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Apple Music's best 100 albums list is done, and it's controversial

"The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" is the best album ever made -- says Apple

Apple Music has revealed its entire list of what its staff, music experts, and stars, say are the top 100 albums of all time — and like all best album lists, it's controversial.

Even as the list was announced on May 13, 2024, Apple acknowledged — and even welcomed — the inevitably controversy it was going to cause.

"Putting this list together was a true labor of love, both in that it was incredibly difficult to do and in that we are all so passionate about it," said Zane Lowe, Apple Music's global creative director and lead anchor for Apple Music 1 at the time . "We were tasked with selecting the 100 best — that's practically mission impossible."

Following the unveiling of the list ten albums at a time, this is the complete 100 best:

  1. "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" by Lauryn Hill
  2. "Thriller" by Michael Jackson
  3. "Abbey Road" by The Beatles
  4. "Purple Rain" by Prince and The Revolution
  5. "Blonde" by Frank Ocean
  6. "Songs in the Key of Life" by Stevie Wonder
  7. "good kid, m.A.A.d city (Deluxe Version)" by Kendrick Lamar
  8. "Back to Black" by Amy Winehouse
  9. "Nevermind" by Nirvana
  10. "Lemonade" by Beyonce
  11. "Rumors" by Fleetwood Mac
  12. "OK Computer" by Radiohead
  13. "The Blueprint" by JAY-Z
  14. "Highway 61 Revisited" by Bob Dylan
  15. "21" by Adele
  16. "Blue" by Joni Mitchell
  17. "What's Going On" by Marvin Gaye
  18. "1989 (Taylor's Version)" by Taylor Swift
  19. "The Chronic" by Dr. Dre
  20. "Pet Sounds" by The Beach Boys
  21. "Revolver" by The Beatles
  22. "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen
  23. "Discovery" by Daft Punk
  24. "The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars" by David Bowie
  25. "Kind of Blue" by Miles Davis
  26. "My Beautify Dark Twisted Fantasy" by Kanye West
  27. "Led Zeppelin II" by Led Zeppelin
  28. "The Dark Side of the Moon" by Pink Floyd
  29. "The Low End Theory" by A Tribe Called Quest
  30. "WHEN WE ALL FALL ASLEEP, WHERE DO WE GO?" Billie Elish
  31. "Jagged Little Pill" by Alanis Morissette
  32. "Ready to Die" by The Notorious B.I.G.
  33. "Kid A" by Radiohead
  34. "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back" by Public Enemy
  35. "London Calling" by The Clash
  36. "BEYONCE" by Beyonce
  37. "Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)" by Wu-Tang Clan
  38. "Tapestry" by Carole King
  39. "Illmatic" by Nas
  40. "I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You" by Aretha Franklin
  41. "Aquemini" by Outkast
  42. "Control" by Janet Jackson
  43. "Remain in Light" by Talking Heads
  44. "Innervisions" by Stevie Wonder
  45. "Homogenic" by Bjork
  46. "Exodus" by Bob Marley & The Wailers
  47. "Take Care" by Drake
  48. "Paul's Boutique" by Beastie Boys
  49. "The Joshua Tree" by U2
  50. "Hounds of Love" by Kate Bush
  51. "Sign O'the Times" by Prince
  52. "Appetite for Destruction" by Guns N' Roses
  53. "Exile on Main St." by The Rolling Stones
  54. "A Love Supreme" by John Coltrane
  55. "ANTI" by Rihanna
  56. "Disintegration (Remastered)" by The Cure
  57. "Voodoo" by D'Angelo
  58. "(What's The Story) Morning Glory" by Oasis
  59. "AM" by Arctic Monkeys
  60. "The Velvet Underground and Nico (45th Anniversary Edition)" by Velvet Underground & Nico
  61. "Love Deluxe" by Sade
  62. "All Eyez on Me" by 2Pac
  63. "Are You Experienced?" by The Jimi Hendrix Experience
  64. "Baduizm" by Erykah Badu
  65. "3 Feet High and Rising" by De La Soul
  66. "The Queen Is Dead" by The Smiths
  67. "Dummy" by Portishead
  68. "Is This It" by The Strokes
  69. "Master of Puppets (Remastered)" by Metallica
  70. "Straight Outta Compton" by N.W.A
  71. "Trans-Europe Express" by Kraftwerk
  72. "SOS" by SZA
  73. "Aja" by Steely Dan
  74. "The Downward Spiral" by Nine Inch Nails
  75. "Supa Dupa Fly" by Missy Elliott
  76. "Un Verano Sin Ti" by Bad Bunny
  77. "Like A Prayer" by Madonna
  78. "Goodbye Yellow Brick Road" by Elton John
  79. "Norman F****** Rockwell!" by Lana Del Rey
  80. "The Marshall Mathers LP" by Eminem
  81. "After the Gold Rush" by Neil Young
  82. "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" by 50 Cent
  83. "Horses" by Patti Smith
  84. "Doggystyle" by Snoop Dogg
  85. "Golden Hour" by Kacey Musgraves
  86. "My Life" by Mary J. Blige
  87. "Blue Lines" by Massive Attack
  88. "I Put a Spell on You" by Nina Simone
  89. "The Fame Monster (Deluxe Edition)" by Lady Gaga
  90. "Back in Black" by AC/DC
  91. "Listen Without Prejudice Vol. 1" by George Michael
  92. "Flower Boy" by Tyler, The Creator
  93. "A Seat at the Table" by Solange
  94. "Untrue" by Burial
  95. "Confessions" by Usher
  96. "Pure Heroine" by Lorde
  97. "Rage Against the Machine" by Rage Against the Machine
  98. "ASTROWORLD" by Travis Scott
  99. "Hotel California" by The Eagles
  100. "Body Talk" by Robyn

It is at least a comprehensive list spanning decades, many musical genres, and it will prompt more people to listen to these significant albums. Each of the 100 is of course available to stream on Apple Music, plus Apple has created a mini site that gives biographical details about the albums and the bands that made them.