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The Current's 893 Essential Albums

The Current realized a dream this year, a dream to compile a definitive list of the 893 most essential albums of all time. From March 23 - April 17, nearly 8,000 listeners, readers and members of The Current submitted their top ten most essential albums. We consolidated the lists, and from May 5 - 12, we counted down the 893 Essential albums. We couldn't have done this without you, seriously.

Rank
▲
Artwork
Artist
▲
Album
▲
1
Nirvana
Nevermind
2
The Clash
London Calling
3
The Beatles
Abbey Road
4
Prince
Purple Rain
5
Pink Floyd
Dark Side of the Moon
6
Radiohead
OK Computer
7
Bob Dylan
Blood on the Tracks
8
David Bowie
The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
9
The Beatles
White Album
10
U2
The Joshua Tree
11
Miles Davis
Kind of Blue
12
The Beatles
Revolver
13
Fleetwood Mac
Rumours
14
The Rolling Stones
Exile on Main Street
15
The Beach Boys
Pet Sounds
16
Led Zeppelin
IV
17
Michael Jackson
Thriller
18
The Beatles
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
19
Pearl Jam
Ten
20
The Replacements
Let It Be
21
Bruce Springsteen
Born to Run
22
Wilco
Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
23
Bob Dylan
Highway 61 Revisited
24
The Beatles
Rubber Soul
25
Paul Simon
Graceland
26
Weezer
Blue Album
27
Pink Floyd
The Wall
28
Pixies
Doolittle
29
The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground & Nico
30
Guns N Roses
Appetite for Destruction
31
Johnny Cash
At Folsom Prison
32
Bob Dylan
Blonde on Blonde
33
The Replacements
Tim
34
Carole King
Tapestry
35
Neutral Milk Hotel
In the Aeroplane Over the Sea
36
Beastie Boys
Paul's Boutique
37
Joni Mitchell
Blue
38
Radiohead
Kid A
39
Stevie Wonder
Songs in the Key of Life
40
The Rolling Stones
Sticky Fingers
41
David Bowie
Hunky Dory
42
Arcade Fire
Funeral
43
Neil Young
Harvest
44
Jimi Hendrix
Are You Experienced
45
The Strokes
Is This It
46
R.E.M.
Murmur
47
Bon Iver
For Emma, Forever Ago
48
Pink Floyd
Wish You Were Here
49
The Cure
Disintegration
50
The Rolling Stones
Let it Bleed
51
Marvin Gaye
What's Going On
52
Radiohead
The Bends
53
Smashing Pumpkins
Siamese Dream
54
The Who
Who's Next
55
U2
Achtung Baby
56
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin II
57
Led Zeppelin
Physical Graffiti
58
The Smiths
The Queen is Dead
59
Beastie Boys
Licensed to Ill
60
Amy Winehouse
Back to Black
61
AC/DC
Back in Black
62
Bob Marley
Legend
63
Elvis Costello
My Aim Is True
64
Van Morrison
Astral Weeks
65
R.E.M.
Automatic for the People
66
Simon and Garfunkel
Bridge Over Troubled Water
67
Radiohead
In Rainbows
68
Ramones
Ramones
69
The White Stripes
Elephant
70
Queen
A Night at the Opera
71
Jeff Buckley
Grace
72
Green Day
Dookie
73
Bob Dylan
The Freewheelin' Bob Dylan
74
Kanye West
My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
75
Led Zeppelin
Houses of the Holy
76
Lauryn Hill
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill
77
Sufjan Stevens
Illinois
78
Talking Heads
Remain in Light
79
Arcade Fire
The Suburbs
80
Violent Femmes
Violent Femmes
81
A Tribe Called Quest
The Low End Theory
82
John Coltrane
A Love Supreme
83
Bon Iver
Bon Iver
84
Van Morrison
Moondance
85
The Replacements
Pleased to Meet Me
86
Liz Phair
Exile in Guyville
87
Beck
Odelay
88
The Rolling Stones
Beggars Banquet
89
Grateful Dead
American Beauty
90
Bruce Springsteen
Darkness on the Edge of Town
91
My Bloody Valentine
Loveless
92
Elton John
Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
93
Prince
1999
94
Patti Smith
Horses
95
Public Enemy
It Takes a Nation Of Millions to Hold Us Back
96
Nine Inch Nails
Pretty Hate Machine
97
The Postal Service
Give Up
98
Weezer
Pinkerton
99
Nirvana
MTV Unplugged in New York
100
The Doors
The Doors