A co-worker was recently asked what would seem to be a simple question but is actually pretty complicated: What is your favorite album of all time? He didn’t have a simple answer and I wouldn’t either.

I tend to connect albums to very specific memories or phases in my life. Some of my favorite albums are ones I haven’t touched in years just because they don’t appeal to my current taste, but I don’t love them any less.

I tried to make a list of my top 5 albums. Then my top 10. Then my top 25. I finally settled on 50, divided up into different phases of my life. And yes, I did put way too much thought into this list, thanks for asking.

You may also notice that I stopped listening to new music once I got out of college in 2011. Yeah, well… whatever.

(Note: I didn’t include compilation albums or soundtracks in this list. That’s… that’s a whole nother list.)

Pre-High School

Savage Garden Savage Garden	Prozzäk Saturday People	Spice Girls Spice Girls
Shakira Laundry Service	Sixpence None the Richer  Sixpence None the Richer

• Savage Garden was my favorite band for a long time. Good shit.
• Prozzäk’s Saturday People is super fun and underrated.
• What 90s girl DIDN’T love the Spice Girls?
• Laundry Service is a sick album.
• Sixpence None the Richer deserves better than the ‘one-hit wonder’ title they now have. This album is gorgeous.

High School

No Doubt Tragic Kingdom	No Doubt Return of Saturn	Bif Naked I Bificus
Jack off Jill Clear Hearts Grey Flowers	The Distillers Coral Fang	Metric Live It Out
The Dresden Dolls Yes, Virginia…	The Dresden Dolls The Dresden Dolls	Coldplay A Rush of Blood to the Head
Garbage Garbage	Garbage Version 2.0	Garbage Bleed Like Me
Yeah Yeah Yeahs Fever to Tell	Yeah Yeah Yeahs Show Your Bones	Norah Jones Come Away With Me
Death Cab for Cutie Transatlanticism	Death Cab for Cutie Plans	Death Cab for Cutie The Photo Album
The Killers Hot Fuss

As you can likely tell, I discovered female-fronted rock in high school. I still listen to a lot of these albums.

College

Arcade Fire The Suburbs	Dan Mangan Nice, Nice, Very Nice	The Beatles The White Album
Be Your Own Pet Be Your Own Pet	Joel Plaskett Emergency Ashtray Rock	Joel Plaskett Emergency Down at the Khyber
Of Monsters and Men My Head is an Animal	Rah Rah Going Steady	Rah Rah Breaking Hearts
The White Stripes Elephant

My college years, especially the first two, were defined by the live music I went to see. I listened to a lot of Plaskett, a lot of Arcade Fire, and a lot of Rah Rah. And Dan Mangan’s album “Nice, Nice, Very Nice” was on repeat for a good amount of time.

Post-College

Wolf Parade Expo 86	Hooded Fang Album	Dan Mangan Oh Fortune
Amy Winehouse Back to Black	Amanda Palmer & the Grand Theft Orchestra Theatre is Evil	Fleetwood Mac Rumours
Patti Smith Horses	The Pack a.d. Unpersons	Robyn Body Talk
Supertramp Breakfast in America	David Bowie The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars	Joel Plaskett Emergency Scrappy Happiness
Pixies Doolittle	Mother Mother O My Heart	Japandroids Celebration Rock
Sirah C.U.L.T. Too Young to Die

These albums are the ones that have stood the test of time within the confines of my life. I still listen to a lot of these albums because not only do they remind me of different moments of my life, they also just sound good. I don’t do much adventuring when it comes to finding new music anymore. I usually just end up listening to what the husband recommends to me or bands that come up under “also liked” sections of streaming services.

Do you like any of these albums? Now that you know my taste in music, do you have any recommendations for me? Let me know in the comments!