ContestsEvents

LISTEN LIVE

29 Albums That Upped Their Ranking on Rolling Stone’s New Best Albums of All Time List

Rolling Stone created a lot of buzz this week when they released an updated version of their 500 Best Albums of All Time list. Originally released in 2003, the list…

Beatles, Aretha Franklin, Elton John, Bruce Springsteen, Prince and Police album covers
UMG/Atlantic/MCA/Columbia/Warner Records/A&M

Rolling Stone created a lot of buzz this week when they released an updated version of their 500 Best Albums of All Time list.

Originally released in 2003, the list was predominantly rock/pop-based. In 2020, rock and pop still have a strong presence on the list, but there is definitely more rap, hip-hop and country influence, which can largely be attributed to a more diverse voting block of musicians, industry professionals and journalists.

While a number of albums saw their 2003 ranking drop significantly, the 29 albums below saw their ranking rise at least 50 places or more on the 2020 list.

So, which albums received more love this time around? Scroll through the gallery below to find out!

Van Halen, 'Van Halen'

van-halen_van-halen_Warner-Bros.jpgWarner Bros.

The Beatles, 'Hard Day's Night'

beatles_hard-days_UMG.jpgUMG

Creedence Clearwater Revival, 'Willy and the Poor Boys'

ccr_willy_Fantasy.jpgFantasy

Black Sabbath, 'Master of Reality'

black-sabbath_master_Warner-Bros.jpgWarner Bros.

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 'Damn the Torpedoes'

tom-petty_damn_UMG.jpgUMG

Pink Floyd, 'The Piper at the Gates of Dawn'

pink-floyd_piper_Legacy.jpgLegacy

Queen, 'A Night at the Opera'

queen_night_Hollywood-Records.jpgHollywood Records

Metallica, 'Master of Puppets'

metallica_master_Blackened.jpgBlackened

R.E.M., 'Automatic for the People'

rem_automatic_Craft-Recordings.jpgCraft Recordings

Aretha Franklin, 'I Never Loved a Man the Way I Love You'

aretha_loved-a-man_Atlantic.jpgAtlantic

Bruce Springsteen, 'Nebraska'

springsteen_nebraska_Columbia.jpgColumbia

The Beatles, 'Abbey Road'

beatles_abbey-Road_UMG.jpgUMG

Bob Marley and the Wailers, 'Exodus'

bob-marley_exodus_Island-Tuff-Gong.jpgIsland/Tuff Gong

David Bowie, 'Station to Station'

bowie_station_Parlophone.jpgParlophone

Crosby, Stills & Nash, 'Crosby, Stills & Nash'

csn_csn_Atlantic.jpgAtlantic

Cyndi Lauper, 'She’s So Unusual'

cyndi_unusual_Legacy.jpgCourtesy of Legacy

Eagles, 'Eagles'

eagles_eagles_Asylum.jpgAsylum

Elton John, 'Honky Chateau'

elton-john_honky-chatau_UMG.jpgUMG

George Michael, 'Faith'

george-michael_faith_Sony-Legacy.jpgSony/Legacy

The Beatles, 'Help!'

beatles_help_UMG.jpgUMG

Lou Reed, 'Transformer'

lou-reed_transformer_Sony-Legacy.jpgSony/Legacy

Madonna, 'The Immaculate Collection'

madonna_immac_Sire-Warner-Records.jpgSire/Warner Records

The Police, 'Synchronicity'

police_syncronicity_AM.jpgCourtesy of A&M

Prince and the Revolution, 'Purple Rain'

prince_purple-rain_Warner-Records.jpgCourtesy of Warner Records

Bruce Springsteen, 'Darkness on the Edge of Town'

springsteen_darkness_Columbia.jpgColumbia

Steely Dan, 'Aja'

steely-dan_aja_ABC-Records.jpgABC Records

Stevie Wonder, 'Songs in the Key of Life'

stevie_songs-key_Motown.jpgMotown

Talking Heads, 'Remain in Light'

talking-heads_light_Sire.jpgSire

The Velvet Underground, 'The Velvet Underground'

vu_vu_Polydor.jpgPolydor
Erica Banas is a news blogger who's been covering the rock/classic rock world since 2014. The coolest event she's ever covered in person was the 2021 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony. (Sir Paul McCartney inducting Foo Fighters? C'mon now!) She's also well-versed in etiquette and extraordinarily nice. #TransRightsAreHumanRights