Top 16 Music Albums of 1965
by 
DriftingOrpheus 
- Chart updated: 08/31/2025 21:15
- (Created: 06/12/2020 15:46).
- Chart size: 16 albums.
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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: 12/01/2020]
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: 12/01/2020]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,834
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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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: 12/01/2020]
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: 12/01/2020]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
27,358
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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92.6
[First added to this chart: 08/14/2023]
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86.7
[First added to this chart: 06/04/2024]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
509
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
84
[First added to this chart: 02/02/2025]
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83.6
[First added to this chart: 12/01/2020]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,738
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
80.9
[First added to this chart: 07/13/2022]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
15,753
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
80.8
[First added to this chart: 07/15/2022]
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80.4
[First added to this chart: 12/06/2020]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,062
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
80
[First added to this chart: 08/24/2023]
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
372
Rank in 1965:
Rank in 1960s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 16. Page 1 of 2
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Top 16 Music Albums of 1965 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Beach Boys | 2 | 13% | |
| Bob Dylan | 2 | 13% | |
| The Beatles | 2 | 13% | |
| John Coltrane | 1 | 6% | |
| The Walker Brothers | 1 | 6% | |
| Andrew Hill | 1 | 6% | |
| Jackie McLean | 1 | 6% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 16 Music Albums of 1965 chart changes
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 12th to 13th Help! by The Beatles |
| Down 1 from 13th to 14th Baker's Holiday by Chet Baker |
| Down 1 from 14th to 15th Fire Music by Archie Shepp |
| New entries |
|---|
| Folk Singer! by Paul Clayton |
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