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Apple Music Counting Down 100 Best Albums of All Time

To go off on a very slight tangent - I've never heard any Porcupine Tree. However, Steven Wilson's podcast The Album Years is really great and highly recommended.

I *have* heard one solo Steven Wilson song - Pariah. It made the hairs on the back of my neck stand up when I first heard it.

 
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spiralynth said:
Sweet! See them live if you can (they just finished a brief tour).

Steven is such an audio perfectionist that their live performances are almost studio quality. It’s a thing to behold (with exceptional songcraft and musicianship to boot).
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Could you please recommend a PT album for someone new to them?
 
spiralynth said:
One more song from another band that I’ll presume most have never heard.

Precision polyrhythms over groove-laden syncopation; ethereal melodies over jarring atonality; soaring, layered harmonies and aspiring lyrics over insane construction …

Demands countless listens to be fully understood. I’ve been listening to this song for over 10 years and I still cannot fathom how it was conceived and constructed. Truly one of the most fascinating and most memorable songs I have heard in my entire life. The entire album from which it comes (Altered State) is utter perfection.

TesseracT - Exile (aka Exiled in earlier album prints)
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Thanks I really enjoyed that. If you haven't already heard them I'd recommend trying Igorrr. It's kind of a blend of baroque classical, world music, extreme metal and electronica.

 
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FriendlyMackle said:
I have to say that I really didn’t want to like her, simply because I didn’t know anything about her other than that I couldn’t avoid hearing her name everywhere. I was lured into her fandom(!) after she sang a duet with Brandon Urie of Panic at the Disco, and I really liked it and thought she was adorable and fun, and has a lovely voice. Then I listened to a few of her albums—and artists who are composers and lyricists rate highly in my book—and I found that she makes some very moving and heartfelt music, along with her beautiful voice. She definitely should have an album on the list—I couldn’t say which one I think is best, as I haven’t listened to all of her work.
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The most likely one to make the list: Folklore. THAT was the album that made the detractors realize she could write music that compares to Carole King and Joni Mitchell, both musicwriting legends in their own right.
 
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Next ten.

80. Eminem - Marshall Mathers LP
79. Lana Del Rey - Norman F*****g Rockwell
78. Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
77. Madonna - Like a Prayer
76. Bad Bunny - Un Verano Sin Ti
75. Missy Elliott - Supa Dupa Fly
74. Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
73. Steely Dan - Aja
72. SZA - SOS
71. Kraftwerk - Trans-Europe Express
 
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vipergts2207 said:
Next ten.

80. Eminem - Marshall Mathers LP
79. Lana Del Rey - Norman F*****g Rockwell
78. Elton John - Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
77. Madonna - Like a Prayer
76. Bad Bunny - Un Verano Sin Ti
75. Missy Elliott - Supa Dupa Fly
74. Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
73. Steely Dan - Aja
72. SZA - SOS
71. Trans-Europe Express - Kraftwerk
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As Apple reveal more, it seems to be a genuine mix of standout, groundbreaking albums, that either define their genre or push their genre forward - Kraftwerk deserve a place, Nine Inch Nails, Madonna, Eminem. We've already seen Snoop Dogg...

But some seem to have been thrown in because... Apple is Apple. So we get an SZA album, Bad Bunny and Lana Del Rey.

On a positive note, one thing this has done is reminded me of the pleasure of listening to an album, a complete complimentary work, intended to be listened to in order. With the rise of streaming and the commercial benefits of just releasing almost every song as a single, or lots of smaller EP releases... we've lost the power f some of that.

The initiative also shows what apple can do if it really leans into curation.

This shouldn't be a web application they've built -it should be a deep part of the Apple Music app across all platforms.

Music should be beautifully curated, with documentaries and context. Skeuomorphism would work really well too - show us what hte original vinyl albums looked like, the album notes etc.
 
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Marbles1 said:
But some seem to have been thrown in because... Apple is Apple. So we get an SZA album, Bad Bunny and Lana Del Rey.
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Indeed. SZA 'SOS' is certainly excellent, but it was released less than a-year-and-a-half-ago (and Bad Bunny 'Un Verano Sin Ti' just over two years ago and Lana Del Rey 'Norman F*****g Rockwell!' less than five). How on earth, therefore, can Apple Music's judging panel fairly assess that it has such significant and lasting depth of influence that they can deem it to be one of the "100 Best Albums... ever made"?!
 
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pubb said:
More like, when she isn't the entire top ten.

And don't get me wrong, even if she couldn't sing a lick, she'd already be among the very best songwriters in history. But there are only a few entire albums I could listen to and TS ain't got one of em.
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IMHO, I think Lana Del Rey is a far better songwriter than Taylor Swift. YMMV.
 
70. N.W.A - Straight Outta Compton
69. Metallica - Master of Puppets
68. The Strokes - Is This it
67. Portishead - Dummy
66. The Smiths - The Queen is Dead
65. De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising
64. Erykah Badu - Baduizm
63. The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Are You Experienced
62. 2Pac - All Eyez on Me
61. Sade - Love Deluxe
 
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spiralynth said:
Sweet! See them live if you can (they just finished a brief tour).

Steven is such an audio perfectionist that their live performances are almost studio quality. It’s a thing to behold (with exceptional songcraft and musicianship to boot).
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I’ll look up their performance schedule, thanks for the tip! They are such talented musicians, I think they would be wonderful live.
 
Coffee50 said:
She is a neo soul artist who started in the late 90's. That album (Baduizm) was her debut & I think it won her a few Grammys.
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Got it.

I'm a Brit, ... looking at the history that album reached 17 in the UK in 1997.... Not all artists big in the US made a mark over here if you weren't massively into the genre. Lauren Hill was very prominent. And we had our own Neo soul artists too.

Really these best of lists should be country specific...
 
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60. The Velvet Underground and Nico - The Velvet Underground and Nico
59. Arctic Monkeys - AM
58. Oasis - (What's the Story) Morning Glory?
57. D'Angelo - Voodoo
56. The Cure - Disintegration
55. Rihanna - ANTI
54. John Coltrane - A Love Supreme
53. The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main St.
52. Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
51. Prince - Sign O' the Times

AFD was a given to make the list, just a matter of where. The Rolling Stones were a given too, just a matter of which album and where.

Also, apparently SZA is a clown. “After catching wind of the list, the TDE singer appeared to take issue with her placement by writing in an Instagram comment: ‘Lmao 72nd is so disrespectful.’”

Right, because your less than 2-year-old album deserves higher I guess. 🙄

SZA Unhappy With 'SOS' Ranking On Apple Music's Top 100 Albums | HipHopDXSZA Unhappy With 'SOS' Ranking On Apple Music's Top 100 Albums | HipHopDX
 
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vipergts2207 said:
60. The Velvet Underground and Nico - The Velvet Underground and Nico
59. Arctic Monkeys - AM
58. Oasis - (What's the Story) Morning Glory?
57. D'Angelo - Voodoo
56. The Cure - Disintegration
55. Rihanna - ANTI
54. John Coltrane - A Love Supreme
53. The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main St.
52. Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction
51. Prince - Sign O' the Times
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i bought three of these : 60 on vinyl when it was originally released and 53 / 54 on CD
 
50. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
49. U2 - The Joshua Tree
48. Beastie Boys - Paul’s Boutique
47. Drake - Take Care
46. Bob Marley and the Wailers - Exodus
45. Bjork - Homogenic
44. Stevie Wonder - Innervisions
43. Talking Heads - Remain in Light
42. Janet Jackson - Control
41. OutKast - Aquemini

Based on the average age for each set of 10 largely falling between the decade of 1988 to 1997, I think the folks that made the list actively tried to avoid having a bunch of older stuff all gathered at the top. I’m not sure if I agree with that decision though. We’ll see what happens in the Top 40 I guess. I mean we’re still missing a lot a huge acts. Led Zeppelin, The Who, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Johnny Cash, Van Halen, and of course the Beatles.

Boston’s Boston, Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, MJ’s Thriller, and Nirvana’s Nevermind seem to be givens to make the list.

Even at one album a piece that would take up the 12 of the last 40 and they seem to be continuing the trend of sprinkling “newer” stuff throughout.
 
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I think many Prince fans (myself included) would agree that Sign 'o' the Times was his magnum opus. I am sure the much more commercially successful Purple Rain will appear higher in the list as his 'best' album, as always happens. I think this says a lot about the judges' definition of 'best'.
 
I know Apple are an American company, likely Apple Music is going to be US centric, but the list so far does seem to be a very US-centric view of greatness. I can't imagine there being so many hiphop/ soul / rnb albums if this were a pure UK list, let alone a Europe-wide list.

'Nas' having an album considered one of the best 100 of all time? And The Clash... they're more highly regarded in the US than the UK these days.


Alanis Morisette, Radiohead, Beyoncé all deserving.
 
vipergts2207 said:
50. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love
49. U2 - The Joshua Tree
48. Beastie Boys - Paul’s Boutique
47. Drake - Take Care
46. Bob Marley and the Wailers - Exodus
45. Bjork - Homogenic
44. Stevie Wonder - Innervisions
43. Talking Heads - Remain in Light
42. Janet Jackson - Control
41. OutKast - Aquemini
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So Drake > Coltrane. Righto.
 
Marbles1 said:
I know Apple are an American company, likely Apple Music is going to be US centric, but the list so far does seem to be a very US-centric view of greatness. I can't imagine there being so many hiphop/ soul / rnb albums if this were a pure UK list, let alone a Europe-wide list.

'Nas' having an album considered one of the best 100 of all time? And The Clash... they're more highly regarded in the US than the UK these days.


Alanis Morisette, Radiohead, Beyoncé all deserving.
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Frankly, even in a US-centric list, it's hard to grasp how more hip-hop records than jazz records can make this list. One can only assume that the compilers of the list are either pandering to the expectations of a youthful audience or are themselves profoundly musically ignorant.
 
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We're at the end of the 30s and haven't had a single Taylor Swift album.

I wonder how high Apple will place her?

I mean she's good at her craft, producing consistent mostly pop albums, but that's what she does, hits the right beats, always does a good show etc. It's the musical equivalent of going to a well run small chain restaurant. You won't be surprised, but you'll get good quality every time.

But nothing that actually pushes boundaries are defines the genre. Taylor's going to be in the top 10 isn't she?
 
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