Top Ten Albums of All Time

The ten best selling albums of all time contain music from the likes of Michael Jackson, The Eagles, Shania Twain, Pink Floyd, Billy Joel and Led Zeppelin.
According to Digital Dream Door, these are the top ten best selling albums of all time in the USA, which thus not surprisingly include some compilation albums but also some all time classics such as Thriller by Michael Jackson and The Wall by Pink Floyd. The Beatles only get one album in the chart, and that is the untitled 1968 release that became known as The White Album.

What is interesting is the variety of musical styles from the rock sounds of AC/DC and Led Zeppelin to the country pop of Shania Twain.

Though this list is in the order initially published by Digital Dream Door, a surge in sales since Michael Jackson’s death may have elevated Thriller to the number one slot.

Greatest Hits 1971-1975 – The Eagles
Asylum Records put out this compilation in 1976 and includes nine previously released singles and “Desperado”, which was the title track of their second studio album.

Thriller – Michael Jackson
Released in 1982, Thriller was Michael Jackson’s sixth studio album. Part of its success can be attributed to the music video of the title track, which was more of a short film than a traditional music video.

The Wall – Pink Floyd
The Wall was released right at the end of the 1970s and was the band’s eleventh studio album. The double LP contained 26 tracks the most famous of which is “Another Brick in The Wall”, which was the Christmas number one in 1979.
Led Zeppelin IV – Led Zeppelin
The band’s fourth album had no title as such with just four symbols on the sleeve, which meant some also called it Four Symbols. Released in 1971, the album contains arguably the most famous of the band’s tracks – “Stairway to Heaven”.

Back in Black – AC/DC
Australian rock band AC/DC released this their sixth studio album in 1980 and it was their first album without former lead singer Bon Scott, who died earlier that year.

Greatest Hits Volumes I & II – Billy Joel
This double compilation album came out in 1985 and contains songs released between 1973 and 1985. The initial release had 21 tracks but a CD version was later released with four additional tracks.

Double Live – Garth Brooks
This live album was recorded during Garth Brooks’ world tour in 1998 and was released later that year. During its first seven weeks it was released with seven different covers.

Come on Over – Shania Twain
This was Shania Twain’s third studio album and was released in 1997 and is claimed to be the best selling country studio album of all time and is also the best selling studio album of all time by a female artist and best selling album by a Canadian.

The White Album – The Beatles
This double album actually has no name. Its all white cover earned it the nickname The White Album by fans and the name stuck. Released in 1968, it was the band’s ninth album and the first one on the Apple label. Key tracks included “Back in the USSR”, “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” and the George Harrison song “While My Guitar Gentle Weeps”.

Rumours – Fleetwood Mac
Rumours by Fleetwood Mac was released early in 1977 and stayed top of the Billboard charts for 31 consecutive weeks. The eleven tracks included “Gold Dust Woman” and “Dreams”.

Top Ten Albums and Bubbling Under
As usual with charts such as these, some of the more interesting albums lie just below the most popular in terms of sales and this is no exception with Boston’s debut album and Whitney Houston’s The Bodyguard soundtrack just missing out on the top ten albums. Not much further down the list are greats such as Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd, Physical Graffiti by Led Zeppelin, Bat Out of Hell by Meat Loaf and Born in the USA by Bruce Springsteen.