This is a comprehensive list of very significant artists of the XX century that tries to cover all genres of popular music. An earlier version of this list was published by spanish magazine Rockdelux for their nº200.

Due to the arbitrary nature of this kind of list and the personal tastes and opinions of the critics that made it, lots of great bands and albums were left behind and (not surprisingly) pop & rock were covered with more detail than other genres. In spite of this, the list makes a great set of reference albums.

I posted it because I thought that maybe somebody here could find it useful.

Currently it´s a 184 album list, and it´s open to modifications.




Those are the albums (in alphabetical order):

AMERICAN MUSIC CLUB - CALIFORNIA
ANTONIO CARLOS JOBIM - THE MAN FROM IPANEMA
APHEX TWIN - SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS 85-92
ARETHA FRANKLIN - LADY SOUL
AUGUSTUS PABLO - KING TUBBY MEETS ROCKERS UPTOWN
B 52'S - B 52'S
BEASTIE BOYS - ILL COMMUNICATION
BENY MORÉ - EL BÁRBARO DEL RITMO
BESSIE SMITH - THE ESSENTIAL BESSIE SMITH
BIG BLACK - SONGS ABOUT FUCKING
BIG STAR - SISTER LOVERS
BILL MONROE - THE ESSENTIAL BILL MONROE (suggested by mrosscook)
BILLIE HOLIDAY - LADY IN SATIN
BJÖRK - DEBUT
BOB DYLAN - BLONDE ON BLONDE
BOB MARLEY - LEGEND (suggested by mrosscoock)
BOB WILLS - ANTHOLOGY 35-73
BOOGIE DOWN PRODUCTIONS - CRIMINAL MINDED
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN - BORN TO RUN
BURT BACHARACH - THE LOOK OF LOVE
BUZZCOCKS - SINGLES GOING STEADY
BYRDS - THE NOTORIOUS BYRD BROTHERS (suggested by M)
CAETANO VELOSO - ESTRANGEIRO
CAMARÓN - LA LEYENDA DEL TIEMPO
CAN - TAGO MAGO
CAPTAIN BEEFHEART - SAFE AS MILK (suggested by M)
CARLOS GARDEL - SU OBRA INTEGRAL
CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL - COSMO'S FACTORY
CURTIS MAYFIELD - CURTIS
CHARLES MINGUS - THE BLACK AND THE SINNER LADY
CHARLEY PATTON - THE DEFINITIVE CHARLEY PATTON
CHARLIE PARKER - THE COMPLETE SAVOY & DIAL RECORDINGS 44-48
COLEMAN HAWKINS - BODY AND SOUL
DAVID BOWIE - ZIGGY STARDUST
DAVID BYRNE/BRIAN ENO - MY LIFE IN THE BUSH OF GHOST
DE LA SOUL - THREE FEET HIGH AND RISING
DEAD KENNEDYS - FRESH FRUIT FOR ROTTEN VEGETABLES
DERRICK MAY - INNOVATOR
DINOSAUR JR - BUG
DIZZY GILLESPIE - THE COMPLETE RCA VICTOR RECORDINGS 1937-1949
DJ SHADOW - ENDTRODUCINGS
DJANGO REIDNHART & STEPHANE GRAPPELLY - SOUVENIRS (suggested by Destron)
DR DRE - THE CHRONIC
DUKE ELLINGTON - AT NEWPORT 1956
DUSTY SPRINGFIELD - DUSTY IN MEMPHIS
ELVIS COSTELLO - THIS YEAR'S MODEL
ELVIS PRESLEY - FROM ELVIS IN MEMPHIS
ELLA FITZGERALD - THE GEORGES & IRA GERSHWIN SONGBOOK
ERIC B AND RAKIM - PAID IN FULL
ERIC DOLPHY - OUT TO LUNCH
FANIA ALLSTARS - LIVE AT THE CHEETAH VOL. 1 & 2
FELA KUTI - BLACK PRESIDENT
FINGERS INC. - ANTOHER SIDE
FRANK SINATRA - COME DANCE WITH ME (suggested by 2Bdecided)
GANG OF FOUR - ENTERTAINMENT
GOLDIE - TIMELESS
GRAM PARSONS - GP
GRATEFUL DEAD - AMERICAN BEAUTY
HANK WILLIAMS - 40 GREATEST HITS
HAPPY MONDAYS - PILLS'N'THRILLS AND BELLYACHES
HÜSKER DÜ - ZEN ARCADE
JACQUES BREL - LES MARQUISES
JAMES BROWN - LIVE AT THE APOLLO VOL.2
JEFFERSON AIRPLANE - SURREALISTIC PILLOW
JIMI HENDRIX - ELECTRIC LADYLAND
JOHN CALE - PARIS 1919
JOHN COLTRANE - A LOVE SUPREME
JOHN LENNON - PLASTIC ONO BAND
JOHN ZORN - SPILLANE
JOHNNY CASH - AT FOLSOM PRISON
JONI MITCHELL - BLUE
JOY DIVISION - CLOSER
KING SUNNY ADÉ - JUJU MUSIC
KLF - CHILL OUT
KRAFTWERK - TRANSEUROPE EXPRESS
LAURIE ANDERSON - BIG SCIENCE
LED ZEPPELIN - IV
LEE SCRATCH PERRY - ARKOLOGY
LEONARD COHEN - I'M YOUR MAN
LOU REED - BERLIN
LOUIS ARMSTRONG - HOT FIVES AND HOT SEVEN
LOVE - FOREVER CHANGES
MADONNA - IMMACULATE COLLECTION
MARVIN GAYE - WHAT'S GOING ON
MARY MARGARET O'HARA - MISS AMERICA
MASSIVE ATTACK - BLUE LINES
MC5 - KICK OUT THE JAMS
MICHAEL JACKSON - THRILLER
MILES DAVIS - AGHARTA
MINOR THREAT - COMPLETE DISCOGRAPHY
MOTÖRHEAD - NO SLEEP TILL HAMMERSMITH
MY BLOODY VALENTINE - LOVELESS
NEIL YOUNG - AFTER THE GOLD RUSH
NEU! - NEU 1
NEVILLE BROTHERS - YELLOW MOON
NEW ORDER - TECHNIQUE
NICK CAVE - YOUR FUNERAL MY TRIAL
NICK DRAKE - FIVE LEAVES LEFT
NIRVANA - NEVERMIND
NUSRAT FATEH ALI KHAN - MUSTT MUSTT
OLIVER NELSON - BLUES AND THE ABSTRACT TRUTH
ORNETTE COLEMAN - FREE JAZZ
OTIS REDDING - OTIS BLUE
OUM KALSOUM - DIVA OF ARAB MUSIC
P.I.L. - METAL BOX/SECOND EDITION
PALACE BROTHERS - THERE'S NO ONE THAT WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU
PARLIAMENT - THE MOTHERSHIP CONNECTION
PATSY CLINE - SHOWCASE
PATTI SMITH - HORSES
PERE UBU - THE MODERN DANCE
PET SHOP BOYS - BEHAVIOUR
PHIL SPECTOR - BACK TO MONO
PINK FLOYD - THE PIPER AT THE GATES OF DAWN
PIXIES - DOOLITTLE
PJ HARVEY - RID OF ME
PREFAB SPROUT - STEVE MCQUEEN
PRIMAL SCREAM - SCREAMADELICA
PRINCE - SIGN OF THE TIMES
PUBLIC ENEMY - IT TAKES A NATION OF MILLIONS TO HOLD US BACK
PULP - DIFFERENT CLASS
R.E.M. - AUTOMATIC FOR THE PEOPLE
RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE - I
RAMONES - RAMONES
RESIDENTS - COMMERCIAL ALBUM
RICKIE LEE JONES - PIRATES
ROBERT JOHNSON - THE COMPLETE RECORDINGS
ROBERT WYATT - ROCK BOTTOM
ROXY MUSIC - FOR YOUR PLEASURE
RUBÉN BLADES - BUSCANDO AMÉRICA
SALIF KEITA - SORO
SAM COOKE - LIVE AT HARLEM SQUARE
SCOTT WALKER - III
SEPULTURA - ROOTS
SERGE GAINSBOURG - HISTOIRE DE MELODY NELSON
SEX PISTOLS - NEVER MIND THE BOLLOCKS
SKIP JAMES - THE COMPLETE EARLY RECORDINGS
SLAYER - REIGN IN BLOOD
SLINT - SPIDERLAND
SLY AND THE FAMILY STONE - THERE'S A RIOT GOING ON
SONIC YOUTH - SISTER
SPECIALS - SPECIALS
SPIDER JOHN KOERNER & WILLIE MURPHY - RUNNING, JUMPING, STANDING STILL (suggested by M)
STAN GETZ & JOAO GILBERTO - GETZ & GILBERTO
STEVE REICH - MUSIC FOR 18 MUSICIANS
STEVIE WONDER - INNERVISIONS
SUICIDE - SUICIDE
SUN RA - SPACE IS THE PLACE
T REX - THE SLIDER
TALKING HEADS - REMAIN IN LIGHT
TELEVISION - MARQUEE MOON
THE BAND - MUSIC FROM BIG PINK
THE BEACH BOYS - PET SOUNDS
THE BEATLES - RUBBER SOUL
THE BOO RADLEYS - GIANT STEPS
THE CLASH - LONDON CALLING
THE CRICKETS - THE CHIRPING CRICKETS
THE CURE - DISINTEGRATION
THE DOORS - DOORS
THE FALL - THIS NATION SAVING GRACE
THE HUMAN LEAGUE - DARE
THE IMPRESSIONS - PEOPLE GET READY
THE JAM - ALL MOD CONS
THE JESUS AND MARY CHAIN - PSYCHOCANDY
THE KINKS - FACE TO FACE
THE MAGNETIC FIELDS - 69 LOVE SONGS
THE MOTHERS OF INVENTION - WE'RE ONLY IN IT FOR THE MONEY
THE NEW YORK DOLLS - NEW YORK DOLLS
THE POP GROUP - Y
THE ROLLING STONES - BETWEEN THE BUTTONS
THE SMITHS - THE QUEEN IS DEAD
THE STOOGES - FUN HOUSE
THE VELVET UNDERGROUND - THE VELVET UNDERGROUND AND NICO
THE WAILERS - CATCH A FIRE
THE WHO - WHO'S NEXT?
THELONIOUS MONK - GENIUS OF MODERN MUSIC VOL. 1 AND 2
TIM BUCKLEY - STARSAILOR
TINDERSTICKS - I
TOM WAITS - SWORDSFISHTROMBONES
TRICKY - MAXINQUAYE
VAN MORRISON - ASTRAL WEEKS
VIOLENT FEMMES - VIOLENT FEMMES
WILLIE DIXON - I AM THE BLUES (suggested by mrosscoock)
WOODY GUTHRIE - DUST BOWL BALLADS
WU-TANG CLAN - ENTER THE WU-TANG
YOUNG MARBLE GIANTS - COLOSSAL YOUTH
YOUSSOU N'DOUR - IMMIGRES

You compiled that list, I reckon?

In this case, you should seriously consider making it clear that "This is a list of the best albums of the XX century" in your opinion

Sheesh. No Dark Side of The Moon nor The Wall, but The Piper at The Gates of Dawn instead?

I would vouch for some Iggy Pop and Underworld

Good selection - has the highlights of her good earlier albums without any of the drek after Ray of Light (though I liked that one as well).

BLAH

So this is supposed to be the best albums of the 20th century. How come EVERYTHING is in the last part of the period. You are obviously forgetting Giacomo Puccini: Madame Butterfly (1904) and Carl Orrf: Carmina Burana (1934) (just to mention a few). These two masterpieces have received more recognition that most of the stuff on your list. Oh wait, it is OPERA - that is not music.

BLAH

MADONNA - IMMACULATE COLLECTION is not an album - it is a discography.

BLAH

And have you possible forgotten the entire Country/Western genre as well? Not music either?

/BLAH

Not to these ears.

How bout some Chili Peppers. or maybe Alice in Chains - Dirt, or Jeff Buckley.

Wow, I am actually _really_ impressed with a list including both The Jesus and Mary Chain and Ornette Coleman.

Of course, I think there is always room for bickering about which album by which artist (St. Pepper's? Technique? The Slider?), but those kind of details will never get sorted out.

@mouse: The Stooges are in the list

@annuka: Less attention given to the first half of the century is, IMO, somewhat justified due to a lack of available information or introduction to those who do not specifically seek it out.

It seems that there is a general lack of any kind of 20th century "classical" recordings at all, but then again, what exactly is an album of classical music? Is it a recording made by a particular group conducted by a particular person in a particular place, or is it the score?

I also feel that jazz is just glossed over whereas recent rock and pop are covered in good detail.

Where is classic rock 'n roll from the 50's? Notable is one included album by Elvis and two by Cohen.

As noted, where is country/western?

Geez, I'm all questions and no answers. I really do like your list so I'll have to think of some things.

Destron

Annuka must have eaten some bad clams before posting. It's clear from the contents of the list that the compiler is only considering "popular" music, not classical, and the absence of Puccini, Orff, Villa-Lobos, Stravinsky etc. isn't surprising. You can stuff only so much into a "best of" list.

So far as country-western goes -- who do you people think Hank Williams was? Or Patsy Cline? Or Johnny Cash? Or Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys? Or Woody Guthrie? (Well, maybe he was more of a folkie, but it's arguable). They are all on the list.

I also can't agree that jazz has been glossed over -- there's a lot of jazz there.

Now for my suggestions --

"Legend" is a much better Bob Marley album than "Natty Dread".
You could also include Beatles -- "Rubber Soul".
For Chicago style blues: Willie Dixon, "I Am the Blues".
I could do without Aphex Twin. So could the rest of the universe.
The Pink Floydies on the forum will never forgive you if you don't include DSOTM and The Wall.
I'm sure you can find a better Sinatra album than "Songs for Swingin Lovers", but I'm not enough of a fan to suggest the best one.

Though Ornette Coleman is a grand choice (damn I thought I was the only one listening to him) where the hack is Miles Davis and John Coltrane; Dire Straits should probably get a spot as well; Weather Report due to great fusion; Complete lack of classical?? (btw one album for The Doors and Massive Attack?)

Both Davis and Coltrane are there:



However, I don't really see much importance to such lists myself as well.

Music is subjective, don't categorize it too much. There is no "best album ever". IMO there are also no best 190 albums.

Except, of course, this one:

N.W.A.
Straight Outta Compton [EXPLICIT LYRICS]
Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
Original Release Date: 1988
Number of Discs: 1
Label: Priority Records
ASIN: B000003B6J

Some clarification.

I edited the post to change "best" for "most significant" albums. I hope this is clear enough. This list does not reflect my personal preferences, nor tries to measure quality.

So please try to undestand that when the list reads "Pink Floyd - The Piper at the Gates of Dawn" this means that Pink Floyd was significant enough to get into the list, and that The Piper is considered to have been more important and revolutionary than the rest of their albums. Not meaning that The Piper is "better" than The Dark Side or The Wall (or Animals for that case). Of course this can be wrong, but that´s what it tries to achieve.

@Annuka: classical music was not forgotten. It was deliberately ignored. I thoght that it would be obvious for anybody reading carefully the list.

IMHO classic music comes in paper, not in vynil. In spite of this, it would be of great interest for me (and many people, I guess) a list of scores and their respective recommended recordings. I would really appreciate if you could work this kind of list out. But still, I think this should be a separate list.

It was decided to keep compilation and VVAA albums out, but sometimes we had problems. Madonna is a good example: she had to be included, but we couldn´t decide on which album, so we had no real choice and had to include the Inmaculate Collection. Same goes for Thelonious Monk or Dizzy Gillespie. The VVAA rule also left out a lot of magnificent albums, like the Harry Smith Anthology of American Folk Music ot The Sun Records Collection. Maybe I should put them back in. Not sure.

@Destron: Are you sure that jazz is just glossed over? I thought it was ok... Anyway, thanks for your coments.

@mrosscook: I wasn´t sure if it was such a good idea to post this list here until I read your post (and Destron´s).

Anyway, for Chicago style blues I considered the inclusion of The Chess Story 1947-1974. Keept it out for the VVAA rule. Willie Dixon is an interesting suggestion. I will seriously consider it. Muddy Waters, Chester Burnette (aka Howlin´ Wolf), Little Walter Jacobs, Sonny Boy Williamson, Lowell Fulson, Menphis Slim, Jimmy Rogers, John Lee Hooker, Willie Mabon, Buddy Guy, Menphis Minnie and Koko Taylor were also considered. I guess that I´ll make up my mind soon. Who knows.

Frank Sinatra is also a problem artist. It must be included, but I can´t find a solid enough record. I could go with a compilation, but I decided that Songs for Swinging Lovers could be just ok. Suggestions are welcome.

I won´t include Rubber Soul. This will make Beatles 3 - Rolling Stones 2. And some of my friends (and people who help to get the list done) would try to kill me. I could live with a Rubber Soul <-> Revolver switch (like a Legend <-> Natty Dread one) but 2 Beatles albums plus a John Lennon one is more than enough methinks.


I had a refreshing laugh with that one. But anyway, this spot must be filled. If you think that you can find a honest substittute, let me know.
Thanks a lot.

@the people that cannot find their favourite artist on the list and gets disappointed: I do own all albums from the Red Hot Chili Peppers and also the complete discography of Dire Straits, but still wouldn´t advocate to get them into this kind of list. I could easily make a huge list of artists I love (and listen to in a regular basis) that I wouldn´t include in this kind of list/guide.

Anyway, if you read the list and can hardly recognize more than 50-70 albums, don´t worry: you do know more music than 99´9% of the people. You can be proud. But please try not to be too arrogant or disrespectful. It´s tiresome to get negative feedback from people that don´t know more than 30% of the albums listed. Please.

Enjoy!

And sorry for my english, it´s not as good as I´d like it to be... (edited some typos)

@manusate:

I think I've seen a very similar list before. Did you make it yourself?

Carlos G.

Of course not. It´s the work of many people.

Sure, an earlier version of this same list was published by the spanish magazine Rock De Lux on their nº 200. This version included VVAA albums and listed 200 entries.

Although I personally disagree with a number of your selections (the Byrds should have been represented by The Notorious Byrd Brothers... Captain Beefheart's Safe as Milk should have gotten the nod over Trout Mask Replica... We're Only in It for the Money is a good Mothers album, but Freak Out! was the one that set music critics to whimpering as they licked their collective nether-regions... Madonna should not be represented at all... ), there is one unlisted album which deserves specific attention:

"Spider" John Koerner & Willie Murphy: Running Jumping Standing Still

Why should it be included? Rather than waiting for an explanation, just listen to it... then you'll understand why.

- M.

yup...



just wanna add two rareties..
that i consider to be among the upper class..

tape recording: Radio Kaos (RW)
Live recording: (vinyl) Mannfredman live in budapest
/ uriah heep: live moscow.. (Gorky park. vinyl 82..)

i also like to add. recordings from a little
but fameous NY. label: Tommyboy..
mostly electro - funk from the midt 80`s..

no wish you were here no ummagumma no white album by the beatles
and where is dire straits and u2 - the joshua tree

Hanson ownz all yor beatz

maybe "The Roots - Things fall apart"

{chuckle}


When I visited the page, the (not english) pop-up ad showed a picture of something being put into a dustbin/trash can - how appropriate!


btw manusate, you lost me by putting the Beatles under "t". Also, I prefer "come dance with me" to "Songs for swinging lovers" because the latter doesn't really swing enough. Plus it's mono. But I take your point.


However, your list fails to include the best, and most influencing, not to mention most tallented, high quality and respected artist of all time: George Formby. Shame on you! :-(


Cheers,
David.

I think of it this way: Jazz music has been influential from well before the rock & pop music which makes up the bulk of the list, yet it only makes up 10% of the list. Rock & pop music has been divided into far more subtle genres than jazz (for example, inclusion of the sex pistols, gang of four and joy division). How about an album by Bill Evans, Django Reinhardt and Weather Report?

On another note, for a list with only 200 albums, there are quite a lot of artists with 2 albums. Van Morrison, Lou Reed, The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Marvin Gaye, Miles Davis, Leonard Cohen, James Brown, Bruce Springstein, David Bowie, Bob Dylan... and any others I missed. Also, some of the artists are included a third time in other groups (Beatles, Lou Reed). It seems that many of these double entries could be eliminated for a more deserving artist/group that does not yet have a single entry.

Thirdly, I live in Japan which is the second largest market of music in the world yet I did not notice any Japanese artists in the list. How about Sakamoto Ryu, a very influential artist among Japanese music and also the only Japanese artist ever to have a number one hit (I think) outside of Japan? There are many more appropriate people but they would be completely unknown to the readers of the list.

Good luck, you can't make everybody happy.

Destron

hmm. I liked your list. if that's your personal taste, it's quite fine. from miles davies' "all kind of blue" to sepultura's "roots" and the beastie boys' "ill communication".

I see My Bloody Valentine but no Ride? They started all of that. It would probably be between "Nowhere" and "Going Blank Again. Also, I was shocked by the lack of Wire, and Nels Cline. They could fit somewhere on there, don't you think?

In either case ("good" or "significant"), you ought to include Dire Straits - Brothers In Arms. After all, it's the biggest-selling album of the 80s in Great Britain.

I don't agree with most of that list, anyway (well, of those albums that I know). It's completely arbitrary! Many albums weren't even big hits. (Being a "big hit" makes an album "significant" as far as I'm concerned - which doesn't mean it's actually "good".)

And it's also interesting that whoever compiled the list considers Piper At The Gates Of Dawn to be more "significant" than Dark Side Of The Moon, as Roberto pointed out.

@manusate:

I've been checking your list against the one published in number 200 of the Spanish music magazine "Rockdelux", and I have to say that the only differences I have found is that you have removed the compilations from various artists (ten or so) and that you have added Sepultura and Rage Against The Machine (maybe I have missed a couple of records, I have to do the check by hand with my issue of the magazine).

I think that sending the list for discussion in the forum is a good idea. But not mentioning the source, trying to pretend that you have compiled the list, and putting words in your mouth about the reasons to include this or that record is not OK (unless you were a "Rockdelux" writer, of course...)

Carlos G.

With the definition of "most significant" or "most influential" albums, I think there are a couple more in the country genre that you have to consider:

Willie Nelson, "The Red-Headed Stranger" -- Not really one of my favorite albums, but this was the very first in the so-called "outlaw" movement in country. The idea was to get away from the slick, highly-produced Nashville sound and do something more independent. It had a tremendous impact in country music. And it does have a few great songs.

Bill Monroe, "The Essential Bill Monroe". Monroe single-handedly invented bluegrass music, as an update or modernization of "hillbilly", "mountain" music. It isn't to everyone's taste, I admit. (I've heard a definition of "perfect pitch" as when you throw a banjo into a trash can and it hits an accordion on the way in). But it is an entire sub-genre of country that was invented essentially by one man, and at its best, it's terrific.

Regarding Frank Sinatra; I've thought about it a little more, and I think you would do better with one of "In the Wee Small Hours", "Come Fly with Me", or "Only the Lonely".

Sinatra has never been a favorite of mine because it has always seemed to me that when he developed his mature voice, he consistently sang about a quarter-tone flat. But I don't claim to be a pitch expert -- it's just my feeling.

I would definitely put Alanis Morissette - Jagged Little Pill on the list.

Well, I can't... B)

A set of reference albums is the key for successful musical exploring, and here´s where those kind of list fit. Wouldn´t a blues expert be of great help pointing you to those few key albums each genre has? Sure he would. And chances are those albums will make your jaw drop. What if you´d like to "discover" reggae, jazz or Hip-Hop? Where to start? What to buy first? Go and give that list a try. You can´t go wrong with any of those albums. It really has no other use (other than piss zealots off, that is). "Best 190 albums" was somehow misleading, but so seems to be "most significant"; I hope this helps to clarify.

Now onto the real thing

@all the Pink Floyd fans here:
I have been listening to the SACD/CDDA hybrid 30 anniversary edition of "Dark Side of The Moon" today (the stereo recording was perfect IMHO, but some friends seem to be mesmerized with the new 5.1 remaster). It´s a great record. And, as far as I know, it´s also the bestselling british rock album of all time.
But, being a great album, when comes to put it on the list or not, it has some drawbacks. Simply put, they all sum in one: it´s a post-Syd Barrett Pink Floyd album. That says all.

Without Syd Barrett, Pink Floyd struggled to build up their own personality, and finally got it with "Dark Side Of The Moon". Sadly, they went downhill all the way from there till today. "Animals" could be an exception, but "The Wall" definitely it´s not.
So, I´d agree that DSOTM can be labeled as the best post-Barrett Pink Floyd album. But that´s not the point. If you read carefully the list, you won´t find Yes, Emerson Lake & Palmer, King Crimson, Gentle Giant or even Genesis. Syd Barrett is not there either.

Point me a record that better represents the whole thing than "The Piper At The Gates of Dawn" (1967!!), and I´ll change the entry faster than you can say ME LOVES ROGER WATERS.

@mrosscoock:
If I´d were interested in making Bill Monroe into the list, I´d choose "GOTTA TRAVEL ON: An introduction to Bill Monroe and the bluegrass boys". But I think this should be a further step for the people that has specific interest in bluegrass and hillbilly. Willie Nelson seems also too specific.

@Volcano:
Being Brothers in Arms one of my personal favourite albums, I cannot find any good reason to put them on the list. Same goes for U2.

Why not BOSTON, THE STEVE MILLER BAND, ANNIE LENNOX, ELTON JOHN, ABBA, THE MAMAS AND THE PAPAS, QUEEN, TRACY CHAPMAN, THE POLICE, SIMON & GARFUNKEL, FLEETWOOD MAC or even the CARPENTERS then?

@Destron:

This is true. I´ve been discussing with the fellas and I got the following suggestions:
Remove
Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska
Leonard Cohen - Songs of Leonard Cohen
Marvin Gaye - Let´s Get It On
Van Morrison - Moondance
Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps

James Brown, David Bowie, Hendrix, Lou Reed and Bob Dylan keep their two entries, because we couldn´t decide. Maybe they deserve them afterall.
Miles Davis also keeps his two entries, but mainly cause John Coltrane plays sax in Kind of Blue... sort of shared entry.
The Beatles and The Rolling Stones seem to be untouchable.



Enjoy!

@manusate
maybe you should extend your list by a note for every album why it is in the list.

ie: what is the importance of revolver and sgt. pepper, beside being good albums?
why is van morrison in your list? why rolling stones?
why not paul simon's graceland? why isn't there anything from peter gabriel? .....

PS: the topic should be more like "my preferred 200 pop albums of the last 50 years"

I edited the original post again. Made some of the suggested changes to the list.

@M:
Thank you very much for pointing me that Spider John Koerner & Willie Murpy album. I didn´t know it and it´s been a joyful discovery. Thank you very much.

Oh No! You removed one of Leonard Cohen's albums? That can't be right. I wouldn't argue with the other cases where you've removed one of an artist's two albums, but Leonard Cohen is another story.

Two albums on a list should signify that an artist made a particularly strong impact, either over a long period, or at different points in his career. Who had a greater impact on other artists with his lyrics than Cohen did? And who had other artists cover more of his songs? Nobody but Dylan, I think. This should be reconsidered...

Edited the list to make the following changes
(finally some extra trimming)

REMOVED

David Bowie - Hunky Dory
Bob Dylan - Highway 61 revisited
James Brown - Sex Machine
Jimi Hendrix - Are you experienced?
Lou Reed - Transformer

CHANGED

Miles Davis
He had to lose one entry as well, but that one was so damm hard to decide. "Kind of Blue" is arguably the best album that you can give to someone new to jazz, but it´s an early recording (be-bop and the so called cool jazz, you know, "So what" was recorded in 1959). "Bitches Brew" (1970) was a conceptual giant step, and better represents the legacy of Miles Davies, the jazz-rock fusion, but maybe it´s not that intense. Slightly recherché and affected if you ask me.

Anyway, both albums are huge.
Kind of Blue has John Coltrane and Bill Evans there playing for your listening pleasure...
Bitches Brew had such a huge influence...

...So we decided "Agharta" would do it. "Agharta" is a live album recorded in Osaka in 1976. It has all the evolution that makes Bitches Brew so influential, and it´s extremely intense. Still, I´d strongly recommend Kind of Blue tho jazz newcomers.

John Coltrane
"A Love Supreme" (1965) it´s a inmense album. Maybe it´s his most emblematic work, but still there is more to discover, that man was a damm sonic earthquake. From the delicate "Ballads" (1963) to the absolutely free forty minutes of "Ascension" (1965), or the "coolness" of earlier "Blue Train" (1957) one can pick almost the album he wants. Still, the awesome quartet he formed with McCoy Tyner, Jimmy Garrison and Elvin Jones somehow had to be pointed out, so we decided to put "My Favourite Things" (1960) instead of "A Love Supreme".

James Brown
"Live At The Apollo" (1963) wich is one of the first live recordings ever (if not the first) was replaced by "Live At The Apollo vol.2" (1968). You still have all the great stuff there, but better sound quality. Less "historic", but better overall.

The Beatles
This was just impossible for me to decide. Made a quick poll. Two votes for Rubber Soul, one for Sgt. Peppers (there goes my vote), one for Revolver and one for the White Album (I don´t like that one). Rubber Soul wins.

The Rolling Stones
Same process. Couple beers, endless arguing, quick poll with the friends at the bar. Results: Exile on Main Street two, Beggars Banquet one, Between The Buttons two (surprise!). We have a tie here. New poll with those. Between the Buttons wins 3-2.

ADDED

Some extra non-anglo artists were missing

Carlos Gardel - "Su Obra Integral"
(Mr. Tango)

Oum Kalsoum - "Anthologie de la Musique Arabe-Oum Kalsoum Vol. I al VII"
(The queen of arab music)

Camarón - "La Leyenda del Tiempo"
(Flamenco reference artist)


UNDER CONSIDERATION

Antonio Carlos Jobim - "The Man From Ipanema"
We have Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto, but this one is worth it, he basically invented the bossanova.

The Roots - "Things Falling Apart"
Awesome album, like their earlier "Do You Want More?!?!?!!", really really good stuff... but I think that there is enough rap/hip-hop in the list already. Suggested by diarmait.

Frank Sinatra - "September Of My Years"
Maybe we have a winner here. 2bdecided and mrosscook would you agree?

Willie Monroe, Muddy Waters and Coleman Hawkins also under consideration.

Who in the world would think that Rubber Soul is "better" than Sgt. Pepper? Many people (me included) consider Sgt. Pepper the most important pop album in the history...

Surprised Boston's self-titled debut album isn't on here. Last time I checked it was best selling debut album of all time for a band, nearing almost 20 million copies in the USA alone and for a long time was the best selling album of all time before Michael Jackson and the Eagles jumped ahead. Factor in that every single song on the album has seen radio play either as a single or just a heavily requested song is amazing.

Here is why Dark Side of the Moon should be listed. When people talk about Pink Floyd, they mention this album not "The Piper At The Gates of Dawn." When artists are quoted for best albums of all time or albums that greatly influenced them or even albums that they wish they wrote, a vast majority of them that mention Pink Floyd select the Dark Side of the Moon and a small amount "The Wall." I have never heard one artist, critic, or fan mention The Piper At The Gates of Dawn as a better album.

DSOTM was revolutionary. It makes just about every single best album list in history. It should be included.

Green Day - Dookie: helped "start" the pop-punk genre

I just explained how damm arbitrary was that pick to avoid this kind of discussion. When the list had Sgt. Peppers and Revolver, people missed Rubber Soul and the White album... You know, Sgt. Peppers was my also my personal choice, but (believe it or not) there are a lot of people that think that Rubber Soul was the apex of the Beatles career. From 1965 on, they began to have personal problems with each other, and the "good vibes" vanished. Most of their albums are outstanding anyways.


Well, just because a zillion flies do like shit this doesn´t make shit any better. Seriously, the "Millions of albums sold" argument doesn´t hold any water for me.
You can now compile the list of 200 bestsellers, it will be full of stuff like Fleetwood Mac, Elton John, the Police, Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Annie Lennox, Celine Dion, Queen, Boston, The Eagles, The Mamas and the Papas, ABBA, U2, Simon & Garfunkel, Britney Spears, Tracy Chapman, Cat Stevens, Falco, Vanilla Ice, The Steve Miller Band, Carole King, James Taylor, Crowded House, Hall & Oates, Phil Collins, the Carpenters or the Monkees. Do you really think this kind of list would have any use?


I never said that DSOTM was better or worse than The Piper, I just said that it was considered to be more significant. And there are plenty of critics that agree here. I couldn´t care less about fans´ opinions, and artists´ opinions are also meaningless most of the time. The DSOTM is a great album but Pink Floyd without Syd Barrett is just another AOR band.


No, they didn´t. Green Day have written a bunch of good songs, and Dookie is an above average album, but they had zero influence in recent pop music history. If you want "starters", you have the RAMONES, the Sex Pistols, PIL, the Buzzcocks and the Dead Kennedys on the list. Johnny Thunders and the Heartbreakers - "L.A.M.F." also make a good starting point (not in the list). By the way, if I had to put an artist on the list to cover the melodic punk-rock (aka california style punk-rock) sub-genre Bad Religion would be it (other than Offspring, Green Day, NOFX, Lagwagon and such).



Enjoy!

Yeah the critics are 110% right all the time If Rolling Stone or other so called music magazines did a review of DSOTM and The Piper when they came out, I'm sure they would give just glowing reviews.

I guess the hundreds if not thousands of "Best Albums" lists that mention DSOTM instead of The Piper are wrong. I guess DSOTM isn't that significant in the great scheme of things. Sure Syd Barrett was a great member of Pink Floyd, don't get me wrong. I disagree big time though over which album was more significant to the thousands of artists who have been influenced by it, not to mention the countless number of fans who to this day listen to DSOTM almost like it was a bible. You would honestly recommend as an introduction to Pink Floyd The Piper?

I guarentee that many of the artists and albums on your list would never have seen the light of day if it weren't for a dedicated group of fans and many artists who claim them as influences. For example, who would care about the Pixies if Nirvana and the other grunge bands never mentioned them as an influence? Your going to tell me that they didn't matter either? I absolutely laugh at what the critics wrote about the Pixies. Guess you gotta throw them off your list too.

No no nooooooooooooooooo!

(I love RS, R, SPLHCB - I don't love the White Album)


The usual answer is that Pepper is the best album of all time.

I think Revolver is better. Luckily the world has both!

However, more and more, people are putting Revolver above Pepper.


Cheers,
David.

I'm missing entries from Radiohead, Metallica, Pearl Jam, U2, Smashing Pumpkins, and probably many others too (these are just some bands I'm thinking of right now).

Surely you must agree that these bands have also created some important albums...

A step in the right direction, but still more detailed consideration of "non-anglo artists" is necessary IMO

Tango = Carlos Gardel?

Since you're talking about significance all the time better choose others, e.g. Osvaldo Pugliese, Aníbal Troilo, Astor Piazzolla, maybe Gotan Project

IMO there are many "non-anglo" genres like Tango that exist and have developed for a long time. So 1 album/continent is not enough by far!

Definitely put The Roots "Things Fall Apart" and Beastie Boys "Ill Communication" on there. What about some Pearl Jam? My favorite from them would have to be "No Code". And what about some Sublime, "40oz. to Freedom" rocked my world when I first heard it as a freshman in highschool. Soul Coughing was also an irreplaceable band, something from them should be on there.

My opinion is: when the "cultural elite" says something is shit, it usually means it's good, and vice versa. This is how I read movie reviews and I think I should start doing the same with record reviews... So this list has little use for me. I like many artists both on your top 200 list and your "blacklist" - what's the use of any of them?

I wish I got more "Oh, I listened to that **** album, and that damm thing rules, thank you" (or also "I listened to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, and that pakistan fatass sucks") rather than "My favourite band/album/artist, the allmighty **** it´s not in the list and I´m sure it should be" feedback.

But anyway...

@mrosscook:

Looks like you were right.

@Greentone:

Ride came after My Bloody Valentine. The debut of Ride was "Nowhere" (1990), and My Bloody Valentine first album was from 1985 (that one was not very good, true), but their defining album "Isn´t anything" was from 1988. More then that, being "Nowhere" a great album, the shoegazer movement peak was "Loveless" (1991).

When comes to Wire, I must admit that we´ve been considering it. But finally we decided not to list them. From early punk to avant-pop, the list is quite comprehensive, Buzzcocks, Joy Division, Gang of Four, The Fall... Not really necessary to include them afterall.

By the way, I saw them live last week in Primavera Sound Festival (Barcelona) and man they were HUGE. Sonic Youth and Television were there too, and both made great concerts. When you see that 40-50 year old people playing like that, well, it´s unbeliveable. The White Stripes and Mogwai were also ok, but The Streets sucked big time.

Oh, I almost forgot, I don´t miss Nels Cline. His first really good record is from 1999, and it was a cover from John Coltrane´s Iterstellar Space. Not that significant. His recent recordings are very interesting tough, but they come right into the XXI century... So no Nels Cline.

@tigre:
I think that I´ll stick to Carlos Gardel, but thank you very much for proposing some alternatives. By the way, I don´t quite like Gotan Project, House and Tango don´t mix well IMHO.

I think that adding more non-anglo is also the way to go, but it´s quite difficult to find significative things out there. I don´t want to fall in the "tratitional musics of the world" temptation and start listing really good polkas and fandangos, I just want to stick to true XX century stuff. Plus, I don´t know shit about the so called "World Music" and I could easily screw it.

@ProtectYaNeck36:

Beastie Boys - Ill communication is already on the list (it was there from the very beginning). The Roots - Things Falling Apart is an excellent album, but I think that this particular genre is well covered (Dr. Dre, Public Enemy, Wu-Tang Clan and Boogie Down Productions are also on the list). Still, if I had to list one more rap/hip-hop album, "Things falling apart" would be it.

@ErikS:
I never said that those artists were shit. Never, ever. I was only trying to say that the number or copies sold means nothing to me (and should mean nothing to you). Neither did I mention the word "blacklist" or anything similar. That was your interpretation.
I think that the list I posted is very useful to EXPLORE new music genres/artists. A list of bestsellers has no use other than see who sold more albums. That´s what I meant.

Ah, this one is just for fun:

...this made me think that you must keep encoding with Xing then. Same reasoning.


Edited the original post to make some minor changes:

ADDITIONS

Antonio Carlos Jobim - The man from Ipanema

Bill Monroe - The Essential Bill Monroe (suggested by mrosscook)

Coleman Hawkins - Body and Soul

Django Reindhart & Stephane Grappelly - Souvenirs (Django R. was suggested by Destron)


CHANGES

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan´s "En concert à Paris" (5CD collection from 1997) is replaced with "Mustt Mustt" (1990).

Oum Kalsoum´s "Anthologie de la Musique Arabe-Oum Kalsoum Vol. I al VII" (7CD collection)
is replaced with "Diva of Arab Music" (2CDs and MUCH easier to find).


UNDER CONSIDERATION

Khaled - "Khaled" (1992) or "N´ssi N´ssi" (1993)
(King of Rai)

Paco de Lucía and some others also under consideration.


Enjoy!

Your taste is good. B) (Not only in this case ...)

For me "significant", talking about music, would include doing something new - mixing Tango and House is/was something new. But ... it should be done in a way that others are influenced/inspired/... by it, so I guess you're right about Gotan Project.

Whatever...



On this board there are many memebers from all around the world, so maybe a thread/poll asking for help about this would be a good idea.

manusate,

I haven't posted in this thread for a while because I've been too stunned and baffled by your decision to drop "Highway 61 Revisited" from the list. You might as well have hit me in the head with a mallet. This is a mistake of such magnitude that it is difficult to believe and impossible to comprehend.

I could rant about this at length, but never mind. I've given my opinion.

I do have to point out that, in trying to reduce even the most significant artists to only a single album, you and your friends may fall into one of the classic errors of committees -- unable to decide between two brilliant alternatives, you agree to choose a third which is inferior to both.

Examples:

"Exile on Main Street" and "Beggars' Banquet" > "Between the Buttons"
"Kind of Blue" and "Bitches Brew" > "Agharta"

Also, the removal of Sergeant Pepper just to reduce the Beatles to one album is not right. I'm with 2Bdecided on this. The Beatles deserve 3 albums -- and if your Rolling Stoner friends kick up a fuss, you should get a new set of friends.

If your final list runs to 212 or 221 instead of 200, so what? You've already gone beyond 100, and you won't hit a "rounder" figure until 1000, so 200 is not such a magic number. (Although 256, as a power of 2, might have some appeal as a target.)

I can't agree that "September of My Years" is a good choice for a Sinatra album. By that point in his career he was, in my opinion, tiring out and beginning to become a parody of his own persona. Any of the suggestions in the posts above would be better.

Carlos Gardel is a very good call. I love the tango music of that era (especially the vocals of Libertad Lamarque).

Touchée!