Top 100 Greatest Music Albums
by 
hoyquarlow 
My Best albums ever list.
I resigned myself to write a brief presentation of the albums selected, not because it is that much relevant but rather because it's fun to do. Of course the list isn't poured into concrete ; usually the more you go down on the list the more it is subject to change. But you got the global portrait. Some artists have albums listed back to back, mainly because I never could decide which one I prefer between the two.
And finally, english isn't my former language so there ought to be some mistakes...
Hope you enjoy the list
- Chart updated: 11/14/2025 16:15
- (Created: 12/31/2012 09:57).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 15 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 90 out of 100 (from 33 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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This chart is currently filtered to only show albums from the 1970s. (Remove this filter)
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The Clash were a great band, no doubt about it. Still, London Calling alone is about 10 times better than a Clash best of- almost everyone will agree with that - and should be the obligatory starting point in discovering The Clash's music. I was getting a little bored with music when I first heard that record, but London Calling changed it all within the first 10 songs or so. I had never heard anything quite like it. Everything was just bursting with creativity and greatness. A defining moment in rock history and a true masterpiece in every sense of the word.
[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
30,818
Rank in 1979:
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
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Led Zeppelin might be the band that had the most crystal-perfect career ; Delivering 8 great albums on a 12 years span that feels just long enough, ending the affair in 1980 just before things might had turn bad (maybe). So picking one "best" album out of a discography so good is a near impossible task. I'm going with Physical Graffiti because it's a double album, it got the most lesser known gems, like "Down by the Seaside", "Ten years gone" or "Wanton Song". Although quite hard-rocking, the versatility of Physical Graffiti may be the perfect proof that Zeppelin were not that much a Metal band but rather more like the first alternative band.
[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
12,144
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Growing up, Iggy as been like a big brother to me, or a good friend. It is still my favorite vocalist and solo artist, always loved is lyrics and his criminally underated signing. Anyway, I'm pretty happy Iggy did deliver Lust for life, a great album that most people are at least decent enough to give him some credit for. Bowie is behind the wheel, of course, but it's still pretty punkish, still a lot more like a real Iggy Pop record than The Idiot, in comparison. "The Passenger" is a real anthem, but the rest of the album doesn't lack incredible songs, like "Neighborhood threat" or "Some weird sin" .
[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,445
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What first attracted me into Bowie's music when I was quite young, wasn't that much Bowie's otherworldy persona but rather the feeling his music was totally out of time ; From "Space Oddity" to "Heroes" or even the Labyrinth soundtrack (!), I could not pinpoint when all that stuff was made... It felt incredibly old and at the same time crazy futuristic. Aladdin Sane is exactly that, and it is (probably) my favorite Bowie album. The title track, "Time" and "Lady Grinning Soul" are mesmerizing songs, mostly because of the amazing piano of Mike Garson.
[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,513
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Do I prefer Aladdin Sane or Ziggy Stardust? I cannot say. I guess Aladdin is more impressive, it pushes the music forward more, but Ziggy's got more hooks, more catchy songs, it's a more pleasant listen maybe. It got those simple, sing-along songs that you immediately want to learn to play on guitar (even the piano ones like "Lady Stardust"...) I do like the more electronic stuff Bowie did later, but I still prefer by far his glam period, and Ziggy Stardust is pretty much the pinnacle of that era.
[First added to this chart: 11/19/2015]
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
43,251
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I'm usually not a big fan of Live Albums, but I gotta make an exception for Live Rust, which is by a mile the best Live album i've ever heard. When I first heard Live Rust, I was already a fan of Neil's stuff but for some reasons, I have never heard most of the songs on it, so it kinda felt like an entirely new album. Much later I found out that most of the songs here sounds actually better on this live record than on the original albums. The delivery is fantastic, the first half being acoustic while the second half more electric, with mind-blowing and definitive versions of "Cortez the killer" and "Like a Hurricane".
[First added to this chart: 11/20/2015]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,261
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Average Rating:
Comments:
22. (=)
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[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,719
Rank in 1973:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
25,137
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 11/16/2015]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,894
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Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 11/21/2015]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
38,592
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Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 25. Page 1 of 3
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 10 | 10% | |
| 1970s | 25 | 25% | |
| 1980s | 27 | 27% | |
| 1990s | 28 | 28% | |
| 2000s | 8 | 8% | |
| 2010s | 2 | 2% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 5 | 5% | |
| Pixies | 4 | 4% | |
| Nirvana | 4 | 4% | |
| The Smiths | 4 | 4% | |
| Led Zeppelin | 4 | 4% | |
| David Bowie | 4 | 4% | |
| The Beatles | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
 |
44 | 44% | |
| |
43 | 43% | |
| |
5 | 5% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
There have been no changes to this chart.Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similar charts
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 33 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 11/14/2025 08:10 |  Larcx13 | 1,145 | 86/100 |
| ! | 01/26/2025 12:16 |  SomethingSpecial | 1,104 | 85/100 |
| ! | 04/29/2024 11:59 | BraddlesHendo | 497 | 91/100 |
| ! | 08/09/2023 23:10 | Moondance | 476 | 85/100 |
| ! | 08/09/2023 13:09 |  Tamthebam | 651 | 85/100 |
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 3% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 89.9/100, a mean average of 91.1/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 91.1/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 6.4.
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums favourites
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 15 comments |
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From Larcx13 11/14/2025 08:20 | #311657
Larcx13 11/14/2025 08:20 | #311657
Bad Religion IS a great punk band, nice to see them get some props here.
Side note: I cannot stand Jean Leloup. I just don't get it haha. Les Cowboys Fringants and Les Colocs are where I go for quebecois music, plus Noir Desir for broader francophone "scene."
Great chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From BraddlesHendo 04/29/2024 12:00 | #303250
Love to talk music all day with you
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Moondance 08/09/2023 23:15 | #298548
Cool chart - nice to see all the love for The Cure. Enjoyed the comments up to your top 18 ¬ it takes effort to write comments; I've only managed to do my top 12 albums so far.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From KineticEchoes02 02/24/2022 08:35 | #281870
Really good chart! You have great taste - many albums in common. Great descriptions, and awesome to see Midnight Oil in there, among The Cure, Smashing Pumpkins, Bowie, Floyd and Led Zep for starters.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
CharlieBarley 11/14/2021 07:32 | #276256
CharlieBarley 11/14/2021 07:32 | #276256
Disintegration at number one. Brilliant. I need to place it higher up my own list. You have many albums I should have in my own chart, or used to have.
Great to see the Cure, Bowie, Pogues, Pixies, Smith's and Iggy Pop.
I want to check out more French music like Jacques Brel. I like Francis Cabrel.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Johnnyo 05/01/2021 09:10 | #269187
Excellent chart
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From vancevisuals 06/27/2020 02:11 | #254587
Sabotage is one of the great underrated albums
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
911Turbo 06/26/2020 17:34 | #254567
911Turbo 06/26/2020 17:34 | #254567
great list. i enjoy seeing modern music .
i don't listen to the smiths, but i find your description inspirational(referring that your ill! aren't we all.)
if you have the time i really would like to read your thoughts about the other albums.
enjoy.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 911Turbo 06/26/2020 17:33 | #254566
911Turbo 06/26/2020 17:33 | #254566
great list. i enjoy seeing modern music .
i don't listen to the smiths, but i find your description inspirational(referring that your ill! aren't we all.)
if you have the time i really would like to read your thoughts about the other albums.
enjoy.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
StefanR10 06/26/2020 10:10 | #254535
StefanR10 06/26/2020 10:10 | #254535
Nice to see so what. And I like you have the cure at number 1 so i give you for the good chart a 90. And good to see some description on the albums maybe next time more diversive.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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