ROCK ART Top 25 Classic Vinyl Albums list
1. Led Zeppelin IV New Vinyl LP
The fourth studio album by Led Zeppelin, commonly known as Led Zeppelin IV, was released in November 1971. The album contains several of of the band’s most well-known songs, including “Black Dog”, “Rock and Roll”, “The Battle of Evermore”, “When the Levee Breaks” and the eight-minute epic “Stairway to Heaven”. Led Zeppelin IV was an immediate critical and commercial success and is Led Zeppelin’s best-selling album, having sold over 37 million copies worldwide. It is one of the best-selling albums in the United States and of all time, while critics have regularly placed it high on lists of the greatest albums of all time.
2. Fleetwood Mac Rumours New Vinyl LP
Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours became the band’s first No.1 album on the UK Albums Chart and also topped the US Billboard 200. It received multi-platinum certifications in Australia, Canada, Denmark, New Zealand, the UK, and the US. As of February 2023 Rumours had sold over 40 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best selling albums of all time. All of its four singles “Go Your Own Way”, “Dreams”, “Don’t Stop”, and “You Make Loving Fun”, reached the top 10 of the US Billboard Hot 100 with “Dreams” reaching No.1.
3. Michael Jackson Thriller New Vinyl LP
Thriller was Jackson’s first No.1 album on the US Billboard chart where it spent a record 37 non-consecutive weeks at No.1 from February 1983 to April 1984. Seven singles were released: “The Girl Is Mine”, “Billie Jean”, “Beat It”, “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin'”, “Human Nature”, “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)” and “Thriller” which all reached the top 10 on the US Billboard chart. This set a record for the most top 10 singles from an album with “Beat It” and “Billie Jean” both reaching No.1. Following Jackson’s performance of “Billie Jean” in the Motown 25 television special, where he debuted his signature moonwalk dance, the album began selling one million copies per week. Sales doubled after the release of the “Thriller” music video on MTV in December 1983.
4. Black Sabbath Paranoid New Vinyl LP
Paranoid is the second studio album by English heavy metal band Black Sabbath released in September 1970. The album contains several of the band’s signature songs, including “Iron Man”, “War Pigs” and the title track, which was the band’s only Top 20 hit, reaching No.4 on the UK singles chart. Paranoid is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential heavy metal albums of all time, often cited as a key influence in the development of the genre, as well as one of its earliest albums. It was ranked No.1 on Rolling Stone’s list of the “100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time” in 2017 and No.139 on its list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” in 2020.
5. Bob Marley Legend New Vinyl LP
Legend is the ultimate greatest hits collection by Bob Marley and the Wailers released in 1984. It is the best-selling reggae album of all time and has sold more than 18 million copies in the US, 3.3 million in the UK and an estimated 25 million copies globally. The album contains many of Bob Marley’s most well known songs including “No Woman, No Cry”, “Is This Love”, “Stir It Up”, “Get Up, Stand Up”, “Buffalo Soldier” and “I Shot the Sheriff”.
6. AC/DC Back In Black New Vinyl LP
Back in Black was AC/DC’s first album to feature singer Brian Johnson following the death of Bon Scott in 1980 and was an unprecedented commercial & critical success. It has sold an estimated 50 million copies worldwide making it one of the best-selling albums in music history. In 2024 the album was certified 27× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), making it the third best-selling album ever in the US. Back in Black features many AC/DC signature songs including the title track, “Hells Bells”, “Shoot to Thrill”, “You Shook Me All Night Long” and “Rock and Roll Ain’t Noise Pollution”.
7. The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night New Vinyl LP
A Hard Day’s Night is the third studio album by the Beatles released in 1964 with side one containing songs from the soundtrack to their film of the same name. This album was the band’s first to contain all original material penned by Lennon and McCartney. As well as the title track the album includes “I Should Have Known Better”, “And I Love Her” and “Can’t Buy Me Love” In 2000 Q magazine placed A Hard Day’s Night at No.5 on its list “The 100 Greatest British Albums Ever” and in the same year the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
8. Bruce Springsteen Born In The USA New Vinyl LP
Born in the U.S.A. is the seventh studio album by Bruce Springsteen released in 1984 and was a massive commercial success. It was the best selling album of 1985 topping the charts in nine countries, including the US and UK. All seven of its singles, including “Dancing in the Dark”, “Born in the U.S.A.”, “I’m on Fire”, and “Glory Days”, reached the US top ten. The album has sold over 30 million copies worldwide, making it Springsteen’s best selling album and one of the best selling albums of all time. Upon its release, music critics praised the album’s storytelling and musical performances and it was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2012.
9. Nirvana MTV Unplugged New Vinyl LP
Nirvana MTV Unplugged in New York is the band’s first live album released in 1994, nearly seven months following the suicide of Kurt Cobain. The album features covers of songs by the Vaselines, David Bowie, Lead Belly and Meat Puppets as well as acoustic versions of Nirvana classics such as “About a Girl”, “Come as You Are” and “All Apologies”. It debuted at No.1 on the Billboard 200 and sold 310,500 copies, the highest first week sales of Nirvana’s career and by March 1995 the album had outsold In Utero with 6.8 million copies sold.
10. Bat Out Of Hell New Vinyl LP
Bat Out of Hell is the debut studio album by singer Meat Loaf and composer Jim Steinman released in 1977. Bat Out of Hell has sold over 43 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best selling albums of all time and is certified 14× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album includes several of Meat Loaf’s signature songs including “You Took the Words Right Out of My Mouth (Hot Summer Night)”, “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad”, “Paradise by the Dashboard Light” and of course the epic 10 minute title track.
11. Stone Roses New Vinyl LP
The Stone Roses is the eponymous debut studio album by the band, released in 1989 by Silvertone Records. The album is now considered to be one of the greatest albums of all time. In 2000 it was voted No.11 in the third edition of Colin Larkin’s “All Time Top 1000 Albums” and has now sold over 4 million copies worldwide. It includes many of the band’s most well known songs, including “I Wanna Be Adored”, “She Bangs the Drums”, “Made of Stone” and “I Am the Resurrection”.
12. Duran Duran Rio New Vinyl LP
Retrospective reviewers consider Rio timeless and the band’s best work, praising its instrumentation and band performances. Duran Duran shot music videos for many of the album’s tracks, all of which helped spearhead the 1980s MTV revolution. Accompanied by three worldwide hit singles, “Rio”, “Hungry Like the Wolf” and “Save a Prayer”, the album peaked at No.2 in the UK and remained on the chart for 110 weeks. In the the US the album reached No.6 and spent 129 weeks on the Billboard chart.
13. Miles Davis Bitches Brew New Vinyl LP
Bitches Brew has gained recognition as one of jazz’s greatest albums and a progenitor of the jazz-rock fusion genre, as well as a major influence on rock. It was Miles Davis’s highest charting album peaking at No.35 on the US Billboard 200. In 1971 Bitches Brew won a Grammy Award for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album and in 1976 it was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
14. Hybrid Theory New Vinyl LP
Hybrid Theory’s lyrical themes deal with problems lead vocalist Chester Bennington experienced during his adolescence, including drug abuse and the constant fighting and eventual divorce of his parents. Four singles were released from Hybrid Theory: “One Step Closer”, “In the End”, “Crawling” and “Papercut”, all of them being responsible for launching Linkin Park into mainstream popularity. Peaking at No.2 on the US Billboard 200 it is certified 12× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). The album also reached the top 10 in 15 other countries and has sold 32 million copies worldwide.
15. Alanis Morissette Jagged Little Pill New Vinyl LP
Jagged Little Pill features several of Alanis Morissette’s best know songs: “You Oughta Know”, “Hand in My Pocket”, “Ironic” and “You Learn”. It was certified 10x platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), 17x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), and double diamond by Music Canada. With combined sales of over 33 million worldwide, Jagged Little Pill is one of the best selling albums of all time.
16. Simon & Garfunkel Bridge Over Troubled Water New Vinyl LP
Bridge Over Troubled Water is the final studio album by American folk rock duo Simon & Garfunkel released in 1970. The album topped the charts in over ten countries and received six Grammy Awards in 1971, including Album of the Year. The album has now sold over 25 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best selling albums of all time and at the time of its release, the best-selling album ever. It includes fan favourites “Cecilia”, “The Boxer”, “The Only Living Boy in New York” as well as the epic title track.
17. Pearl Jam Ten New Vinyl LP
Despite its reputation as a quintessential grunge album, Ten is often noted for displaying a stronger classic rock influence than other contemporary grunge releases, drawing comparisons to the work of Jimi Hendrix and Led Zeppelin. The album is also characterised as having an anthemic, rich sound. Ten was not an immediate commercial success but by late 1992 it had reached No.2 on the US Billboard 200. The album produced three hit singles: “Alive”, “Even Flow”, and “Jeremy” and has sold 13 million copies in the US.
18. Green Day American Idiot New Vinyl LP
American Idiot marked a career comeback for Green Day charting in 27 countries, reaching for the first time the top spot on the US Billboard 200 and peaking at No.1 in 18 other countries. It has sold over 23 million copies worldwide and is one of the best selling albums of the decade and all time. The album spawned five successful singles: “American Idiot”, “Holiday”, “Wake Me Up When September Ends”, “Jesus of Suburbia” and the Grammy Award for Record of the Year winner “Boulevard of Broken Dreams”.
19. Paul Simon Graceland New Vinyl LP
Graceland became Paul Simon’s most successful studio album and his highest charting in over a decade. The album features an eclectic mixture of genres, including pop, rock, a cappella, zydeco and world music with a host of African and American collaborators. It is estimated to have sold more than 16 million copies worldwide and won the 1987 Grammy for Album of the Year. In 2006 it was added to the US National Recording Registry as “culturally, historically, or aesthetically important”. Graceland includes the singles “You Can Call Me Al”, “Graceland” and “The Boy in the Bubble”.
20. Guns N’ Roses Appetite For Destruction New Vinyl LP
Appetite for Destruction became a commercial success after Guns N’ Roses had toured and received significant airplay with the singles “Welcome to the Jungle”, “Paradise City”, and “Sweet Child o’ Mine”. The album went on to peak at No.1 on the US Billboard 200 and it became the seventh best selling album of all time in the US, as well as the best selling debut album in the country. With over 30 million copies sold, it is also one of the best selling albums worldwide.
21. Jeff Buckley Grace New Vinyl LP
Grace is the only studio album by the American singer-songwriter Jeff Buckley released in 1994. After Buckley’s death in 1997 the album’s critical standing grew and it was praised by musicians including Jimmy Page, Robert Plant, Bob Dylan and David Bowie. By 2011 it had achieved sales of 2 million and in 2016 it was certified platinum in the US. Rolling Stone named Buckley’s version of “Hallelujah” one of the 500 greatest songs and in 2008 “Hallelujah” became Buckley’s first No.1 on Billboard’s Hot Digital Songs and reached No.2 in the UK singles chart.
22. Eagles Greatest Hits 1971-1975 New Vinyl LP
Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) is the first compilation album by the American rock band the Eagles. It contains a selection of songs from the band’s first four albums including: “Take It Easy”, “Witchy Woman”, “Lyin’ Eyes”, “One of These Nights”, “Take It to the Limit”, “Peaceful Easy Feeling” and “Best of My Love”. The RIAA has certified the album 38x platinum, indicating sales of 38 million copies in America alone, which would make it the best selling album of the 20th century in the United States.
23. Marvin Gaye What’s Going On New Vinyl LP
What’s Going On was an immediate commercial & critical success and came to be viewed by music historians as a classic of 1970s soul. Multiple critics and musicians consider What’s Going On to be one of the greatest albums of all time and a landmark recording in popular music. The title track lead single hit No.2 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and held the top position on Billboard’s Soul Singles chart for five weeks. The follow-up singles “Mercy Mercy Me” and “Inner City Blues” also reached the top 10 of the Hot 100, making Gaye the first male solo artist to place three top ten singles on the Hot 100 from one album.
24. U2 War New Vinyl LP
War is the third studio album by U2 released in 1983. The album is regarded as the band’s first overtly political album, in part because of songs like “Sunday Bloody Sunday” and “New Year’s Day”, as well as the title track. Also includes the hit single “Two Hearts Beat as One”. War was a commercial success knocking Michael Jackson’s Thriller from the top of the UK charts to become U2’s first No.1 album there. In the US it reached No.12 and became the U2’s first album to be certified gold.
25. Pink Floyd Wish You Were Here New Vinyl LP
Wish You Were Here’s lyrics express alienation and criticism of the music business. The bulk of the album is taken up by “Shine On You Crazy Diamond”, a nine-part tribute to the Pink Floyd co-founder Syd Barrett who had left seven years earlier due to his deteriorating mental health. As with their previous release, The Dark Side of the Moon, Pink Floyd employed studio effects and synthesisers. Wish You Were Here was certified gold in the UK & US in its year of release and topped the charts in several European countries. By 2004 the album had sold an estimated 13 million copies worldwide.
