Top 10 Greatest Musical Albums Ever

[Enoch]

I've been in a "boundary-pushing jazz-based stuff" state of mind lately. 

 

Sun Ra -- Atlantis ;  Cosmic Tones for Mental Therapy (alternately, The Antique Blacks, if you want to hear the Ra's explanation of his cosmic myth-science ethos.  Or Lanquidity for ease of listening)

Charles Mingus -- The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady ; Charles Mingus Presents Charles Mingus

Jimmy Smith -- Back at the Chicken Shack

Miles -- Bitches Brew

Oliver Nelson -- Blues and the Abstract Truth

Rahsaan Roland Kirk -- The Inflated Tear

Thelonious Monk -- Monk's Music

Captain Beefheart -- Trout Mask Replica

 

I think that's 10.  And you may get 10 different selections if you catch me in a different mood.  I do have my more rock-heavy moments (early Stones, later Beatles, early Springsteen, early REM, Bowie, Talking Heads, Radiohead, etc.), and the early, exploratory electronica stuff is near and dear to my heart (Herbie Han****'s Sextant almost made the above list).  And all this is sadly lacking in The Funk, outside the passing mention of Lanquidity.  But whatever.  You asked for 10.  (Also, there's a lot of great stuff that pre-dates the LP, but it would feel like cheating to pick, say, the 3-disc "Never No Lament" Duke Ellington collection, or a Charlie Parker boxed set.)

Edited May 25, 2013 by Enoch