The Best Psychedelic Rock Albums of All Time

A list of the best psychedelic rock albums of all time, as chosen by the editorial team at Classic Rock.

The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

The Beatles’ eighth studio album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, is the band’s most psychedelic work. Released in 1967, the album features complex arrangements and sound effects, as well as Indian instrumentation from sitar player Ravi Shankar. The album’s artwork is also notable for its use of collage and psychedelic colors.

The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds

No other album – not even Sgt. Pepper – so fully captured the spirit of the Sixties as Pet Sounds, an aural collage that expressed Brian Wilson’s love of Phil Spector’s pop orchestrations and the Beach Boys’ own genetically encoded gift for vocal harmony. The contrast between the idyllic lyricism of “Wouldn’t It Be Nice,” “God Only Knows” and “Caroline No” and the narcotic unease of “I’m Waiting for the Day,” “I Know There’s an Answer (Have You Seen Her?)” and “Inside Looking Out” makes for one of pop music’s most enduring emotional roller coasters.

Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon

Released in 1973, “The Dark Side of the Moon” is the eighth studio album by English rock band Pink Floyd. The album built on the style of their previous work, but with a more accessible and commercial sound. It was an instant success, spending 741 weeks on the Billboard 200 chart.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced

The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced (1967)

Are You Experienced is the debut album by The Jimi Hendrix Experience. Released in 1967, it was the first LP for Track Records and was a major critical and commercial success. The album features some of Hendrix’s best-known songs, including “Purple Haze”, “Fire”, and “The Wind Cries Mary”.

Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV

Few debut albums are as explosive and influential as Led Zeppelin’s self-titled record, but the English rockers outdid themselves with their fourth album, commonly referred to as Led Zeppelin IV. Recorded in a rural cottage in Wales and released in 1971, the album features some of the band’s most popular songs, including “Stairway to Heaven,” “Black Dog,” and “Rock and Roll.” With its mix of hard rock, folk, and blues, Led Zeppelin IV cemented the band’s reputation as one of the most innovative and exciting rock bands of all time.

The Doors – The Doors

The Doors’ self-titled debut album was released in 1967 and was an instant success. The record contains some of the band’s most well-known tracks, including “Break On Through (To the Other Side)”, “Light My Fire” and “The End”. It is one of the most influential albums of all time, not just in the world of psychedelic rock, and has been selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry.

The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico

The Velvet Underground’s 1966 debut is one of the most influential albums in rock history. It’s also one of the strangest and most unsettling. Recorded with future Warhol superstar Nico on lead vocals, the album is a jarring, avant-garde mishmash of pop, rock, and avant-garde experimentalism that sounds like nothing else that came before it. It’s also an oddly beautiful and affecting record, thanks in large part to Nico’s detached, chilling vocal delivery. The album would go on to inspire countless bands in the decades that followed, and its influence can still be heard in much of modern rock music.

The Who – Who’s Next

Released in 1971, Who’s Next is the fifth studio album by English rock band The Who. The album was a commercial success, reaching number one in the UK and number four in the US. It has been included in several lists of the greatest albums of all time, including Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, NME’s 100 Greatest Albums of All Time, and VH1’s 100 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Who’s Next features tracks like “Won’t Get Fooled Again” and “Baba O’Riley”, which are considered two of the greatest rock songs ever recorded. The album is also notable for its innovative use of synthesizers and other electronic instrumentation.

David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars

David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars is the fifth studio album by English musician David Bowie, released on 16 June 1972 by RCA Records. It is commonly regarded as one of the greatest and most influential albums of all time, and has been ranked as one of the greatest albums of all time by publications such as NME, Time, and Rolling Stone.

Neil Young – Harvest

Neil Young’s 1972 classic, “Harvest,” is often cited as one of the greatest psychedelic rock albums of all time. The album features Young’s trademark guitar work and plaintive vocals, backed by a rotating cast of musicians that includes country legend Emmylou Harris and Young’s then-wife, Pegi Young. “Harvest” is a timeless classic that blends country, folk, and rock into a unique and memorable whole.