There’s plenty to debate in considering the rankings (and album choices) on Apple Music’s latest list of the 100 Best Albums of All Time. How can Frank Ocean’s Blonde rank higher than Bob Dylan’s Blonde On Blonde? Only one Rolling Stones album? Taylor Swift’s 1989 ranking higher than Bruce Springsteen’s Born to Run? Radiohead’s OK Computer higher than Carole King’s Tapestry?
Clearly, Apple Music’s staff generated a list of albums to create controversy and increased traffic on their music website. Do you agree with these goofy Apple Music choices and rankings? Is your favorite album included in this list?
Don’; get me started. Too much contemporary R&B and rap and not enough love for Beatles, Stones, Springsteen, Velvets, The Clash. Probably 20 of these would be on my top 100.
Steve, your reaction to this list is exactly what Apple wanted!
Does that make you an Apple dupe? Say it ain’t so!
Bob, I have an Apple computer and Diane, Patrick, and Katie all have iPhones. So, yes, we’re as American as Apple pie.
I like almost all kinds of music. I own 15 of these albums.
Jeff, only 85 more albums to buy!
Steve’s right! Obviously, the makers of this list are a bunch of snot-nosed twerps who wouldn’t know good music if it bit them on the ass!
Bob, I consider this list a marketing strategy to get more subscribers and listeners for iTunes and Apple Music.
Sorry—I can’t read through a list compiled by people who think “The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill” is superior to “Abbey Road”!
/And stay off my lawn!
Deb, I admit I was surprised by the choice of THE MISEDUCATION OF LAURYN HILL as the Best Album. I own it, listen to it maybe once a year, but like you prefer other music.
Frankly, I’m so far off the highway that I’m not qualified to weigh in. I suppose we geezers should be happy to see the Beach Boys, Beatles, Eagles, Elton, Carole, and Stones included.
Fred, clearly the Millennials have taken over the music list making at Apple.
What Deb said. “Goofy” is a kind assessment. Idiotic is more like it. I do own 10-15 of these, probably. But, Janet Jackson? Lana Del Rey over AFTER THE GOLD RUSH?
Jeff, I’m with you on the odd ranks and odd inclusions on this list. Am I the only person who thinks Lana Del Rey is overrated?
Why would anybody even care what anyone at Apple Music thinks? They’re not a review/news website like Pitchfork (which would be bad enough-don’t get me started on Pitchfork) or even some tired, fluff centered web rag like Entertainment Weekly. They’re just a lousy streaming service. They sell you the sausage but it’s not even fresh ground, it’s wrapped in cellophane. You might as well ask DoorDash for a list of the 100 Best Restaurants.
Let’s also remember that Apple Music is directly responsible for the enormous glut of awful cover songs these days. They recommend artists do covers because they’ll show up on the list of recommendations when someone types in that song name so there’s the snowball-in-hell chance somebody somewhere will give their version a listen. Ugh…
I also find “Best” lists in general pointles because they tend to be very narrow in scope, especially these days. The old Village Voice staff might have been able to come up with a more informed list back in the day but their critics were so insufferable I still wouldn’t have cared. I’d be far more interested in a list of great overlooked albums of the past 75 years compiled by working music critics.
Byron, ROLLING STONE magazine created a cottage industry in generating lists of songs and albums over the years. They had a bit more credibility than Apple’s list does, but it was the same idea. And, thanks for explaining the glut of cover songs and albums. I knew there was a marketing strategy involved but your analysis clears up many of my questions!
Interesting comment about the covers situation. I’m always amazed at how many covers I find on Spotify of even relatively obscure songs, but it makes sense if artists are encouraged to perform covers in the faint hope that someone looking for “The Only Living Boy in New York” will be unaware that Simon & Garfunkel did the original.
I have to think that our age dictates our preferences to a large extent. So I bow to younger generations to have a different taste. Kevin’s taste seems to run to the sort of music that is background noise on games he plays. Much like I don’t get opera or bluegrass or country music, I don’t get most of this.
Patti, clearly the choices are skewed towards the younger generations. As you point out, their musical tastes are quite different from ours.
Probably more than half of the performers named here don’t mean anything to me – so let’s just ignore this ***expletive deleted***.
Wolf, perhaps this list might have more sense had it been categorized by “eras.”
I heartily agree with Wolf.
In true “old person” fashion, I don’t know most of these artists and feel no inclination to explore their contributions to the world of music.
Yes, I am hopelessly trapped with my classic rock favorites. And there are reasons they are classics.
Beth, well said! Classics withstand Time to remain popular and relevant. Like you, I have little or no interest in some of these singers and groups. A lot of the music on this list will be forgotten in 10 years.
I read an article a few weeks back that said a person’s musical tastes generally solidify at around 34-37 years old, and after that they’re not going to listen to new musical genres & styles (although they will continue to listen to new music from favorite artists that they’ve liked for a long time). This tracks with almost everyone I know. I do listen to a lot of new EDM now, but it’s because it reminds me of 1970s Disco and 1980s alternative/new wave. The last time I listened to new music in any meaningful way was when Grunge was big when I was in my late 30s.
Deb, I sample new music but I’m rarely pleased with much of the commercial songs.
Deb, I noticed that a lot of things I listen to are actually things I bought in my early 20s – around 1970.
George, I think you bought a bit too heavily into the notion Apple’s Best means Best, as opposed to what it clearly means, Most Downloaded From Our Files.
Demotic hipsterism, vs. more recondite sorts, Rules OK here.
Todd, the intent of the list was to boost Apple’s bottomline.