Best Albums of the 1960s

Explore the best albums of the 1960s, based on over 2 million album rankings across 60,000 chartsHelp Click to see how the rankings are calculated . Last updated: 3 hours ago
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1960s decade summaryThe best artists of the 1960s were The Beatles, The Velvet Underground, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, The Beach Boys, The Rolling Stones, The Doors, Led Zeppelin, John Coltrane and King Crimson.
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"When I was curious about The Beatles I asked a friend who absolutely loves them where I should start. Without question he handed me Abbey Road and now I understand why. This album is the culmination of The Beatles' long and winding road together. It represents what each of the members brought to ..."    Reply
- | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 6 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
53,397
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (92/100 - 4680 votes)  92 (4,680 votes)
Comments:
"As great as this album is, it would have been even greater if they had included "Paperback Writer" and "Rain" (and taken off "Dr. Robert" and "Got to get you into my life")...which were released as "single" only in May, 1966...terrible decision. I hated when they released "single only" records."  Reply
- ffudnebbuh | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 11 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
46,040
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (91/100 - 4629 votes)  91 (4,629 votes)
Comments:
"The influence of this album on the trajectory of popular music cannot be overstated. The Beatles experimentation with the recording process was something that hit a definite high point on this album. This process was something no bands had the rescourses to do at the time(with the exception of th..."    Reply
- audiooasis2012 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 18 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
40,172
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (90/100 - 4637 votes)  90 (4,637 votes)
Comments:
"Velvet Underground created an original piece of work that has arguably become the most influencial album in alternative music. Produced by Andy Warhol, this album is something special when it comes to the creative artistic expression. The music and lyrics are incredibly minimal, yet powerfully be..."    Reply
- So_MucH_Critics | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 15 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
37,082
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Top rated album (89/100 - 3588 votes)  89 (3,588 votes)
Comments:
"I wonder what people would think of The Beach Boys if this hadn't been made, considering all their other albums are so ridiculously underrated. Would they even be remembered? For that reason alone, this album is crucial. And it is indeed a masterpiece, worthy of every piece of praise it receives...."    Reply
- flamingyesdept | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 9 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1966
Appears in:
Rank Score:
36,287
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (88/100 - 3323 votes)  88 (3,323 votes)
Comments:
"Like any other double album you care to mention, this could probably have been streamlined into something even more magical than it already is, but there is a certain charm to all this – it feels quite rough and ragged and almost thrown together, but in a good way of course and it is the antithes..."    Reply
- TheSmiths82-87 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 6 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1968
Appears in:
Rank Score:
35,032
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (89/100 - 3863 votes)  89 (3,863 votes)
Comments:
Year of Release:
1969
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,305
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (89/100 - 2454 votes)  89 (2,454 votes)
Comments:
"The Doors 1967 debut seemed an obvious classic to me upon my very first listen. Their music possesses a magical, hypnotic and sensual quality that seems to instantly resonate both intellectually and on a primal, animalistic level. Jim Morrison’s shamanistic approach to fronting a Rock & Roll band..."    Reply
- Robbit | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 3 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1967
Appears in:
Rank Score:
25,330
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (87/100 - 2871 votes)  87 (2,871 votes)
Comments:
"This is essential listening with Dylan creating one of the greatest records of his career on here. It is consistent in style and tone leading to a cohesive listen that feels extremely fulfilling by the time you reach the end of the masterpiece that is Desolation Row. This isn't the only masterpie..."    Reply
- Untitled | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 4 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
25,134
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (88/100 - 2844 votes)  88 (2,844 votes)
Comments:
"This might not be a popular opinion but I consider this album to be better than both "The White Album" and "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band". The compositions, songwriting, the emotions, the singing... just top-notch. Some of the songs even at their most simplest, really do have a long-term..."    Reply
- KHAN2705 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) · 12 Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1965
Appears in:
Rank Score:
24,878
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Average Rating:
Top rated album (88/100 - 3408 votes)  88 (3,408 votes)
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100

Best Albums of the 1960s composition

Best Albums of the 1960s chart changes

Biggest climbersHelp Biggest climbers in top 100 since last month
Climber Up 5 from 100th to 95th
Climber Up 2 from 85th to 83rd
Climber Up 2 from 84th to 82nd
Biggest fallersHelp Biggest fallers in top 100 since last month
Faller Down 4 from 83rd to 87th
Faller Down 2 from 82nd to 84th
Faller Down 2 from 96th to 98th