Showing posts with label best all time. Show all posts
Showing posts with label best all time. Show all posts

Sunday, March 8, 2026

The Top 50 Jazz Musicians of All Time

Jazz:

Top 50 Acts

These are the top 50 jazz artists of all time according to Dave’s Music Database. The term “jazz” is used to incorporate instrumental jazz performed by small ensembles, big band jazz, vocal jazz, and traditional pop. That means this list includes musicians, singers, and band leaders. The list was determined by aggregating 17 best-of lists. Those acts appearing on 3 or more lists were re-ordered based on overall status in Dave’s Music Database.

See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Genre.

1. Frank Sinatra
2. Benny Goodman
3. Louis Armstrong
4. Glenn Miller
5. Nat “King” Cole
6. Duke Ellington
7. Billie Holiday
8. Ella Fitzgerald
9. Miles Davis
10. Fats Waller

11. Bessie Smith
12. Artie Shaw
13. Count Basie
14. John Coltrane
15. Woody Herman
16. Herbie Hancock
17. Nina Simone
18. Thelonious Monk
19. Charles Mingus
20. Sarah Vaughan

21. Charlie Christian
22. Ferdinand “Jelly Roll” Morton
23. Charlie Parker
24. Dizzy Gillespie
25. Teddy Wilson
26. Dave Brubeck
27. Art Tatum
28. Lionel Hampton
29. Erroll Garner
30. Bill Evans

31. Stan Kenton 32. Oscar Peterson
33. Django Reinhardt
34. Max Roach
35. Stan Getz
36. Wes Montgomery
37. Sonny Rollins
38. Coleman Hawkins
39. Bud Powell
40. Scott Joplin

41. Keith Jarrett
42. Lester Young
43. Art Blakey
44. Ornette Coleman
45. Cannonball Adderley
46. Wayne Shorter
47. Benny Carter
48. John McLaughlin
49. McCoy Tyner
50. Jimmy Smith


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First posted 12/23/2011; last updated 3/8/2026.

Wednesday, January 26, 2022

The Top 20 Music Managers of All Time

Music Managers:

Top 20

Here’s the top 20 music managers (with some of the best-known artists they’ve managed in parentheses) as determined by an aggregation of multiple lists.

See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Categories.

1. Andrew Loog Oldham (The Rolling Stones)
2. Brian Epstein (The Beatles)
3. Colonel Tom Parker (Elvis Presley)
4. Peter Grant (Led Zeppelin)
5. Malcolm McLaren (Sex Pistols)
6. Don Arden (Black Sabbath)
7. Allen Klein (The Beatles, The Rolling Stones)
8. Don Kirshner (The Monkees, Kansas)
9. Albert Grossman (Bob Dylan, Janis Joplin, The Band)
10. Kit Lambert (The Who)

11. Robert Stigwood (The Bee Gees)
12. Lou Pearlman (Backstreet Boys, N’ Sync)
13. Tony Defries (David Bowie)
14. Irving Azoff (Eagles)
15. Chris Stamp (The Who, Jimi Hendrix)
16. Simon Fuller (Spice Girls)
17. Jon Landau (Bruce Springsteen)
18. Dee Anthony (Tony Bennett, Peter Frampton)
19. Scooter Braun (Justin Bieber)
20. Joseph Jackson (The Jackson 5)


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First posted 5/20/2017; last updated 1/26/2022.

The Top100 Keyboardists/Pianists of All Time

Keyboardists/Pianists:

Top 100

This is one of the DMDB’s most diverse best-of lists, with everything from classical (Beethoven, Mozart) to jazz (Dave Brubeck, Herbie Hancock) to R&B (Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder) to pop/rock (Billy Joel, Elton John) to progressive rock (Keith Emerson, Rick Wakeman). As always, DMDB lists are determined by an aggregation of multiple lists.

See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Categories.

1. Franz Liszt
2. Art Tatum
3. Vladimir Horowitz
4. Chick Corea
5. Thelonious Monk
6. Bill Evans
7. Frederic Chopin
8. Sergei Rachmaninoff
9. Ludwig van Beethoven
10. Oscar Peterson

11. Dave Brubeck
12. Duke Ellington
13. Ray Manzarek
14. Josef Hoffman
15. Keith Emerson
16. Herbie Hancock
17. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
18. McCoy Tyner
19. Ahmad Jamal
20. Earl Hines

21. Billy Joel
22. Count Basie
23. Keith Jarrett
24. Erroll Garner
25. Richard Wright
26. Glenn Gould
27. Sviatoslav Richter
28. Tommy Flanagan
29. Red Garland
30. Horace Silver

31. Fats Waller
32. Bud Powell
33. Jelly Roll Morton
34. Wynton Kelly
35. Jon Lord
36. Gene Harris
37. Jordan Rudess
38. Rick Wakeman
39. Arthur Rubenstein
40. Gregg Rolie

41. Stevie Wonder
42. Alfred Cortot
43. Elton John
44. Steve Winwood
45. Jonathan Cain
46. Claudio Arrau
47. Teddy Wilson
48. George Shearing
49. Al Kooper
50. Martha Argerich

51. Alfred Brendel
52. James P. Johnson
53. John Paul Jones
54. Ray Charles
55. Billy Taylor
56. Nicky Hopkins
57. Andre Previn
58. Arturo Bendetti Michelangeli
59. Jan Hammer
60. Henry “Hank” Jones

61. Willie “The Lion” Smith
62. Nat “King” Cole
63. Billy Powell
64. Hampton Hawes
65. Ron “Pigpen” McKernan
66. Patrick Moraz
67. Bobby Timmons
68. Neal Doughty
69. Janne Warman
70. Tony Banks

71. Walter Gleseking
72. Robert Schumann
73. Sonny Clark
74. Billy Preston
75. Liberace
76. Phineas Newborn Jr.
77. Brian Eno
78. Gregg Allman
79. Evgeny Kissin
80. George Duke

81. Eubie Blake
82. Mose Alison
83. Mary Lou Williams
84. Rod Argent
85. Dennis DeYoung
86. Michael Petrucciani
87. Paul Bley
88. Kerry Livgren
89. Kenny Drew
90. Richard Tandy

91. Brad Mehldau
92. Don Airey
93. Geoff Downes
94. Alicia Delarrocha
95. Marc-Andre Hamelin
96. Roy Bittan
97. Mike Pinder
98. Robert Lamm
99. Vince Guaraldi
100. Joe Sample


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First posted 5/14/2017; last updated 1/26/2022.

Monday, November 16, 2020

Box Sets: Top 100

First posted 11/16/2020; updated 11/20/2020.

Box Sets:

Top 100

This list was created by first aggregating best-of lists focused on box sets (see sources at bottom of page). Those figures were combined with the box sets’ overall status in Dave’s Music Database, which factors in sales, chart peaks, critic ratings, appearances on other best-of lists, and DMDB points of songs on the collection. The DMDB defines a box set as a compilation of three or more compact discs, or the equivalent, which would be at least 240 minutes, or four hours, of music.

Box sets are most typically associated with efforts to compile a mix of hits and rarities from veteran artists. However, this list also includes compilations from various artists, classical works, larger-than-usual live collections, repackagings of multiple studio albums gathered together, deluxe editions of studio albums, and even one triple-length studio album.

Note: The first date(s) listed in parentheses after the album title indicates the years covered by the box. The second date indicates when the box was released (hence the r.).

Check out other best-of-genre/category lists here.

  1. Bruce Springsteen & the E Street Band Live 1975/1985 (live box: 1975-85, r. 1986)
  2. Various Artists Hitsville USA: The Motown Singles Collection 1959-1971 (1959-71, r. 1992)
  3. Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Sonatas (32) (1795-1822)
  4. Various Artists compiled by Harry Smith Anthology of American Folk Music (1926-32, r. 1952)
  5. Louis Armstrong The Complete Hot Five and Hot Seven Recordings (1925-28, r. 2000)
  6. Richard Wagner Der Ring Des Nibelungen (The Ring Cycle) (opera, 1848-1874)
  7. James Brown Star Time (1956-84, r. 1991)
  8. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Don Giovanni (opera, 1787)
  9. Various Artists Atlantic Rhythm & Blues (1947-74, r. 10/15/91)
  10. The Rolling Stones The Singles Collection: The London Years (1963-71, r. 1989)

  11. Richard Wagner Tristan Und Isolde (opera, 1857-59)
  12. Various Artists produced by Phil Spector Back to Mono (1958-69, r. 1991)
  13. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro) (1786)
  14. Led Zeppelin How the West Was Won (live: recorded 1972, r. 2003)
  15. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Piano Concertos (27) (1767-1791)
  16. Johann Sebastian Bach St. Matthew Passion (1736)
  17. Prince The Hits/The B Sides (1978-93, r. 1993)
  18. Ludwig van Beethoven String Quartets (16) (1798-1826)
  19. The Magnetic Fields 69 Love Songs (1999)
  20. Duke Ellington The Blanton-Webster Band (box set, recorded 1939-42, r. 1990)

  21. Elvis Presley The King of Rock and Roll: The Complete ‘50s Masters (1953-58, r. 1992)
  22. Eric Clapton Crossroads (1963-87, r. 1988)
  23. Bob Dylan Biograph (1962-81, r. 1985)
  24. Elton John Greatest Hits 1970-2002 (1970-2002, r. 2002)
  25. Various Artists The First Rock and Roll Record (1916-56, r. 2011)
  26. Béla Bartók The String Quartets (1908-39)
  27. Various Artists The Music of Disney: A Legacy in Song (1926-91, r. 1992)
  28. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin (Box Set) (1969-79, r. 1990)
  29. Charlie Parker The Complete Savoy & Dial Studio Recordings (1944-48, r. 2000)
  30. Velvet Underground Peel Slowly and See (1955-70, r. 1995)

  31. The Police Message in a Box: The Complete Recordings (1978-86, r. 1993)
  32. Elvis Presley Artist of the Century (1954-77, r. 1999)
  33. Bruce Springsteen The Essential: Limited Edition (1973-2002, r. 2003)
  34. Bob Marley & the Wailers Songs of Freedom (1961-83, r. 1992)
  35. Johnny Cash The Essential (1955-83, r. 1992)
  36. Various Artists Doo Wop Box: 101 Vocal Group Gems (1948-87, r. 1994)
  37. Chuck Berry The Chess Box (1955-73, r. 1988)
  38. Queen The Platinum Collection (1973-99, r. 2001)
  39. Ludwig van Beethoven (composer) The Symphonies (9) (classical, composed 1800-1824)
  40. Ray Charles The Birth of Soul – The Complete Atlantic Rhythm & Blues Recordings (1952-59, r. 1991)

  41. Elton John Diamonds (1969-2016, r. 2017)
  42. Bing Crosby Bing! His Legendary Years (1931-57, r. 1993)
  43. Various Artists Loud, Fast & Out of Control: The Wild Sounds of ’50s Rock (1948-61, r. 1999)
  44. Howlin’ Wolf The Chess Box (1951-73, r. 1991)
  45. Bing Crosby Bing: A Musical Autobiography (1938-54, r. 1954)
  46. Aretha Franklin Queen of Soul: The Atlantic Recordings (1967-77, r. 1992)
  47. The Beach Boys Good Vibrations: Thirty Years of the Beach Boys (1961-88, r. 1993)
  48. Bob Dylan The Bootleg Series, Vols. 1-3 (archives: 1961-89, r. 1991)
  49. Cream Those Were the Days (1966-69, r. 1997)
  50. Journey Time 3 (1975-86, r. 1992)

  51. Led Zeppelin The Complete Studio Recordings (1969-79, r. 1993)
  52. The Who 30 Years of Maximum R&B (1964-91, r. 1994)
  53. Louis Armstrong Hot Five and Hot Sevens (1925-26, r. 1999)
  54. Various Artists No Thanks! The ‘70s Punk Rebellion (1973-81, r. 2003)
  55. The Jimi Hendrix Experience The Jimi Hendrix Experience (1966-70, r. 2000)
  56. Burt Bacharach (composer) The Look of Love: The Collection (1957-96, r. 1998)
  57. Charlie Christian with Benny Goodman The Genius of Electric Guitar (1939-41, r. 2001)
  58. Muddy Waters The Chess Box (1947-72, r. 1989)
  59. Stevie Wonder At the Close of a Century (1962-97, r. 1999)
  60. Elvis Presley From Nashville to Memphis: The Essential ‘60s Masters (1960-69, r. 1993)

  61. Fats Domino They Call Me the Fat Man: The Legendary Imperial Recordings 1949-62, r. 1991)
  62. Elton John To Be Continued (1965-90, r. 1990)
  63. Rod Stewart Storyteller (1964-89, r. 1989)
  64. Charlie Parker The Complete Savoy Sessions (1944-48, r. 2000)
  65. The Rolling Stones Grrr! (1963-2012, r. 2012)
  66. Ray Charles Genius & Soul: The 50th Anniversary Collection (1949-93, r. 1997)
  67. David Bowie Nothing Has Changed (1969-2014, r. 2014)
  68. Elvis Presley Walk a Mile in My Shoes: The Essential ‘70s (1970-77, r. 1995)
  69. David Bowie Sound + Vision (1969-80, r. 1989)
  70. Fleetwood Mac 25 Years: The Chain (1967-92, r. 1992)

  71. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Playback (1973-93, r. 1995)
  72. Fletcher Henderson A Study in Frustration: Thesaurus of Classic Jazz (1923-38, r. 1994)
  73. Marvin Gaye The Master (1961-84, r. 1995)
  74. Billie Holiday Quintessential (1933-42, r. 1998)
  75. The Beatles The Capitol Albums, Vol. 2 (1962-65, r. 2006)
  76. Lynyrd Skynyrd Lynyrd Skynyrd (1970-77, r. 1991)
  77. Aerosmith Pandora’s Box (1966-82, r. 1991)
  78. Patsy Cline The Collection (1955-63, r. 1991)
  79. Nirvana With the Lights Out (1987-94, r. 2004)
  80. Kenny Rogers Through the Years: A Retrospective (1956-97, r. 1999)

  81. Paul Simon 1964/1993 (1957-91, r. 2006)
  82. The Byrds The Byrds (1965-90, r. 1990)
  83. The Beatles In Mono (1962-70, r. 2009)
  84. Michael Jackson The Ultimate Collection (1969-2004, r. 2004)
  85. Prince Sign ‘O’ the Times: Super Deluxe Edition (1981-87, r. 2020)
  86. The Cure Join the Dots: B-sides & Rarities (The Fiction Years) (1978-2001, r. 2004)
  87. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers The Live Anthology (1978-2007, r. 2009)
  88. The Allman Brothers Band Dreams (1966-88, r. 1989)
  89. Lou Reed Between Thought and Expression (1972-88, r. 1992)
  90. The Beatles The Capitol Albums, Vol. 1 (1963-64, r. 2004)

  91. The Smiths Complete (1983-87, r. 2011)
  92. Various Artists Left of the Dial: Dispatches from the ‘80s Underground (1979-89, r. 2004)
  93. Simon & Garfunkel Old Friends (1965-75, r. 1997)
  94. B.B. King King of the Blues (1949-91, r. 1992)
  95. Crosby, Stills & Nash CSN (1968-90, r. 1991)
  96. Various Artists Now That’s What I Call Disney (1937-2011, r. 2011)
  97. Simon & Garfunkel The Collection (1965-70, r. 2007)
  98. Various Artists Country Music (1928-2002, r. 2019)
  99. Steve Winwood The Finer Things (1964-90, r. 1995)
  100. Bruce Springsteen Tracks (1972-95, r. 1998)

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Thursday, May 4, 2017

The Top 100 Classic Rock Acts, 1962-1981

Classic Rock Acts:

Top 100

Description

See other lists of Acts/Music Makers by Genre.

These are the top 100 classic rock acts as listed in the Dave’s Music Database book, Charting the Classic Rock Hits 1962-1981. That book speculates on what a classic rock chart would have looked like, had it existed, for the aforementioned years. Songs’ peak positions were tallied to generate a list of the top 100 classic rock artists.

1. The Beatles
2. The Rolling Stones
3. Led Zeppelin
4. The Who
5. Elton John
6. Bob Dylan
7. Pink Floyd
8. The Doors
9. AC/DC
10. Eagles

11. Paul McCartney/Wings
12. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band
13. Rod Stewart/The Faces
14. Fleetwood Mac
15. Bruce Springsteen
16. Jimi Hendrix
17. David Bowie
18. Creedence Clearwater Revival
19. Paul Simon/Simon & Garfunkel
20. The Kinks

21. Eric Clapton/Derek & the Dominos
22. Queen
23. Billy Joel
24. The Doobie Brothers
25. Steely Dan
26. Neil Young
27. Van Halen
28. Electric Light Orchestra
29. Aerosmith
30. Rush

31. Grateful Dead
32. Chicago
33. Lynyrd Skynyrd
34. Styx
35. Allman Brothers Band
36. Crosby, Stills & Nash/Neil Young
37. The Guess Who
38. John Lennon
39. Journey
40. ZZ Top

41. Bad Company
42. Steve Miller Band
43. The Moody Blues
44. Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship
45. Foreigner
46. Kiss
47. Santana
48. Alice Cooper
49. Van Morrison/Them
50. Jethro Tull

51. Linda Ronstadt
52. The Cars
53. Tommy James & the Shondells
54. Three Dog Night
55. Heart
56. Deep Purple
57. The Police
58. Boston
59. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers
60. Genesis

61. Supertramp
62. Black Sabbath
63. The Hollies
64. The Beach Boys
65. The Animals
66. Daryl Hall & John Oates
67. J. Geils Band
68. The Byrds
69. Jackson Browne
70. Grand Funk Railroad

71. James Taylor
72. REO Speedwagon
73. The Band
74. George Harrison
75. Yes
76. Carole King
77. Pat Benatar
78. Paul Revere & the Raiders
79. Roy Orbison
80. Donovan

81. Janis Joplin/Big Brother & the Holding Company
82. Cream
83. The Grass Roots
84. Traffic
85. The Clash
86. The (Young) Rascals
87. Joe Cocker
88. Ted Nugent
89. America
90. Steppenwolf

91. Cat Stevens
92. The Monkees
93. Bachman-Turner Overdrive
94. War
95. Kansas
96. April Wine
97. Kenny Loggins/Loggins & Messina
98. Ramones
99. Ringo Starr
100. Carly Simon


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First posted 5/4/2017; last updated 3/3/2026.

Friday, December 31, 2010

World Wide Albums: Top 100

First posted 12/30/2020.

World Wide Albums:

Top 100 All-Time

WorldWideAlbums.net doesn’t offer a particularly good definition of how their lists are compiled. A “methods” link explains that sales figures are gathered for albums, but a quick glance at this list reveals many albums that were not definitely not best sellers. The site still exists, but apparently no new data has been gathered since 2010.

Check out best-of lists from other publiciations and organizations here.

1. Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
2. Velvet Underground & Nico Velvet Underground & Nico (1967)
3. The Beatles Sgt. Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
4. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
5. Bob Dylan The Freewheelin’ Bob Dylan (1963)
6. The Doors The Doors (1967)
7. The Beach Boys Pet Sounds (1966)
8. King Crimson In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)
9. Bob Dylan Blonde on Blonde (1966)
10. The Beatles The Beatles (aka “The White Album”) (1968)

11. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin II (1969)
12. The Rolling Stones Aftermath (1966)
13. The Who Who’s Next (1971)
14. David Bowie The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972)
15. Bob Dylan Blood on the Tracks (1975)
16. The Beatles Revolver (1966)
17. The Jimi Hendrix Experience Electric Ladyland (1968)
18. Frank Zappa/The Mothers of Invention Freak Out! (1966)
19. U2 The Joshua Tree (1987)
20. Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977)

21. Nirvana Nevermind (1991)
22. The Beatles Abbey Road (1969)
23. The Rolling Stones Let It Bleed (1969)
24. Radiohead OK Computer (1997)
25. The Clash London Calling (1979)
26. Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin I (1969)
27. Pink Floyd The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967)
28. The Rolling Stones Sticky Fingers (1971)
29. Bob Dylan Highway 61 Revisited (1965)
30. The Jimi Hendrix Experience Are You Experienced? (1967)

31. Pink Floyd A Saucerful of Secrets (1968)
32. Joy Division Unknown Pleasures (1979)
33. AC/DC Back in Black (1980)
34. Frank Zappa Hot Rats (1969)
35. Black Sabbath Paranoid (1970)
36. Michael Jackson Thriller (1982)
37. The Who Sell Out (1967)
38. Neil Young Harvest (1972)
39. Genesis The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway (1974)
40. Lou Reed Transformer (1972)

41. Curtis Mayfield Curtis (1970)
42. The Stooges The Stooges (1969)
43. David Bowie Heroes (1977)
44. The Who Tommy (1969)
45. Nick Drake Pink Moon (1972)
46. Van Morrison Moondance (1970)
47. Queen A Night at the Opera (1975)
48. Guns N’ Roses Appetite for Destruction (1987)
49. Marvin Gaye What’s Going On (1971)
50. Bob Marley & the Wailers Burnin’ (1973)

51. Metallica Master of Puppets (1986)
52. The MC5 Kick Out the Jams (live, 1969)
53. Creedence Clearwater Revival Cosmo’s Factory (1970)
54. Janis Joplin Pearl (1971)
55. Jethro Tull Aqualung (1971)
56. Deep Purple Made in Japan (live, 1973)
57. Crosby, Stills & Nash Crosby, Stills & Nash (1969)
58. Joy Division Closer (1980)
59. The Allman Brothers At Fillmore East (live, 1971)
60. Patti Smith Horses (1975)

61. Mike Oldfield Tubular Bells (1973)
62. John Lennon Imagine (1971)
63. Bruce Springsteen Born to Run (1975)
64. Television Marquee Moon (1977)
65. Talking Heads Remain in Light (1980)
66. Joni Mitchell Blue (1971)
67. Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here (1975)
68. R.E.M. Automatic for the People (1992)
69. The Cure Disintegration (1989)
70. Oasis (What’s the Story) Morning Glory (1995)

71. Eagles Hotel California (1976)
72. Red Hot Chili Peppers Blood Sugar Sex Magik (1991)
73. Iron Maiden The Number of the Beast (1982)
74. Cream Wheels of Fire (studio/live, 1968)
75. Tom Waits Rain Dogs (1985)
76. Jeff Buckley Grace (1994)
77. Miles Davis In a Silent Way (1969)
78. Pearl Jam Ten (1991)
79. The Pixies Doolittle (1989)
80. Pink Floyd The Wall (1979)

81. Prince & the Revolution Purple Rain (soundtrack, 1984)
82. Smashing Pumpkins Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995)
83. The Cure Pornography (1982)
84. Ramones Ramones (1976)
85. Peter Gabriel So (1986)
86. The Police Regatta De Blanc (1979)
87. Prince Sign ‘O’ the Times (1987)
88. Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral (1994)
89. Sonic Youth Daydream Nation (1988)
90. Depeche Mode Violator (1990)

91. Hüsker Dü Zen Arcade (1984)
92. Public Enemy It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988)
93. Green Day Dookie (1994)
94. Bruce Springsteen Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
95. Rage Against the Machine Rage Against the Machine (1992)
96. The Smiths The Queen Is Dead (1986)
97. Slint Spiderland (1991)
98. The Verve Urban Hymns (1997)
99. Metallica Metallica (aka ‘The Black Album’) (1991)
100. Kraftwerk Trans-Europa Express (Trans Europe Express) (1977)


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