Top 10 Greatest Rock Albums of All Time

Released in July 1980 as AC/DC's tribute to deceased vocalist Bon Scott, Back in Black is the second best-selling album in history with an estimated 50 million copies sold. The album introduced new lead singer Brian Johnson and was produced by Robert "Mutt" Lange, generating anthems in "You Shook Me All Night Long," "Hells Bells," and the title track. It reached #1 in the UK and Australia and remains on the Billboard 200 over 44 years after release.

Released on 24 September 1991, Nirvana's Nevermind sold 30 million copies worldwide and single-handedly ended the dominance of glam metal on American radio and MTV, ushering in the grunge era. The opening single "Smells Like Teen Spirit" became the defining rock anthem of the 1990s. Nevermind replaced Michael Jackson's Dangerous at #1 on the Billboard 200 in January 1992 and was certified 10x platinum in the US, proving alternative rock could achieve mainstream commercial success.

Released in November 1971, Led Zeppelin's fourth (untitled) album contains "Stairway to Heaven" — the most-requested song in FM radio history — and has sold 37 million copies worldwide. The album, recorded primarily at Headley Grange in Hampshire using a mobile studio, demonstrates the band's full range from acoustic folk ("The Battle of Evermore") to hard rock ("Black Dog") to the epic 8-minute "Stairway to Heaven." It spent 259 weeks on the Billboard 200.

Recorded while the band's two romantic couples (Lindsey Buckingham-Stevie Nicks and Christine-John McVie) were simultaneously breaking up, Rumours sold 40 million copies — making it one of the best-selling albums ever — and won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 1978. It produced four US Top 10 singles: "Go Your Own Way," "Dreams," "The Chain," and "You Make Loving Fun." Remarkably, "Dreams" reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 again in 2020 following a viral TikTok video, 43 years after release.

The final album recorded by The Beatles (though not their last release), Abbey Road was completed in August 1969 and has sold over 30 million copies. The B-side medley — 16 minutes of interconnected songs flowing from "You Never Give Me Your Money" through "The End" — is considered one of the greatest achievements in pop arranging. George Harrison contributed two of the album's finest tracks ("Something" and "Here Comes the Sun") and it produced the iconic zebra-crossing cover photograph.

Released in August 1975, Born to Run transformed Bruce Springsteen from a regional act into a global superstar — he appeared on the covers of both Time and Newsweek in the same week as the album's release, a feat previously achieved only by Henry Kissinger. The album's operatic, Phil Spector-influenced production was assembled over 14 months of recording. Rolling Stone ranked it in the top 20 of its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list and it has sold over 6 million copies.

Prince's Purple Rain was released on 25 June 1984 simultaneously with the film of the same name and sold 25 million copies worldwide, spending 24 weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200. The album produced three US Top 5 singles: "When Doves Cry" (#1), "Let's Go Crazy" (#1), and the title track (#2). Prince won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score — the only time a rock/pop artist won in that category — making it one of the most acclaimed multimedia music projects in history.

Recorded in a rented villa in Villefranche-sur-Mer on the French Riviera to avoid UK income tax, Exile on Main St. was released as a double album in May 1972 and is now widely considered the Rolling Stones' greatest achievement. The album draws on blues, gospel, country, soul, and rock to create a dense, layered sound that received mixed reviews at release but grew in stature for decades. Rolling Stone ranked it #7 on its 500 Greatest Albums of All Time in its 2020 updated list.

Released in December 1979 and named the greatest album of the 1980s by Rolling Stone magazine (despite its 1979 release date), London Calling is a double album that draws on punk, reggae, rockabilly, ska, and new wave. The album was recorded at Wessex Sound Studios in London and features the anthemic title track protesting nuclear power and contemporary urban crisis. Rolling Stone ranked it the 8th greatest album of all time in its 2020 updated list.