Your 52

When coming up with 52 albums you need to hear before you shuffle off this mortal coil, there are always going to be some obvious choices. Like Pink Floyd DSoTM, a no-brainer for any list. We’ve kept the classics alongside albums we’re confident you haven’t heard before. 

And just in case you don’t want to dedicate the time to a full listen of an album per week (because not everyone likes albums), we’ve selected our favorite tracks from each and put them in a playlist, so you can get 52 top tracks in one sitting, if you feel like it.

They are roughly grouped, so you can take them section by section, but keep in mind the order isn’t fixed; you can pick and choose.

Little Richard, Here's Little Richard (1957) Energetic and rich, a true no-skip. We got introduced to this one via 1001 Albums.

Top Track: True Fine Mama

Ravi Shankar, The Sounds of India (1957 the original Columbia release.) Teaches you structure, discipline, and how sound can be spiritual. Don’t for a second think this is our only non-English language album on the list. This is the start.

Top Track: Raga Jog

Miles Davis, Kind of Blue (1959) Controlled chaos. Improvisation redefined, and the birth of a new way to play. The cleanest entry point into jazz without dumbing anything down.

Top Track: So What

Nina Simone, Pastel Blues (1965) Do it justice, give it time. Don’t skip, just settle in.

Top Track: Strange Fruit

Bob Dylan, Blonde on Blonde (1966) This made every songwriter pause for a second and ask themselves, can I be doing better? (yeah, probably, is usually the answer).

Top Track: Temporary Like Achilles

The Velvet Underground & Nico, The Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) Every indie band you like is borrowing from this record, whether they admit it or not.

Top Track: Heroin

Caetano Veloso & Gilberto Gil, Tropicália ou Panis et Circencis (1968) Tropicalismo in all its glory. Culturally slaps you on the forehead in just the right spot.

Top Track: Baby

The Beatles, Abbey Road (1969) Studio precision meets pop. This is the closest we get to a perfect landing (if you don't like The Beatles, that's okay, just listen for the production).

Top Track: Something

The Shaggs, Philosophy of the World (1969 original private-press LP; later reissues in the 80s) Outsider art at its finest. So wrong it becomes right. We love this album. A lot.

Top Track: My Pal Foot Foot

Joni Mitchell, Blue (1971) Musically, not everyone loves it (us, actually), lyrically it is a wonder to behold.

Top Track: Carey

Pink Floyd, The Dark Side of the Moon (1973) Anxiety, time, money, and madness in immaculate production - makes every list for everything for a reason. One that becomes more relatable the longer you spend alive.

Top Track: Time

Patti Smith, Horses (1975) Punk's poetic backbone (or something like that). A record that breaks the door and hands you the pieces. We're also a fan of Patti's substack.

Top Track: Gloria

Fela Kuti, Expensive Shit (1975) Afrobeat with political voltage and unstoppable groove. Pulling in Yoruba, psychedelic rock, jazz, funk, and absolutely unwavering beat. Find live videos and watch him in action.

Top Track: Water No Get Enemy

Ryo Fukui, Scenery (1976) Japanese jazz with a dollop of charm and a side of expertise. Smooth without losing what we love jazz for.

Top Track: It Could Happen to You

Bob Marley & The Wailers, Exodus (1977) Spirituality with easy, delightful melody, incredible listening, and will probably teach you something.

Top Track: Jamming

Kraftwerk, Trans Europe Express (1977) Only liars say that Kraftwerk didn't define moments.

Top Track: Trans Europe Express

The Clash, London Calling (1979) What's not to enjoy? Noise with purpose.

Top Track: London Calling

Ryuichi Sakamoto, Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence (1983) Minimalist piano that carries entire films. Emotional without being loud about it. Beautiful.

Top Track: Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence

Prince, Purple Rain (1984) A perfect genre hybrid with zero wasted moments. Prince is an undeniable force, with flawless writing, incredible composition, and a storyteller like no other.

Top Track: The Beautiful Ones

Bruce Springsteen, Born in the USA (1984) A cliché, yes, but slick and a class commentary.

Top Track: I'm On Fire

Youssou N'Dour, Immigrés (1984) Mbalax brilliance. A voice with vitality and sound built on rhythm-first thinking. We’re not worthy, and yet...

Top Track: Immigrés/Bitim Rew

Kate Bush, Hounds of Love (1985) This is the moment pop realised it could be strangely deep and commercial at the same time. And, as we’ve seen over the last few years, it continues to entice new generations.

Top Track: Running Up That Hill

Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Shahen-Shah (1989) Legendary Qawwali devotional music, a voice that doesn't care about language barriers because it goes straight through them. If you've ever wondered what spiritual sounds like, there are a few on the list, but this one might be the most renowned.

Top Track: Allah Hoo Allah Hoo

A Tribe Called Quest, The Low End Theory (1991) Jazz, rap, rhythm, and intelligence. A masterclass in flow and production. One of the finest albums ever recorded, yes, and every word deliberate.

Top Track: Check the Rhime

A. R. Rahman, Roja (1992) A turning point for film music. Our top track for this one is almost magical, feels more like a fusion. Genuinely just a happy feel album.

Top Track: Chinna Chinna Aasai

Khaled, N'ssi N'ssi (1993) Raï's global breakout. This is the sound of North African dance floors meeting the world, and now it meets your ears.

Top Track: N'Ssi N'Ssi

Nas, Illmatic (1994) New York storytelling at foundational level. Legacy.

Top Track: N.Y. State of Mind

Jeff Buckley, Grace (1994) Falsetto worship begins here for most people. An album no collection is complete without.

Top Track: So Real

Selena, Amor Prohibido (1994) A cultural phenomenon with a truckload of heart.

Top Track: No Me Queda Más

Portishead, Dummy (1994) Trip-hop that sounds like a film noir soundtrack you've never seen but somehow remember, sitting on the tip of your tongue, and you can’t get there. Beth Gibbons' voice does things to you, as it should.

Top Track: Glory Box

Angelique Kidjo, Fifa (1996) Pan-African pop that refuses to stay in one lane. Kidjo pulls from everywhere - highlife, funk, salsa - and makes it all sound like it was always supposed to fit together.

Top Track: Wombo Lombo

Björk, Homogenic (1997) Organic and digital fused into something untouchable at the time. She mapped out the future, and we're all just playing in it.

Top Track: Bachelorette

Buena Vista Social Club, Buena Vista Social Club (1997) Cuban legends who'd been playing Son and Bolero for decades, finally recorded properly. Warm, effortless, and feels like sitting in on something that was happening anyway, but you arrived at the right time.

Top Track: Chan Chan

Cesária Évora, Cabo Verde (1997) Think salty sea air, longing, and emotional fluency. Evora makes quiet feel enormous.

Top Track: Partida

Lauryn Hill, The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998) Proved every single person wrong about what a woman in hip-hop could do and then some.

Top Track: Doo Wop (That Thing)

Massive Attack, Mezzanine (1998) Atmospheric tension engineered for maximum impact, and we all know that one song, right?

Top Track: Teardrop

PJ Harvey, Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000) Raw, urgent, refusing to be anything other than exactly what it is. A rock album that doesn't apologise for being loud or feeling things.

Top Track: Good Fortune

Daft Punk, Discovery (2001) Electronic joy engineered with meticulous precision, so clean, so crisp, beautifully delivered.

Top Track: Digital Love

Hikaru Utada, Deep River (2002) J-pop that sounds more introspective than most of what was dominating the charts. Utada stripped back the production, leaned into quieter moments, and proved pop didn't need to be maximalist to connect.

Top Track: Final Distance

Goran Bregović, Tales and Songs from Weddings and Funerals (2002) A whirlwind of brass, grief, joy, and chaos. Balkan energy at cinematic scale. This album will probably have you wondering what you are listening to a couple of times, but you’ll go with it anyway.

Top Track: Hop Hop Hop

Tinariwen, Aman Iman (2007) Hypnotic blues guitar work with real history behind it. Cler Achel, our top track, has one of the best openings we’ve heard in a while. We’re testing your polyjamorous listening.

Top Track: Cler Achel

Radiohead, In Rainbows (2007) Texture, intimacy, and studio mastery. For many people, this should be where they start with Radiohead, but not the end.

Top Track: Jigsaw Falling Into Place

Ludovico Einaudi, Islands (2011) Sometimes you can get punched right in the emotions without a word being said; this album is that. Sorry. Listen on a good week.

Top Track: Nuvole Bianche

Frank Ocean, channel ORANGE (2012) Genre-melting intimacy and emotional transparency, Frank gave us himself in this one. Modern classic status is earned immediately.

Top Track: Pyramids

Seun Kuti & Egypt 80, A Long Way to the Beginning (2014) Legacy. That’s it.

Top Track: IMF

Kendrick Lamar, To Pimp a Butterfly (2015) Jazz meets hip-hop meets rage meets history meets now. You could argue for DAMN or GNX, but TPaB is lyrically dense and incredible.

Top Track: Alright

Beyoncé, Lemonade (2016) Pop at its most personal and business-airing, and catchy AF. High craft, high impact.

Top Track: Hold Up

Rosalía, El Mal Querer (2018) Flamenco reimagined for a contemporary audience with sharp conceptual framing and production choices that still feel ahead of the market.

Top Track: MALAMENTE

Gary Clark Jr., This Land (2019) Our first listen to Pearl Cadillac had us thinking it was Prince. The rest of the album is a display of guitar skills and vocal range; we’re here for it.

Top Track: Dirty Dishes Blues

Hozier, Unreal Unearth Unending (2024, the extended release) Best if you go for the version we've mentioned, it includes more tracks. You’re here for the yell and the intricate writing.

Top Track: Hymn To Virgil

Bad Bunny, DtMF (2025) Global cultural force, an album no one saw coming, but we all needed. Regional sound with worldwide impact, and boy, we’re glad it happened.

Top Track: NuevaYol

Tyler, the Creator, Don't Tap the Glass (2025) Tyler refuses constraints, pulling from multiple genres, twisting them, and bending them to his will. We know 2025 is a little early to add to a must-listen list, but the release date shouldn’t impact the work being recognized.

Top Track: Ring Ring Ring

-END (for now)-

We’re only human, and here are the ones we just couldn’t leave out…

Love, Four Sail Underrated 60s craftsmanship. Rolling riffs with surprising finesse, underplayed.

Top Track: Singing Cowboy

John Cale, Fear Art-rock. Underrated and essential.

Top Track: Gun

Arctic Monkeys, AM Unapologetically of its time and place, no notes. Timeless.

Top Track: Do I Wanna Know?

Nico, Chelsea Girl A contradiction, Nico hated the album due to a lack of control (flutes and strings added when she didn't want them). Still… worth it.

Top Track: I'll Keep It With Mine

-END (really)-

Until next time,