1,001 albums you must hear before you die. chosen by a panel of music critics to be the most important, influential, and best in popular music between the 1950s and the 2010s.

generator | musicboard list | tracking since 2024

• ↺ blood sugar sex magick, red hot chili peppers (1991)
• ↺ the doors, the doors (1967)
• ↺ physical graffiti, led zeppelin (1975)
• innervisions, stevie wonder (1973)
• ↺ superunknown, soundgarden (1994)
• 2112, rush (1976)
• ↺ at folsom prison, johnny cash (1968)
• ↺ odelay, beck (1996)
• ↺ young americans, david bowie (1975)
• she's so unusual, cyndi lauper (1983)
• ella fitzgerald sings the george and ira gershwin song book, ella fitzgerald (1959)
• fun house, the stooges (1970)
• oedipus schmoedipus, barry adamson (1996)
• the velvet underground, the velvet underground (1969)
• ↺ ke*a*h** (psalm 69), ministry (1992)
• cloud nine, the temptations (1969)
• jazz samba, stan getz & charlie byrd (1962)
• ↺ lust for life, iggy pop (1977)
• songs in the key of life, stevie wonder (1976)
• the white room, the klf (1991)
• ingenue, k.d. lang (1992)
• ↺ appetite for destruction, guns n' roses (1987)
• green river, creedence clearwater revival (1969)
• pieces of the sky, emmylou harris (1975)
• ↺ if you're feeling sinister, belle & sebastian (1996)
• snivilisation, orbital
• ↺ 21, adele
• all mod cons, the jam (1978)
• stardust, willie nelson (1978)
• ↺ rumours, fleetwood mac (1977)
• imagine, john lennon (1971)
• infected, the the (1986)
• groovin', the young rascals (1967)
• live at the star-club hamburg, jerry lee lewis (1964)
• home is where the music is, hugh masekela (1972)
• ↺ i do not want what i haven't got, sinead o'connor (1990)
• ↺ abbey road, the beatles (1969)
• ↺ definitely maybe, oasis (1994)
• ↺ like a prayer, madonna (1989)
• ↺ ray of light, madonna (1998)
• lady soul, aretha franklin (1968)
• (pronounced 'leh-'nérd 'skin-'nérd), lynyrd skynyrd (1973)
• 1989, taylor swift (2014)
• so, peter gabriel (1986)
• paul simon, paul simon (1972)
• music has the right to children, boards of canada (1998)
• atomizer, big black (1986)
• when i was born for the 7th time, cornershop (1997)
• hot buttered soul, isaac hayes (1969)
• ↺ rhythm nation 1814, janet jackson (1989)
• the visitors, abba (1981)
• talking book, stevie wonder (1972)
• love and devotion, nusrat fateh ali khan (1988)
• ↺ people's instinctive travels and the paths of rhythm, a tribe called quest (1990)
• the stooges, the stooges (1969)
• ↺ the suburbs, arcade fire (2010)
• surrealistic pillow, jefferson airplane (1967)
• here's little richard, little richard (1957)
• electric music for the mind and body, country joe & the fish (1967)
• os mutantes, os mutantes (1968)
• liquid swords, gza (1995)
• the chronic, dr. dre (1992)
• ↺ that's the way of the world, earth, wind & fire (1975)
• legalize it, peter tosh (1976)
• ↺ ok computer, radiohead (1997)
• sticky fingers, the rolling stones (1971)
• cut, the slits (1979)
• ↺ mellon collie and the infinite sadness, the smashing pumpkins (1995)
• slippery when wet, bon jovi (1986)
• five leaves left, nick drake (1969)
• pictures at an exhibition, emerson, lake & palmer (1971)
• ↺ figure 8, elliott smith (2000)
• ↺ regatta de blanc, the police (1979)
• reign in blood, slayer (1986)
• seventeen seconds, the cure (1980)
• killing joke, killing joke (1980)
• highly evolved, the vines (2002)
• heartbreaker, ryan adams (2000)
• ↺ led zeppelin iv, led zeppelin (1971)
• don't stand me down, dexys midnight runners (1985)
• tapestry, carole king (1971)
• music in exile, songhoy blues (2015)
• repeater, fugazi (1990)
• here come the warm jets, brian eno (1974)
• blood and chocolate, elvis costello & the attractions (1986)
• ↺ "heroes", david bowie (1977)
• frampton comes alive, peter frampton (1976)
• coles corner, richard hawley (2005)
• ↺ at san quentin, johnny cash (1969)
• evermore, taylor swift (2020)
• copper blue, sugar (1992)
• ↺ mama's gun, erykah badu (2000)
• ↺ garbage, garbage (1995)
• another music in a different kitchen, buzzcocks (1978)
• ↺ the marshall mathers lp, eminem (2000)
• risque, chic (1979)
• the real thing, faith no more (1989)
• the scream, siouxsie and the banshees (1978)
• grace, jeff buckley (1994)
• ↺ black sabbath, black sabbath (1970)
• ↺ is this it, the strokes (2001)
• ↺ tigermilk, belle & sebastian (1996)
• ↺ debut, björk (1993)
• happy sad, tim buckley (1969)
• the lamb lies down on broadway, genesis (1974)
• black monk time, the monks (1966)
• ↺ dookie, green day (1994)
• ↺ led zeppelin ii, led zeppelin (1969)
• ↺ the queen is dead, the smiths (1986)
• the kinks are the village green preservation society, the kinks (1968)
• ↺ hounds of love, kate bush (1985)
• real life, magazine (1978)
• head hunters, herbie hancock (1973)
• abattoir blues / the lyre of orpheus, nick cave & the bad seeds (2004)
• younger than yesterday, the byrds (1967)
• ↺ a rush of blood to the head, coldplay (2002)
• ↺ blunderbuss, jack white (2012)
• the healer, john lee hooker (1989)
• buffalo springfield again, buffalo springfield (1967)
• the stranger, billy joel (1977)
• ↺ music for the masses, depeche mode (1987)
• neu! 75, neu (1975)
• sheer heart attack, queen (1974)
• ↺ boston, boston (1976)
• the slider, t. rex (1972)
• dog man star, (the london) suede (1994)
• every good boy deserves fudge, mudhoney (1991)
• the joshua tree, u2 (1987)
• introducing the hardline according to terence trent d'arby, terence trent d'arby (1987)
• rock bottom, robert wyatt (1974)
• ↺ violator, depeche mode (1990)
• eli and the thirteenth confession, laura nyro (1968)
• ↺ chris, christine and the queens (2018)
• tea for the tillerman, cat stevens (yusuf) (1970)
• ↺ yoshimi battles the pink robots, the flaming lips (2002)
• safe as milk, captain beefheart & his magic band (1967)
• everybody knows this is nowhere, neil young & crazy horse (1969)
• ↺ straight outta compton, n.w.a. (1988)
• suicide, suicide (1977)
• the cars, the cars (1978)
• our aim is to satisfy red snapper, red snapper (2000)
• ↺ ágætis byrjun, sigur rós (1999)
• after the gold rush, neil young (1970)
• ↺ melody a.m., röyksopp (2001)
• morrison hotel, the doors (1970)
• truth, jeff beck (1968)
• broken english, marianne faithfull (1979)
• live at the regal, b.b. king (1965)
• there's no place like america today, curtis mayfield (1975)
• night life, ray price (1963)
• ↺ kid a, radiohead (2000)
• ↺ enter the wu-tang (36 chambers), wu-tang clan (1993)
• the la's, the la's (1990)
• ↺ the downward spiral, nine inch nails (1994)
• third, portishead (2008)
• ↺ sign o' the times, prince (1987)
• ↺ eagles, eagles (1972)
• destroyer, kiss (1976)
• shaka zulu, ladysmith black mambazo (1987)
• ↺ disintegration, the cure (1989)
• ↺ unknown pleasures, joy division (1979)
• born to be with you, dion (1975)
• junkyard, the birthday party (1982)
• ↺ (what's the story) morning glory, oasis (1995)
• ↺ good kid, m.a.a.d city, kendrick lamar (2012)
• ladies and gentlemen we are floating in space, spiritualized (1997)
• gi, germs (1979)
• ↺ fever to tell, yeah yeah yeahs (2003)
• vauxhall and i, morrissey (1994)
• astral weeks, van morrison (1968)
• back at the chicken shack, jimmy smith (1963)
• modern life is rubbish, blur (1993)
• pink moon, nick drake (1972)
• songs the lord taught us, the cramps (1980)
• rio, duran duran (1982)
• heaven or las vegas, cocteau twins (1990)
• phrenology, the roots (2002)
• ↺ lost in the dream, the war on drugs (2014)
• ↺ elephant, the white stripes (2003)
• yank crime, drive like jehu (1994)
• disraeli gears, cream (1967)
• ↺ moon safari, air (1998)
• scott 4, scott walker (1969)
• ↺ get behind me satan, the white stripes (2005)
• ↺ master of puppets, metallica (1986)
• rapture, anita baker (1986)
• ↺ blackstar, david bowie (2016)
• fire of love, the gun club (1981)
• gunfighter ballads and trail songs, marty robbins (1959)
• gold, ryan adams (2001)
• rings around the world, super furry animals (2001)
• 3 feet high and rising, de la soul (1989)
• ↺ cross, justice (2007)
• ananda shankar, ananda shankar (1970)
• porcupine, echo and the bunnymen (1983)
• ↺ surfer rosa, pixies (1988)
• fromohio, firehose (1989)
• the hangman's beautiful daughter, the incredible string band (1968)
• ↺ mtv unplugged in new york, nirvana (1994)
• dusty in memphis, dusty springfield (1969)
• d.o.a. the third and final report of throbbing gristle, throbbing gristle (1978)
• autobahn, kraftwerk (1974)
• sunday at the village vanguard, bill evans trio (1961)
• hysteria, def leppard (1987)
• countdown to ecstasy, steely dan (1973)
• ↺ the white album, the beatles (1968)
• peter gabriel 3, peter gabriel (1980)
• let's stay together, al green (1972)
• ↺ felt mountain, goldfrapp (2000)
• ↺ dummy, portishead (1994)
• what's that noise, coldcut (1989)
• apple venus volume 1, xtc (1999)
• brilliant corners, thelonious monk (1957)
• ↺ it's blitz!, yeah yeah yeahs (2009)
• pet sounds, the beach boys (1966)
• ↺ paranoid, black sabbath (1970)
• aqualung, jethro tull (1971)
• the clash, the clash (1977)
• ↺ tidal, fiona apple (1996)
• blonde on blonde, bob dylan (1966)
• shadowland, k.d. lang (1988)
• violent femmes, violent femmes (1983)
• oar, alexander 'skip' spence (1969)
• ↺ hunky dory, david bowie (1971)
• john barleycorn must die, traffic (1970)
• miriam makeba, miriam makeba (1960)
• parallel lines, blondie (1978)
• the beach boys today!, the beach boys (1965)
• who killed...the zutons?, the zutons (2004)
• rain dogs, tom waits (1985)
• crosby, stills & nash, crosby, stills & nash (1969)
• ↺ make yourself, incubus (1999)
• ↺ the rise and fall of ziggy stardust and the spiders from mars, david bowie (1972)
• tusk, fleetwood mac (1979)
• ↺ s&m, metallica (1999)
• ↺ the fat of the land, the prodigy (1997)
• rejoicing in the hands, devendra banhart (2004)
• ↺ american idiot, green day (2004)
• gentlemen, the afghan whigs (1993)
• different class, pulp (1995)
• ↺ ...and justice for all, metallica (1988)
• i should coco, supergrass (1995)