#1★ 9.7
The Dark Side of the Moon
Pink Floyd · 1973
🎵
Music — Album Reviews
60 essential albums from 1959 to 2024. Every genre, only records that hold up over decades.
🏆 Top 10 Albums
#2★ 9.7
Kind of Blue
Miles Davis · 1959
#3★ 9.6
Abbey Road
The Beatles · 1969
#4★ 9.6
To Pimp a Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar · 2015
#5★ 9.6
A Love Supreme
John Coltrane · 1965
#6★ 9.5
Led Zeppelin IV
Led Zeppelin · 1971
#7★ 9.5
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Kanye West · 2010
#8★ 9.5
Illmatic
Nas · 1994
#9★ 9.5
OK Computer
Radiohead · 1997
#10★ 9.5
Kid A
Radiohead · 2000
🎸Classic Rock(8)
Abbey Road
The Beatles
1969 · 17 tracks
Rock
The final Beatles record. Side B's medley is still unmatched pop composition.
The Dark Side of the Moon
Pink Floyd
1973 · 10 tracks
Progressive Rock
14 years on the Billboard chart. Sonic blueprint for concept albums.
Led Zeppelin IV
Led Zeppelin
1971 · 8 tracks
Hard Rock
Stairway, Black Dog, Rock and Roll. The quintessential rock statement.
A Night at the Opera
Queen
1975 · 12 tracks
Rock
Bohemian Rhapsody. Operatic rock at its most ambitious.
Rumours
Fleetwood Mac
1977 · 11 tracks
Rock
Band breaking up, making their masterpiece. 40M+ copies sold.
Exile on Main St.
The Rolling Stones
1972 · 18 tracks
RockBlues
Recorded in a French basement. Gritty and essential.
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
The Beatles
1967 · 13 tracks
RockPsychedelic
Reinvented what a rock album could be.
Blood on the Tracks
Bob Dylan
1975 · 10 tracks
Folk Rock
Dylan's divorce album. Lyrical peak.
🎤Hip-Hop(10)
To Pimp a Butterfly
Kendrick Lamar
2015 · 16 tracks
Hip-Hop
Jazz-infused concept album. Pulitzer Prize for music followed.
good kid, m.A.A.d city
Kendrick Lamar
2012 · 12 tracks
Hip-Hop
A short film by Kendrick. Compton upbringing as narrative.
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Kanye West
2010 · 13 tracks
Hip-Hop
Maximalist hip-hop opera. Power, Runaway, Monster.
Illmatic
Nas
1994 · 10 tracks
Hip-Hop
The most acclaimed rap debut. 39 minutes of NY perfection.
Ready to Die
The Notorious B.I.G.
1994 · 17 tracks
Hip-Hop
East Coast storytelling benchmark.
Aquemini
Outkast
1998 · 16 tracks
Hip-Hop
Southern hip-hop's creative peak. Rosa Parks sued but lost.
Donuts
J. Dilla
2006 · 31 tracks
Hip-HopInstrumental
Released days before Dilla's death. Sampling-as-art benchmark.
Take Care
Drake
2011 · 17 tracks
Hip-HopR&B
Drake's artistic peak. Mood-defining OVO sound.
The Shining
J Dilla
2006 · 16 tracks
Hip-Hop
Posthumous Dilla. Hip-hop producer craft.
Flower Boy
Tyler, The Creator
2017 · 14 tracks
Hip-HopAlt
Tyler matures. Lush, chord-rich production.
🎵Pop(7)
Thriller
Michael Jackson
1982 · 9 tracks
Pop
Best-selling album of all time. Every track a hit.
Purple Rain
Prince
1984 · 9 tracks
PopRock
Soundtrack to his own movie. Era-defining.
1989 (Taylor's Version)
Taylor Swift
2023 · 22 tracks
Pop
Re-recorded version of her pop pivot. Blank Space, Shake It Off.
When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
Billie Eilish
2019 · 14 tracks
PopAlt
Whispered vocals, heavy bass. Gen-Z pop redefined.
After Hours
The Weeknd
2020 · 14 tracks
R&BPop
Blinding Lights is now one of the most-streamed songs ever.
thank u, next
Ariana Grande
2019 · 12 tracks
Pop
Title track broke streaming records. Confessional pop.
Un Verano Sin Ti
Bad Bunny
2022 · 23 tracks
ReggaetonLatin Pop
Most-streamed album of 2022. Global Latin crossover.
🎶R&B(5)
Blonde
Frank Ocean
2016 · 17 tracks
R&BAlt
Cult-classic R&B. Still unmatched.
Channel Orange
Frank Ocean
2012 · 17 tracks
R&B
Modern R&B's high-water mark.
Lemonade
Beyoncé
2016 · 12 tracks
R&BPop
Visual album. Everything is personal, nothing is hidden.
Voodoo
D'Angelo
2000 · 13 tracks
Neo-Soul
Neo-soul peak. Recording process legendary.
Ctrl
SZA
2017 · 14 tracks
R&B
Modern R&B landmark. Vulnerable and beat-heavy.
🎛️Electronic(4)
Discovery
Daft Punk
2001 · 14 tracks
ElectronicHouse
French touch perfected. One More Time, Harder Better Faster Stronger.
Random Access Memories
Daft Punk
2013 · 13 tracks
ElectronicDisco
Live instruments and disco legends. Get Lucky.
Selected Ambient Works 85-92
Aphex Twin
1992 · 13 tracks
AmbientIDM
The blueprint for introspective electronic music.
Untrue
Burial
2007 · 13 tracks
DubstepElectronic
South London rain in musical form.
🎷Jazz(4)
Kind of Blue
Miles Davis
1959 · 5 tracks
Jazz
Best-selling jazz record of all time. Modal jazz begins.
A Love Supreme
John Coltrane
1965 · 4 tracks
Jazz
Coltrane's spiritual statement. Overwhelmingly intense.
Mingus Ah Um
Charles Mingus
1959 · 9 tracks
Jazz
Composition-heavy post-bop. Goodbye Pork Pie Hat.
Head Hunters
Herbie Hancock
1973 · 4 tracks
Jazz Fusion
Jazz meets funk. Gateway drug for both genres.
🎹Indie(7)
folklore
Taylor Swift
2020 · 16 tracks
Indie Folk
Surprise pandemic album. Swift goes Bon Iver.
OK Computer
Radiohead
1997 · 12 tracks
Alt Rock
Pre-Y2K anxiety set to guitars. Paranoid Android.
Kid A
Radiohead
2000 · 10 tracks
ElectronicAlt Rock
Radiohead blows up the rock band they had become.
Funeral
Arcade Fire
2004 · 10 tracks
Indie Rock
Sprawling indie-rock opera. Neighborhood suite.
Is This It
The Strokes
2001 · 11 tracks
Indie Rock
NYC garage revival. Launched 2000s indie.
Illinois
Sufjan Stevens
2005 · 22 tracks
Indie Folk
50-state project's highlight. Lavish arrangements.
For Emma, Forever Ago
Bon Iver
2007 · 9 tracks
Indie Folk
Recorded alone in a Wisconsin cabin. Skinny Love.
🤘Metal(5)
Master of Puppets
Metallica
1986 · 8 tracks
Thrash Metal
Thrash metal pinnacle. 8.5 minute title track is a cathedral.
Paranoid
Black Sabbath
1970 · 8 tracks
Heavy Metal
Metal begins here. War Pigs, Iron Man.
The Number of the Beast
Iron Maiden
1982 · 8 tracks
Heavy Metal
Gallop-beat heavy metal at its most theatrical.
Lateralus
Tool
2001 · 13 tracks
Progressive Metal
Metal as math. Fibonacci sequences in song structures.
Crack the Skye
Mastodon
2009 · 7 tracks
Progressive Metal
Concept album about astral projection. Thinking-person's metal.
🤠Country(5)
American IV: The Man Comes Around
Johnny Cash
2002 · 15 tracks
Country
Cash's farewell. Hurt cover is seismic.
Red Headed Stranger
Willie Nelson
1975 · 15 tracks
Country
Sparse concept album. Outlaw country.
Jolene
Dolly Parton
1974 · 10 tracks
Country
Title track still haunts 50 years later.
Golden Hour
Kacey Musgraves
2018 · 13 tracks
CountryPop
Country goes disco-shimmer. Grammy Album of the Year.
Zach Bryan
Zach Bryan
2023 · 16 tracks
CountryFolk
Heart-on-sleeve country. Streaming-era phenomenon.
✨K-Pop(5)
Map of the Soul: 7
BTS
2020 · 20 tracks
K-Pop
BTS's introspective peak. Global K-pop benchmark.
Born Pink
BLACKPINK
2022 · 8 tracks
K-Pop
Four-member girl group's biggest album. Pink Venom.
Eyes Wide Open
TWICE
2020 · 13 tracks
K-Pop
3rd studio album. Mature production.
Get Up
NewJeans
2023 · 6 tracks
K-Pop
Y2K-inspired K-pop. Super Shy viral moment.
FML
SEVENTEEN
2023 · 6 tracks
K-Pop
Mini album that broke sales records.
About these reviews
Ratings reflect critical consensus across Pitchfork, AllMusic, Rolling Stone, and our own ears. Great albums reward listening on good headphones — laptop speakers don't do Radiohead or Miles Davis justice.
Streaming services include nearly every record on this list. Tidal and Apple Music both offer lossless audio worth the upgrade.