Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2003)

Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time (2003)

1. The Beatles “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band”
2. The Beach Boys “Pet Sounds”
3. The Beatles “Revolver”
4. Bob Dylan “Highway 61 Revisited”
5. The Beatles “Rubber Soul”
6. Marvin Gaye “What’s Going On”
7. The Rolling Stones “Exile On Main St.”
8. The Clash “London Calling”
9. Bob Dylan “Blonde on Blonde”
10. The Beatles “The Beatles (The White Album)”

11. Elvis Presley “The Sun Sessions”
12. Miles Davis “Kind of Blue”
13. The Velvet Underground “The Velvet Underground & Nico”
14. The Beatles “Abbey Road”
15. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Are You Experienced?”
16. Bob Dylan “Blood on the Tracks”
17. Nirvana “Nevermind”
18. Bruce Springsteen “Born to Run”
19. Van Morrison “Astral Weeks”
20. Michael Jackson “Thriller”
21. Chuck Berry “The Great Twenty-Eight”
22. John Lennon “Plastic Ono Band”
23. Stevie Wonder “Innervisions”
24. James Brown “Live at the Apollo (1963)”
25. Fleetwood Mac “Rumours”
26. U2 “The Joshua Tree”
27. Robert Johnson “King of the Delta Blues Singers”
28. The Who “Who’s Next”
29. Led Zeppelin “Led Zeppelin”
30. Joni Mitchell “Blue”
31. Bob Dylan “Bringing It All Back Home”
32. The Rolling Stones “Let It Bleed”
33. Ramones “Ramones”
34. The Band “Music From Big Pink”
35. David Bowie “The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars”
36. Carole King “Tapestry”
37. The Eagles “Hotel California”
38. Muddy Waters “The Anthology 1947–1972”
39. The Beatles “Please Please Me”
40. Love “Forever Changes”
41. The Sex Pistols “Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols”
42. The Doors “The Doors”
43. Pink Floyd “Dark Side of the Moon”
44. Patti Smith “Horses”
45. The Band “The Band”
46. Bob Marley and the Wailers “Legend”
47. John Coltrane “A Love Supreme”
48. Public Enemy “It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back”
49. The Allman Brothers Band “At Fillmore East”
50. Little Richard “Here’s Little Richard,”
51. Simon and Garfunkel “Bridge Over Troubled Water”
52. Al Green “Greatest Hits”
53. Ray Charles “The Birth of Soul: The Complete Atlantic Rhythm and Blues Recordings 1952 – 1959”
54. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Electric Ladyland”
55. Elvis Presley “Elvis Presley”
56. Stevie Wonder “Songs in the Key of Life”
57. The Rolling Stones “Beggars Banquet”
58. Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band “Trout Mask Replica”
59. The Beatles “Meet the Beatles”
60. Sly and the Family Stone “Greatest Hits”
61. Guns N’ Roses “Appetite for Destruction”
62. U2 “Achtung Baby”
63. The Rolling Stones “Sticky Fingers”
64. Various Artists “Phil Spector: Back to Mono (1958–1969)”
65. Van Morrison “Moondance”
66. Led Zeppelin “Led Zeppelin IV”
67. Billy Joel “The Stranger”
68. Michael Jackson “Off the Wall”
69. Curtis Mayfield “Superfly”
70. Led Zeppelin “Physical Graffiti”
71. Neil Young “After the Gold Rush”
72. Prince “Purple Rain”
73. AC/DC “Back in Black”
74. Otis Redding “Otis Blue”
75. Led Zeppelin “Led Zeppelin II”
76. John Lennon “Imagine”
77. The Clash “The Clash”
78. Neil Young “Harvest”
79. James Brown “Star Time”
80. The Zombies “Odessey and Oracle”
81. Paul Simon “Graceland”
82. The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Axis: Bold as Love”
83. Aretha Franklin “I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You”
84. Aretha Franklin “Lady Soul”
85. Bruce Springsteen “Born in the U.S.A.”
86. The Beatles “Let It Be”
87. Pink Floyd “The Wall”
88. Johnny Cash “At Folsom Prison”
89. Dusty Springfield “Dusty in Memphis”
90. Stevie Wonder “Talking Book”
91. Elton John “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road”
92. Buddy Holly “20 Golden Greats”
93. Prince “Sign ‘o’ the Times”
94. Miles Davis “Bitches Brew”
95. Creedence Clearwater Revival “Green River”
96. The Who “Tommy”
97. Bob Dylan “The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan”
98. Elvis Costello “This Year’s Model”
99. Sly and the Family Stone “There’s a Riot Goin’ On”
100. Frank Sinatra “In the Wee Small Hours”

101. Cream “Fresh Cream”
102. John Coltrane “Giant Steps”
103. James Taylor “Sweet Baby James”
104. Ray Charles “Modern Sounds in Country and Western Music”
105. Ramones “Rocket to Russia”
106. Sam Cooke “Portrait of a Legend 1951–1964”
107. David Bowie “Hunky Dory”
108. The Rolling Stones “Aftermath”
109. The Velvet Underground “Loaded”
110. Radiohead “The Bends”
111. Joni Mitchell “Court and Spark”
112. Cream “Disraeli Gears”
113. The Who “The Who Sell Out”
114. The Rolling Stones “Out of Our Heads”
115. Derek and the Dominos “Layla and Other Assorted Love Songs”
116. Etta James “At Last”
117. The Byrds “Sweetheart of the Rodeo”
118. Sly and the Family Stone “Stand!”
119. Various Artists “The Harder They Come Original Soundtrack”
120. Run-DMC “Raising Hell”
121. Moby Grape “Moby Grape”
122. Janis Joplin “Pearl”
123. Bob Marley and the Wailers “Catch a Fire”
124. The Byrds “Younger Than Yesterday”
125. The Stooges “Raw Power”
126. Talking Heads “Remain in Light”
127. The Mamas and the Papas “If You Can Believe Your Eyes and Ears”
128. Television “Marquee Moon”
129. Hank Williams “40 Greatest Hits”
130. Black Sabbath “Paranoid”
131. Various Artists “Saturday Night Fever”
132. Bruce Springsteen “The Wild, the Innocent and the E Street Shuffle”
133. The Notorious B.I.G. “Ready to Die”
134. Pavement “Slanted and Enchanted”
135. Elton John “Greatest Hits”
136. The Replacements “Tim”
137. Dr. Dre “The Chronic”
138. The Meters “Rejuvenation”
139. U2 “All That You Can’t Leave Behind”
140. Blondie “Parallel Lines”
141. B.B. King “Live at the Regal”
142. Various Artists “Phil Spector, A Christmas Gift for You”
143. Dr. John “Gris-Gris”
144. N.W.A “Straight Outta Compton”
145. Steely Dan “Aja”
146. Jefferson Airplane “Surrealistic Pillow”
147. Otis Redding “Dreams to Remember: The Otis Redding Anthology”
148. Crosby Stills Nash and Young “Déjà Vu”
149. Led Zeppelin “Houses of the Holy”
150. Santana “Santana”
151. Bruce Springsteen “Darkness on the Edge of Town”
152. The B-52’s “The B-52’s”
153. Howlin’ Wolf “Moanin’ in the Moonlight”
154. A Tribe Called Quest “The Low End Theory”
155. The Pretenders “Pretenders”
156. Beastie Boys “Paul’s Boutique”
157. Joy Division “Closer”
158. Elton John “Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy”
159. Kiss “Alive”
160. T. Rex “Electric Warrior”
161. Otis Redding “The Dock of the Bay”
162. Radiohead “OK Computer”
163. Prince “1999”
164. Linda Ronstadt “Heart Like a Wheel”
165. Marvin Gaye “Let’s Get It On”
166. Elvis Costello “Imperial Bedroom”
167. Metallica “Master of Puppets”
168. Elvis Costello “My Aim Is True”
169. Bob Marley “Exodus”
170. The Who “Live at Leeds”
171. The Byrds “The Notorious Byrd Brothers”
172. Rod Stewart “Every Picture Tells a Story”
173. Todd Rundgren “Something/Anything?”
174. Bob Dylan “Desire”
175. The Carpenters “Close to You”
176. Aerosmith “Rocks”
177. Funkadelic “One Nation Under a Groove”
178. The Byrds “Greatest Hits”
179. Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions “The Anthology 1961–1977”
180. Abba “The Definitive Collection”
181. The Rolling Stones “The Rolling Stones, Now!”
182. Bob Marley and the Wailers “Natty Dread”
183. Fleetwood Mac “Fleetwood Mac”
184. Willie Nelson “Red Headed Stranger”
185. The Stooges “The Stooges”
186. Sly and the Family Stone “Fresh”
187. Peter Gabriel “So”
188. Buffalo Springfield “Buffalo Springfield Again”
189. Quicksilver Messenger Service “Happy Trails”
190. Elvis Presley “From Elvis in Memphis”
191. The Stooges “Funhouse”
192. The Flying Burrito Brothers “The Gilded Palace of Sin”
193. Green Day “Dookie”
194. Lou Reed “Transformer”
195. John Mayall With Eric Clapton “Bluesbreakers”
196. Various Artists “Nuggets: Original Artyfacts from the First Psychedelic Era 1965–1968”
197. R.E.M. “Murmur”
198. Little Walter “The Best of”
199. AC/DC “Highway to Hell”
200. Nine Inch Nails “The Downward Spiral”

201. Simon and Garfunkel “Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme”
202. Michael Jackson “Bad”
203. Cream “Wheels of Fire”
204. Prince “Dirty Mind”
205. Santana “Abraxas”
206. Cat Stevens “Tea for the Tillerman”
207. Pearl Jam “Ten”
208. Neil Young With Crazy Horse “Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere”
209. Pink Floyd “Wish You Were Here”
210. Pavement “Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain”
211. The Rolling Stones “Tattoo You”
212. Ike and Tina Turner “Proud Mary: The Best of Ike and Tina Turner”
213. New York Dolls “New York Dolls”
214. Bo Diddley “Bo Diddley/Go Bo Diddley”
215. Bobby Bland “Two Steps From the Blues”
216. The Smiths “The Queen Is Dead”
217. Beastie Boys “Licensed to Ill”
218. The Meters “Look-Ka Py Py”
219. My Bloody Valentine “Loveless”
220. Professor Longhair “New Orleans Piano”
221. U2 “War”
222. Neil Diamond “The Neil Diamond Collection”
223. Howlin’ Wolf “Howlin’ Wolf”
224. Bruce Springsteen “Nebraska”
225. Hank Williams “The Complete Hank Williams”
226. Pixies “Doolittle”
227. Eric B. and Rakim “Paid in Full”
228. Aerosmith “Toys in the Attic”
229. Bonnie Raitt “Nick of Time”
230. Queen “A Night at the Opera”
231. The Kinks “The Kink Kronikles”
232. The Byrds “Mr. Tambourine Man”
233. Simon and Garfunkel “Bookends”
234. Patsy Cline “The Ultimate Collection”
235. Jackie Wilson “Mr. Excitement!”
236. The Who “The Who Sings My Generation”
237. Madonna “Like a Prayer”
238. Steely Dan “Can’t Buy a Thrill”
239. The Replacements “Let It Be”
240. Run-DMC “Run-DMC”
241. Black Sabbath “Black Sabbath”
242. Jerry Lee Lewis “The Jerry Lee Lewis Anthology: All Killer No Filler!”
243. The Mothers of Invention “Freak Out!”
244. Grateful Dead “Live Dead”
245. Nick Drake “Bryter Layter”
246. Ornette Coleman “The Shape of Jazz to Come”
247. R.E.M. “Automatic for the People”
248. Jay-Z “Reasonable Doubt”
249. David Bowie “Low”
250. Bruce Springsteen “The River”
251. Otis Redding “The Otis Redding Dictionary of Soul”
252. Metallica “Metallica”
253. Kraftwerk “Trans-Europe Express”
254. Whitney Houston “Whitney Houston”
255. The Kinks “The Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society”
256. Janet Jackson “The Velvet Rope”
257. Willie Nelson “Stardust”
258. Grateful Dead “American Beauty”
259. Crosby Stills and Nash “Crosby Stills and Nash”
260. Buena Vista Social Club “Buena Vista Social Club”
261. Tracy Chapman “Tracy Chapman”
262. Grateful Dead “Workingman’s Dead”
263. Ray Charles “The Genius of Ray Charles”
264. Blood, Sweat and Tears “Child Is Father to the Man”
265. Creedence Clearwater Revival “Cosmo’s Factory”
266. The Who “Quadrophenia”
267. Paul Simon “There Goes Rhymin’ Simon”
268. The Jesus and Mary Chain “Psycho Candy”
269. The Rolling Stones “Some Girls”
270. The Beach Boys “The Beach Boys Today!”
271. Smokey Robinson and the Miracles “Going to a Go-Go”
272. Labelle “Nightbirds”
273. Eminem “The Slim Shady LP”
274. Parliament “Mothership Connection”
275. Janet Jackson “Rhythm Nation 1814”
276. Harry Smith, (Editor) “Anthology of American Folk Music”
277. David Bowie “Aladdin Sane”
278. Madonna “The Immaculate Collection”
279. Mary J. Blige “My Life”
280. Muddy Waters “Folk Singer”
281. Barry White “Can’t Get Enough”
282. The Cars “The Cars”
283. Nick Drake “Five Leaves Left”
284. Stevie Wonder “Music of My Mind”
285. Al Green “I’m Still in Love With You”
286. X “Los Angeles”
287. Grateful Dead “Anthem of the Sun”
288. The Kinks “Something Else by the Kinks”
289. Al Green “Call Me”
290. Talking Heads “Talking Heads: 77”
291. Bob Dylan “The Basement Tapes”
292. The Velvet Underground “White Light / White Heat”
293. Simon and Garfunkel “Greatest Hits”
294. MC5 “Kick Out the Jams”
295. The Smiths “Meat Is Murder”
296. The Mothers of Invention “We’re Only In It For the Money”
297. Weezer “Weezer (Blaues Album)”
298. Black Sabbath “Master of Reality”
299. Dolly Parton “Coat of Many Colors”
300. Public Enemy “Fear of a Black Planet”

301. Bob Dylan “John Wesley Harding”
302. Eminem “The Marshall Mathers LP”
303. Jeff Buckley “Grace”
304. Lucinda Williams “Car Wheels on a Gravel Road”
305. Beck “Odelay”
306. Frank Sinatra “Songs for Swingin’ Lovers”
307. Roxy Music “Avalon”
308. Various Artists “The Sun Records Collection”
309. Jane’s Addiction “Nothing’s Shocking”
310. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Blood Sugar Sex Magik”
311. Nirvana “Unplugged in New York”
312. Lauryn Hill “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill”
313. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers “Damn the Torpedoes”
314. The Velvet Underground “The Velvet Underground”
315. Pixies “Surfer Rosa”
316. No Doubt “Rock Steady”
317. Eminem “The Eminem Show”
318. The O’Jays “Back Stabbers”
319. Bob Marley and the Wailers “Burnin'”
320. Nick Drake “Pink Moon”
321. Randy Newman “Sail Away”
322. The Police “Ghost in the Machine”
323. David Bowie “Station to Station”
324. Linda Ronstadt “The Very Best of Linda Ronstadt”
325. Eric Clapton “Slowhand”
326. The Cure “Disintegration”
327. Alanis Morissette “Jagged Little Pill”
328. Liz Phair “Exile in Guyville”
329. Sonic Youth “Daydream Nation”
330. James Brown “In the Jungle Groove”
331. Neil Young “Tonight’s the Night”
332. The Beatles “Help!”
333. Richard and Linda Thompson “Shoot Out the Lights”
334. X “Wild Gift”
335. Graham Parker “Squeezing Out Sparks”
336. Soundgarden “Superunknown”
337. Jethro Tull “Aqualung”
338. Big Brother and the Holding Company “Cheap Thrills”
339. Tom Waits “The Heart of Saturday Night”
340. Black Flag “Damaged”
341. Moby “Play”
342. Depeche Mode “Violator”
343. Meat Loaf “Bat Out of Hell”
344. Lou Reed “Berlin”
345. Talking Heads “Stop Making Sense”
346. De La Soul “3 Feet High and Rising”
347. Pink Floyd “The Piper at the Gates of Dawn”
348. Muddy Waters “At Newport 1960”
349. The Yardbirds “Roger the Engineer (a.k.a. Over Under Sideways Down)”
350. Neil Young and Crazy Horse “Rust Never Sleeps”
351. Dire Straits “Brothers in Arms”
352. Billy Joel “52nd Street”
353. The Yardbirds “Having a Rave Up With the Yardbirds”
354. Randy Newman “12 Songs”
355. The Rolling Stones “Between the Buttons”
356. Miles Davis “Sketches of Spain”
357. Elton John “Honky Chateau”
358. Buzzcocks “Singles Going Steady”
359. Outkast “Stankonia”
360. The Smashing Pumpkins “Siamese Dream”
361. Joy Division “Substance”
362. The Doors “L.A. Woman”
363. Madonna “Ray of Light”
364. Johnny Cash “American Recordings”
365. The Smiths “Louder Than Bombs”
366. Mott the Hoople “Mott”
367. The Strokes “Is This It”
368. Rage Against the Machine “Rage Against the Machine”
369. The Police “Reggatta de Blanc”
370. Jefferson Airplane “Volunteers”
371. Roxy Music “Siren”
372. Jackson Browne “Late for the Sky”
373. Björk “Post”
374. The Eagles “The Eagles”
375. John Lee Hooker “The Ultimate Collection (1948 – 1990)”
376. Oasis “(What’s the Story) Morning Glory?”
377. TLC “CrazySexyCool
378. Toots and the Maytals “Funky Kingston”
379. Bruce Springsteen “Greetings from Asbury Park”
380. The Beach Boys “Sunflower”
381. Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers “Modern Lovers”
382. Talking Heads “More Songs About Buildings and Food”
383. The Who “A Quick One (Happy Jack)”
384. Def Leppard “Pyromania”
385. Steely Dan “Pretzel Logic”
386. Wu-Tang Clan “Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)”
387. Roxy Music “Country Life”
388. The Beatles “A Hard Day’s Night”
389. Don Henley “The End of the Innocence”
390. The White Stripes “Elephant”
391. Jackson Browne “The Pretender”
392. Creedence Clearwater Revival “Willy and the Poor Boys”
393. Randy Newman “Good Old Boys”
394. Roxy Music “For Your Pleasure”
395. Massive Attack “Blue Lines
396. ZZ Top “Eliminator”
397. Tom Waits “Rain Dogs”
398. The Temptations “Anthology”
399. Red Hot Chili Peppers “Californication”
400. Nas “Illmatic”

401. Lynyrd Skynyrd “(Pronounced Leh-Nerd Skin-Nerd)”
402. Dr. John “Dr. John’s Gumbo”
403. Big Star “Radio City”
404. The Clash “Sandinista!”
405. PJ Harvey “Rid of Me”
406. Sinead O’ Connor “I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got”
407. The Doors “Strange Days”
408. Bob Dylan “Time Out of Mind”
409. Eric Clapton “461 Ocean Boulevard”
410. Wire “Pink Flag”
411. Minutemen “Double Nickels on the Dime”
412. Massive Attack “Mezzanine”
413. Go-Go’s “Beauty and the Beat”
414. James Brown “Greatest Hits”
415. Van Halen “Van Halen”
416. Tom Waits “Mule Variations”
417. U2 “Boy”
418. Wings “Band on the Run”
419. Portishead “Dummy”
420. The Beatles “With the Beatles”
421. Buddy Holly and the Crickets “The “Chirping” Crickets”
422. Various Artists “The Best of the Girl Groups, Volumes 1 and 2”
423. The Mamas and the Papas “Greatest Hits”
424. Robert Johnson “King of the Delta Blues Singers, Vol. 2”
425. David Bowie “Changesone”
426. Rage Against the Machine “The Battle of Los Angeles”
427. The Ronettes “Presenting the Fabulous Ronettes Featuring Veronica”
428. Radiohead “Kid A”
429. Gram Parsons “Grievous Angel”
430. Cheap Trick “At Budokan”
431. Diana Ross and The Supremes “Anthology”
432. Peter Wolf “Sleepless”
433. Brian Eno “Another Green World”
434. The Police “Outlandos D’Amour”
435. PJ Harvey “To Bring You My Love”
436. Brian Eno “Here Come the Warm Jets”
437. George Harrison “All Things Must Pass”
438. Big Star “#1 Record”
439. Nirvana “In Utero”
440. Beck “Sea Change”
441. No Doubt “Tragic Kingdom”
442. The Cure “Boys Don’t Cry”
443. Sam Cooke “Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963”
444. Boogie Down Productions “Criminal Minded”
445. The Pogues “Rum Sodomy and the Lash”
446. Suicide “Suicide”
447. Devo “Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo!”
448. Cheap Trick “In Color”
449. War “The World Is a Ghetto”
450. Steve Miller Band “Fly Like an Eagle”
451. MC5 “Back in the USA”
452. Madonna “Music”
453. Jane’s Addiction “Ritual de lo Habitual”
454. Stan Getz and Joao Gilberto Featuring Antonio Carlos Jobim “Getz/Gilberto”
455. The Police “Synchronicity”
456. Big Star “Third/Sister Lovers”
457. Jackson Browne “For Everyman”
458. John Prine “John Prine”
459. EPMD “Strictly Business”
460. Alice Cooper “Love It to Death”
461. Los Lobos “How Will the Wolf Survive?”
462. Marvin Gaye “Here, My Dear”
463. Elton John “Tumbleweed Connection”
464. Jay-Z “The Blueprint”
465. The Drifters “Golden Hits”
466. Hole “Live Through This”
467. Bob Dylan “Love and Theft”
468. Elton John “Elton John”
469. Public Image Ltd. “Metal Box”
470. R.E.M. “Document”
471. Echo and the Bunnymen “Heaven Up Here”
472. Def Leppard “Hysteria”
473. Coldplay “A Rush Of Blood To The Head”
474. Otis Redding “Live in Europe”
475. Bruce Springsteen “Tunnel of Love”
476. The Paul Butterfield Blues Band “The Paul Butterfield Blues Band”
477. Fugees “The Score”
478. LL Cool J “Radio”
479. Richard and Linda Thompson “I Want to See the Bright Lights Tonight”
480. George Michael “Faith”
481. The Smiths “The Smiths”
482. Elvis Costello and the Attractions “Armed Forces”
483. The Notorious B.I.G. “Life After Death”
484. Merle Haggard “Branded Man”
485. Loretta Lynn “All Time Greatest Hits”
486. Funkadelic “Maggot Brain”
487. The Smashing Pumpkins “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness”
488. D’Angelo “Voodoo”
489. Steve Earle “Guitar Town”
490. Gang of Four “Entertainment!”
491. Mott the Hoople “All the Young Dudes”
492. Pearl Jam “Vitalogy”
493. Earth, Wind and Fire “That’s the Way of the World”
494. Cyndi Lauper “She’s So Unusual”
495. Hüsker Dü “New Day Rising”
496. Kiss “Destroyer”
497. Public Enemy “Yo! Bum Rush the Show”
498. ZZ Top “Tres Hombres”
499. Albert King “Born Under a Bad Sign”
500. Eurythmics “Touch”