The bountiful period of the mid-’60s, when each year brought developments in rock and pop music that would carry into later generations, readymade for shaping into forms that reflected an unparalleled individualism, reached its summit in 1966.
The best records of the year, whether singles or albums, seemed to cross a line, imaginary or not, that divided the decade. As the list below of the Top 25 albums of 1966 shows, the year was as much a turning point as an indication of things to come.
For every achievement noted in 1967 — the emergence of psychedelia, the blurring of genre borders, the development of the album as a true art form — each had its origins in 1966, from the Beatles paving the path to Sgt. Pepper’s to the Rolling Stones, clouding the definition of blues.
READ MORE: Top 40 Songs of 1966
Rock and pop LPs found new ways of expression throughout 1966. While many of the year’s best records structured pop music to fit a new model, one more open to risk-taking and line-crossing, the album tested the possibilities of long-playing works that needn’t adhere to the limits of the two-and-a-half-minute pop single.
The best albums of 1966 aren’t just relics of their time; the very best of them have endured for decades as among the best records ever made. A revolution was indeed right around the corner. But 1967 wouldn’t have become a banner year for rock and pop music without the trails forged only a year before. In so many ways, 1966 was every bit the equal.
Top 25 Albums of 1966
Rock and pop LPs found new ways of expression during the year. A revolution was right around the corner.
Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci
