Alternative Rock: Top 100 Acts

Alternative Rock: Top 100 Acts

Alternative rock is one of the most difficult genres to define. It emerged most prominently in the 1990s in the wake of the grunge movement and the subsequent embracing of more rock-oriented acts. The alternative rock genre can be traced to the beginnings of experimental rock in the 1960s with the Velvet Underground and the 1970s with David Bowie. By the end of the decade, punk (Sex Pistols, Ramones, The Clash) created an audience for more left-of-center music. While it was more guitar-driven, the synthesizer-driven new wave (Elvis Costello, The Police, The Cars, Duran Duran) movement also gained attention. By the early ‘80s, college radio (R.E.M., U2, The Cure, Depeche Mode, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Simple Minds) launched multiple acts into the mainstream while also embracing an array of British artists who gained little attention otherwise in the U.S. (The Smiths, New Order, Echo & the Bunnymen, The Jesus & Mary Chain). In the ‘90s, the explosion of grunge (Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains) gave voice to more guitar-oriented rock that was, at the very least, grunge-adjacent (Smashing Pumpkins, Stone Temple Pilots, the Offspring) and fairly mainstream rock (Dave Matthews Band, Weezer, Foo Fighters). The UK responded with Britpop (Oasis, Blur, Manic Street Preachers) and more experimental rock (Radiohead). The 21st century saw emo rock (Fall Out Boy, Panic! At the Disco, My Chemical Romance), garage rock revival (The White Stripes, The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys), and more folk-rock/Americana-driven acts (Mumford & Sons, The Lumineers) become successful. In addition, a wave of left-of-mainstream acts (Death Cab for Cutie, Vampire Weekend, Cage the Elephant) arose as well. This list was created by aggregating nearly 50 lists focused on alternative rock. Those acts featured on 6 or more lists were then re-ordered by overall status in Dave’s Music Database. See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Genre. 1. David Bowie 2. The Police / Sting 3. U2 4. Velvet Underground / Lou Reed 5. R.E.M. 6. The Smiths / Morrissey 7. Nirvana 8. Radiohead 9. Pearl Jam 10. Elvis Costello 11. The Clash 12. Joy Division / New Order 13. Red Hot Chili Peppers 14. The Cure 15. Oasis 16. Green Day 17. Coldplay 18. Sex Pistols / Public Image Ltd. 19. Roxy Music / Bryan Ferry 20. Talking Heads 21. Beastie Boys 22. Blondie 23. Depeche Mode 24. Ramones 25. Tears for Fears 26. Alanis Morissette 27. Foo Fighters 28. Beck 29. Simple Minds 30. Smashing Pumpkins 31. The White Stripes 32. INXS 33. Pixies 34. Patti Smith 35. Duran Duran 36. The Cars 37. Blur 38. Dave Matthews Band 39. Arctic Monkeys 40. Pretenders 41. Nine Inch Nails 42. Sinéad O’Connor 43. The Jam / Paul Weller 44. Imagine Dragons 45. Alice in Chains 46. Sonic Youth 47. Kate Bush 48. Weezer 49. Arcade Fire 50. Soundgarden 51. The Strokes 52. Nick Cave 53. Kings of Leon 54. Stone Temple Pilots 55. Muse 56. The Replacements 57. PJ Harvey 58. Rage Against the Machine 59. The Stone Roses 60. Björk 61. Live 62. The Black Keys 63. Manic Street Preachers 64. Wilco 65. Violent Femmes 66. Linkin Park 67. The B-52’s 68. Mumford & Sons 69. The Killers 70. Hüsker Dü / Bob Mould 71. Goo Goo Dolls 72. Fall Out Boy 73. Gorillaz 74. Twenty One Pilots 75. Queens of the Stone Age 76. Jane’s Addiction 77. Bush 78. Counting Crows 79. Blink-182 80. XTC 81. The Cranberries 82. The Offspring 83. Franz Ferdinand 84. Tool 85. No Doubt 86. Faith No More 87. Florence + the Machine 88. Echo & the Bunnymen 89. Siouxsie & the Banshees 90. Vampire Weekend 91. The Lumineers 92. Garbage 93. 3 Doors Down 94. Television 95. The Jesus & Mary Chain 96. Death Cab for Cutie 97. Cage the Elephant 98. Panic! At the Disco 99. The Flaming Lips 100. Modest Mouse Resources/Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: Lists of Acts/Music Makers by Genre Dave’s Music Database: The Top 100 Alternative Rock Albums Dave’s Music Database: The Top 100 Alternative Rock Songs First posted 9/8/2017; last updated 3/14/2026.

 

Dave's Faves: My Top 100 Compilations

Dave’s Faves: My Top 100 Compilations

These are my personal favorite compilations. To clarify, I define a compilation as a hits-focused anthology comprised of the equivalent of 1 or 2 discs of predominantly studio material by one recording act. One of the challenges in compiling this list is how acts often have multiple compilations. Because of that, I opted to only feature one compilation per artist. I also developed a formula to weigh the compilations against each other so the “winner” wouldn’t automatically be the one with the most songs but the one with the best selection of songs. In essence, I rated the albums on a pound-for-pound basis, or the average points in my personal Database of all the songs on the collection. In parentheses after the name of the collection I indicate the years covered by the compilation followed by r. and another date which indicates the year of its release. Check out other best-of album lists by individuals/critics here. 1. The Beatles 1 (1962-70, r. 2000) 2. Eric Clapton The Cream of Clapton (1966-81, r. 1995) 3. The Rolling Stones Forty Licks (1964-2002, r. 2002) 4. Eagles Very Best of (1971-1979, r. 1994) 5. Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band Greatest Hits (1973-2007, r. 2009) 6. Styx Come Sail Away: The Styx Anthology (1972-2003, r. 2004) 7. Olivia Newton-John Magic: The Best of (1973-1990, r. 2001) 8. John Mellencamp Words & Music: Greatest Hits (1978-2004, r. 2004) 9. Elvis Presley 30 #1 Hits (1956-77, r. 2002) 10. David Bowie Changesbowie (1969-1990, r. 1990) 11. Elton John Rocket Man: The Definitive Hits (compilation: 1970-2006, r. 2007) 12. The Doors Best of the Doors (1966-71, r. 1987) 13. Billy Joel The Essential (1973-2001, r. 2001) 14. The Who Who’s Better Who’s Best (1964-81, r. 1988) 15. U2 Best of 1980-1990 (1980-89, r. 1998) 16. Pink Floyd Foot in the Door: The Best of (1967-1994, r. 2011) 17. Bob Dylan The Essential (1962-99, r. 2000) 18. Marillion Best of Both Worlds (1982-96, r. 1997) 19. Rush The Spirit of Radio: The Greatest Hits (1974-87, r. 2003) 20. Prince Very Best of (1979-92, r. 2001) 21. Tears for Fears Rule the World: The Greatest Hits (1982-2017, r. 2017) 22. Journey Greatest Hits (1977-87, r. 1988) 23. Genesis Turn It on Again: The Hits (1973-97, r. 1999) 24. Queen Greatest Hits (aka “We Will Rock You”) (1973-81, r. 1981) 25. The Beach Boys Very Best of (1962-88, r. 2001) 26. Alan Parsons The Definitive Collection (1976-93, r. 1997) 27. The Cars Complete Greatest Hits (1978-87, r. 2002) 28. The Police Every Breath You Take – The Classics (1978-86, r. 1995) 29. Paul Simon/Simon & Garfunkel The Ultimate Collection (1965-2002, r. 2015) 30. Sheryl Crow Very Best of (UK version, 1993-2003, r. 2003) 31. Crowded House Recurring Dream: The Very Best of (1986-96, r. 1996) 32. Crosby, Stills & Nash Greatest Hits (1969-82, r. 2005) 33. Stevie Wonder The Definitive Collection (1962-98, r. 2002) 34. Sting Fields of Gold – The Best of (1985-94, r. 1994) 35. John Lennon Lennon Legend: The Very Best of (1969-80, r. 1997) 36. REO Speedwagon The Hits (1976-88, r. 1988) 37. Paul McCartney All the Best! (1970-87, r. 1987) 38. Supertramp Classics (1974-85, r. 1987) 39. Aerosmith O Yeah! The Ultimate Hits (1973-2002, r. 2002) 40. Madonna The Immaculate Collection (1983-90, r. 1990) 41. Kevin Gilbert Bolts (archives: 1984-96, r. 2006) 42. Creedence Clearwater Revival Chronicle: Their 20 Greatest Hits (1968-72, r. 1976) 43. Michael Jackson HIStory/Greatest Hits (1979-95, r. 1995) 44. Lionel Richie/Commodores Back to Front (1977-92, r. 1992) 45. The Jimi Hendrix Experience The Ultimate Experience (1966-70, r. 1992) 46. Pearl Jam Rearviewmirror: Greatest Hits (1991-2003, r. 2004) 47. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Greatest Hits (1976-93, r. 1993) 48. Chicago Only the Beginning: Very Best of (1969-95, r. 2002) 49. ZZ Top The Baddest of (1973-2003, r. 2014) 50. Squeeze Greatest Hits (1978-89, r. 2001) 51. Little River Band Greatest Hits (1975-82, r. 1982) 52. Peter Gabriel Shaking the Tree: Sixteen Golden Greats (1977-89, r. 1990) 53. Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits (1975-88, r. 1988) 54. Foreigner Records (1976-81, r. 1982) 55. Bob Seger Ultimate Hits: Rock and Roll Never Forgets (1968-2011, r. 2011) 56. Guns N’ Roses Greatest Hits (1987-94, r. 2004) 57. The Doobie Brothers Greatest Hits (1971-91, r. 2001) 58. Phil Collins Hits (1981-98, r. 1998) 59. Van Halen Best of Both Worlds (1977-2004, r. 2004) 60. Split Enz History Never Repeats: The Best of (US version, 1976-84, r. 1987) 61. Bob Marley & the Wailers Legend (1973-83, r. 1984) 62. Shawn Colvin Polaroids: A Greatest Hits Collection (1989-2004, r. 2004) 63. R.E.M. Eponymous (1981-87, r. 1988) 64. Rick Springfield Greatest Hits (1981-88, r. 1999) 65. Def Leppard Vault: Greatest Hits (1980-95, r. 1995) 66. Led Zeppelin Mothership (1969-79, r. 2007) 67. Eurythmics Greatest Hits (1982-89, r. 1991) 68. Kenny Rogers 20 Greatest Hits (1969-83, r. 1983) 69. Kansas Best of (1974-84, r. 1984) 70. Simple Minds Glittering Prize 81/92 (1981-91, r. 1992) 71. Yes Yes Singles (1971-83, r. 2023) 72. Linda Ronstadt Very Best of (1970-93, r. 2002) 73. Foo Fighters The Essential (1995-2021, r. 2022) 74. Lynyrd Skynyrd All Time Greatest Hits (1972-77, r. 2000) 75. Alabama Greatest Hits (1980-86, r. 1986) 76. Boston Greatest Hits (1976-97, r. 1997) 77. Four Tops 19 Greatest Hits: Compact Command Performances (1964-72, r. 1984) 78. Chuck Berry The Great Twenty-Eight (1955-64, r. 1982) 79. Lyle Lovett Here I Am: The Lyle Lovett Collection (1986-91, r. 1991) 80. Van Morrison Still on Top: The Greatest Hits (US version, 1965-2005, r. 2007) 81. The Supremes 20 Greatest Hits: Compact Command Performances (1963-71, r. 1983) 82. Steely Dan A Decade of Steely Dan (1972-80, r. 1985) 83. Neil Diamond All-Time Greatest Hits (1966-80, r. 2014) 84. Aretha Franklin Queen of Soul: The Very Best of (1967-74, r. 1994) 85. Buddy Holly 20 Golden Greats (1956-58, r. 1978) 86. Jethro Tull Original Masters (1966-77, r. 1985) 87. Berlin Best of (1979-88, r. 1988) 88. Mike + the Mechanics The Singles 1985-2014 (1985-2014, r. 2014) 89. Bryan Ferry/Roxy Music More Than This: The Best of (1972-94, r. 1995) 90. Eminem Curtain Call: The Hits (1999-2005, r. 2005) 91. Heart These Dreams: Greatest Hits (1975-93, r. 1997) 92. Red Hot Chili Peppers Road Trippin’ Through Time (1991-2006, r. 2011) 93. Elvis Costello Best of (1977-84, r. 1985) 94. Alanis Morissette The Collection (1995-2005, r. 2005) 95. The Smiths Louder Than Bombs (1983-87, r. 1987) 96. Del Amitri Hatful of Rain: The Best of (1989-98, r. 1998) 97. Duran Duran Greatest (1980-97, r. 1998) 98. Tina Turner Tina! (1966-2008, r. 2008) 99. aha Headlines and Deadlines (1985-91, r. 1991) 100. Bryan Adams So Far So Good (1983-93, r. 1993) Resources and Related Links: Other Dave’s Faves Album Lists Dave’s Music Database: “Compilations: The Top 100 Albums” First posted 10/4/2025

Top 100 Albums of the 20th Century

Dave’s Music Database: The Top 100 Albums of the 20th Century

In 2014, I published the book The Top 100 Albums of All Time (click to see details on that book). Ten years later, I’ve revisited that book with an updated list. I changed the focus to albums just from the 20th century as the original book only included one post-1999 album (Eminem’s The Marshall Mathers LP). That album got moved to my in-the-works book The Top 100 Albums of the 21st Century. I aggregated even more best-of lists from all manner of music publications and entities and crunching those figures into a database along with sales figures, chart results, critical ratings, and various awards. (Click links to see detailed sources). While there were relatively few changes, there were ten albums that racked up enough points to make it into the new listing. The book indicates which albums are new to the list as well as the previous rankings of albums already on the list. Albums new to the list are marked with an asterisk (*). Finally, the book still includes those ten titles which were bumped below #100. The new rankings are below. Note: this list is also the basis of the Classic Albums Meetup group. Those albums which have been discussed (or are scheduled to be discussed as of 6/16/2025) by the group are highlighted. Also – check out the sequel to this book, The Top 100 Albums of the 21st Century.

1. The Beatles Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967) 2. Michael Jackson Thriller (1982) 3. Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon (1973) 4. Nirvana Nevermind (1991) 5. Fleetwood Mac Rumours (1977) 6. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin IV (1971) 7. The Beatles Abbey Road (1969) 8. U2 The Joshua Tree (1987) 9. David Bowie The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972) 10. Prince & the Revolution Purple Rain (1984)

11. The Jimi Hendrix Experience Are You Experienced? (1967) 12. The Beatles Revolver (1966) 13. The Beach Boys Pet Sounds (1966) 14. The Beatles The Beatles (aka “The White Album”) (1968) 15. The Clash London Calling (1979) 16. Velvet Underground & Nico Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) 17. The Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977) 18. Guns N’ Roses Appetite for Destruction (1987) 19. The Rolling Stones Exile on Main Street (1972) 20. Marvin Gaye What’s Going On (1971)

21. Radiohead OK Computer (1997) 22. Bee Gees/Various Artists Saturday Night Fever (soundtrack, 1977) 23. The Doors The Doors (1967) 24. Eagles Hotel California (1976) 25. Bruce Springsteen Born to Run (1975) 26. AC/DC Back in Black (1980) 27. Carole King Tapestry (1971) 28. Simon & Garfunkel Bridge Over Troubled Water (1970) 29. Various Artists South Pacific (cast album: 1949, soundtrack: 1958) 30. Stevie Wonder Songs in the Key of Life (1976)

31. The Beatles Rubber Soul (1965) 32. Pink Floyd The Wall (1979) 33. The Who Who’s Next (1971) 34. Bob Dylan Highway 61 Revisited (1965) 35. Bob Dylan Blonde on Blonde (1966) 36. R.E.M. Automatic for the People (1992) 37. The Jimi Hendrix Experience Electric Ladyland (1968) 38. Alanis Morissette Jagged Little Pill (1995) 39. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II (1969) 40. Pearl Jam Ten (1991)

41. Miles Davis Kind of Blue (1959) 42. Bruce Springsteen Born in the U.S.A. (1984) 43. Elton John Goodbye Yellow Brick Road (1973) 44. The Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers (1971) 45. Various Artists The Sound of Music (cast album: 1959, soundtrack: 1965) 46. Paul Simon Graceland (1986) 47. The Smiths The Queen Is Dead (1986) 48. Oasis (What’s the Story) Morning Glory (1995) 49. Bob Dylan Blood on the Tracks (1975) 50. Various Artists West Side Story (cast album: 1957, soundtrack: 1961)

51. The Police Synchronicity (1983) 52. The Rolling Stones Let It Bleed (1969) 53. Ramones Ramones (1976) 54. Patti Smith Horses (1975) 55. U2 Achtung Baby (1991) 56. Public Enemy It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988) 57. Joni Mitchell Blue (1971) 58. Prince Sign ‘O’ the Times (1987) 59. Robert Johnson The Complete Recordings (compilation: 1936-37, released 1990) * 60. Dire Straits Brothers in Arms (1985)

61. Van Morrison Astral Weeks (1968) 62. Television Marquee Moon (1977) 63. The Stone Roses The Stone Roses (1989) 64. Metallica Metallica (aka ‘The Black Album’) (1991) 65. Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here (1975) 66. Neil Young After the Gold Rush (1970) 67. Bob Marley & the Wailers Legend (compilation: 1973-83, released 1984) 68. Derek and the Dominos Layla & Other Assorted Love Songs (1970) 69. Queen A Night at the Opera (1975) 70. Stevie Wonder Innervisions (1973)

71. Meat Loaf Bat Out of Hell (1977) 72. Jeff Buckley Grace (1994) 73. Love Forever Changes (1967) 74. Neil Young Harvest (1972) 75. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin I (1969) 76. James Brown Live at the Apollo Volume 1 (live, 1962) 77. Michael Jackson Off the Wall (1979) * 78. The Rolling Stones Beggars Banquet (1968) 79. David Bowie Hunky Dory (1971) 80. Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young Déjà Vu (1970)

81. Led Zeppelin Physical Graffiti (1975) 82. The Who Tommy (1969) 83. Lauryn Hill The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998) 84. Radiohead The Bends (1995) 85. Talking Heads Remain in Light (1980) 86. Green Day Dookie (1994) * 87. Shania Twain Come on Over (1997) * 88. Various artists (Whitney Houston e al) The Bodyguard (soundtrack, 1992) * 89. Various Artists (including Olivia Newton-John and John Travolta) Grease (soundtrack, 1978) 90. Bon Jovi Slippery When Wet (1986) *

91. The Clash The Clash (1977) 92. Van Halen Van Halen (1978) 93. R.E.M. Murmur (1983) * 94. The Band The Band (1969) 95. Black Sabbath Paranoid (1970) 96. The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night (soundtrack, 1964) * 97. Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991) * 98. Beck Odelay (1996) 99. Joy Division Closer (1980) 100. The Pixies Doolittle (1989) *

Albums from the 2014 edition not in the 2024 edition: The Allman Brothers At Fillmore East (live, 1971) Massive Attack Blue Lines (1991) Van Morrison Moondance (1970) John Lennon Imagine (1971) Johnny Cash At Folsom Prison (live, 1968) Eminem The Marshall Mathers LP (2000) ** John Lennon Plastic Ono Band (1970) Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band Trout Mask Replica (1969) John Coltrane A Love Supreme (1965) Elvis Presley The Sun Sessions (archives, 1955) ** Featured in the upcoming book The Top 100 Albums of the 21st Century.

Resources and Related Links: The Top 100 Albums of All Time book available on Amazon.com DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of the 21st Century DMDB: best-of lists DMDB: sales figures DMDB: chart results DMDB: critical ratings DMDB: awards Classic Albums Meetup group First posted 11/20/2024; last updated 6/15/2025.