The Best Jazz & Rock Albums I Know

Submitted by rhayader18 on Tue, 08/28/2012 - 05:06
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  1. Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico
  2. Ornette Coleman – The Shape of Jazz to Come
  3. Velvet Underground – White Light/ White Heat
  4. Eric Dolphy – Out to Lunch
  5. Charles Mingus - The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady
  6. Television – Marquee Moon
  7. Miles Davis – Kind of Blue
  8. Pierre Henry - Messe Pour Le Temps Present
  9. Slint – Spiderland
  10. Don Cherry - Mu
  11. Tortoise - TNT
  12. Hash Jar Tempo – Well Oiled
  13. Minutemen – Double Nickels on the Dime
  14. Royal Trux - Twin Infinitives
  15. Don Caballero – What Burns Never Returns
  16. Captain Beefheart – Lick My Decals Off, Baby
  17. Robert Wyatt – Rock Bottom
  18. John Coltrane – A Love Supreme
  19. Stooges – Funhouse
  20. Gun Club – Fire of Love
  21. Tortoise – Millions Now Living Will Never Die
  22. Brian Eno – Another Green World
  23. Pink Floyd – Piper at the Gates of Dawn
  24. Peter Gabriel - Passion
  25. Can – Future Days
  26. Morphine – Yes
  27. Feelies - Crazy Rhythms
  28. Can – Tago Mago
  29. Sleep – Dopesmoker
  30. Public Image Ltd – Flowers Of Romance
  31. Faust – Faust
  32. Rolling Stones – Exile On Main Street
  33. Shellac – At Action Park
  34. Ramones – Ramones
  35. Pixies – Doolittle
  36. Bob Dylan – Blonde on Blonde
  37. Suicide – Suicide
  38. Mark Lanegan – Whiskey for the Holy Ghost
  39. Fear – The Record
  40. Albert Ayler - Spiritual Unity
  41. Husker Du – Zen Arcade
  42. Peter Green - End of the Game
  43. Neutral Milk Hotel – In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
  44. Captain Beefheart - Trout Mask Replica
  45. Van Morrison - Astral Weeks
  46. Residents - Meet the Residents (Mono Mix)
  47. Syd Barrett - Barrett
  48. Soft Boys - Underwater Moonlight
  49. Velvet Underground – Velvet Underground (Closet Mix)
  50. Lou Reed – New York
  51. Roxy Music – Roxy Music
  52. Tim Buckley - Starsailor
  53. Metallica - Kill 'em All
  54. David Thomas – Monster Walks the Winter Lake
  55. Slint – Tweez
  56. Sonny Rollins – Saxophone Colossus
  57. Roxy Music – For Your Pleasure
  58. Faust – Faust IV
  59. King Crimson – Red
  60. Kyuss – Blues for the Red Sun
  61. Serge Gainsbourg - Historie de Melody Nelson
  62. Glenn Branca - The Ascension
  63. Art Ensemble of Chicago - Les Stances a Sophie
  64. Nine Inch Nails - The Downward Spiral
  65. Nick Cave – From Her to Eternity
  66. Talking Heads – Remain In Light
  67. Flipper - Album Generic Flipper
  68. Modern Jazz Quartet - Fontessa
  69. Fugazi - Red Medicine
  70. Residents – Eskimo
  71. King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King
  72. Pixies - Surfer Rosa
  73. Type O Negative - Slow, Deep and Hard
  74. Fugazi - Repeater
  75. Morphine - Cure For Pain
  76. Isaac Hayes - Hot Buttered Soul
  77. Velvet Underground - Live 1969
  78. Blind Idiot God - Blind Idiot God
  79. Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
  80. Dream Syndicate - The Days of Wine and Roses
  81. Neu! - Neu!
  82. Chrome - Half Machine Lip Moves
  83. Frank Black – Teenager of the Year
  84. Joanna Newsom – Have One on Me
  85. Big Black - Atomizer
  86. Gun Club - Death Party
  87. Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
  88. Cecil Taylor - Silent Tongues
  89. Pere Ubu - The Modern Dance
  90. Bob Dylan - Highway 61 Revisited
  91. Morphine - Good
  92. Doors - Strange Days
  93. Wire - 154
  94. Talking Heads - More Songs About Buildings and Food
  95. Sex Pistols - Never Mind the Bollocks
  96. Pharaoh Sanders - Karma
  97. Portishead - Dummy
  98. Captain Beefheart - Ice Cream For Crow
  99. Devo - Q: Are We Not Men ?
  100. Thelonious Monk - Brilliant Corners
  101. Neurosis - Through Silver In Blood
  102. Katatonia - Viva Emptiness
  103. Residents - Not Available
  104. Leonard Cohen - The Songs of Leonard Cohen
  105. Stooges - Stooges
  106. Stone Roses - The Stone Roses
  107. Don Caballero - Don Caballero 2
  108. Mark Lanegan - The Winding Sheet
  109. Pink Floyd - Wish You Were Here
  110. Metallica - Master of Puppets
  111. Blind Idiot God - Undertow
  112. Doors - Doors
  113. Frank Zappa - Hot Rats
  114. Captain Beefheart - Safe As Milk
  115. Bob Dylan - Bringing it All Back Home
  116. Neil Young - Tonight's the Night
  117. Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced
  118. Can - Ege Bamyasi
  119. Jimi Hendrix - Electric Ladyland
  120. Clash - Clash
  121. Tom Waits - Rain Dogs
  122. Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps
  123. Public Image Ltd. - Metal Box
  124. Jesus Lizard - Goat
  125. Richard Hell - Blank Generation
  126. Tool - Aenima
  127. Slayer - Reign In Blood
  128. Pink Floyd - A Saucerful of Secrets
  129. Ramones - Rockets to Russia
  130. Wire - Pink Flag
  131. Dirty Three - Horse Stories
  132. My Dying Bride - The Angel and the Dark River
  133. Gang of Four - Entertainment!
  134. Nick Cave - The Good Son
  135. La Dusseldorf - La Dusseldorf
  136. Brian Eno - Taking Tiger Mountain (By Strategy)
  137. Katatonia - Brave Murder Day
  138. Pop Group - Y
  139. King Crimson - Islands
  140. Captain Beefheart - Shiny Beast
  141. Babes in Toyland - Fontanelle
  142. Bad Brains - Rock for Light
  143. Ornette Coleman - Sound Grammar
  144. Captain Beefheart - Mirror Man
  145. Soul Coughing - Ruby Vroom
  146. John Cale - Fear
  147. Grant Green - Idle Moments
  148. Husker Du - Warehouse: Songs And Stories
  149. Mike Oldfield - Tubullar Bells
  150. Godflesh - Streetcleaner
Author Comments: 

This list is going through heavy revision for now. The rankings will change, but essentially all of these albums are highly amazing, enjoyable, creative, fun and powerful. I have little interest in the historical and commercial aspects of music and this list is mostly based on personal experience and enjoyment. Feel free to give your suggestions/opinions.

MJongo09/03/2012

Amazing list. Have you heard Meet the Residents? If not, check out the mono version; it gets my vote for the most underrated album of all time.

rhayader1809/06/2012

Didn't know there is a mono version. I have the stereo version and I've never listened to it completely. I'll get the mono version and listen to the whole thing as soon as possible. Thanks;)

MJongo09/09/2012

Not only is the mono version 7 minutes longer, but it has a completely different feel IMO.

rhayader1809/14/2012

I finally got the mono version and heard it once today ... this album sounds freakishly awesome! I need to hear it more. And you're right, this version has a different (in my opinion, better) feel.
Have you heard the mono version of VU & Nico ?

MJongo09/15/2012

Yep, I own both the mono and stereo mixes of VU&N. I prefer the mono for some songs, and the stereo for others for that album though. Kind of like how I feel with the two versions of Piper at the Gates of Dawn.

rhayader1809/16/2012

Man... I just realized that a significant bunch of my favourite 60's albums (Piper, Safe as Milk, ...) have mono/alternate versions that might probably be better (or at least more in line with the artist's vision) than the versions I have.
This is good news! Now I can download these version instead of wasting my time (and internet connection) downloading new stuff and becoming constantly disappointed, like the new Bob Dylan album (Tempest). Have you heard it? If not, you haven't missed anything!

MJongo09/16/2012

I like the Safe As Milk mono version better than the stereo one. For the Doors I prefer the stereo versions pretty much across the board. I have heard every official recording by Dylan up to and including Modern Times, but nothing beyond that.

MJongo09/28/2012

Listen to the Hardcore Devo demo compilations if you haven't already. There's some fascinating stuff there.

rhayader1810/03/2012

Cool. I will ;)

pedrolastorgas@yahoo.es01/10/2013

Husker du! Wow! Such a blast to the past!
I don't remember that guy's name but then he went and founded another band, called Sugar.

Pedro from mago fiestas

rhayader1802/10/2013

I think his name was Bob Mould ... haven't heard Sugar though. Better check them out. Thanks!