Tom's Top 50 Albums Of All Time*

As someone who was born in 1964, I am on the border of being labeled a Baby Boomer and Gen X'er.  Which makes me unique in my musical tastes.  I grew up in the heyday of Top 40 AM radio and defend a lot the music that is often considered unhip to today's generation.  Top 40 then collided with the rise of FM AOR.  And I was listening to all of that before I turned 16.  

Rolling Stone's update of their Top 500 Albums of All Time set off the usual amount of discussion.  It was an eclectic list.  Stronger now then when it was last tweaked in 2012.  In the end, most of the albums that entered the musical canon when they first did a Top 500 in 2003 were still there.  Some of the rankings changed, but the classics remained.  And my list includes a fair amount of Boomer classics.  

Narrowing a lifetime of music listening to 50 albums was an impossible task, and provided me with more headaches than I needed. And I can fairly say that if I did this same Top 50 a month from now, it would look different.   

For my own list, I followed the RS rules of listing 50 albums (ranked for me). Greatest Hits albums showed up on the RS list, but for my list I kept those to acts from the 50's/early 60's.  I've included 3 Various Artist compilations, which were also allowed on the RS list.  I also limited myself to 2 albums per artist. With the thought of giving other albums by artists not named the Beatles or Elvis Presley a chance to place in my Top 50.  I also have no Box Sets on my list.  Only because, while I have many, I rarely ever go back and listen to them.  

So, why the asterisk on my title header?  With all the restrictions I've placed on myself for this list, it can't be considered a truly represented Top 50.  It's missing Jazz artists like Miles, Coltrane, Ella and Sinatra. Honestly, Jazz deserves its own Top 500. Hello, Down Beat Magazine?And a list with no rules would have more than one or two albums by Elvis Presley, Beatles, Stevie Wonder, Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Aretha.  At the end of my list, called Other Contenders, I have a bunch of albums that on any given day could place in my Top 50. But as it is, this is a good overview of my listening tastes over the years. 

I.   Elvis Presley - Sun Sessions (76)

2.  Beatles - Revolver (66)

3.  Michael Jackson - Thriller  (82)

4.  Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark (74)

5.  Prince - Purple Rain (84)

6.  Bruce Springsteen - Born In The USA (84)

7.  Clash - London Calling (80)

8.  Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited (65)

9.  Fleetwood Mac - Rumours (77)

10.  Saturday Night Fever (Soundtrack) - Various (77)

11.  Stevie Wonder - Songs In The Key of Life (76)

12.  Carole King - Tapestry (71)

13.  Hank Williams - 40 Greatest Hits (78)

14.  Beach Boys - Pet Sounds (66)

15.  Rod Stewart - Every Picture Tells A Story (71)

16.  Van Morrison - Moondance (70)

17.  Aretha Franklin - I Never Loved A Man the Way I Loved You (67)

18.  James Brown - Live at the Apollo (62)

19.  Sam Cooke - Portrait of a Legend (1951-64) (03)

20.  Rolling Stones - Let It Bleed (69)

21.  Beatles - Abbey Road (69)

22.  Led Zeppelin - IV (71)

23.  Joni Mitchell - Blue (71)

24.  Paul Simon - Graceland (86)

25.  Janet Jackson - Control (86)

26.  Marvin Gaye - What's Going On (71)

27.  Derek & The Dominos - Layla (70)

28.  Ray Charles - Modern Sounds In Country and Western Music (62)

29.  Spinners - s/t (73)

30.  Motown: Classic Years - Various (UTV '00)

31.  Nirvana - Nevermind (91)

32.  Steely Dan - Aja (77)

33.  Adele - 21 (11)

34.  Dusty Springfield - Dusty in Memphis (69)

35.  Boz Scaggs - Silk Degrees (76)

36.  Who - Who's Next (71)

37.  Dolly Parton - Coat Of Many Colors (71)

38.  Michael Jackson - Off The Wall (79)

39.  Richard & Linda Thompson - Shoot Out The Lights (82)

40.  Elvis Presley - Elvis (TV Special) (68)

41.  Linda Ronstadt - Heart Like A Wheel (74)

42.  Flying Burrito Brothers - Gilded Palace of Sin (69)

43.  Harder They Come (Soundtrack) - Various (72)

44.  Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (73)

45.  Earth, Wind & Fire - Gratitude (75)

46.  Girl Group Greats - Various (Rhino '01)

47.  Donna Summer - Bad Girls (79)

48.  Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era - Various (Rhino 72)

49.  O'Jays - Back Stabbers (72)

50.  Miranda Lambert - Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (07)

Other Contenders

Alexander O' Neal - Hearsay (87)

Amy Winehouse - Back to Black (06)

Anthology of American Folk Music Vol. 1-3 (Box Set) - Various (97)

Aretha Franklin - Lady Soul (68)

Beatles - A Hard Day's Night (64)

Beatles - Rubber Soul (65)

Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band (67)

Bob Dylan - Blonde on Blonde (66)

Bob Marley - Exodus (77)

Bruce Springsteen - Darkness On The Edge of Town (78)

Chess Blues (Box Set) - Various (92)

Chuck Berry - Definitive Collection (04)

Creedence Clearwater Revival - Cosmo's Factory (70)

Disco Years Vol. 1-2 - Various (Rhino 90)

Eagles - Hotel California (76)

Electric Light Orchestra - New World Record (76)

Elvis Presley - From Elvis In Memphis (69)

Elvis Presley - Top Ten Hits (87)

Frank Sinatra - Songs For Swingin' Lovers (56)

Gary Stewart - Out of Hand (75)

Indestructible Beat of Soweto - Various (85)

James Taylor - Sweet Baby James (70)

Jerry Lee Lewis - 18 Original Sun Greatest Hits (84)

John Mellencamp - Scarecrow (85)

Lefty Frizzell - Look What Thoughts Will Do (97)

Little Richard - Georgia Peach (91)

LL Cool J - Mama Said Knock You Out (90)

Loretta Lynn - Writes ‘Em and Sings ‘Em (70)

Louvin Brothers - Tragic Songs of Life (56)

Love - Forever Changes (67)

Love Train: Sound of Philadelphia (Box Set) - Various (Legacy '08)

Luther Vandross - Night I Fell In Love (85)

Madonna - Like A Prayer (89)

Merle Haggard - Serving 190 Proof (79)

Moby Grape - s/t (67)

Pretenders - s/t (80)

Prince - Dirty Mind (80)

Randy Travis - Storms of Life (86)

Rolling Stones - Beggars Banquet (68)

Stevie Wonder - Innervisions (73)

Teddy Pendergrass - TP (80)

Tom T. Hall - In Search of A Song (71)

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Damn The Torpedoes (79)

Warren Zevon - Excitable Boy (78)

Willie Nelson - Stardust (78)

Below are links to 200 albums I love that didn't make the RS500.  Could've listed 200 more.

100 Albums I Love That Didn't Make the RS500

100 More Albums I Love That Didn't Make the RS500