The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
according to Rolling Stone MagazineIn September 2020, Rolling Stone magazine released a new version of its list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
The first version was released in 2003, with a minor revision in 2012. These lists have been widely criticised for having an over-representation of dated, Anglo-American, male, rock music.
Like it or loathe it, the list gets people discussing and debating popular music. It might encourage you to listen to an album or artist you haven’t heard before, or to dust off a forgotten favourite that you haven’t played for ages. It’s all good fun because no one can prove they are right or wrong no matter how passionately their convictions are held. The greatness of an album is all in the mind, the heart, and the feet of the listener.
The table below shows the 2020 list with the 2012 and 2003 lists alongside. A total of 692 albums have been on the list of 500 Greatest Albums of All Time across its three iterations to date. There was little change between 2003 and 2012, so most of the inclusions and exclusions have been between 2012 and 2020. I feel some healthy debate coming on…
Artist | Album | Year | 2020 | 2012 | 2003 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Marvin Gaye | What's Going On | 1971 | 1 | 6 | 6 |
The Beach Boys | Pet Sounds | 1966 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Joni Mitchell | Blue | 1971 | 3 | 30 | 30 |
Stevie Wonder | Songs in the Key of Life | 1976 | 4 | 57 | 56 |
The Beatles | Abbey Road | 1969 | 5 | 14 | 14 |
Nirvana | Nevermind | 1991 | 6 | 17 | 17 |
Fleetwood Mac | Rumours | 1977 | 7 | 26 | 25 |
Prince | Purple Rain | 1984 | 8 | 76 | 72 |
Bob Dylan | Blood on the Tracks | 1975 | 9 | 16 | 16 |
Lauryn Hill | The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill | 1998 | 10 | 314 | 312 |
The Beatles | Revolver | 1966 | 11 | 3 | 3 |
Michael Jackson | Thriller | 1982 | 12 | 20 | 20 |
Aretha Franklin | I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You | 1967 | 13 | 84 | 83 |
The Rolling Stones | Exile on Main Street | 1972 | 14 | 7 | 7 |
Public Enemy | It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back | 1988 | 15 | 48 | 48 |
The Clash | London Calling | 1979 | 16 | 8 | 8 |
Kanye West | My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy | 2010 | 17 | 353 | |
Bob Dylan | Highway 61 Revisited | 1965 | 18 | 4 | 4 |
Kendrick Lamar | To Pimp a Butterfly | 2015 | 19 | ||
Radiohead | Kid A | 2000 | 20 | 67 | 428 |
Bruce Springsteen | Born to Run | 1975 | 21 | 18 | 18 |
The Notorious B.I.G. | Ready to Die | 1994 | 22 | 134 | 133 |
The Velvet Underground | The Velvet Underground and Nico | 1967 | 23 | 13 | 13 |
The Beatles | Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band | 1967 | 24 | 1 | 1 |
Carole King | Tapestry | 1971 | 25 | 36 | 36 |
Patti Smith | Horses | 1975 | 26 | 44 | 44 |
Wu-Tang Clan | Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) | 1993 | 27 | 387 | 386 |
D’Angelo | Voodoo | 2000 | 28 | 481 | 488 |
The Beatles | White Album | 1968 | 29 | 10 | 10 |
Jimi Hendrix | Are You Experienced | 1967 | 30 | 15 | 15 |
Miles Davis | Kind of Blue | 1959 | 31 | 12 | 12 |
Beyoncé | Lemonade | 2016 | 32 | ||
Amy Winehouse | Back to Black | 2006 | 33 | 451 | |
Stevie Wonder | Innervisions | 1973 | 34 | 24 | 23 |
The Beatles | Rubber Soul | 1965 | 35 | 5 | 5 |
Michael Jackson | Off the Wall | 1979 | 36 | 68 | 68 |
Dr. Dre | The Chronic | 1992 | 37 | 138 | 137 |
Bob Dylan | Blonde on Blonde | 1966 | 38 | 9 | 9 |
Talking Heads | Remain in Light | 1980 | 39 | 129 | 126 |
David Bowie | The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars | 1972 | 40 | 35 | 35 |
The Rolling Stones | Let It Bleed | 1969 | 41 | 32 | 32 |
Radiohead | OK Computer | 1997 | 42 | 162 | 162 |
A Tribe Called Quest | The Low End Theory | 1991 | 43 | 153 | 154 |
Nas | Illmatic | 1994 | 44 | 402 | 400 |
Prince | Sign O' the Times | 1987 | 45 | 93 | 93 |
Paul Simon | Graceland | 1986 | 46 | 71 | 81 |
Ramones | Ramones | 1976 | 47 | 33 | 33 |
Bob Marley and the Wailers | Legend | 1984 | 48 | 46 | 46 |
OutKast | Aquemini | 1998 | 49 | 500 | |
Jay-Z | The Blueprint | 2001 | 50 | 252 | 464 |
Chuck Berry | The Great Twenty-Eight | 1982 | 51 | 21 | 21 |
David Bowie | Station to Station | 1976 | 52 | 324 | 323 |
Jimi Hendrix | Electric Ladyland | 1968 | 53 | 55 | 54 |
James Brown | Star Time | 1991 | 54 | 75 | 79 |
Pink Floyd | The Dark Side of the Moon | 1973 | 55 | 43 | 43 |
Liz Phair | Exile in Guyville | 1993 | 56 | 327 | 328 |
The Band | The Band | 1969 | 57 | 45 | 45 |
Led Zeppelin | Led Zeppelin IV | 1971 | 58 | 69 | 66 |
Stevie Wonder | Talking Book | 1972 | 59 | 90 | 90 |
Van Morrison | Astral Weeks | 1968 | 60 | 19 | 19 |
Eric B. and Rakim | Paid in Full | 1987 | 61 | 228 | 227 |
Guns N’ Roses | Appetite for Destruction | 1987 | 62 | 62 | 61 |
Steely Dan | Aja | 1977 | 63 | 145 | 145 |
OutKast | Stankonia | 2000 | 64 | 361 | 359 |
James Brown | Live at the Apollo | 1963 | 65 | 25 | 24 |
John Coltrane | A Love Supreme | 1965 | 66 | 47 | 47 |
Jay-Z | Reasonable Doubt | 1996 | 67 | 250 | 248 |
Kate Bush | Hounds of Love | 1985 | 68 | ||
Alanis Morissette | Jagged Little Pill | 1995 | 69 | 327 | |
N.W.A | Straight Outta Compton | 1988 | 70 | 144 | 144 |
Bob Marley and the Wailers | Exodus | 1977 | 71 | 169 | 169 |
Neil Young | Harvest | 1972 | 72 | 82 | 78 |
My Bloody Valentine | Loveless | 1991 | 73 | 221 | 219 |
Kanye West | The College Dropout | 2004 | 74 | 298 | |
Aretha Franklin | Lady Soul | 1968 | 75 | 85 | 84 |
Curtis Mayfield | Superfly | 1972 | 76 | 72 | 69 |
The Who | Who's Next | 1971 | 77 | 28 | 28 |
Elvis Presley | The Sun Sessions | 1976 | 78 | 11 | 11 |
Frank Ocean | Blond | 2016 | 79 | ||
The Sex Pistols | Never Mind the Bollocks Here’s the Sex Pistols | 1977 | 80 | 41 | 41 |
Beyoncé | Beyoncé | 2013 | 81 | ||
Sly and the Family Stone | There’s a Riot Goin’ On | 1971 | 82 | 99 | 99 |
Dusty Springfield | Dusty in Memphis | 1969 | 83 | 89 | 89 |
AC/DC | Back in Black | 1980 | 84 | 77 | 73 |
John Lennon | Plastic Ono Band | 1970 | 85 | 23 | 22 |
The Doors | The Doors | 1967 | 86 | 42 | 42 |
Miles Davis | Bitches Brew | 1970 | 87 | 95 | 94 |
David Bowie | Hunky Dory | 1971 | 88 | 108 | 107 |
Erykah Badu | Baduizm | 1997 | 89 | ||
Neil Young | After the Gold Rush | 1970 | 90 | 74 | 71 |
Bruce Springsteen | Darkness on the Edge of Town | 1978 | 91 | 150 | 151 |
The Jimi Hendrix Experience | Axis: Bold as Love | 1967 | 92 | 83 | 82 |
Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott | Supa Dupa Fly | 1997 | 93 | ||
The Stooges | Fun House | 1970 | 94 | 191 | 191 |
Drake | Take Care | 2011 | 95 | ||
R.E.M. | Automatic for the People | 1992 | 96 | 249 | 247 |
Metallica | Master of Puppets | 1986 | 97 | 167 | 167 |
Lucinda Williams | Car Wheels on a Gravel Road | 1998 | 98 | 305 | 304 |
Taylor Swift | Red | 2012 | 99 | ||
The Band | Music From Big Pink | 1968 | 100 | 34 | 34 |
Led Zeppelin | Led Zeppelin | 1969 | 101 | 29 | 29 |
The Clash | The Clash | 1979 | 102 | 81 | 77 |
De La Soul | 3 Feet High and Rising | 1989 | 103 | 346 | 346 |
The Rolling Stones | Sticky Fingers | 1971 | 104 | 64 | 63 |
The Allman Brothers Band | At Fillmore East | 1971 | 105 | 49 | 49 |
Hole | Live Through This | 1994 | 106 | 460 | 466 |
Television | Marquee Moon | 1977 | 107 | 130 | 128 |
Fiona Apple | When The Pawn… | 1999 | 108 | ||
Lou Reed | Transformer | 1972 | 109 | 194 | 194 |
Joni Mitchell | Court and Spark | 1974 | 110 | 113 | 111 |
Janet Jackson | Control | 1986 | 111 | ||
Elton John | Goodbye Yellow Brick Road | 1973 | 112 | 91 | 91 |
The Smiths | The Queen Is Dead | 1986 | 113 | 218 | 216 |
The Strokes | Is This It | 2001 | 114 | 199 | 367 |
Kendrick Lamar | good kid, m.A.A.d city | 2012 | 115 | ||
The Cure | Disintegration | 1989 | 116 | 326 | 326 |
Kanye West | Late Registration | 2005 | 117 | 118 | |
The Eagles | Hotel California | 1976 | 118 | 37 | 37 |
Sly and the Family Stone | Stand! | 1969 | 119 | 121 | 118 |
Van Morrison | Moondance | 1970 | 120 | 66 | 65 |
Elvis Costello | This Year's Model | 1978 | 121 | 98 | 98 |
Nine Inch Nails | The Downward Spiral | 1994 | 122 | 201 | 200 |
Led Zeppelin | Led Zeppelin II | 1969 | 123 | 79 | 75 |
U2 | Achtung Baby | 1991 | 124 | 63 | 62 |
Beastie Boys | Paul’s Boutique | 1989 | 125 | 156 | 156 |
Mary J. Blige | My Life | 1994 | 126 | 281 | 279 |
Ray Charles | Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music | 1962 | 127 | 105 | 104 |
Queen | A Night at the Opera | 1975 | 128 | 231 | 230 |
Pink Floyd | The Wall | 1979 | 129 | 87 | 87 |
Prince | 1999 | 1982 | 130 | 163 | 163 |
Portishead | Dummy | 1994 | 131 | 419 | 419 |
Hank Williams | 40 Greatest Hits | 1978 | 132 | 94 | 129 |
Joni Mitchell | Hejira | 1976 | 133 | ||
The Cure | Boys Don’t Cry | 1980 | 134 | 438 | 442 |
U2 | Joshua Tree | 1987 | 135 | 27 | 26 |
Funkadelic | Maggot Brain | 1971 | 136 | 479 | 486 |
Adele | 21 | 2011 | 137 | ||
Madonna | The Immaculate Collection | 1990 | 138 | 184 | 278 |
Black Sabbath | Paranoid | 1970 | 139 | 131 | 130 |
Bob Marley and the Wailers | Catch A Fire | 1973 | 140 | ||
Pixies | Doolittle | 1989 | 141 | 227 | 226 |
Bruce Springsteen | Born in the USA | 1984 | 142 | 86 | 85 |
The Velvet Underground | The Velvet Underground | 1969 | 143 | 316 | 314 |
Led Zeppelin | Physical Graffiti | 1975 | 144 | 73 | 70 |
Eminem | The Marshall Mathers LP | 2000 | 145 | 244 | 302 |
Blondie | Parallel Lines | 1978 | 146 | 140 | 140 |
Jeff Buckley | Grace | 1994 | 147 | 304 | 303 |
Frank Ocean | Orange | 2012 | 148 | ||
John Prine | John Prine | 1971 | 149 | 452 | 458 |
Bruce Springsteen | Nebraska | 1982 | 150 | 226 | 224 |
George Michael | Faith | 1987 | 151 | 472 | 480 |
Pretenders | Pretenders | 1980 | 152 | 155 | 155 |
PJ Harvey | Rid of Me | 1993 | 153 | 406 | 405 |
Aretha Franklin | Amazing Grace | 1972 | 154 | ||
Jay-Z | The Black Album | 2003 | 155 | 349 | |
The Replacements | Let It Be | 1984 | 156 | 241 | 239 |
Oasis | (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? | 1995 | 157 | 378 | 376 |
Erykah Badu | Mama's Gun | 2000 | 158 | ||
The Police | Synchronicity | 1983 | 159 | 448 | 455 |
Pearl Jam | Ten | 1991 | 160 | 209 | 207 |
Crosby, Stills & Nash | Crosby, Stills & Nash | 1969 | 161 | 262 | 259 |
Pulp | Different Class | 1995 | 162 | ||
Bee Gees | Saturday Night Fever (The Original Movie Sound Track) | 1977 | 163 | 132 | 131 |
Johnny Cash | At Folsom Prison | 1968 | 164 | 88 | 88 |
R.E.M. | Murmur | 1983 | 165 | 197 | 197 |
Buddy Holly | 20 Golden Greats | 1978 | 166 | 92 | 92 |
Depeche Mode | Violator | 1990 | 167 | 342 | 342 |
Steely Dan | Can’t Buy a Thrill | 1972 | 168 | 240 | 238 |
Billy Joel | The Stranger | 1977 | 169 | 70 | 67 |
Cream | Disraeli Gears | 1967 | 170 | 114 | 112 |
Sonic Youth | Daydream Nation | 1988 | 171 | 328 | 329 |
Simon and Garfunkel | Bridge Over Troubled Water | 1970 | 172 | 51 | 51 |
Nirvana | In Utero | 1993 | 173 | 435 | 439 |
Jimmy Cliff | The Harder They Come | 1972 | 174 | 122 | 119 |
Kendrick Lamar | DAMN. | 2017 | 175 | ||
Public Enemy | Fear of a Black Planet | 1990 | 176 | 302 | 300 |
Rod Stewart | Every Picture Tells a Story | 1971 | 177 | 172 | 172 |
Otis Redding | Otis Blue | 1965 | 178 | 78 | 74 |
The Notorious B.I.G. | Life After Death | 1997 | 179 | 476 | 483 |
Love | Forever Changes | 1967 | 180 | 40 | 40 |
Bob Dylan | Bringing It All Back Home | 1965 | 181 | 31 | 31 |
James Taylor | Sweet Baby James | 1970 | 182 | 104 | 103 |
D’Angelo | Brown Sugar | 1995 | 183 | ||
Cyndi Lauper | She’s So Unusual | 1983 | 184 | 487 | 494 |
The Rolling Stones | Beggars Banquet | 1968 | 185 | 58 | 57 |
Red Hot Chili Peppers | Blood Sugar Sex Magik | 1991 | 186 | 310 | 310 |
Ice Cube | AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted | 1990 | 187 | ||
T. Rex | Electric Warrior | 1971 | 188 | 160 | 160 |
Sleater‐Kinney | Dig Me Out | 1997 | 189 | 272 | |
The Who | Tommy | 1969 | 190 | 96 | 96 |
Etta James | At Last! | 1960 | 191 | 119 | 116 |
Beastie Boys | Licensed to Ill | 1986 | 192 | 219 | 217 |
Creedence Clearwater Revival | Willy and the Poor Boys | 1969 | 193 | 309 | 392 |
Michael Jackson | Bad | 1987 | 194 | 203 | 202 |
Leonard Cohen | Songs of Leonard Cohen | 1967 | 195 | ||
Robyn | Body Talk | 2010 | 196 | ||
The Beatles | Meet The Beatles | 1964 | 197 | 53 | 59 |
The B‐52’s | The B‐52’s | 1979 | 198 | 152 | 152 |
Pavement | Slanted and Enchanted | 1992 | 199 | 135 | 134 |
Sade | Diamond Life | 1984 | 200 | ||
A Tribe Called Quest | Midnight Marauders | 1993 | 201 | ||
Björk | Homogenic | 1997 | 202 | ||
Nick Drake | Pink Moon | 1972 | 203 | 321 | 320 |
Kanye West | Graduation | 2007 | 204 | ||
Cat Stevens | Tea for the Tillerman | 1970 | 205 | 208 | 206 |
David Bowie | Low | 1977 | 206 | 251 | 249 |
Eagles | Eagles (1st album) | 1972 | 207 | 368 | 374 |
Lil Wayne | Tha Carter III | 2008 | 208 | 437 | |
Run‐D.M.C. | Raising Hell | 1986 | 209 | 123 | 120 |
Ray Charles | The Birth of Soul: The Complete Atlantic Recordings | 1991 | 210 | 54 | 53 |
Joy Division | Unknown Pleasures | 1980 | 211 | ||
Nina Simone | Wild is the Wind | 1966 | 212 | ||
Fiona Apple | The Idler Wheel | 2012 | 213 | ||
Tom Petty | Wildflowers | 1994 | 214 | ||
Grateful Dead | American Beauty | 1970 | 215 | 261 | 258 |
Elliott Smith | Either/Or | 1997 | 216 | ||
Oasis | Definitely Maybe | 1994 | 217 | ||
TLC | CrazySexyCool | 1994 | 218 | 379 | 377 |
Raekwon | Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… | 1995 | 219 | 480 | |
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young | Déjà vu | 1970 | 220 | 147 | 148 |
Rage Against the Machine | Rage Against the Machine | 1992 | 221 | 365 | 368 |
Madonna | Ray of Light | 1998 | 222 | 367 | 363 |
John Lennon | Imagine | 1971 | 223 | 80 | 76 |
Dixie Chicks | Fly | 1999 | 224 | ||
Wilco | Yankee Hotel Foxtrot | 2002 | 225 | 493 | |
Derek and the Dominos | Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs | 1970 | 226 | 117 | 115 |
Little Richard | Here's Little Richard | 1957 | 227 | 50 | 50 |
De La Soul | De La Soul is Dead | 1991 | 228 | ||
Patsy Cline | The Ultimate Collection | 2000 | 229 | 235 | 234 |
Rhianna | Anti | 2016 | 230 | ||
Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers | Damn the Torpedoes | 1979 | 231 | 315 | 313 |
John Coltrane | Giant Steps | 1960 | 232 | 103 | 102 |
Tori Amos | Little Earthquakes | 1992 | 233 | ||
Black Sabbath | Master of Reality | 1971 | 234 | 300 | 298 |
Metallica | Metallica (“The Black Album”) | 1991 | 235 | 255 | 252 |
Daft Punk | Discovery | 2001 | 236 | ||
Willie Nelson | Red Headed Stranger | 1975 | 237 | 183 | 184 |
Kraftwerk | Trans Europa Express | 1977 | 238 | 256 | 253 |
Boogie Down Productions | Criminal Minded | 1987 | 239 | 444 | |
Sam Cooke | Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 | 1985 | 240 | 439 | 443 |
Massive Attack | Blue Lines | 1991 | 241 | 397 | 395 |
The Velvet Underground | Loaded | 1970 | 242 | 110 | 109 |
The Zombies | Odessey and Oracle | 1969 | 243 | 100 | 80 |
Kanye West | 808s & Heartbreak | 2008 | 244 | ||
Cocteau Twins | Heaven or Las Vegas | 1990 | 245 | ||
L.L. Cool J | Mama Said Knock You Out | 1991 | 246 | ||
Sade | Love Deluxe | 1992 | 247 | ||
Green Day | American Idiot | 2004 | 248 | 225 | |
Whitney Houston | Whitney Houston | 1985 | 249 | 257 | 254 |
Buzzcocks | Singles Going Steady | 1979 | 250 | 360 | 358 |
Elton John | Honky Château | 1972 | 251 | 359 | 357 |
DEVO | Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo! | 1978 | 252 | 442 | 447 |
Pink Floyd | The Piper at the Gates of Dawn | 1967 | 253 | 347 | 347 |
Herbie Hancock | Head Hunters | 1973 | 254 | ||
Bob Dylan | The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan | 1963 | 255 | 97 | 97 |
Tracy Chapman | Tracy Chapman | 1988 | 256 | 263 | 261 |
Dolly Parton | Coat of Many Colors | 1971 | 257 | 301 | 299 |
Joni Mitchell | The Hissing of Summer Lawns | 1975 | 258 | ||
Janis Joplin | Pearl | 1971 | 259 | 125 | 122 |
The Slits | Cut | 1979 | 260 | ||
Beastie Boys | Check Your Head | 1992 | 261 | ||
New Order | Power, Corruption & Lies | 1983 | 262 | ||
The Beatles | A Hard Day’s Night | 1964 | 263 | 307 | 388 |
Pink Floyd | Wish You Were Here | 1975 | 264 | 211 | 209 |
Pavement | Wowee Zowee | 1995 | 265 | ||
The Beatles | Help! | 1965 | 266 | 331 | 332 |
Minutemen | Double Nickels on the Dime | 1984 | 267 | 413 | 411 |
Randy Newman | Sail Away | 1972 | 268 | 322 | 321 |
Kanye West | Yeezus | 2013 | 269 | ||
Kacey Musgraves | Golden Hour | 2018 | 270 | ||
Mary J. Blige | What's the 411? | 1994 | 271 | ||
The Velvet Underground | White Light/White Heat | 1968 | 272 | 293 | 292 |
Gang of Four | Entertainment! | 1979 | 273 | 483 | 490 |
The Byrds | Sweetheart of the Rodeo | 1968 | 274 | 120 | 117 |
Curtis Mayfield | Curtis | 1970 | 275 | ||
Radiohead | The Bends | 1995 | 276 | 111 | 110 |
Alicia Keys | The Diary of Alicia Keys | 2003 | 277 | ||
Led Zeppelin | Houses of the Holy | 1973 | 278 | 148 | 149 |
Nirvana | MTV Unplugged in New York | 1994 | 279 | 313 | 311 |
50 Cent | Get Rich or Die Tryin' | 2002 | 280 | ||
Harry Nilsson | Nilsson Schmilsson | 1971 | 281 | ||
Frank Sinatra | In the Wee Small Hours | 1955 | 282 | 101 | 100 |
Donna Summer | Bad Girls | 1975 | 283 | ||
Merle Haggard | Down Every Road | 1996 | 284 | 477 | |
Big Star | Third/Sister Lovers | 1978 | 285 | 449 | 456 |
Red Hot Chili Peppers | Californication | 1999 | 286 | 401 | 399 |
The Byrds | Mr. Tambourine Man | 1965 | 287 | 233 | 232 |
The Modern Lovers | The Modern Lovers | 1976 | 288 | 382 | 381 |
Björk | Post | 1995 | 289 | 376 | 373 |
OutKast | Speakerboxx/The Love Below | 2003 | 290 | ||
Destiny's Child | The Writing’s on the Wall | 1999 | 291 | ||
Van Halen | Van Halen | 1978 | 292 | 415 | 415 |
The Breeders | Last Splash | 1993 | 293 | ||
Weezer | Weezer (Blue Album) | 1994 | 294 | 299 | 297 |
Daft Punk | Random Access Memory | 2013 | 295 | ||
Neil Young & Crazy Horse | Rust Never Sleeps | 1979 | 296 | 351 | 350 |
Peter Gabriel | So | 1986 | 297 | 187 | 187 |
Tom Petty | Full Moon Fever | 1989 | 298 | ||
B.B. King | Live at the Regal | 1965 | 299 | 141 | 141 |
Shania Twain | Come On Over | 1997 | 300 | ||
New York Dolls | New York Dolls | 1973 | 301 | 215 | 213 |
Neil Young | Tonight’s the Night | 1975 | 302 | 330 | 331 |
ABBA | The Definitive Collection | 2001 | 303 | 179 | 180 |
Bill Withers | Just As I Am | 1971 | 304 | ||
KISS | Alive! | 1975 | 305 | 159 | 159 |
Al Green | I’m Still in Love With You | 1972 | 306 | 286 | 285 |
Sam Cooke | Portrait of a Legend 1951–1964 | 2003 | 307 | 107 | 106 |
Brian Eno | Here Come the Warm Jets | 1973 | 308 | 432 | 436 |
Joy Division | Closer | 1980 | 309 | 157 | 157 |
Wire | Pink Flag | 1977 | 310 | 412 | 410 |
Neil Young | On The Beach | 1974 | 311 | ||
Solange | A Seat at the Table | 2016 | 312 | ||
PJ Harvey | Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea | 2000 | 313 | 431 | |
Aaliyah | One in a Million | 1996 | 314 | ||
Rosalía | El Mal Querer | 2018 | 315 | ||
The Who | The Who Sell Out | 1967 | 316 | 115 | 113 |
Billie Holiday | Lady In Satin | 1958 | 317 | ||
Janet Jackson | The Velvet Rope | 1997 | 318 | 259 | 256 |
The Stone Roses | The Stone Roses | 1989 | 319 | 498 | |
X | Los Angeles | 1980 | 320 | 287 | 286 |
Lana Del Ray | Noman Fucking Rockwell! | 2019 | 321 | ||
Elvis Presley | From Elvis in Memphis | 1969 | 322 | 190 | 190 |
The Clash | Sandinista! | 1980 | 323 | 407 | 404 |
Coldplay | A Rush of Blood to the Head | 2002 | 324 | 466 | 473 |
Jerry Lee Lewis | All Killer No Filler! The Jerry Lee Lewis Anthology | 1993 | 325 | 245 | 242 |
Prince | Dirty Mind | 1980 | 326 | 206 | 204 |
The Who | Live at Leeds | 1970 | 327 | 170 | 170 |
Vampire Weekend | Modern Vampires of the City | 2013 | 328 | ||
DJ Shadow | Entroducing..... | 1996 | 329 | ||
The Rolling Stones | Aftermath | 1966 | 330 | 109 | 108 |
Madonna | Like a Prayer | 1989 | 331 | 239 | 237 |
Elvis Presley | Elvis Presley | 1956 | 332 | 56 | 55 |
Bill Withers | Still Bill | 1972 | 333 | ||
Santana | Abraxas | 1970 | 334 | 207 | 205 |
Bob Dylan & The Band | The Basement Tapes | 1975 | 335 | 292 | 291 |
Roxy Music | Avalon | 1982 | 336 | 307 | |
Bob Dylan | John Wesley Harding | 1967 | 337 | 303 | 301 |
Brian Eno | Another Green World | 1975 | 338 | 429 | 433 |
Janet Jackson | Rhythm Nation 1814 | 1989 | 339 | 277 | 275 |
Snoop Doggy Dogg | Doggystyle | 1993 | 340 | ||
Smashing Pumpkins | Siamese Dream | 1993 | 341 | 362 | 360 |
The Beatles | Let It Be | 1970 | 342 | 392 | 86 |
Sly and the Family Stone | Greatest Hits | 1970 | 343 | 61 | 60 |
Toots & The Maytals | Funky Kingston | 1973 | 344 | 380 | 378 |
Bruce Springsteen | The Wild, the Innocent & The E Street Shuffle | 1973 | 345 | 133 | 132 |
Arctic Monkeys | AM | 2013 | 346 | ||
GZA | Liquid Swords | 1995 | 347 | ||
Gillian Welch | Time (The Revelator) | 2001 | 348 | ||
MC5 | Kick Out the Jams | 1969 | 349 | 294 | 294 |
Stevie Wonder | Music of My Mind | 1972 | 350 | 285 | 284 |
Roxy Music | For Your Pleasure | 1973 | 351 | 396 | 394 |
Eminem | The Slim Shady LP | 1999 | 352 | 275 | 273 |
The Cars | The Cars | 1978 | 353 | 284 | 282 |
X-Ray Spex | Germfree Adolescents | 1978 | 354 | ||
Black Sabbath | Black Sabbath | 1970 | 355 | 243 | 241 |
Dr. John | Gris-Gris | 1968 | 356 | 143 | 143 |
Tom Waits | Rain Dogs | 1985 | 357 | 399 | 397 |
Sonic Youth | Goo | 1990 | 358 | ||
Big Star | Radio City | 1974 | 359 | 405 | 403 |
Funkadelic | One Nation Under a Groove | 1978 | 360 | 177 | 177 |
My Chemical Romance | The Black Parade | 2006 | 361 | ||
Luther Vandross | Never Too Much | 1981 | 362 | ||
Parliament | Mothership Connection | 1975 | 363 | 276 | 274 |
Talking Heads | More Songs About Buildings and Food | 1978 | 364 | 383 | 382 |
Madvillain | Madvillainy | 2004 | 365 | ||
Aerosmith | Rocks | 1976 | 366 | 176 | 176 |
Drake | If You're Reading This It's Too Late | 2015 | 367 | ||
George Harrison | All Things Must Pass | 1970 | 368 | 433 | 437 |
Mobb Deep | The Infamous | 1995 | 369 | ||
Lil Wayne | Tha Carter II | 2005 | 370 | ||
The Temptations | Anthology: The Best of The Temptations | 1995 | 371 | 400 | 398 |
Big Brother & the Holding Company | Cheap Thrills | 1968 | 372 | 338 | 338 |
Isaac Hayes | Hot Buttered Soul | 1969 | 373 | ||
Robert Johnson | King of the Delta Blues Singers | 1961 | 374 | 27 | |
Green Day | Dookie | 1994 | 375 | 193 | 193 |
Neutral Milk Hotel | In the Aeroplane Over the Sea | 1998 | 376 | ||
Yeah Yeah Yeahs | Fever to Tell | 2003 | 377 | ||
Run‐D.M.C. | Run‐D.M.C. | 1984 | 378 | 242 | 240 |
Rush | Moving Pictures | 1981 | 379 | ||
Charles Mingus | Mingus Ah Um | 1959 | 380 | ||
Lynyrd Skynyrd | (pronounced ’lĕh‐’nérd ’skin‐’nérd) | 1973 | 381 | 403 | 401 |
Tame Impala | Currents | 2015 | 382 | ||
Massive Attack | Mezzanine | 1998 | 383 | 412 | |
The Kinks | The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society | 1968 | 384 | 258 | 255 |
Ramones | Rocket to Russia | 1977 | 385 | 106 | 105 |
J Dilla | Donuts | 2006 | 386 | ||
Radiohead | In Rainbows | 2007 | 387 | 336 | |
Aretha Franklin | Young, Gifted and Black | 1972 | 388 | ||
Mariah Carey | The Emancipation of Mimi | 2005 | 389 | ||
Pixies | Surfer Rosa | 1988 | 390 | 317 | 315 |
Kelis | Kaleidoscope | 1991 | 391 | ||
Ike & Tina Turner | Proud Mary: The Best of Ike and Tina Turner | 1991 | 392 | 214 | 212 |
Taylor Swift | 1989 | 2014 | 393 | ||
Diana Ross | Diana | 1980 | 394 | ||
D’Angelo | Black Messiah | 2014 | 395 | ||
Todd Rundgren | Something/Anything? | 1972 | 396 | 173 | 173 |
Billie Eilish | When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go? | 2019 | 397 | ||
The Raincoats | The Raincoats | 1979 | 398 | ||
Brian Wilson | Smile | 2004 | 399 | ||
The Go‐Go’s | Beauty and the Beat | 1981 | 400 | 414 | 413 |
Blondie | Blondie | 1977 | 401 | ||
Fela Kuti and Africa 70 | Expensive Shit | 1975 | 402 | ||
Ghostface Killah | Supreme Clientele | 2000 | 403 | ||
Anita Baker | Rapture | 1986 | 404 | ||
Various Artists | Nuggets: Original Artyfacts From the First Psychedelic Era, 1965–1968 | 1972 | 405 | 196 | 196 |
The Magnetic Fields | 69 Love Songs | 1999 | 406 | 465 | |
Neil Young & Crazy Horse | Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere | 1969 | 407 | 210 | 208 |
Motörhead | Ace of Spades | 1980 | 408 | ||
Grateful Dead | Workingman’s Dead | 1970 | 409 | 264 | 262 |
The Beach Boys | Wild Honey | 1967 | 410 | ||
Bob Dylan | Love and Theft | 2001 | 411 | 385 | 467 |
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles | Going to a Go-Go | 1965 | 412 | 273 | 271 |
Creedence Clearwater Revival | Cosmo's Factory | 1970 | 413 | 265 | |
Chic | Risque | 1979 | 414 | ||
The Meters | Look-Ka Py Py | 1970 | 415 | 220 | 218 |
The Roots | Things Fall Apart | 1999 | 416 | ||
Ornette Coleman | The Shape of Jazz to Come | 1959 | 417 | 248 | 246 |
Dire Straits | Brothers in Arms | 1985 | 418 | 352 | 351 |
Eric Church | Chief | 2011 | 419 | ||
Earth, Wind & Fire | That’s the Way of the World | 1975 | 420 | 486 | 493 |
M.I.A. | Arular | 2005 | 421 | ||
Marvin Gaye | Let’s Get It On | 1973 | 422 | 165 | 165 |
Yo La Tengo | I Can Hear the Heart Beating As One | 1997 | 423 | ||
Beck | Odelay | 1996 | 424 | 306 | 305 |
Paul Simon | Paul Simon | 1972 | 425 | 268 | 267 |
Lucinda Williams | Lucinda Williams | 1988 | 426 | ||
Al Green | Call Me | 1973 | 427 | 290 | 289 |
Hüsker Dü | New Day Rising | 1985 | 428 | 488 | 495 |
The Four Tops | Reach Out | 1967 | 429 | ||
Elvis Costello | My Aim Is True | 1977 | 430 | 168 | 168 |
Los Lobos | How Will the Wolf Survive? | 1984 | 431 | 455 | 461 |
Usher | Confessions | 2004 | 432 | ||
LCD Soundsystem | Sound of Silver | 2007 | 433 | 395 | |
Pavement | Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain | 1994 | 434 | 212 | 210 |
Pet Shop Boys | Actually | 1987 | 435 | ||
2Pac | All Eyez on Me | 1996 | 436 | ||
Primal Scream | Screamadelica | 1991 | 437 | ||
Blur | Parklife | 1994 | 438 | ||
James Brown | Sex Machine | 1970 | 439 | ||
Loretta Lynn | Coal Miner's Daughter | 1971 | 440 | ||
Britney Spears | Blackout | 2007 | 441 | ||
The Weeknd | Beauty Behind the Madness | 2015 | 442 | ||
David Bowie | Scary Monsters | 1980 | 443 | ||
Fiona Apple | Extraordinary Machine | 2005 | 444 | ||
Yes | Close to the Edge | 1972 | 445 | ||
Alice Coltrane | Journey in Satchidanada | 1971 | 446 | ||
Bad Bunny | X 100pre | 2018 | 447 | ||
Otis Redding | Complete & Unbelievable: The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul | 1966 | 448 | 254 | 251 |
The White Stripes | Elephant | 2003 | 449 | 390 | 390 |
Paul and Linda McCartney | Ram | 1971 | 450 | ||
Roberta Flack | First Take | 1969 | 451 | ||
Diana Ross & The Supremes | Anthology | 2001 | 452 | 423 | 431 |
Nine Inch Nails | Pretty Hate Machine | 1989 | 453 | ||
Can | Ege Bamyasi | 1972 | 454 | ||
Bo Diddley | Bo Diddley / Go Bo Diddley | 1986 | 455 | 216 | 214 |
Al Green | Greatest Hits | 1975 | 456 | 52 | 52 |
Sinéad O’Connor | I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got | 1990 | 457 | 408 | 406 |
Jason Isbell | Southeastern | 2013 | 458 | ||
Kid Cudi | Man on the Moon: The End of the Day | 2009 | 459 | ||
Lorde | Melodrama | 2017 | 460 | ||
Bon Iver | For Emma | 2008 | 461 | ||
The Flying Burrito Bros. | The Gilded Palace of Sin | 1969 | 462 | 192 | 192 |
Laura Nyro | Eli & the 13th Confession | 1968 | 463 | ||
The Isley Brothers | 3 + 3 | 1973 | 464 | ||
King Sunny Adé | The Best of the Classic Years | 2003 | 465 | ||
The Beach Boys | The Beach Boys Today! | 1965 | 466 | 271 | 270 |
Maxwell | BLACKsummers’night | 2009 | 467 | ||
The Rolling Stones | Some Girls | 1978 | 468 | 270 | 269 |
Manu Chao | Clandestino | 1998 | 469 | ||
Juvenile | 400 Degreez | 1998 | 470 | ||
Jefferson Airplane | Surrealistic Pillow | 1967 | 471 | 146 | 146 |
SZA | Ctrl | 2017 | 472 | ||
Daddy Yankee | Barrio Fino | 2004 | 473 | ||
Big Star | #1 Record | 1972 | 474 | 434 | 438 |
Sheryl Crow | Sheryl Crow | 1996 | 475 | ||
Sparks | Kimono My House | 1974 | 476 | ||
Howlin’ Wolf | Moanin’ in the Moonlight | 1959 | 477 | 154 | 153 |
The Kinks | Something Else by The Kinks | 1967 | 478 | 289 | 288 |
Selena | Amor Prohibido | 1994 | 479 | ||
Miranda Lambert | The Weight of These Wings | 2016 | 480 | ||
Belle and Sebastian | If You’re Feeling Sinister | 1996 | 481 | ||
The Pharcyde | Bizarre Ride II the Pharcyde | 1992 | 482 | ||
Muddy Waters | The Anthology | 2001 | 483 | 38 | 38 |
Lady Gaga | Born This Way | 2011 | 484 | ||
Richard & Linda Thompson | I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight | 1974 | 485 | 471 | 479 |
John Mayer | Continuum | 2006 | 486 | ||
Black Flag | Damaged | 1981 | 487 | 340 | 340 |
The Stooges | The Stooges | 1969 | 488 | 185 | 185 |
Phil Spector | Back to Mono (1958-1969) | 1991 | 489 | 65 | 64 |
Linda Ronstadt | Heart Like A Wheel | 1974 | 490 | 164 | |
Harry Styles | Fine Line | 2019 | 491 | ||
Bonnie Raitt | Nick of Time | 1989 | 492 | 230 | 229 |
Marvin Gaye | Here, My Dear | 1978 | 493 | 456 | 462 |
The Ronettes | Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica | 1963 | 494 | 422 | 427 |
Boyz II Men | II | 1991 | 495 | ||
Shakira | Dónde Están los Ladrones | 1998 | 496 | ||
Various Artists | The Indestructible Beat of Soweto | 1985 | 497 | 388 | |
Suicide | Suicide | 1977 | 498 | 441 | 446 |
Rufus, Chaka Khan | Ask Rufus | 1977 | 499 | ||
Arcade Fire | Funeral | 2004 | 500 | 151 | |
Robert Johnson | The Complete Recordings | 1990 | 22 | ||
The Beatles | Please Please Me | 1963 | 39 | 39 | |
Creedence Clearwater Revival | Chronicle Vol. 1 | 1976 | 59 | ||
Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band | Trout Mask Replica | 1969 | 60 | 58 | |
Cream | Fresh Cream | 1966 | 102 | 101 | |
The Mama’s and the Papa’s | If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears | 1966 | 112 | 127 | |
The Rolling Stones | Out of Our Heads | 1965 | 116 | 114 | |
Moby Grape | Moby Grape | 1967 | 124 | 121 | |
The Wailers | Catch a Fire | 1973 | 126 | 123 | |
The Byrds | Younger Than Yesterday | 1967 | 127 | 124 | |
Iggy and The Stooges | Raw Power | 1973 | 128 | 125 | |
Elton John | Greatest Hits | 1974 | 136 | 135 | |
The Replacements | Tim | 1985 | 137 | 136 | |
The Meters | Rejuvenation | 1974 | 139 | 138 | |
Various Artists | A Christmas Gift for You From Phil Spector | 1963 | 142 | 142 | |
Santana | Santana | 1969 | 149 | 150 | |
Elton John | Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy | 1975 | 158 | 158 | |
Otis Redding | The Dock of the Bay | 1968 | 161 | 161 | |
Linda Ronstadt | The Very Best of Linda Ronstadt | 2002 | 164 | 324 | |
Elvis Costello & The Attractions | Imperial Bedroom | 1982 | 166 | 166 | |
The Byrds | The Notorious Byrd Brothers | 1968 | 171 | 171 | |
Bob Dylan | Desire | 1976 | 174 | 174 | |
Carpenters | Close to You | 1970 | 175 | 175 | |
Curtis Mayfield & The Impressions | The Anthology: 1961–1977 | 1992 | 178 | 179 | |
The Rolling Stones | The Rolling Stones, Now! | 1965 | 180 | 181 | |
Bob Marley and the Wailers | Natty Dread | 1974 | 181 | 182 | |
Fleetwood Mac | Fleetwood Mac | 1975 | 182 | 183 | |
Sly and the Family Stone | Fresh | 1973 | 186 | 186 | |
Buffalo Springfield | Buffalo Springfield Again | 1967 | 188 | 188 | |
Quicksilver Messenger Service | Happy Trails | 1969 | 189 | 189 | |
John Mayall & The Bluesbreakers | Blues Breakers With Eric Clapton (“The Beano Album”) | 1966 | 195 | 195 | |
Little Walter | The Best of Little Walter | 1957 | 198 | 198 | |
AC/DC | Highway to Hell | 1979 | 200 | 199 | |
Simon and Garfunkel | Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme | 1966 | 202 | 201 | |
Bob Dylan | Modern Times | 2006 | 204 | ||
Cream | Wheels of Fire | 1968 | 205 | 203 | |
The Rolling Stones | Tattoo You | 1981 | 213 | 211 | |
Bobby Bland | Two Steps From the Blues | 1961 | 217 | 215 | |
Professor Longhair | New Orleans Piano | 1972 | 222 | 220 | |
U2 | War | 1983 | 223 | 221 | |
Neil Diamond | The Neil Diamond Collection | 1999 | 224 | 222 | |
Aerosmith | Toys in the Attic | 1975 | 229 | 228 | |
The Kinks | The Kink Kronikles | 1972 | 232 | 231 | |
Simon and Garfunkel | Bookends | 1968 | 234 | 233 | |
Jackie Wilson | Mr. Excitement! | 1992 | 236 | 235 | |
The Who | My Generation | 1965 | 237 | 236 | |
Howlin’ Wolf | Howlin’ Wolf | 1962 | 238 | 223 | |
The Mothers of Invention | Freak Out! | 1966 | 246 | 243 | |
Grateful Dead | Live/Dead | 1969 | 247 | 244 | |
Bruce Springsteen | The River | 1980 | 253 | 250 | |
Willie Nelson | Stardust | 1978 | 260 | 257 | |
Ray Charles | The Genius of Ray Charles | 1959 | 265 | 263 | |
Blood, Sweat & Tears | Child Is Father to the Man | 1968 | 266 | 264 | |
The Who | Quadrophenia | 1973 | 267 | 266 | |
The Jesus and Mary Chain | Psychocandy | 1985 | 269 | 268 | |
LaBelle | Nightbirds | 1974 | 274 | 272 | |
Various Artists | Anthology of American Folk Music | 1997 | 278 | 276 | |
David Bowie | Aladdin Sane | 1973 | 279 | 277 | |
U2 | All That You Can’t Leave Behind | 2000 | 280 | 139 | |
Muddy Waters | Folk Singer | 1964 | 282 | 280 | |
Barry White | Can’t Get Enough | 1974 | 283 | 281 | |
Grateful Dead | Anthem of the Sun | 1968 | 288 | 287 | |
Talking Heads | Talking Heads: 77 | 1977 | 291 | 290 | |
Leonard Cohen | Songs of Love and Hate | 1971 | 295 | ||
The Smiths | Meat Is Murder | 1985 | 296 | 295 | |
The Mothers of Invention | We’re Only in It for the Money | 1968 | 297 | 296 | |
Frank Sinatra | Songs for Swingin’ Lovers! | 1956 | 308 | 306 | |
Various Artists | The Sun Records Collection | 1994 | 311 | 308 | |
Jane’s Addiction | Nothing’s Shocking | 1988 | 312 | 309 | |
The O’Jays | Back Stabbers | 1972 | 318 | 318 | |
The Wailers | Burnin’ | 1973 | 319 | 319 | |
Radiohead | Amnesiac | 2001 | 320 | ||
The Police | Ghost in the Machine | 1981 | 323 | 322 | |
Eric Clapton | Slowhand | 1977 | 325 | 325 | |
James Brown | In the Jungle Groove | 1986 | 329 | 330 | |
Richard & Linda Thompson | Shoot Out the Lights | 1982 | 332 | 333 | |
X | Wild Gift | 1981 | 333 | 334 | |
Graham Parker & The Rumour | Squeezing Out Sparks | 1979 | 334 | 335 | |
Soundgarden | Superunknown | 1994 | 335 | 336 | |
Jethro Tull | Aqualung | 1971 | 337 | 337 | |
Tom Waits | The Heart of Saturday Night | 1974 | 339 | 339 | |
Moby | Play | 1999 | 341 | 341 | |
Meat Loaf | Bat out of Hell | 1977 | 343 | 343 | |
Lou Reed | Berlin | 1973 | 344 | 344 | |
Talking Heads | Stop Making Sense | 1984 | 345 | 345 | |
Muddy Waters | Muddy Waters at Newport 1960 | 1960 | 348 | 348 | |
The Yardbirds | Yardbirds | 1966 | 350 | 349 | |
Billy Joel | 52nd Street | 1978 | 354 | 352 | |
The Yardbirds | Having a Rave Up | 1965 | 355 | 353 | |
Randy Newman | 12 Songs | 1970 | 356 | 354 | |
The Rolling Stones | Between the Buttons | 1967 | 357 | 355 | |
Miles Davis | Sketches of Spain | 1960 | 358 | 356 | |
New Order | Substance 1987 | 1987 | 363 | 361 | |
The Doors | L.A. Woman | 1971 | 364 | 362 | |
Johnny Cash | American Recordings | 1994 | 366 | 364 | |
The Smiths | Louder Than Bombs | 1987 | 369 | 365 | |
Mott the Hoople | Mott | 1973 | 370 | 366 | |
Arctic Monkeys | Whatever People Say I Am, That’s What I’m Not | 2006 | 371 | ||
The Police | Reggatta de Blanc | 1979 | 372 | 369 | |
Jefferson Airplane | Volunteers | 1969 | 373 | 370 | |
Roxy Music | Siren | 1975 | 374 | 371 | |
Jackson Browne | Late for the Sky | 1974 | 375 | 372 | |
John Lee Hooker | The Ultimate Collection: 1948–1990 | 1991 | 377 | 375 | |
The Beach Boys | The Smile Sessions | 2011 | 381 | ||
The Who | A Quick One | 1966 | 384 | 383 | |
Steely Dan | Pretzel Logic | 1974 | 386 | 385 | |
Don Henley | The End of the Innocence | 1989 | 389 | 389 | |
Jackson Browne | The Pretender | 1976 | 391 | 391 | |
M.I.A. | Kala | 2007 | 393 | ||
Randy Newman | Good Old Boys | 1974 | 394 | 393 | |
ZZ Top | Eliminator | 1983 | 398 | 396 | |
Dr. John | Dr. John’s Gumbo | 1972 | 404 | 402 | |
The Doors | Strange Days | 1967 | 409 | 407 | |
Bob Dylan | Time Out of Mind | 1997 | 410 | 408 | |
Eric Clapton | 461 Ocean Boulevard | 1974 | 411 | 409 | |
Tom Waits | Mule Variations | 1999 | 416 | 416 | |
U2 | Boy | 1980 | 417 | 417 | |
Paul McCartney & Wings | Band on the Run | 1973 | 418 | 418 | |
The Crickets | The “Chirping” Crickets | 1957 | 420 | 421 | |
Various Artists | The Best of the Girl Groups, Volume 1 and 2 | 1990 | 421 | 422 | |
Bruce Springsteen | The Rising | 2002 | 424 | ||
Gram Parsons | Grievous Angel | 1974 | 425 | 429 | |
Cheap Trick | Cheap Trick at Budokan | 1978 | 426 | 430 | |
Peter Wolf | Sleepless | 2002 | 427 | 432 | |
The Police | Outlandos d’Amour | 1978 | 428 | 434 | |
Vampire Weekend | Vampire Weekend | 2007 | 430 | ||
Beck | Sea Change | 2002 | 436 | 440 | |
The Pogues | Rum Sodomy & the Lash | 1985 | 440 | 445 | |
Cheap Trick | In Color | 1977 | 443 | 448 | |
War | The World Is a Ghetto | 1972 | 444 | 449 | |
Steve Miller Band | Fly Like an Eagle | 1976 | 445 | 450 | |
MC5 | Back in the USA | 1970 | 446 | 451 | |
Stan Getz / João Gilberto | Getz/Gilberto | 1964 | 447 | 454 | |
Jackson Browne | For Everyman | 1973 | 450 | 457 | |
EPMD | Strictly Business | 1988 | 453 | 459 | |
Alice Cooper | Love It to Death | 1971 | 454 | 460 | |
My Morning Jacket | Z | 2005 | 457 | ||
Elton John | Tumbleweed Connection | 1970 | 458 | 463 | |
The Drifters | The Drifters’ Golden Hits | 1968 | 459 | 465 | |
Public Image Ltd. | Metal Box | 1979 | 461 | 469 | |
R.E.M. | Document | 1987 | 462 | 470 | |
Echo and the Bunnymen | Heaven Up Here | 1981 | 463 | 471 | |
Def Leppard | Hysteria | 1987 | 464 | 472 | |
Bruce Springsteen | Tunnel of Love | 1987 | 467 | 475 | |
The Paul Butterfield Blues Band | The Paul Butterfield Blues Band | 1965 | 468 | 476 | |
Fugees (Refugee Camp) | The Score | 1996 | 469 | 477 | |
L.L. Cool J | Radio | 1985 | 470 | 478 | |
The Smiths | The Smiths | 1984 | 473 | 481 | |
Manu Chao | Próxima estación: Esperanza | 2001 | 474 | ||
Elvis Costello & The Attractions | Armed Forces | 1979 | 475 | 482 | |
Loretta Lynn | All Time Greatest Hits | 2002 | 478 | 485 | |
Steve Earle | Guitar Town | 1986 | 482 | 489 | |
Mott the Hoople | All the Young Dudes | 1972 | 484 | 491 | |
Pearl Jam | Vitalogy | 1994 | 485 | 492 | |
KISS | Destroyer | 1976 | 489 | 496 | |
ZZ Top | Tres hombres | 1973 | 490 | 498 | |
Albert King | Born Under a Bad Sign | 1967 | 491 | 499 | |
Eurythmics | Touch | 1983 | 492 | 500 | |
MGMT | Oracular Spectacular | 2007 | 494 | ||
Bonnie Raitt | Give It Up | 1972 | 495 | ||
Boz Scaggs | Boz Scaggs | 1969 | 496 | ||
The White Stripes | White Blood Cells | 2001 | 497 | ||
B.B. King | Live in Cook County Jail | 1971 | 499 | ||
Creedence Clearwater Revival | Green River | 1969 | 95 | ||
Otis Redding | Dreams To Remember: The Otis Redding Anthology | 1998 | 147 | ||
The Byrds | Greatest Hits | 1967 | 178 | ||
Hank Williams | The Complete Hank Williams | 1998 | 225 | ||
Nick Drake | Bryter Layter | 1970 | 245 | ||
Buena Vista Social Club | Buena Vista Social Club | 1997 | 260 | ||
Nick Drake | Five Leaves Left | 1969 | 283 | ||
Simon And Garfunkel | Greatest Hits | 1972 | 293 | ||
No Doubt | Rock Steady | 2001 | 316 | ||
Eminem | The Eminem Show | 2002 | 317 | ||
Bruce Springsteen | Greetings From Asbury Park | 1973 | 379 | ||
The Beach Boys | Sunflower | 1970 | 380 | ||
Def Leppard | Pyromania | 1983 | 384 | ||
Roxy Music | Country Life | 1974 | 387 | ||
James Brown | Greatest Hits | 1991 | 414 | ||
The Beatles | With The Beatles | 1963 | 420 | ||
The Mamas & The Papas | Greatest Hits | 1998 | 423 | ||
Robert Johnson | King Of The Delta Blues Singers, Vol. 2 | 1970 | 424 | ||
David Bowie | Changesone | 1976 | 425 | ||
Rage Against The Machine | The Battle Of Los Angeles | 1999 | 426 | ||
PJ Harvey | To Bring You My Love | 1995 | 435 | ||
No Doubt | Tragic Kingdom | 1995 | 441 | ||
Madonna | Music | 2000 | 452 | ||
Jane's Addiction | Ritual De Lo Habitual | 1990 | 453 | ||
Elton John | Elton John | 1970 | 468 | ||
Otis Redding | Live In Europe | 1967 | 474 | ||
Merle Haggard | Branded Man | 1967 | 484 | ||
Smashing Pumpkins | Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness | 1995 | 487 | ||
Public Enemy | Yo! Bum Rush The Show | 1987 | 497 |
The Wikipedia entry for ‘Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time’ provides some basic statistics on number of albums from each decade, and artists with the most albums.
They show that the 2020 list is more contemporary. Albums from the 1950s and 60s have fallen from 31% (in 2003) to 17% (in 2020), albums from the 1970s and 80s have fallen from 54% to 45%, albums from the 1990s and 2000s have risen from 15% to 31%, and albums from the 2010s have risen from 0% to 7%. In summary, the 70s-80s core remains solid (roughly half) with the 50s-60s dropping off and being replaced by the 90s-00s, and a small number of albums (36) from the last decade.
They also show that the list is more diverse. In 2003 and 2012 there were 59 artists with between three and eleven albums on the list accounting for 48% of the entries, whereas in 2020 this has fallen to 41 artists accounting for 32%. In summary, the big names have gone from roughly a half to a third of the list.
Let’s take a look at 2020 list in a bit more detail.
What’s Changed?
There are 163 new entries on the 2020 list compared with 2012, a turnover of 33%.
Seven of these are albums that were on the 2003 list then culled in 2012. Presumably many people would agree with the re-inclusion of albums like Jagged Little Pill by Alanis Morissette (which comes back in at #69), Avalon by Roxy Music, and Mezzanine by Massive Attack. There’s also the re-inclusion of studio albums by Creedence Clearwater Revival (Cosmo’s Factory) and Linda Ronstadt (Heart Like A Wheel) that were displaced by Greatest Hits albums in 2012. More on the issue of Greatest Hits a little later…
The new entries are mostly in the bottom half of the list, though not exclusively so. Thirty five (35) % are in the 400+, 26% in the 300+ and 12% in the 250+, totaling 73%. In the top half, 12% are in the 250-200+, 9% in the 100+, and 6% are in the top 100.
The 10 new entries on the list which made it into the top 100 are:
Artist |
Album |
Year |
# |
Kendrick Lamar |
To Pimp a Butterfly |
2015 |
19 |
Beyoncé |
Lemonade |
2016 |
32 |
Kate Bush |
Hounds of Love |
1985 |
68 |
Alanis Morissette |
Jagged Little Pill |
1995 |
69 |
Frank Ocean |
Blond |
2016 |
79 |
Beyoncé |
Beyoncé |
2013 |
81 |
Erykah Badu |
Baduizm |
1997 |
89 |
Missy “Misdemeanor” Elliott |
Supa Dupa Fly |
1997 |
93 |
Drake |
Take Care |
2011 |
95 |
Taylor Swift |
Red |
2012 |
99 |
The 163 new entries are also weighted towards recent decades, though perhaps not as much as one might expect. Twenty-one (21) % are from the 2010s, the decade since the last list was produced. A further 16% are from the 2000s and 28% from the 1990s, with the other 34% coming from the 1950s-1980s.
The new entries therefore reflect not just new music produced since 2012, but also a re-evaluation of albums made by female artists, artists with non-Anglo-American backgrounds, and artists working in different genres. For example, the ten new entries in the top 100 shown above include four albums from the 80s and 90s, all by female artists, and six albums from the 2010s produced by male and female artists drawing on hip-hop, R&B, and country roots.
Headlines
The new top 10:
- Marvin Gaye’s What’s Going On is the new #1, having been #6 in 2012 and 2003.
- Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles was #1 in 2012 and 2003, and now comes in at #24, below Abbey Road (#5) and Revolver (#11).
- Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys remains at #2.
- The rest of the top 10 has been shaken up significantly.
- Abbey Road by The Beatles, Nevermind by Nirvana, and Blood on the Tracks by Bob Dylan jump from top 20 to top 10.
- Blue by Joni Mitchell and Rumours by Fleetwood Mac jump from top 30 to top 10.
- Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life and Prince’s Purple Rain jump from top 100 to top 10.
- The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill jumps ~300 places into #10.
- The eight albums that ranked #3 to #10 in 2012 but not in 2020 all remain in the top 40 – four Beatles albums, two Bob Dylan albums, one by the Rolling Stones, and one by the Clash.
The big names:
- The Beatles now have most albums on the list, with nine (down from 10). Bob Dylan has eight albumns on the list (down from 11).
- Neil Young is the one ‘Anglo-American male rock musician’ whose star continues to rise with seven albums, up from six.
- Kanye West is biggest of the new big names with six albums on the list, up from three. He’s now level with the Rolling Stones, and one above Led Zeppelin, Bruce Springsteen, and David Bowie (five each).
- The Who (from seven to four), Elton John (from six to two), and U2 (from five to two) all had several albums drop off. Radiohead retained four albums on the list (down from five).
- Kendrick Lamar, Fiona Apple, and Beyonce are the others moving into big name territory, going from zero to three albums on the list.
- The Police and The Smiths both dropped from four albums to one. Jackson Browne dropped from three to zero.
The big movers:
- There were 23 albums that moved up by more than 250 places – see below.
- This list reflects a re-evaluation of some artists (Lauryn Hill, Wu-Tang Clan, D’Angelo, Amy Winehouse, Nas, OutKast, Liz Phair etc.), as well as a re-evaluation of the relative greatness of albums by some big names (David Bowie, The Police, and Nirvana).
Artist |
Album |
Year |
2020 |
2012 |
Lauryn Hill |
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill |
1998 |
10 |
314 |
Kanye West |
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy |
2010 |
17 |
353 |
Wu-Tang Clan |
Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) |
1993 |
27 |
387 |
D’Angelo |
Voodoo |
2000 |
28 |
481 |
Amy Winehouse |
Back to Black |
2006 |
33 |
451 |
Nas |
Illmatic |
1994 |
44 |
402 |
OutKast |
Aquemini |
1998 |
49 |
500 |
David Bowie |
Station to Station |
1976 |
52 |
324 |
Liz Phair |
Exile in Guyville |
1993 |
56 |
327 |
OutKast |
Stankonia |
2000 |
64 |
361 |
Hole |
Live Through This |
1994 |
106 |
460 |
Portishead |
Dummy |
1994 |
131 |
419 |
The Cure |
Boys Don’t Cry |
1980 |
134 |
438 |
Funkadelic |
Maggot Brain |
1971 |
136 |
479 |
John Prine |
John Prine |
1971 |
149 |
452 |
George Michael |
Faith |
1987 |
151 |
472 |
PJ Harvey |
Rid of Me |
1993 |
153 |
406 |
The Police |
Synchronicity |
1983 |
159 |
448 |
Nirvana |
In Utero |
1993 |
173 |
435 |
The Notorious B.I.G. |
Life After Death |
1997 |
179 |
476 |
Cyndi Lauper |
She’s So Unusual |
1983 |
184 |
487 |
Raekwon |
Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… |
1995 |
219 |
480 |
Wilco |
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot |
2002 |
225 |
493 |
Flaws in the Rolling Stone approach
There’s no formula for doing this, but the Rolling Stone approach has some obvious flaws.
1. Greatest Hits (Artists versus Albums)
From the beginning in 2003, Rolling Stone has allowed inclusion of Greatest Hits and Compilation albums. Many people have pointed out that this is a significant flaw in assessing Greatest Albums. It means that the quality of single studio albums can be rated against the highlights from multiple studio albums. Rolling Stone’s justification for this is weak, and it shouldn’t be allowed.
The potential bias this introduces to the list is less in 2020 than it was in 2003 and 2012. There are (by my reckoning) 26 great hits or compilation albums on the 2020 list, whereas another 30 have been delisted. What’s even more frustrating however is that ten of the artists with Greatest Hits albums listed in 2020 also have studio/live albums listed. This makes no sense at all and gives those artists ‘two bites of the cherry’. It’s unforgiveable to include Greatest Hits albums by contemporary artists like Bob Marley (Legend #48), Madonna (The Immaculate Collection #138) and ABBA (The Definitive Collection #303).
The Greatest Hits albums listed in 2020 are largely big names from bygone eras. This isn’t however a list of Greatest Artists of All Time. The Rolling Stone Greatest Albums list gets a bit confused about this, feeling the need to include certain artists without going through the discipline of assessing the quality of their albums relative to the quality of albums by other, perhaps less famous artists. It damages the credibility of their process.
2. Greatest songs
Related to the above, there are some albums included on the 2020 list that have one or two monster songs but, in the opinion of many, would not rate as monster albums. This is a list of Greatest Albums of All Time, not Greatest Songs of All Time, and again it feels like there’s some confusion on this front.
Lorde’s album Melodrama (#460) is an example. Royals was a monster single, but as an album, Melodrama displaces other much more worthy albums that could be on this list. There are other examples.
3. Genres
Rolling Stone doesn’t define what genres are and are not in scope for the list, but most of it is obvious. You wouldn’t expect classical albums to show up. There is however some fuzziness around the edges that makes the selection process seem further confused.
The 2020 list includes eight jazz albums, by Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Herbie Hancock, Charles Mingus, Ornette Coleman, and Alice Coltrane. Many would argue that these are great albums, but they’re outliers in this context. Many would argue that there are other great jazz albums not on the list. Personally, I rate Sketches of Spain by Miles Davis higher than the two albums he has on the list, but I’d never expect that album to show up in a Rolling Stone context.
There’s perhaps some of this in the country and Americana genres as well. Crossover artists like Dolly Parton, Loretta Lynn, Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, and Lucinda Williams are clearly ‘in scope’ for a Rolling Stone list. It’s less clear how albums by the likes of Eric Church, Jason Isbell, and Miranda Lambert have made it onto a list with albums by the likes of Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Kanye West and Beyonce. It feels a bit tokenistic.
Criteria for assessing greatness
Rolling Stone says it received and tabulated Top 50 Albums lists from more than 300 artists, producers, critics, and music-industry figures (from radio programmers to label heads) as input to the 2020 list. Critical acclaim, influence on other artists, and album sales are all valid criteria that would emerge from such a process.
It’s unclear how Rolling Stone went from a 300 by 50 matrix to a single list of 500, noting that they already had lists from 2012 and 2003. The risk of a ‘self-fulfilling prophesy’ would appear to be quite high…
Anyway, the subjectivity is part of the fun and nobody needs to get hurt in the process.
The criterion I’d add for assessing ‘greatest’ is listenability. Can you imagine putting that album on at home alone, when having a drink with a few friends, or at a party you’re hosting? Can you imagine playing it end to end, and enjoying the experience? To me this is a key differentiator for a great album. There are quite a few albums on the list that I thought were great when released, but that haven’t stood the test of time. I can’t listen to them today.
Some personal thoughts about what’s on the list, and what’s not
The 2020 Rolling Stone list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time is a somewhat different beast to the earlier versions. It does feel less rusted on, more dynamic, and more inclusive. For better and for worse.
1. Too much of a good thing
To me, these lists have always seemed fundamentally conflicted on the issue of Greatest Albums versus Greatest Artists. The fact that half of the list in 2003 and 2012 was filled by just 59 artists with between three and eleven albums each says a lot. The 2020 list is more diverse, but just 41 artists still account for one third of the list with between three and nine albums each. Adding more and more albums by great artists is just lazy.
To make space for great albums that aren’t on the list, my starting point would be one album per artist, their greatest. There can be more than one album per artist, but artists with multiple albums must be those that have continued to push boundaries, adding more to the popular music canon over time. I’d argue that some great artists have made pretty much the same ‘great’ album multiple times. Choose one, don’t add them all.
There are eight artists with between five and nine albums on the 2020 list. How many should they have?
- Most people would agree that The Beatles deserve more than one entry. But nine, seriously? I’d give them three – Revolver, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road.
- Bob Dylan has eight albums on the list (down from 11). Highway 61 Revisited, Blood on the Tracks, and Blonde on Blonde would make it onto many lists. Personally, I was sorry to see Desire removed from the list. It’s the Dylan album I find the most ‘listenable’.
- I’m a fan of Neil Young but I reckon even he would blush at the inclusion of seven albums. Perhaps three – Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere, Harvest, and Rust Never Sleeps.
- Every one of Kanye West’s first six albums, produced over a nine-year period, is on the 2020 list. This defies logic. One (probably My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy) or maybe two?
- The Rolling Stones have six albums on the list (down from 10). As much as I love the Stones they’ve tended to ‘crank the handle’ over the years rather than break new ground. I’d only give them three – Let It Bleed, Sticky Fingers and Some Girls.
- Likewise Led Zeppelin who have five on the list. I’d only include two – Led Zeppelin IV and Physical Graffiti.
- Bruce Springsteen has five albums on the list. I can’t believe they excluded Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. so we have to start with six. I could stretch ‘the Boss’ to four great albums – Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., Born To Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town, and Nebraska.
- David Bowie is the artist on this list who I think has made more great albums than anyone else. He reinvented himself several times across a career spanning almost 50 years, and each of these iterations produced something new and spectacular. Remarkably, all of his great albums remain ‘listenable’ to this day. I would include eight on my list. The five that are on the RS 2020 list i.e. Hunky Dory, The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars, Station to Station, Low, and Scary Monsters. Plus Let’s Dance, The Next Day, and Blackstar. If you haven’t listened to those last two albums, do yourself a favour…
2. You missed some!
If the big names listed above were given fewer albums along the lines I’ve suggested, it would free up 23 spaces on the Rolling Stone 2020 list. I tried to limit myself to 23 suggestions for great albums that I think are missing but couldn’t keep it under 50 plus albums from 50 artists. Will just have to free up some more spaces when I make my own 500 list. Another day…
The albums I’m suggesting for inclusion mostly come from other than male-American-rock artists. In reverse chronological order (latest to earliest):
2010-2000s
- Boys and Girls (2012) by Alabama Shakes is a ripper and has a timeless feel to me.
- Laura Marling sounds like she’s listened to Joni Mitchell’s back catalogue, but she’s definitely developed into a major artist with her own style. A Creature I Don’t Know (2011) makes my list.
- Vecakimest (2009) by Grizzly Bear is a beautiful album. Think Beach Boys locked away in a mountain cabin at the end of the noughties.
- The XX (2009) by the XX is a really distinctive debut album. I keep wondering if it will stand the test of time. Up to now I’d say, yes it does.
- Primary Colours (2009) by The Horrors was an outstanding second album, and the quality and diversity of their subsequent output shows that it was no fluke.
- Oracular Spectacular (2007) by MGMT made it onto the RS 2012 list at #494, then fell off in 2020. I’d keep it on. It’s another great debut album that I think is standing up well.
- Goldfrapp have delivered albums of consistently high quality over many years. Felt Mountain (2003) gets my nod.
- The RS lists are ‘light on’ in the techno/dance genre. Stereo MCs have made some fine albums in this genre, and Deep Down and Dirty (2001) is my pick for the list. I defy you to stand still while this album plays.
- Prophesy (2001) by Nitin Sawney has a world music vibe. It draws on diverse influences but brings them together into a coherent, distinctive musical experience.
- Spirit of the Century (2001) by the Blind Boys of Alabama is a wonderful album that will stir your soul.
- John Cale gets a look in as a member of the Velvet Underground, but he’s also made some very interesting music as a solo artist. Hobsapiens (2001) is a great piece of work.
- Sleepwalking (2001) by Rae & Christian is a gem. (Northern Sulphuric Soul [1998] is also very good.)
- Ron Sexsmith is a super talented Canadian singer-songwriter. Blue Boy (2001) is the pick of his albums.
- Since I Left You (2000) by The Avalanches is an amazing album (and not just because they’re from Melbourne).
1990s
- Moby can sound like a bit of a dick, but Play (1999) is a big, influential album. It was on the previous lists and shouldn’t have been dropped.
- Moon Safari (1998) by French duo Air is just a great album that stands up really well.
- You’ve Come A Long Way Baby (1998) by Fatboy Slim was a monster album at the time and it continues to meet the ‘listenable’ criterion.
- DJ Shadow’s Entroducing makes in onto the RS 2020 list at #329. I’d also find a spot for Psyence Fiction (1998) by UNKLE, his duo with James Lavelle.
- Underworld continue to make excellent albums. Beaucoup Fish (1998) is my pick for the greatest list.
- Cake made some fine albums filled with a combination of great original songs and inventive covers. Fashion Nugget (1996) is the best.
- Tricky makes the list as a member of Massive Attack but deserves a spot in his own right for Maxinquaye (1995).
- No Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds? You have to be kidding Rolling Stone! I’d include Henry’s Dream (1992), Let Love In (1994), and The Boatman’s Call (1997).
- What about Michael Franti and Spearhead? They made some great albums, but if I have to pick one it’s Home (1994).
- Nothing by Iggy Pop, other than with The Stooges? That’s outrageous! Look, I have to be careful here because I’ve argued that Rolling Stone confuse Greatest Artists with Greatest Albums. Iggy’s studio albums are notoriously uneven so I’m at risk of sounding hypocritical. That said I think I can justify the inclusion of two albums. Lust for Life (made with David Bowie in 1977) is a great album, with four genuine classic songs (Lust for Life, Some Weird Sin, The Passenger, Success) and no real duds. I also rate 1993’s American Caesar very highly, and Eric Schermerhorn’s guitar playing on this album is sensational. There’s a bit of unevenness but the highs are so high, and there’s many of them, that it makes my list. While we’re at it, 2016’s Post Pop Depression made with John Homme from Queens of the Stone Age is also very, very good, but I’ll leave it at two. The thing to understand about Iggy is that when he’s working with the right crew, he can produce a great album.
- Paul Weller has made great music in the Jam, Style Council, and as a solo artist. None of this shows up in the Rolling Stone lists. At a minimum I’d include his solo album Wild Wood (1993).
- Neneh Cherry is another artist who’s made great music in very different phases of her career, albeit sporadically. I’d include both Raw Like Sushi (1989) and Homebrew (1992).
- It’s a bit of a surprise to me that Evan Dando’s charm didn’t get The Lemonheads onto the Rolling Stone list. I’d include It’s A Shame About Ray (1992).
- Reading, Writing and Arithmetic (1990) by The Sundays is just a perfect pop album. Harriet Wheeler’s dreamy vocals will put more of a spring in your step than that 10th Bob Dylan album for the day.
1980s
- The non-appearance of Roy Orbison on the RS 2020 list is a surprise given others included. Mystery Girl (released in 1989, after his death in 1988) shows that ‘the Big O’ still had it right to the end.
- The Go Betweens are one of the few Australian bands that have sufficient international cache to justify a place on the list. The album would have to be 16 Lovers Lane (1988).
- Echo and the Bunnymen made some very classy pop music in the 1980s. Heaven Up Here was dropped in 2020 having been on the previous lists. I’d reinclude them with Ocean Rain (1987) which is their most complete album.
- Cabaret Voltaire have made fifteen studio albums over 40 years. Code (1987) is my favourite.
- David Sylvian started out in the band Japan, then went on to make some amazing music working with collaborators of high quality. Secrets of the Beehive (1987) is a great album.
- Public Image Ltd had the album Metal Box on previous lists but it was dropped in 2020 and they disappear as well. Their 1986 album called ‘Album’ is a monster and makes it onto my list.
- Rattlesnakes (1985) by Lloyd Cole and the Commotions is another pop gem.
- Laurie Anderson is an avant-garde artist who works with multiple forms of media. As a musician, she made a series of stunning albums in the early 1980s. Big Science is probably the album most people would choose but I’m going with Mister Heartbreak (1984). Fight me!
- The Blue Nile ride on Paul Buchanan’s voice, and what a ride it is. A Walk Across the Rooftops (1984) is my choice of their albums.
- Matt Johnson is an enigmatic character and his band The The is a fluid concept. Some fabulous music has been made under this moniker. Soul Mining (1983) is my pick (with stiff competition from Infected [1986] and Naked Self [2000]).
- I think Joe Jackson is underrated as an artist based on the quality and breadth of his musical output over 40 years. It would be a big call to put him up for more than one greatest album so I’ll settle for the inclusion of Night and Day (1982).
- Grace Jones made some remarkable music in the 1980s and Nightclubbing (1981) is definitely on my list of greatest albums.
- Pop music from the 1980s gets a bad rap and I’d agree that much of it hasn’t dated well. There are exceptions and Dare (1981) by Human League is one for me. I think it stands up very well.
- Joan Armatrading has made some great music over a long career and Show Some Emotion (1977) is on my list. Armatrading continued to evolve as an artist and I’d make the case for including Walk Under Ladders (1981) as well.
- Music by Australian and New Zealand artists has virtually no footprint on the Rolling Stone lists. Albums we might consider to be great ‘downunder’ are invisible in the northern hemisphere. Stuff it. True Colours (1980) by Split Enz is just a knockout pop album by all objective measures.
1970-60s
- XTC have made heaps of great pop music and deserve a place on the list. Drums and Wires (1979) is probably the album I’d choose, especially if I’m allowed the version that includes the glorious single ‘Life Begins At The Hop’ as a bonus track.
- Broken English (1979) by Marianne Faithful is a genuine classic.
- New Boots and Panties (1979) by Ian Drury and the Blockheads makes it onto my list.
- The songwriting talents of both Chris Difford and Glenn Tilbrook plus the keyboard chops of Jools Holland made Squeeze a force to be reckoned with. Cool for Cats (1979) is the place to start.
- Looking at some of the stuff that’s on the RS lists I’m surprised Warren Zevon has never had a look in. Excitable Boy (1978) has a knockout set of songs on it.
- Nick Lowe’s influence spreads widely through his songwriting, performance, and production. These talents were all channeled on his album, Jesus of Cool (1978).
- No albums by Joe Cocker suggests that Rolling Stone has some cross-Atlantic bias happening. Joe Cocker! (1969) has enough quality to make it onto my list.
3. What were they thinking?
Some of the choices look to me like right artist, wrong album.
As noted earlier, including five albums by Bruce Springsteen but excluding Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. is a blooper. I feel the same way about listing eight albums by Bob Dylan but excluding Desire, though I accept that may be more a personal preference.
Here are the other choices that don’t seem right to me:
- Aja (#63) is not the Greatest Album by Steely Dan. Can’t Buy a Thrill (#168) is better, and so is Pretzel Logic, which was delisted in 2020. And so is Countdown to Ecstasy (never listed). At a minimum, put Pretzel Logic back in for Aja.
- It’s great to see Kate Bush finally on the list, with Hounds of Love at #68. It is a very good album, but her first album The Kick Inside was so different and so influential I think it deserves to be on the list. I’d give Kate two spots.
- AC/DC have Back in Black at #84 but Highway To Hell was delisted in 2020. I agree with having less Anglo-American male rock music on the list but you have to include an album from the Bon Scott era so Highway to Hell goes back in.
- The Doors by The Doors is a great album, coming in at #86. I think L.A. Woman which was delisted in 2020 stands up better over time and it would be my pick.
- The Smiths are big losers on the RS 2020 list with just The Queen is Dead (#113), down from four albums in 2012 and 2003. They only released four studio albums but also released three excellent ‘compilation’ albums in Hatful of Hollow, The World Won’t Listen, and Louder Than Bombs. These ‘compilation albums’ included some album tracks as well as singles, B-sides, and BBC recordings i.e. they weren’t Greatest Hits albums. This makes it hard to rate The Smiths’ albums. Hatful of Hollow is fantastic with sixteen knockout tracks of which only five are on The Smiths, the first studio album. Yes, Morrissey has revealed himself to be a real dick but their albums stand up and both Hatful of Hollow and The Queen is Dead make my list.
- U2’s stocks have also fallen, from five albums down to two. I basically agree with this readjustment as for me they’re in the category of great artists who made several albums that are pretty similar, and you need to choose one or two. Achtung Baby (#124) and Joshua Tree (#135) remain on the list, but it’s a mistake to exclude War which best meets my criteria for Greatest Album. I’d keep Achtung Baby as it was something of a reinvention for the band, and drop Joshua Tree.
- PJ Harvey has two albums on the list, Rid of Me (#153) and Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea (#313). Is This Desire? is a much better album than Stories From the City, Stories From the Sea.
- Synchronicity (#159) is the only album by The Police on RS 2020, down from four entries on previous lists. Four was definitely too many, but Outlandos d’Amour shouldn’t have been dropped. Its impact and influence as their first album makes it the greatest for me.
- Nobody sounds quite like the Cocteau Twins and it’s great to see them on the list in 2020 with Heaven or Las Vegas (#245). Unfortunately it’s nowhere near their best album. It should be Treasure, if not Victorialand.
- Gang of Four deserve a place with Entertainment! (#273), but how can you ignore their masterpiece Songs of the Free. I demand it be added!
- Peter Gabriel has one entry on the list, So at #297, and there’s nothing from his days with Genesis. I don’t think Rolling Stone ‘get’ Peter Gabriel’s importance. Maybe he’s too English. His first four solo albums after leaving Genesis, all called Peter Gabriel but with very distinctive album covers, along with 1983’s Plays Live album, represent an amazing body of work. At a bare minimum, the third album (known as ‘Melt’ because of its cover) warrants inclusion of the list. The influence of world music on Gabriel was becoming strong by the fourth album (known as ‘Security’), and he went on to make two outstanding soundtrack albums in the late 1980s, for the films Birdy (1985) and Passion: The Last Temptation of Christ (1989). I would drop So and add Peter Gabriel (‘Melt’) and Passion to my list.
- Vampire Weekend went from two entries in 2013 to one in 2020, but the wrong album was dropped. Vampire Weekend the album should be at #328, not Modern Vampires of the City.
- Tom Waits is one of those artists who tends to divide the room. I’m squarely on the side of the fans. Rain Dogs (#357) deserves its place, but there has to be room for Swordfish Trombones as well. It’s a masterpiece. I’d add a third in Closing Time, his first album, to showcase his extraordinary development as an artist over almost 40 years.
- I can’t believe they added Ram (#450) by Paul and Linda McCartney. I bought that record and retain a soft spot for the song ‘Smile Away’, but there’s no way it’s in 500 Greatest Albums of All Time territory.
Over to you
So there you have it, my ‘two cents worth’ on The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, according to Rolling Stone magazine. Let’s pour ourselves a glass of something nice and let the debate begin.
Moltmania, 10 October 2020