The N&G Top 500 Albums of All Time!!!

Woob_woob

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Rolling Stone did it, but im sure we can do it better.

RULES
  • Voting will be done in private, only votes Dmed to me will count
  • Votes will be in the form of list of 50 Greatest Albums lists (50 points for #1, 49 for #2....1 point for #50)
  • There are no restrictions on what is considered an album
  • All votes are due by 12/1/2020
  • Votes can be DMed to me at any time from now til the due date, but once a vote is entered it can't be edited



Other than that have fun. From now til 12/1/2020 feel free to talk up albums, post your list (or dont), talk about albums you think will make the main list but shouldn't, or really anything you'd like. Let's have fun talking about music.

If anyone wants to do a write up for one (or multiple) of their favorite albums I will use them in the unveiling of the final list. Write ups can be as long or short as possible. Just DM me your write up with the Album name in the subject, and make each write up a separate DM. I will credit you with your write up in the post unless you would prefer to remain anonymous in which case mark that at the beginning of the write up. I cant wait to read any and all entries!
 
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Rolling Stone did it, but im sure we can do it better.

I'm not totally sure what scoring or rules should be, so I'll be taking suggestions on that/feel out if there is enough intrest.

Two familiar options are the AOTY method (1=10 points, 2=9, etc....) except probably with a bigger list per person then just 10. Or the Year End Megalist option where everyone has a set number of points the can give out to however many albums fit. I'd also gladly listen to any new third option.

Hope people are into this, any questions please ask away, I can't wait to see all the lists.

Personally I think that the weighting should be dependent on where it comes in your list (ie 10/20/50 for 1 down to 1 for 10/20/50). That way you have to consider where you place things, and it means something rather than randomly giving your top 5 full points.

I know Rolling Stone let each contributor chose 50 but I think that would likely make this a thankless task that might drive you to insanity. Maybe 20/25 picks each might give a better balance?

Anyway, however it’s scored, if we get a large enough chunk of the forum involved I’m betting that we can put together a great list!
 
This is going to be a huge and stressful project but I think it'll be a lot of fun. One thing I think we should do is make it slightly longer term, so we have some time to review albums we might not have listened to in a while and inevitably change our minds a dozen times before we submit a ballot. Not sure what scoring system might make sense but an individual top 20 might be too small, though it would be easier to count.
 
On board.... I’m not sure about methodology. I kind of think 50 is the way to go. We know there is a bit of hive mind here and we might not even get five hundred if we go with only twenty. I fully expect my #2 album to not make the list period.
 
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On board.... I’m not sure about methodology. I kind of thing 50 is the way to go. We know there is a bit of hive mind here and we might not even get five hundred if we go with only twenty. I fully expect my #2 album to not make the list period.

My worry would be that 50 is a daunting number and could put some off doing the list. Also @Woob_woob sanity....

Although might this be an idea as a comprimise, you can pick a max of 50.

Your number 1 gets 50, and 2 get 49 etc, regardless of how many you pick but if you only want to pick 10/20/25 you only get the points as far down as you go.
 
I’d say 50 or 100. I’ve never made a personal list that goes beyond 50 but I’d be willing to try it for this project.

Also, are we thinking “greatest albums” or “favorite albums”?

For me it’s the same thing. I think it’s a nonsense exercise if you try to take yourself out of your own taste and pick them any other way. The aggregate of tonnes of peoples favourites is what makes them the greatest.
 
For me it’s the same thing. I think it’s a nonsense exercise if you try to take yourself out of your own taste and pick them any other way. The aggregate of tonnes of peoples favourites is what makes them the greatest.

Interesting, obviously I disagree. Cultural impact is different from personal impact. E.g. just because something like TPAB is insignificant to me it doesn’t mean it’s not a great album. I think where we do agree is that this N&G list should be a list of “favorites.”

Part of the reason I’d rather go to 100 is because I’ve had a hard time incorporating jazz albums (most of which I’ve only been listening to for +/- 5 years) to my rock/pop rankings. It’ll be hard for me to justify bumping something like REM’s Life’s Rich Pageant (an album that would probably be at the back end of my top 50 but also something I’ve spent time with for 20+ years) to make room for a jazz album that has received many more spins over the past half decade but I don’t have as much of an emotional connection with. First-world problems, I know.
 
Interesting, obviously I disagree. Cultural impact is different from personal impact. E.g. just because something like TPAB is insignificant to me it doesn’t mean it’s not a great album. I think where we do agree is that this N&G list should be a list of “favorites.”

That assumes that objectivity exists, it doesn’t. The only way to get as objective a view as possible it to get as large and diverse an amount of subjective views as you can.
 
That assumes that objectivity exists, it doesn’t. The only way to get as objective a view as possible it to get as large and diverse an amount of subjective views as you can.

It wouldn’t be objective, but listing which albums one perceives as “the greatest” would still generate a different list from “personal favorites.” Or at least it would for me. In any event that’s not what I’ll be doing.
 
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