The Old Acclaimed Music Forum
Go to the NEW FORUM
If you want guys I can stop right now
It's a lot of work and I have little time.
And now I don't want to make any mistakes so I'm doing a lot of checkings before revealing the results (and you'll understand why by paying attention to some point differences)
By the way, as I said before I'm gonna let YOU do some of the stat job, and I'll need some help to post the individual lists, or I'm gonna get fired and my wife will file for divorce
after all is done I'll post the spreadsheet and let you play around with.
More results today, I hope I can get to 11...
I promise it'll be over by the end of the week
Well, I can't figure out the order, just what the albums are. You're doing great.
This list goes to 11...
Sorry, I just referenced it in another thread and I couldn't resist.
There's something I don't get here...
#16
Arcade Fire – Funeral (2004)
3331.63 points
AM 3000 rank : 55
Appeared on 38 ballots / 68
Fans: pop elton # 2, Beans # 3, Michael # 7, Penguin # 9, Chris # 10, Nassim # 12, Michael P # 12, SR # 14, VanillaFire1000 # 15, Brose # 17, Jackson # 17, Chevi # 18, Harold Wexler # 18, Marc # 19
Moderator:
Just like it did in AM 3000's new update, this album is rising with the years : in the fourties in 2005, 20 in 2008. It stayed in the top 15 for a long time but had a difficult finish (being in none of the 4 last voters' lists). You'll notice that in this section (between # 18 and # 12), it is really really tight, and every single vote was decisive.
VanillaFire1000 :
A lot of people compare Funeral in Areoplane, and I see those similarities. But I didn't know what this album really was until I played it for my dad. When it was over, he said to me "Its pretty good. Its like the best part of The Velvet Underground and Fleetwood Mac." I was literally stunned after he said it, he made it so obvious. The rawness, the rock n' roll heart and energy of VU, smoothed out (in a good way) with the beauty, lovesickness, and desperation of FM.
Moonbeam:
Resonating throughout is a sense of true mourning, even in the quixotic moments where the album soars to lofty heights. Funeral came about at a time when I first lost some truly huge people in my life (my dad and both grandmothers), and it offered an emotional blueprint for my grief.
Jon Marck:
In July 2004 I saw the Arcade Fire perform at the side stage of a small Guelph, Ontario folk festival. The next spring they opened for U2. It all happened because in August 2004 they released “Funeral” to a glowing 97% Pitchfork review, and quickly became THE band of 2005, going from small campus pubs to international arenas in a matter of months. They deserved every bit of acclaim. With the four-part Neighborhood suite and other songs such as "Rebellion" and "Wake Up" Arcade Fire crafted a heavily rhythmic tribute to nostalgia and loss. Gang choruses, parade-style performances and string sections accentuated the weepy anthems with unmatched beauty. High-brow yet blue-collar, brave yet fragile, weathered yet youthful, the Arcade Fire showed it just takes one great album.
This list goes to 11...
Sorry, I just referenced it in another thread and I couldn't resist.
There's something I don't get here...
"C'est la poñction lombaire" nicolas ^^ ses batteurs morts, ses pods qui ne s'ouvrent pas, ses amplis qui montent à 11...
Funeral deserves its probable rank of best album of the decade, it has all the qualities you can wish from a pop/rock album. I shiver every time I listen to Wake Up, will be on my top 10 songs on the future poll. (but Rebellion on the other hand is the only song I don't like much on the album... I don't get why it is supposed to be the acclaimed one)
#15
The Rolling Stones – Exile On Main St. (1972)
3391.05 points
AM 3000 rank : 8
Appeared on 37 ballots / 68
Fans: Peewee # 1, Antonius # 3, Jonathon # 3, Ramone666 # 3, Tim O # 4, Michael # 6, Greg # 6, Nick # 11, Michael P # 13, Brose # 13, Stephan # 14, BillAdama # 15, Mark # 15, pmickey # 17, Sonofsamian # 18, Jem # 19, Rocky Racoon # 20
Moderator:
The most acclaimed of the Stones' albums for critics and AMers. Like Funeral, it started very well, settling at # 12 for a long time, but had a terrible finish. Note that it's a bull : # 33 in 2005, 18 in 2008. There's still love for rootsy rock, after all, even if this album lost ground in the new update.
Rocky Raccoon:
Their sleaziest, grimiest set of songs, and that's what they did so well.
Jon Marck:
The Stones’ most difficult album is their strongest. Never an album band, it took complete detachment from both the industry and their native country for the iconic rock group to turn out their most consistent effort. "Rocks Off" and "Tumbling Dice" are understated masterpieces while "Happy" slips through on a thunderous horn arrangement.
#15!!!!!!!!! 
IMO, the most wide-ranging and formally perfect album in rock history. Nothing of human life is not contained in these songs: sex, love, betrayal, loss, obsession, elation, mystery, faith, depression, wit. And nothing in rock music is not captured in the amazing stylistic range of the songs -- flat out rock, pop, gospel, blues, folk, R&B, soul, and more. All of these disparate thematic and musical ideas united by the famously ragged, loose-limbed delivery where every member of the band is working at his peak. Best. Album. Ever.
IMO, the most wide-ranging and formally perfect album in rock history. Nothing of human life is not contained in these songs: sex, love, betrayal, loss, obsession, elation, mystery, faith, depression, wit. And nothing in rock music is not captured in the amazing stylistic range of the songs -- flat out rock, pop, gospel, blues, folk, R&B, soul, and more. All of these disparate thematic and musical ideas united by the famously ragged, loose-limbed delivery where every member of the band is working at his peak. Best. Album. Ever.
you should be happy for 15! a lot of other people's #1's (mine included) were a lot lower. but i agree, what a fantastic album.
I only voted for two of the last 6 but I agree that they are wonderful albums
Well, we all know which are the 14 albums left ( 7 of them are in my top 20 
) but i can't wait to see the final position!
My 4 favourites haven't showed up yet (cross fingers).
And I was surprised that so many people ranked Funeral higher than me .
Of course, here we are years ahead of the critics
.5 of my top 10 are remaining (*bite his nails with expectation*).
#14
The Smiths – The Queen Is Dead (1986)
3415.33 points
AM 3000 rank : 27
Appeared on 37 ballots / 68
Fans: Midaso # 1, Octopus # 3, Mitchell Stirling # 4, Chris # 4, Dr Robert # 4, Honorio # 7, Lagore # 12, Jackson # 13, Nick # 15, Bruno # 15, Michel # 16, Greg # 17, Jacek # 18, Jem # 20,
Moderator:
It could seem like a surprise to see the Smiths so high when you look at their AM rank (27). But Amers in general have always been fond of Morrissey’s old band, and this year The Queen Is Dead finishes right between his 2005 and 2008 scores. 2005 : 10; 2008 : 16
Honorio
Morrissey is a polarizing artist, no doubt. You love him or you hate him, there’s no middle ground. And I am one of the first group, of course. All his weapons are showed to maximum impact on “The Queen Is Dead”: anger and sarcasm (“Frankly Mr. Shankly”, “The Queen Is Dead” ), provocation and humour (“Vicar in a Tutu”, “Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others” ), self-pity (“Never Had No One Ever”, “I Know It’s Over” ) and, of course, his very own brand of impetuous romanticism (“There Is a Light That Never Goes Out” ).
Jackson:
The Smiths would be primarily remembered as a singles band if it wasn't for the undeniable brilliance of this 1986 LP. Almost every cut on here sounds like it could have been a single. The songs range from the humorous ("Some Girls are Bigger than Others") to the serious ("I Know It's Over") to the sublime ("There is a Light That Never Goes Out"). Even the Smiths' many compilations are never this good.
Moonbeam:
This album represents one of the definite peaks of post punk power, becoming an album of the ages. It is at once tortured, humorous, mournful, cheeky and thrilling. As such, The Queen Is Dead is the Smiths' most electrifying rollercoaster of a listen.
#13
Bruce Springsteen – Born To Run (1975)
3496.07 points
AM 3000 rank : 18
Appeared on 35 ballots / 68
Fans: Alex D # 2, otisredding # 3, nicolas # 3, Penguin # 4, Peter # 5, Stephan # 5, Midaso # 7, Michael # 8, VanillaFire1000 # 9, Henry # 11, Honorio # 18, Dr Robert # 18, Brose # 18, pmickey # 19, SR # 19, Tim O # 19
Moderator:
A big surprise, indeed, SR, but I won’t break my neutrality (it’s hard). The boss had a great finish because I remember he spent most of the poll in and out of the top 20, around #20. Not only Bruce does better than his AM rankings with Darkness and Born To Run but he beats his AM polls record : he did 185 in 2005 (a shame ?) and 29 in 2008. And its does so featuring in “only” 35 ballots, a small number at this stage...
Nicolas:
In one of the best covers of all time, this monumental album is an ode to dedication, to hard work. Bruce put all his strength in the making of Born To Run, working for six months on the title-song, and when he heard the record for the first time he just threw it out the window. But all this perfectionism, this production that sometimes goes over the top, would be nothing without his writing skills. “Thunder Road”, “Tenth Avenue Freeze Out”, “Born to Run”, “Jungleland”, or more intimate ballads like “Meeting Across The River” are some of his best songs ever, odes to youth that’s passing, and the will to escape that became one of his obsessions.
Honorio
“Born to Run” represents the culmination of the first Springsteen, the one of the adolescent urgency (“Thunder Road” ), of the street-gangs epics (“Tenth Avenue Freeze-Out” ), of the cheaters glory (“Meeting Across the River” ), of the nocturnal life agitation (“Night” ), of the romanticism of the alleys (“Backstreets” ), where “the girls combs their hair in rear-view mirrors / and the boys try to look so hard”.
Jon Marck:
Springsteen was a high profile artist but he still hadn't broke. Well, this album broke him twice: once mainstream, the other in the bank, but don't worry about the Boss. He's doing quite well, even if heartbreak ballads "Thunder Road" and "Jungleland" speak otherwise.
#6
Bob Dylan – Highway 61 Revisited (1965)
5164.14 points
AM 3000 rank : 11
Appeared on 47 ballots / 68
Fans: Paul # 1, Stephan # 1, otisredding # 1, Chevi # 2, sonofsamian # 4, BillAdama # 5, Mark # 5, Jem # 5, SR # 5, Alex D # 6, Peewee # 6, Peter # 6, Mitchell Stirling # 6, Rocky Racoon # 8, Jon Marck # 8, Jonathon # 12, Michael P # 9, pmickey # 10, Brad # 12, Jackson # 16, Michael # 17, EdAmes # 17, Nick # 20, Steven # 20
Moderator:
It has the same number of votes as the Beatles but lookat this impressive fan section : no less than 15 people had it in their top 10 ! But it looses ground compared to 2008 when it ended at # 3..;
Jon Marck:
Dylan continues in Bringing it all Back Home's ground-breaking style with a stronger emphasis on jagged blues and whacko lyrics. The album plays like a hipster tabloid. "Like A Rolling Stone" is Dylan's most uniting anthem (ironic, considering its cynicism), "Tombstone Blues" and the title track re-establish his love for nowhere poetry and loser heroes, and "Desolation Row", at the time his longest song, is a heartfelt tribute to street hooligans. This is when the folkies started calling him Judas.
Jackson:
I have nothing even close to original to say about this album, but what makes it my favorite Dylan album is, above all else, its opening and closing songs: "Like a Rolling Stone" and "Desolation Row." A novel could literally be written about either track, with the former's cultural implications and musical virtuosity and the latter's astoundingly complex lyrics. The seven tracks sandwiched in between serve as excellent complements to the album's bookending masterpieces. Has any Dylan song, besides "Subterranean Homesick Blues," ever approached the fun factor of "Tombstone Blues" or the title track? How highly rated would "Ballad of a Thin Man" be if it wasn't overshadowed by other songs? On Highway 61 Revisited, the music is top-notch, the lyrics are perhaps Dylan's most consistent across an entire album, and the entire work evokes a classic spirit.
#5
The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967)
5164.96 points
AM 3000 rank : 4
Appeared on 51 ballots / 68
Fans: Chevi # 1, Steven # 3, lagire # 3, Michael # 4, Jonathon # 4, pmickey # 5, Jackson # 6, Stephan # 7, Chris # 7, Brad # 7, Nick # 9, Ramone666 # 9, Tim O # 9, SR # 10, Dr. Robert # 10, pop elton # 11, Brose # 12, Michel # 12, Hauke # 13, Rocky Racoon # 14, EdAmes # 15, Jem # 16, Honorio # 17, Octopus # 17, Rune # 18, Georgie # 20
Moderator:
For the first time a record gets more than 50 votes : huge ! you’ll notice there’s only a 0.82 pt difference between the Vu and Highway 61 !! After discovering and correcting a mistake (I had given nj’s points to another Vu album) Lou Reed and his friends passed the Zim. Almost a tie...
Jackson:
This is one album that can truly please virtually all critics, from Rolling Stone to Piero Scaruffi. The reason is a mix of pop, rock, and avant-garde brilliance, as well as the fact that a lack of musical talent does not denigrate the group's wealth of musical ideas. Even if you take away its influence and importance to the alternative music scene, The Velvet Underground & Nico still holds its ground as a classic due to an engaging, diverse set of songs. "Sunday Morning" and "Heroin" pack emotional punch in completely different ways, "I'm Waiting for the Man" and "Run Run Run" are excellent straight-up rock, and "Venus in Furs" and "All Tomorrow's Parties" are captivating due to hypnotic, repetitive rhythm sections. Its sound may not be for everybody, but most who like TVU&N approve of its status as one of the all-time rock milestones.
Honorio:
A series of fortunate collisions generated this masterpiece: the collision between street-wise rock & roll of Lou Reed and classical background of John Cale, between inquisitive and intuitive musicians like Reed & Cale and Andy Warhol (the pop-art Pope at the time), between heroin and pushers urban stories and the decadent glamour of The Factory transvestites and starlets, between rock & roll and art.
Moonbeam:
Rarely, if ever, has a debut album revealed an artist as fully-formed and limitless as The Velvet Underground. Over the course of 11 songs, VU would merge previously distant genres while simultaneously creating others. Ultimately, a large part of the brilliance of this album is due to the careful balance which makes the album sound more like a veritable voyage than a mere collection of amazing songs.
Allez les bleus. Sorry, I was watching you guys beat South Africa in the rugby earlier on and I got a little carried away
Please dont be london Calling up next.
Do you mean my english is so bad that you prefer read my french ?
Whatever, in this world, we have two type of guy, pet sound lover's and the others, I'm in the other side.
With BS and BD, it's the third (and last) thing I never understand in music list. How this album can be so hight ?
(answering to Beans post)
Oh did we win ? Great !!
Good omen for tomorrow !!
I'll be finished with the poll and I'll enjoy the game
If Ireland wins, I'll support them in South Africa
Without you guys I don't think the music would be just as good
#4
The Beatles– Revolver(1966)
5345.04 points
AM 3000 rank : 2
Appeared on 55 ballots / 68
Fans (23): Nick # 1, SR # 1, Harold # 2, pmickey # 3, Jem # 3, John # 5, Ramone666 # 6, Michael P # 6, schwah # 7, Henry # 7, Alex D # 7, Dr Robert ( ) # 8, Jonathon # 9, Brose # 11, Pewee # 11, Mitchell Stirling # 11, Jackson # 12, Chris # 13, Honorio # 13, Penguin # 13, Beans # 14, Jon Marck # 17, nicolas # 20
Moderator:
That’s where the Beatles go off. Contrary to the other artists in the top 4, the Beatles had no towering, unanimously acclaimed album, and the splitting effect between their “Fab 4” (Revolver, Sgt Pepper, White Album, Abbey Road) explains this. But not only. As you will see in otisredding statistics, the 4 Beatles albums are in recession in comparison with the previous posts . Revolver was 2nd both in 2005 and 2008. So there really is a relative decline of the Beatles domination on this forum polls. Will we witness this in the 60s polls next year ?
BillAdama:
Here's what's so amazing about the Beatles. They recorded music forty years ago, and young kids are still hearing it and loving it. They even made a video game based on their music. What other band can claim to have such trans-generational appeal? The Beatles were the second highest selling act of the 00's.
Honorio
The Fab Four expanded their musical palette with “Revolver” and doing this expanded their (our) minds. With adventurous but successful forays into classical music (“Eleanor Rigby” ), Hindu music (“Love You To” ) or avant-garde (“Tomorrow Never Knows” ). They incorporated it to its own style (a horn solo as the one in “For No One” is now a Beatles-style solo) and, even more important, took it to massive audiences.
Jon Marck:
The Beatles had one rule for newly-promoted 20-year-old head engineer Geoff Emerick: no instrument should sound like it normally does. He took the words to heart, placing microphones INSIDE the bells of horn sections, routing sounds through Leslie cabinets and pushing microphones dangerously close to Ringo's thumping bass drum. As a result "She Said She Said" and "Tomorrow Never Knows" remain the most surreal songs in the Beatles catalogue while "And Your Bird Can Sing" is straight-ahead rock 'n' roll turned psychedelic car chase.
nicolas
So much has been said about this album. Among the Fab Four albums, it is the one that sounds the most “modern”, probably because of the recording techniques (see JonMarck’s comment above). Oh yes, there is one thing : I’d like to express all my love for “Yellow Submarine”, the song that is always pointed at as Revolver’s only faux pas. The Beatles had a great sense of humor and could be really big children sometimes and write simple and funny nursery rhyme like songs. My 2-yr old son was singing “Obladi Oblada” in his bath today, my mom loves “Maxwell Silver Hammer”... sometimes the critics are too fucking serious. The Beatles never took themselves seriously, and that’s essential in my love for them. And they could make great music and appeal to everyone, every generation. I’m not an angry young man (and never really wa one) so that doesn’t bother me, on the contrary I love their childish side.
sorry Beans
#3
The Clash – London Calling (1979)
5420.39 points
AM 3000 rank : 9
Appeared on 46 ballots / 68
Fans (24): Wes # 1, lagire # 1, Beans # 1, Dr Robert # 1, Tim E #1, Paul # 2, Beefsupreme # 2, Jackson # 2, Nick # 3, Honorio # 4, Michel # 5, Midaso # 5, brose # 5, pmickey # 7, Rocky Racoon # 7, Bruno # 8, Harold Wexler # 8, Jonathon # 11, BillAdama # 12, SR # 12, Ramone666 # 16, Hauke # 17, Tim O # 20, otisredding # 20
Moderator:
Wow, great and quite unexpected performance for the Clash ! They are rising as well in AM 3000, moving up with last update. Five # 1, a record. And since the first poll they never stopped moving up from 11 to 7 then a big jump to the third step of the podium.
Rocky Raccoon:
This sprawling double album contains more diversity than most bands achieve in a lifetime. Amazing coming from a punk band, but they had matured at this point. A perfect way to end the '70s and kick off the ‘80s.
Honorio
“London Calling” is the perfect document of a jailbreak, of a band breaking the bars of the cage in which they confined themselves, of a punk-rock band realizing that they can make MUSIC in capital letter. They achieved a perfect balance between rehearsed and improvised, between conscious and spontaneous. Rude boys, freedom fighters on Spanish Civil War, Monty Clift, Jimmy Jazz, Stagger Lee. Ska, rockabilly, reggae, power-pop, hard rock, soul or even jazz, anything that could scare away the old punk fan base was good enough. But not losing the apocalyptic, combative, nihilistic and furious energy of punk.
Jackson:
If aliens wanted to know what rock music sounded like, this would be the first album I would give them. The level of achievement is so ridiculous on London Calling, it's hard to know where to start. The album's musicianship puts most other punk bands to shame, its lyrics put most other rock bands to shame, and its song structure puts most pop artists to shame. There are so many great songs that if you told someone this was The Clash's greatest-hits album, they would believe you. London Calling is fun, energetic, well-performed, and very listenable, making it an unbeatable achievement among conventional rock albums.
#2
The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds (1966)
6292.05 points
AM 3000 rank : 1
Appeared on 55 ballots / 68
Fans (33): pmickey # 1, Alex D # 1, Penguin # 2, Midaso # 2, Jem # 2, Peewee # 2, Georgie # 2, Paul # 3, VanillaFire1000 # 4, Nick # 4, Brose # 4, Jackson # 4, Greg # 5, John # 6, Stephan # 6, Tim O # 6, Octopus # 7, Michael P # 7, schaefer .tk #7, SR # 8, Miguel # 9, Honorio # 10, Jonathon # 10, Bruno # 10, Mindrocker # 12, Mitchell Stirling # 15, nicolas # 15, Peter # 17, Marc # 18, Steven # 18, Hauke # 18, Chevi # 19, Harold Wexler # 20,
Moderator:
There’s the grand canyon between the Clash and the Beach Boys : 871.66 pts !! 33 people have put it in their T20, which is almost 50 % of the voters !
Jackson:
This is the most acclaimed album of all time for a reason. Forty-plus years after its release, it still stands as the preeminent combination of beauty and melody in pop music. Appealing to emotion through incredible vocal performances, simple yet truly meaningful lyrics, and elegant arrangements that are much-imitated but never-equalled, Pet Sounds is something really special. I'm not sure why Brian Wilson wrecked his life and career over trying to out-compete The Beatles--he had already trumped any album they would ever put out with Pet Sounds. You can describe a work on this level with a spectrum of superlatives, but one hits home more than any other: life-affirming. That's what this album has been to most who hear it, and that's what it should have been to Brian Wilson.
Honorio
Brian Wilson left aside the glorification of Californian life, the beaches, cars and girls that characterized the thematic of Beach Boys till then. Wilson: “I was not trying to entertain people, I was expressing my feelings straight from the heart”. Now he talks about feelings, dreams (“Wouldn’t it Be Nice” ), maladjustment (“I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times” ), spiritual love (“God Only Knows” ) or losing of innocence (“Caroline No”: “Where did your long hair go / Where is the girl I used to know / How could you lose that happy glow?” ).
nicolas
When I got this album, the first track that fascinated me was the unreleased rehersal when they sing a capella. Such a perfection set shivers down my spine. Then I discovered the rest of the album and its infinite delicacy and incredible arragements and of course, vocal performances. Not to mention songs like “God Only Knows” or “Wasn’t made For These Times” (a question I ask my self everuy now and then), and those lovely instrumentals; Unique.
The Clash – London Calling (1979)
5420.39 points
Phony Beatlemania has bitten the dust.
Thanks Nicolas for this huge work.
As usual, it's not the top list (1-20) the most interesting (always the same album) but the lower albums.
I don't know only one album, the Charles mingus "The black saint..."
But this was not always like that. During the previous century (XIX) the old Europe was the preeminent cultural force (and also economic). Beethoven, Wilde, Chopin, Renoir, Wagner, Goya, Zola, Byron, Liszt, Blake,… And if we go back even further, France during the XVIII Century and Spain during the XVII were the centre of the universe then.
And who really knows about what the XXI Century will take? The economic rising of China and Asia in general maybe will displace also the cultural focus. Not still popular but the Asiatic movies are beginning to gain the critics attention (Wong Kar-Wai, Hayao Miyazaki, Jia Zhang-Ke) and monopolize some festival awards. The Asiatic music is the most unknown right now (I told this previously in the “update” thread) but maybe this situation is going to change soon…
the boredoms are asiatic! see #39 of Pitchfork's 500 albums of the decade
Yes, Paul, you raised a very interesting point. Many of the styles that were born in the USA were due to the interaction of different cultures. Jazz for instance was in fact the afroamericans trying their luck with the instruments coming from military brass bands (an European tradition), creating a new and fresh style. And you’re right, this is not the case today in Asia.
Yes, Michael, The Boredoms, Yoko Ono, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and a trio from India (Shivkumar Sharma, Brijbushan Kabra & Hariprasad Chaurasia) and are the only Asiatic artists with representation in the AM Top 3000 (because M.I.A., Leila or Mika are really “Occidental” artists despite their “Oriental” roots).
But I can’t blame anyone, I admit that I have listened very little Asiatic music (except Nusrat and Ryuichi Sakamoto).