Top 100 Greatest Music Albums by 
Tamthebam 
I love all types of music it doesn't matter to me if the artist is considered "cool" or not. I've been collecting music for over 50 years and these are the albums I've listened to the most. I love to try and listen to everything an artist has recorded. I love music to enhance my moods I like albums that give an atmosphere/a theme, whether that is in Soul/ R n B, country, folk, jazz, indie, rock or "easy listening" or pop music. My favourite decade is the 70's. Its 2024 and I just realised that the majority of my chart is female ! This was not a conscious decision it just happened
- Chart updated: 11/06/2024 13:45
- (Created: 06/14/2012 18:49).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 58 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Greatest Music Albums has an average rating of 87 out of 100 (from 104 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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Jill Scott's debut is a masterpiece of musicianship. Her lyrics about loves up's and down's really hit the mark with honesty and warmth. She has a beautiful soprano voice like Minnie Riperton or Deniece Williams but she also incorporates jazz and hip hop. This album takes a few listens but the middle part of the album is amazing (Tracks 4-11 could be a mini album)these tracks tell a story of what is like to fall in & out of love. Exclusively is hilarious and naughty. While Watching Me & Brotha are observations on society. She is a singer/songwriter and poet and along with Erykah Badu can claim to be the Queen of Neo Soul.
[First added to this chart: 06/14/2012]
1
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One of the greatest double albums of all time and along with Innervisions two of the greatest soul/RnB albums ever. I remember there was a lot of hype before the release of this album as it was delayed time and time again before finally being released at the end of 1976. It more than lived up to the hype. I remember when I finally got my copy on my 17th bday and I listened to it for 2 days solid. Its message is more relevant today than it was back in the 70's - Love's In Need Of Love Today, Village Ghetto Land, If It's Magic, Saturn. There are also some gorgeous love songs - Knocks Me Off My Feet, Isn't she Lovely, Ordinary Pain, As and Another Star. Two great instrumentals Contusion & Easy Goin' Evening and on top of all that is Sir Duke,I Wish & Pastime Paradise amazing.
[First added to this chart: 06/14/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
15,919
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A road journey from place to place as well as through time is how I see this album. This is my favourite Joni album the atmosphere she creates with the tunings of her guitar throughout this album is masterful. Coyote, Amelia, Song For Sharon & Black Crow are some of her best ever compositions. The title track is Arabic for Travel. Joni herself has said " A lot of people could have written a lot of my other songs before Hejira but the songs on Hejira could only have come from me"
[First added to this chart: 07/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,686
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The trilogy of Berlin albums (Low Heroes & Lodger) are the best set of concept albums ever recorded, by anyone. Low & Heroes were released in 1977 within 8 months of each other. Heroes is my favourite of these three it is rougher round the edges than Low, Side 2 (tracks 6-10) create an atmosphere that could be the soundtrack of a horror movie an amazing sound that is deeper than anything on Low and on top of that there is the title track and the forgotten classic Beauty & The Beast.
[First added to this chart: 07/27/2012]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,605
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The second R.L.J. album is as strong as her debut. This album contains 4 of her greatest songs ever Lucky Guy, Living It Up, We Belong Together & the sprawling Traces of the Western Slopes. The title track is also strong the tracks Woody & Dutch.......and The Returns although good songs don't quite measure up to the rest of the album. So for me its her 2nd best album.
[First added to this chart: 08/18/2013]
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A great album from Lucinda Williams she just gets better with age. Her southern drawl works on these sad melancholy songs. This album needs more than one or two listens before it sinks in and touches you. The standout tracks are Dust, Place In My Heart, Louisiana Story, the title track & If My Love Could Kill but the rest are all good. If you like to wallow in melancholy take a listen to this.
[First added to this chart: 10/16/2016]
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If Billie Holiday was to come back & make a record this would be it. Erykah Badu has that special voice that leaves you wanting more. This again is a debut album that is ranked in my Top10 albums of all time. I never tire listening to this amazing album, On & On is one of the best tracks but my favourite track is Next Lifetime along with 4 Leaf Clover. But the whole album is full of great tracks with a Jazzy neo-soul feel and her amazing voice adds to the atmosphere.
[First added to this chart: 07/26/2012]
Year of Release:
1997
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,687
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The most together/cohesive Madonna album. Full of atmosphere and great songs courtesy of William Orbit. Frozen, Skin the title track and To Have & Not To Hold being my faves. A wonderful album that deserves more recognition.
[First added to this chart: 06/14/2012]
Year of Release:
1998
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,626
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Linda Ronstadt's albums of the 70's are mostly full of great cover versions of country/rock/Motown songs. She makes each song her own It's So Easy, Tumbling Dice, Blue Bayou, Poor,Poor Pitiful Me and Old Paint are good examples of that. The whole album is great nothing weakens it, her voice also seems to be at its peak. She recorded 7 great albums in the 70's this is the best.
[First added to this chart: 07/27/2012]
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I love this album one of the best debut albums of all time. Contains the great Chuck E's In Love, the album is also full of great observations of love & life including Young Blood, Last Chance Texaco, Danny's All Star Joint and Company. Her voice has a jazzy rock appeal, She reminds me of Tom Waits, emotional yet sometimes funny. She has made other great albums but for me this is still the best.
[First added to this chart: 06/14/2012]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
481
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Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums composition
| Decade | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| 1930s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1940s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1950s | 0 | 0% | |
| 1960s | 8 | 8% | |
| 1970s | 36 | 36% | |
| 1980s | 14 | 14% | |
| 1990s | 25 | 25% | |
| 2000s | 10 | 10% | |
| 2010s | 7 | 7% | |
| 2020s | 0 | 0% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
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|
|
| David Bowie | 7 | 7% | |
| Stevie Wonder | 4 | 4% | |
| Björk | 4 | 4% | |
| Rickie Lee Jones | 4 | 4% | |
| Joan Armatrading | 3 | 3% | |
| Madonna | 3 | 3% | |
| The Beatles | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
48 | 48% | |
| |
34 | 34% | |
 |
7 | 7% | |
 |
4 | 4% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
1 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 29 from 83rd to 54th The Magazine by Rickie Lee Jones |
| Up 13 from 37th to 24th The Scream by Siouxsie And The Banshees |
| Up 9 from 54th to 45th World Without Tears by Lucinda Williams |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 14 from 52nd to 66th Flying Cowboys by Rickie Lee Jones |
| Down 7 from 81st to 88th Black And White by Pointer Sisters |
| Down 3 from 24th to 27th After The Gold Rush by Neil Young |
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s | Tamthebam | 1970s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | Tamthebam | 1990s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Virgin All-Time Top 1000 Albums | Virgin | 2000 | | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | SD100852 | 2024 | | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | tim0505 | 2024 | | |
| Virgin All-Time Top 1000 Albums | Virgin | 1998 | | |
| OVERALL CHART | pentapolin | custom chart | 2014 |  |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | TinyBlueMusic | 2021 |  | |
| Ya joking? Should've been higher! All Time edition |  Purplepash | custom chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | Madrocker | 2019 | |
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Other overall charts by Tamthebam
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Greatest Music Albums | Tamthebam | 2024 | |
Top 100 Greatest Music Albums ratings
87/100 (from 104 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 104 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 80/100  | 09/19/2024 12:39 |  LedZep | | 84/100 |
| 80/100 | 05/14/2024 13:59 |  AvalancheGrips | | 89/100 |
| 75/100 | 12/28/2023 22:26 | ThuramThugood | | 87/100 |
| 90/100 | 12/03/2023 07:12 | KineticEchoes02 | | 88/100 |
| 95/100 | 11/17/2023 03:28 | Sonoffatboy | | 90/100 |
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 17% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 87.4/100, a mean average of 87.1/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 87.5/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 10.2.
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Top 100 Greatest Music Albums comments
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From WeWereInLove 08/27/2024 17:30
Lovely list with some unique picks. Baduizm top 10 is a pleasure to see. I'll definitely need to check out some Jill Scott and Rickie Lee Jones!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
80/100
From 
Larcx13 11/23/2023 11:42
Larcx13 11/23/2023 11:42
Madonna...🤔
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
CharlieBarley 06/17/2023 13:53
CharlieBarley 06/17/2023 13:53
Great chart Tam! I rated it before years ago and it's still top Mark's from me. Great taste in music.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
melisandre 04/16/2023 09:12
melisandre 04/16/2023 09:12
Nice chart Tam!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
85/100
From Johnnyo 02/04/2023 16:25
Very personal chart. I like it
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
95/100
From leniad 07/31/2022 05:35
great seeing your chart and re rating it, i agree bowie is the best artist ever solo
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
85/100
From RioBravo 06/18/2021 06:26
Seems like a good list to explore when I want to find some new R&B artists and albums. And I too love Stevie Wonder.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
95/100
From BraddlesHendo 09/02/2020 02:02
This is the coolest great albums. Some I don’t have mostly the R & B music
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
Julelios 02/27/2020 11:07
Julelios 02/27/2020 11:07
A very personnal chart. I like it. Thanks
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (1 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
90/100
From temment 02/05/2020 11:17
Excellent list with some surprises. Love that Prefab Sprout get a listing.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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