Here's 200 of my favorite albums, as of whenever I last fussed with it.

Official rules as follows:

  • Unranked. Default-sorted to alphabetical by artist, chronological within each artist; the numbered leftmost column is strictly so I can double-check the total count
    +
  • The top 30—also unranked—are 🎇[starred]
    +
  • Rock Bottom by Robert Wyatt is 🔥[the single greatest album of all time]
    +
  • Limit to three releases per artist (thereby nerfing such artists as Miles Davis & Neil Young)
    +
  • Indefinitely subject to revision/expansion
Title Year Artist
Airport Music for Black Folk 2016 Chino Amobi
Paradiso 2017
Fall Be Kind 2009 Animal Collective
Selected Ambient Works 85–92 1992 Aphex Twin
Louis Armstrong Plays W.C. Handy 1954 Louis Armstrong
Love Cry 1968 Albert Ayler
Colour Green 2006 Sibylle Baier
Career 1952–1988 2005 Chet Baker
BCD-2 2008 Basic Channel
🎇Pet Sounds 1966 The Beach Boys
Once Twice Melody 2022 Beach House
Paul's Boutique 1989 Beastie Boys
Black Candy 1989 Beat Happening
🎇You Turn Me On 1992
The Beatles 1968 The Beatles
Abbey Road 1969
Anthology 2 1996
If You're Feeling Sinister 1996 Belle and Sebastian
Space Gallery Jan. 27, 2007 / Sahara Club Jan. 28, 2007 2007 Big Blood
Radio City 1974 Big Star
I See a Darkness 1999 Bonnie "Prince" Billy
Post 1995 Björk
🎇Homogenic 1997
Music Has the Right to Children 1998 Boards of Canada
Super æ 1998 Boredoms
Perfect from Now On 1997 Built to Spill
🎇Untrue 2007 Burial
Hounds of Love 1985 Kate Bush
Paris 1919 1973 John Cale
Apocalypse 2011 Bill Callahan
Tago Mago 1971 Can
🎇Ege Bamyası 1972
Haitian Dances 1954 Frantz Casseus
🎇Moon Pix 1998 Cat Power
Pop 2 2017 Charli XCX
The Cherry Blossoms 2000 The Cherry Blossoms
London Calling 1979 The Clash
Hell Hath No Fury 2006 Clipse
Attack on Memory 2012 Cloud Nothings
Songs of Leonard Cohen 1967 Leonard Cohen
Jane Doe 2001 Converge
Skies of America 1972 Ornette Coleman
Journey in Satchidananda 1971 Alice Coltrane
Turiya Sings 1982
A Love Supreme 1965 John Coltrane
🎇Ascension 1966
Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 1985 Sam Cooke
In Bern 1999 Loren Mazzacane Connors & Jim O'Rourke
Get Olde 2013 Crying
Floating into the Night 1989 Julee Cruise
Kind of Blue 1959 Miles Davis
Jack Johnson 1971
Get Up With It 1974
We'll Have a Time 2001 Dear Nora
🎇Three States: Rarities 1997–2007 2008
New Ancient Strings 1999 Toumani Diabaté & Ballaké Sissoko
Da Trak Genious 2010 DJ Nate
Double Cup 2013 DJ Rashad
Bigtyme Recordz, Vol. II: All Screwed Up 1995 DJ Screw
Endtroducing..... 1996 DJ Shadow
Out to Lunch! 1964 Eric Dolphy
Pink Moon 1972 Nick Drake
Bringing It All Back Home 1965 Bob Dylan
Blonde on Blonde 1966
Blood on the Tracks 1975
Unjust Malaise 2005 Julius Eastman
Ambient 1: Music for Airports 1978 Brian Eno
Fare Forward Voyagers (Soldier's Choice) 1973 John Fahey
Slates 1981 The Fall
🎇Hex Enduction Hour 1982
This Nation's Saving Grace 1985
Forever Breathes the Lonely Word 1986 Felt
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots 2002 The Flaming Lips
Entertainment! 1979 Gang of Four
Pop 2000 Gas
🎇Ma délire – Songs of Love, Lost & Found 2021 Myriam Gendron
Lift Yr. Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven! 2000 Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Liquid Swords 1995 GZA
Workingman's Dead 1970 Grateful Dead
Europe '72 1972
Revolutionary Pekinese Opera, Ver. 1.28 1996 Ground Zero
Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill 2008 Grouper
A I A: Alien Observer 2011
Big Gucci Sosa 2014 Gucci Mane & Chief Keef
🎇Bee Thousand 1994 Guided by Voices
Alien Lanes 1995
One Pig 2011 Matthew Herbert
Playing It Cool and Playing It Right 1981 Keith Hudson
1928 Sessions 1979 Mississippi John Hurt
🎇Donuts 2006 J Dilla
  • E
  • mo
  • tion
2015 Carly Rae Jepsen
Blues & Ballads 1960 Lonnie Johnson & Elmer Snowden
The Complete Recordings 1990 Robert Johnson
Bonito Generation 2016 Kero Kero Bonito
Red 1974 King Crimson
The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society 1968 The Kinks
Roforofo Fight 1972 Fela Kuti & the Africa '70
good kid, m.A.A.d city 2012 Kendrick Lamar
Photographs 2013 Graham Lambkin & Jason Lescalleet
Latin Playboys 1994 Latin Playboys
Any Other City 2001 Life Without Buildings
Fatigue 2021 L'Rain
Madvillainy 2004 Madvillain
The Glow Pt. 2 2001 The Microphones
Blues & Roots 1960 Charles Mingus
The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady 1963
The Modern Lovers 1976 The Modern Lovers
Into the Music 1979 Van Morrison
Cross Paths 2008 The Motifs
Timothy's Monster 1994 Motorpsycho
A Crow Looked at Me 2017 Mount Eerie
Golden Hour 2018 Kacey Musgraves
🎇Loveless 1991 My Bloody Valentine
Illmatic 1994 Nas
The Dance of the Moon and the Sun 2006 Natural Snow Buildings
🎇Ys 2006 Joanna Newsom
Divers 2015
In Utero 1993 Nirvana
Replica 2011 Oneohtrix Point Never
Insignificance 2001 Jim O'Rourke
Person Pitch 2007 Panda Bear
Slanted and Enchanted 1992 Pavement
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain 1994
🎇Wowee Zowee 1995
Ayahuasca 2001 Pelt
Parallelograms 1970 Linda Perhacs
Exile in Guyville 1993 Liz Phair
The Wall 1979 Pink Floyd
Dummy 1994 Portishead
Steve McQueen 1985 Prefab Sprout
Jordan: The Comeback 1990
I Trawl the Megahertz 2003
Sign "☮" the Times 1987 Prince
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back 1988 Public Enemy
Space Is the Place 1973 Sun Ra
OK Computer 1997 Radiohead
Kid A 2000
'77 Live 1991 Les Rallizes Dénudés
Reckoning 1984 R.E.M.
🎇Monster 1994
Let It Be 1984 The Replacements
🎇Modern Lovers 88 1987 Jonathan Richman
🎇I, Jonathan 1992
Kalk Samen Kuri no Hana [『加爾基 精液 栗ノ花』] 2003 Ringo Sheena
Motomami 2022 Rosalía
It's Time 1962 Max Roach
Coin Coin Chapter One: Gens de couleur libres 2011 Matana Roberts
🎇Coin Coin Chapter Four: Memphis 2019
The Roches 1979 The Roches
Good Morning Good Night 2004
🎇Secrets 1978 Gil Scott-Heron & Brian Jackson
Philosophy of the World 1969 The Shaggs
Ask the Ages 1991 Sonny Sharrock
🎇Terraform 1998 Shellac
American Water 1998 Silver Jews
Dopesmoker 2003 Sleep
🎇Spiderland 1991 Slint
Souvlaki 1993 Slowdive
🎇There's a Riot Goin' On 1971 Sly and the Family Stone
Daydream Nation 1988 Sonic Youth
Aja 1977 Steely Dan
Gaucho 1980
Emperor Tomato Ketchup 1996 Stereolab
Illinois 2005 Sufjan Stevens
The Stone Roses 1989 The Stone Roses
Raw Power 1973 The Stooges
Opposite 1998 Taku Sugimoto
330,003 Crossdressers from Beyond the Rig Veda 1996 Sun City Girls
velocity : design : comfort. 2003 Sweet Trip
The Colour of Spring 1986 Talk Talk
Spirit of Eden 1988
🎇Laughing Stock 1991
🎇Remain in Light 1980 Talking Heads
🎇Marquee Moon 1977 Television
Deceit 1981 This Heat
20 Jazz Funk Greats 1979 Throbbing Gristle
Half Free 2015 U.S. Girls
Townes Van Zandt 1969 Townes Van Zandt
The Velvet Underground & Nico 1967 The Velvet Underground and Nico
🎇White Light/White Heat 1968 The Velvet Underground
Violent Femmes 1983 Violent Femmes
Rain Dogs 1985 Tom Waits
The Mollusk 1997 Ween
Pinkerton 1996 Weezer
Playthroughs 2002 Keith Fullerton Whitman
🎇Yankee Hotel Foxtrot 2002 Wilco
Brian Wilson Presents Smile 2004 Brian Wilson
Back to Black 2006 Amy Winehouse
Pink Flag 1977 Wire
Songs in the Key of Life 1976 Stevie Wonder
Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) 1993 Wu-Tang Clan
🔥Rock Bottom 1974 Robert Wyatt
Skylarking 1986 XTC
Going Places 2010 Yellow Swans
I Can Hear the Heart Beating as One 1997 Yo La Tengo
And Then Nothing Turned Itself Inside-Out 2000
Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere 1969 Neil Young (w/ or w/o Crazy Horse)
On the Beach 1974
🎇Rust Never Sleeps 1979
Odessey and Oracle 1968 The Zombies