The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time

"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is the cover story of a special issue of "Rolling Stone" magazine published in November 2003.cite book
last=Levy
first=Joe
coauthors=Steven Van Zandt
title=Rolling Stone The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
origyear=2005
accessdate=2008-01-08
edition=3rd edition
year=2006
publisher=Turnaround
location=London
isbn=1932958614
oclc=70672814
ref=RS500
Related news articles:
*cite journal
date=December 11, 2003
title=The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
journal=Rolling Stone
issue=Special Collectors Issue
publisher=Straight Arrow
location=San Francisco, California
issn=0035-791X
oclc=1787396
accessdate=2008-01-08
*cite web
url=http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5938174/the_rs_500_greatest_albums_of_all_time/
title=The RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time
accessdate=2008-01-08
date=2003-11-18
work=Special Collectors Issue
publisher=Rolling Stone ] The list was based on the votes of 273 rock musicians, critics and industry figures, each of whom submitted a weighted list of 50 albums. Various music genres were featured in the list, including pop, rock, ska, soul, blues, folk, jazz, hip hop, and combinations thereof. The accounting firm Ernst & Young devised a point system to weigh votes for 1,600 submitted titles. [ [http://www.usatoday.com/life/music/news/2003-11-16-rolling-stone-list_x.htm "It's Certainly a Thrill: Sgt. Pepper Is Best Album"] , "USA Today", November 17, 2003.]

The list was released in book form in 2005, with an introduction written by Steven Van Zandt. The book's list was slightly different, explained in the editor's foreword as the removal of some compilation albums and the consolidation of the two LPs of Robert Johnson's "King of the Delta Blues Singers" into "The Complete Recordings", making room for eight additional albums on the list.

The list's apparent generational bias toward the 1960s and 1970s prompted a response. Following the publicity surrounding the list, rock critic Jim DeRogatis, a former "Rolling Stone" editor, published "Kill Your Idols: A New Generation of Rock Writers Reconsiders the Classics" (ISBN 1-56980-276-9) in 2004. This featured a number of younger critics arguing against the magazine's high evaluation of various "classic" albums, including DeRogatis taking on "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band", which had been "Rolling Stone"'s top choice.

As with other similar lists from Rolling Stone, it is almost totally made up of the output of American and British artists. Only two albums produced in a non-English speaking country are included in it: "Trans-Europe Express", by the German band Kraftwerk (#253) and the Cuban production "Buena Vista Social Club" (#260). Moreover, the first ten albums were all produced in the 1960s and 1970s.

The list also includes many compilations such as "greatest hits" collections and soundtracks.

Top ten albums

# "Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band", The Beatles
# "Pet Sounds", The Beach Boys
# "Revolver", The Beatles
# "Highway 61 Revisited", Bob Dylan
# "Rubber Soul", The Beatles
# "What's Going On", Marvin Gaye
# "Exile on Main St.", The Rolling Stones
# "London Calling", The Clash
# "Blonde on Blonde", Bob Dylan
# "The Beatles" ("The White Album"), The Beatles

Artists with the most albums in the list

(Numbers in parentheses represent actual amount of studio albums by artist while the other represents the amount published by artist as the list was being decided. Actual amount is subject to change without update.)

* 11 The Beatles (with 4 in the top 10, including #1) – 10 of their 12 studio albums + "Meet the Beatles"(U.S. version of "With the Beatles")
* 10 Bob Dylan (with 2 in the top 10) – 10 of his 31 studio albums(32)
* 10 The Rolling Stones (with 1 in the top 10) – 10 of their 21 studio albums(22)
* 08 Bruce Springsteen – 8 of his 12 studio albums(15)
* 07 The Who – 6 of their 10 studio albums(11); 1 live album
* 06 David Bowie – 5 of his 22 studio albums(23); 1 compilation album
* 06 Elton John – 5 of his 27 studio albums(29); 1 compilation album
* 05 Bob Marley – 4 of his 15 studio albums; 1 compilation album
* 05 Byrds – 4 of their 12 studio albums; 1 compilation album
* 05 Led Zeppelin – 5 of their 9 studio albums
* 05 Neil Young – 5 of his 26 studio albums(30)
* 05 Otis Redding - 2 of his 6 studio albums; 1 live album; 2 compilation albums
* 05 U2 – 5 of their 10 studio albums(11)
* 04 Elvis Costello - 4 of his 18 studio albums(22)
* 04 The Grateful Dead – 3 of their 13 studio albums; 1 live album
* 04 James Brown – 1 live album; 3 compilation albums
* 04 Madonna – 3 of her 8 studio albums(11); 1 compilation album
* 04 Pink Floyd – 4 of their 14 studio albums
* 04 The Police – 4 of their 5 studio albums
* 04 Roxy Music – 4 of their 8 studio albums
* 04 Simon & Garfunkel – 3 of their 5 studio albums; 1 compilation album
* 04 Sly & the Family Stone – 3 of their 9 studio albums; 1 compilation album
* 04 The Smiths - 3 of their 4 studio albums; 1 compilation album
* 04 Stevie Wonder – 4 of his 23 studio albums
* 04 Talking Heads – 3 of their 8 studio albums; 1 live album
* 04 The Velvet Underground – 4 of their 5 studio albums
* 03 Jimi Hendrix Experience - all 3 of their studio albums
* 03 Marvin Gaye - 3 of his 25 studio albums
* 03 The Doors - 3 of their 8 studio albums
* 03 Eminem - 3 of his 5 studio albums
* 03 The Clash - 3 of their 6 studio albums
* 03 Creedence Clearwater Revival - 3 of their 7 studio albums
* 03 Nirvana - 1 live album; 2 of their 3 studio albums
* 03 Radiohead - 3 of their 7 studio albums
* 03 R.E.M. - 3 of their 14 studio albums

Number of albums from each decade

* 1950s and earlier – 29 albums (5.8%)
* 1960s – 126 (25.2%) (with 7 of the top 10)
* 1970s – 183 (36.6%) (with the other 3 of the top 10)
* 1980s – 88 (17.6%)
* 1990s – 61 (12.2%)
* 2000s – 13 (2.6%)

References

External links

* [http://www.rollingstone.com/news/story/5938174/the_rs_500_greatest_albums_of_all_time/ The list] on the "Rolling Stone" website.
* [http://musicchain.net/entry/RS-500-Greatest-Albums-of-All-Time MusicChain - RS 500 Greatest Albums of All Time]
* [http://www.rhino.com/rs500/listing1.lasso The list on Rhino.com]
* [http://www.besteveralbums.com BestEverAlbums.com] - this list and many other greatest album charts.