Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
Robert Anton Wilson 
This would stand as my 100 desert island record list - as long as anthology box sets are not allowed of course.
Usually, I showcase albums that I had a "moment" with. A "moment" is a period of at least a month when the album was on repeat and made it almost impossible for me to listen to something else during that period. Sometimes when I discovered a new band late -I often do that, it was a series of album that played on repeat - like when I discovered STP on their second album (both albums were on repeat on a reversible cassette), or when I discovered Muse, they already had 5 albums.
The ordering is not really reliable. True objectivity is a myth. When you feel like listening to music by the Offspring it ranks higher in your gut than Miles Davis or St. Vincent -even if your head tells you that Miles should rank highest!! The gut and the ears listen, the head tries to order things and create a chart that would be be true both to me and to the reality of the "objective" world -But hey! It is not the objective world that gives me goosebumps when I listen to great music.
Chart corrected early 2023, years after the chart was first posted. Not really additions but significant shifts in position. I just realised that some albums that had been extremely significant for me I haven't listened to in a while and do not feel like listening to now. It does not mean they are less important for me, I would still go mad if they were to be "disappeared", but currently they go-to-ness is lower.
Finally, I must admit that I wanted to showcase diversity with my chart, hence why the first 5 albums are not all Pink Floyd;)
- Chart updated: 02/26/2024 22:45
- (Created: 06/05/2011 02:23).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 69 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 90 out of 100 (from 120 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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Little known, highly influential. This is one album that is almost never on charts even though artists that are on charts regularly quote this album as a direct influence to them (Bono, Bowie, Johnny Rotten). How come this album does not get picked up by amateurs? It is likely a problem of definition, this album plays on the border between prog, glam and metal, styles that go in opposite directions. Proggers don't like it because it is too glam, glams don't like it because it is too heavy, metalheads don't like it because it is too prog. If you like eclectic, strap yourself in for a ride. Remember though, that album was there at the BIRTH of these styles, it wasn't influenced by them, it influenced them. Compare 'Anarchy in the UK' to 'Birthday Girl' and check the dates, no coincidence there. The relationship between prog and punk is more incestuous than the critics like to play it out.
[First added to this chart: 06/10/2011]
4
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For people who can stand prog and who love vocal harmonies this is the band. This is their most epic album and "Free Hand" is the easiest of their great prog albums to get into. Octopus and Three Friends -both from 1972- are also stand-out albums. Even their later pop album "Civilian" I highly recommend.
[First added to this chart: 05/13/2018]
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Now don't get me wrong, Radiohead IS the most important band to have come out since they came out and OK Computer IS the most important album to have been released since it was released. Radiohead have reinvented themselves with it and reinvented themselves after it. They have avoided the "giving the people what they want" trap and they have only published good albums. Yet, I can't help thinking that they started to step in their own tracks. Which I no longer feel with the release of A Moon Shaped Pool. And yes, my second favorite of them is "Hail to the Thief", their album closest to standard rock -closest, but still outside of standard rock.
[First added to this chart: 06/10/2011]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
75,920
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Classy songwriting, classy performance, classic album. They don't make'em like that anymore. Other obvious solid albums `"Aladdin Sane", "Diamond Dogs", "Station to Station" (the title track is amazing}, "Scary Monsters and Super Creeps", the artsy Berlin trilogy (Low/"Heroes"/Lodger). He had -IMHO- a serious return to musical form for his 4 last albums Heathen, Reality, The Next Day and Blackstar.
[First added to this chart: 06/10/2011]
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
49,814
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I am in love. Just saw her live in NY. Perfect blues-rock singing and guitar playing. Deserves to stand among the classics. Currently the greatest contemporary blues artist.
[First added to this chart: 02/12/2015]
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Had to bump her up the chart after seeing her live. Haunting and scary. Little fish, big fish give her back her daughter. Lover her all, not a weak album, not a weak song. "The Hope Six Demolition Project" hits hard with me with that crazy saxophone.
[First added to this chart: 08/01/2011]
Year of Release:
1995
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,779
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I got her first two albums, thought they were "cute" and left it that. Then one day I come across a live acoustic rendition of Black Rainbow and I tell myself "Hum! How did I miss that". I went back to her catalogue which had grown by 3 more albums and properly fell in love. I felt the repetitiveness of her guitar motifs off-putting until I heard her speaking to it in interviews and listened to it with different ears. I consider her to be the top contemporary creative artist. Today's David Bowie.
[First added to this chart: 08/11/2019]
Year of Release:
2014
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,804
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I don't listen to Rush much anymore these days. I used to like them a lot - when they were playing my age. This is their most commercial non-commercial album. I gave up on them when they introduced rap into their repertoire and started singing with Roxette. They somewhat won me back, never as strongly. Any of Farewell to Kings, Hemispheres, Permanent Waves are amazing. 2112 the song is amazing, but the album is unequal. Recently I have started giving Caress of Steel and their early albums their dues. Power windows and Counterpart (too underrated I think) are also stand-outs for me.
[First added to this chart: 08/01/2011]
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10,019
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To me, this is the scariest album ever made. The prototype of so much to come. Many bands have pushed the recipe herein given unto us, but other than upping the dose, did they really bring anything new to the recipe? The blueprint is here and it is lacking of nothing. The boys (at least 4 out of 5) were still on top with the "13" album and tour.
[First added to this chart: 06/10/2011]
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,260
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Doing a remake of Baba O`Reilly seems to be the thing to do lately. My favourite remake of this classic is the one done by the Blue Man Group. Playing the grand piano with a hammer seems to be the only way to come close to the energy released when meaty, beaty, big and bouncy rocked together. It is hard to believe that this album is not a greatest hits album.
[First added to this chart: 06/10/2011]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
23,923
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Total albums: 100. Page 3 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 1 | 1% | |
| 1960s | 8 | 8% | |
| 1970s | 43 | 43% | |
| 1980s | 15 | 15% | |
| 1990s | 25 | 25% | |
| 2000s | 6 | 6% | |
| 2010s | 2 | 2% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Genesis | 3 | 3% | |
| King Crimson | 3 | 3% | |
| U2 | 2 | 2% | |
| Kate Bush | 2 | 2% | |
| R.E.M. | 2 | 2% | |
| Bob Dylan | 2 | 2% | |
| Pink Floyd | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
47 | 47% | |
| |
35 | 35% | |
| |
9 | 9% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 67 from 84th to 17th Rain Dogs by Tom Waits |
| Up 35 from 51st to 16th Led Zeppelin II by Led Zeppelin |
| Up 34 from 63rd to 29th Black Sabbath by Black Sabbath |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 88 from 11th to 99th Kind Of Blue by Miles Davis |
| Down 88 from 12th to 100th Olé Coltrane by John Coltrane |
| Down 63 from 29th to 92nd Blood Money by Tom Waits |
| New entries |
|---|
 Trouble At The Henhouseby The Tragically Hip |
| Vs. by Pearl Jam |
| Recycled by Nektar |
| World Record by Van Der Graaf Generator |
| Leavers |
|---|
 Riot Actby Pearl Jam |
| Phantom Power by The Tragically Hip |
| MTV Unplugged In New York by Nirvana |
| After The Gold Rush by Neil Young |
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
90/100 (from 120 votes)
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 120 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
100/100  | 04/21/2024 19:50 |  Larcx13 | | 86/100 |
95/100 | 03/17/2024 01:07 | mrmcrook | | 92/100 |
 95/100 | 01/08/2024 02:27 | KineticEchoes02 | | 88/100 |
| 90/100 | 01/07/2024 20:30 | Moondance | | 85/100 |
| 100/100 | 09/28/2022 20:58 | IlMala | | 95/100 |
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 89.5/100, a mean average of 89.1/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 89.8/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 10.3.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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95/100
From mrmcrook 03/17/2024 01:09
Great chart. Enjoyable notes being informative but with the personal touch. Has made me add a few albums to my Wishlist.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From KineticEchoes02 01/08/2024 02:32
Loving this chart - great work! Really enjoyed your writeups too. There's a lot I need to check out in here. Very eclectic, great diversity in genres among the classics, and would agree that basically all your prog choices deserve a spot on this list.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From Moondance 09/14/2021 00:22
I've revisited this chart and have to say that I was engaged with your comments (from 1 - 100) more than any other chart I have checked out on this site. I really liked the personal 'lived' connection between you & the albums and you not being afraid to include outliers (like Samantha Fish).
Good to see one Aussie band make the list. I appreciate the conundrum of including 'After The Goldrush' or 'Harvest'. I've gone for 'Harvest' in my own list.
After revisiting the chart, I have also revisited my ranking.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
rockbluesfolkjaz 09/13/2021 19:40
rockbluesfolkjaz 09/13/2021 19:40
Very nice list. I can relate to many. The others make me think enough to listen.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From Steppenwolf666 03/12/2021 10:16
Outstanding. I think I have about 90% of these records because most of them are must have masterpieces.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
StefanR10 09/09/2020 20:01
StefanR10 09/09/2020 20:01
A really good mixed collection. I find something new but there are some classics here very good selected.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
DommeDamian 09/09/2020 08:23
DommeDamian 09/09/2020 08:23
RAW list.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
EyeKanFly 02/02/2020 21:41
EyeKanFly 02/02/2020 21:41
Interesting list. Not a lot from the past 2 decades but what is there is definitely not the expected. Love the explanation of a "moment" - I certainly had one of those when I was introduced to Muse as well!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From 
ExTeaSea 08/26/2018 17:17
ExTeaSea 08/26/2018 17:17
Happy to see so much prog on a list! You even have Triumvarat!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
95/100
From 
JulianR 10/08/2017 07:35
JulianR 10/08/2017 07:35
great chart! you really put the work in on this, and I love tons of the picks! I'm not really well versed in prog, but I would have to recommend Steven Wilson's "Hand Cannot Erase" if you haven't heard it. One of the greatest albums of all time IMO (I think it's like fifth on ym overall chart rn). Also his main project Porcupine Tree has some great stuff, but a little more metal oriented.
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