Over the week or so, Apple Music has slowly unveiled the titles included in its list of the “100 best albums.” Today, the top 10 albums were revealed, with Miss Lauryn Hill’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill claiming the No. 1 spot. Rounding out the top five are Michael Jackson’s Thriller; The Beatles’ Abbey Road; Prince’s Purple Rain; and Frank Ocean’s Blonde.
The top 10 also includes Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life; Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d city (Deluxe Version); Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black; Nirvana’s Nevermind; and Beyoncé’s Lemonade.
In all honestly, it’s a pretty safe top 10, especially considering the drama that unfolded when Apple unveiled picks 11-20 and slotted Adele’s 21 at No. 15 and Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) at No. 18 — ahead of albums like Dr. Dre’s The Chronic, The Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds, The Beatles’ Revolver, Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run, and Miles Davis’ Some Kind of Blue.
Lists are very much subjective and designed to rouse a reaction. Personally, I think albums like Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours (#11), Joni Mitchell’s Blue (#16), and The Clash’s London Calling (#35) are much too low. The list also lacks albums from Stooges, Leonard Cohen, Fiona Apple, Sly Stone, Slayer, The Police, and Paul Simon (plus Kendrick Lamar’s To Pump A Butterfly) in favor of newer artists like Travis Scott, Bad Bunny, and Kacey Musgraves. But lists are very much subjective and designed to rouse a reaction (for context: here’s our top 100 albums of all-time list published in 2022).
A couple of other quick stats: Five artists have multiple entries on Apple’s top 100: Radiohead (Kid A, OK Computer); Stevie Wonder (Innervisions, Songs in the Key of Life); Beyoncé (Beyoncé, Lemonade); Prince (Sign O’The Times, Purple Rain); and The Beatles (Revolver, Abbey Road). The newest album included on the list? If you don’t count 1989 (Taylor’s Version), which was released in October 2023, then that accolade goes to SZA’s SOS, which arrived in December 2022.
According to Apple, the list was crafted by “a team of experts alongside a select group of artists, including Maren Morris, Pharrell Williams, J Balvin, Charli XCX, Mark Hoppus, Honey Dijon, and Nia Archives, as well as songwriters, producers, and industry professionals. The list is an editorial statement, fully independent of any streaming numbers on Apple Music — a love letter to the records that have shaped the world we live and listen in.”
Anyhow, check out the full top 100 below, and read more about each selection here.