' Country Sleep album - a future inclusion in my 2013 year chart.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From 
Larcx13 07/20/2021 15:00
Larcx13 07/20/2021 15:00
I guess youre a fan of radiohead.
Hard work on the descriptions good stuff.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From DriftingOrpheus 04/27/2021 22:55
DriftingOrpheus 04/27/2021 22:55
@StreakyNuno: Your statement is demeaning to every individual who's ever experienced an inkling of an original thought...
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
60/100
From StreakyNuno 04/27/2021 19:23
This comment is beneath your viewing threshold.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -5 votes (0 helpful | 5 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
DommeDamian 04/27/2021 13:50
DommeDamian 04/27/2021 13:50
*shocked emoji* this is ridiculously great.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From leniad 10/21/2020 23:28
Like your taste
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From 
Strangel 06/17/2020 10:18
Strangel 06/17/2020 10:18
Saw your comments on Syro which intrigued me enough to wander over here and read a bit more. I’ve always rated charts that offer explanations for each choice. So far you have gone above and beyond, plus I tend to agree with your love for many of these albums (Smiths aside). Look forward to seeing the finished version!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
55/100
From mianfei 05/14/2020 02:18
Even with very many “stereotypical” choices, this is not that bad a list.
Although I have never heard their music, Acid Bath is a wonderful surprise, as is the Misfits. I heard of both bands in the middle 2000s from one writer on Amazon.com called “janitor-x”, whose musical taste I cannot relate to but whose virulent criticism of ‘Rolling Stone’ I have never doubted nor seen refuted.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | -1 votes (0 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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