Top Ten Psychedelic Rock Albums of All Time

A countdown of the best psychedelic rock albums ever made. From The Beatles to The Doors, Pink Floyd to The Grateful Dead, these are the records that defined mind-expanding music.

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

1. The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
2. Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
3. The Doors – The Doors (1967)
4. Led Zeppelin – Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
5. Jimi Hendrix – Are You Experienced? (1967)
6. King Crimson – In the Court of the Crimson King (1969)
7. Grateful Dead – Workingman’s Dead (1970)
8. Van Morrison – Astral Weeks (1968)
9. David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (1972)
10. Can – Tago Mago (1971)

The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds

This is an article about the top ten psychedelic rock albums of all time. The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds is number one on the list.

The Beach Boys – Pet Sounds: One of the most influential pop albums of all time, and certainly the best work The Beach Boys ever did, this 1966 release is downright eerie in its timeless ability to sound both sweet and 50 years old at the same time. The techniques Brian Wilson used on songs like “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” and “God Only Knows” would be co-opted by everyone from The Beatles to Steely Dan over the ensuing decades.

Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn

Widely regarded as one of the best and most influential psychedelic rock albums of all time, Pink Floyd’s The Piper at the Gates of Dawn was released in August 1967. It is the only album to feature Syd Barrett on lead vocals and guitar. The album is named after a chapter in Kenneth Grahame’s book The Wind in the Willows, and Barrett drew inspiration from the book for several of the songs.

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is a loose concept album revolving around childhood innocence, adventure, and fantasy. It contains some of Pink Floyd’s best-known songs, including “Lucifer Sam”, “Interstellar Overdrive”, and “The Gnome”. The album was a commercial success, peaking at number 6 on the UK Albums Chart. In 2003, it was ranked number 220 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced

Released in May 1967, this was the debut album from The Jimi Hendrix Experience and it immediately established Hendrix as a rock guitar god. It contains some of Hendrix’s most iconic songs, including “Purple Haze”, “Fire”, and “The Wind Cries Mary”. While it may not be the most overtly psychedelic album on this list, it is certainly one of the most influential.

The Doors – The Doors

1. The Doors – The Doors
2. The Beatles – Revolver
3. The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced
4. King Crimson – In the Court of the Crimson King
5. Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
6. Syd Barrett – The Madcap Laughs
7. Love – Forever Changes
8. 13th Floor Elevators – Easter Everywhere
9. The Grateful Dead – Anthem of the Sun
10. Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band – Trout Mask Replica

Love – Forever Changes

Love’s 1968 album Forever Changes is one of the most beautifully written and arranged pop albums of all time, let alone the best psychedelic rock album. The record is an honest and sometimes dark reflection on frontman Arthur Lee’s deteriorating relationship with his bandmates, as well as the world around him. Despite its sad tone, Forever Changes is ultimately an uplifting and incredibly moving listen from start to finish.

The Velvet Underground – The Velvet Underground & Nico

Released in 1967, The Velvet Underground & Nico was the first album by the American rock band The Velvet Underground and the German singer Nico. It was recorded in 1966 and released in early 1967 by Verve Records. Despite its lack of commercial success upon release, the album is now widely considered one of the greatest and most influential rock albums of all time, having been ranked number 19 on Rolling Stone magazine’s list of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time” and number 3 on Pitchfork Media’s list of the “Top 100 Albums of the 1960s”.

13th Floor Elevators – The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators

1. The 13th Floor Elevators – The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators (1966)

2. Love – Forever Changes (1967)

3. The Jimi Hendrix Experience – Are You Experienced? (1967)

4. Pink Floyd – The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967)

5. Jefferson Airplane – Surrealistic Pillow (1967)

6. The Doors – Strange Days (1967)

7. Vanilla Fudge – Vanilla Fudge (1967)

8. Cream – Disraeli Gears (1967)

9. The Grateful Dead – Anthem of the Sun (1968)

10.The Kinks – Are the Village Green Preservation Society (1968)

The Grateful Dead – Anthem of the Sun

Anthem of the Sun is the second studio album by rock band the Grateful Dead, released in 1968. It was the first of three that were originally released simultaneously on Warner Bros. Records (the others being Aoxomoxoa and Live/Dead). Anthem of the Sun was recorded between March and October 1967 and contains influences from psychedelic rock, modal jazz, classical music, and space rock. It is one of the first albums to use multi-track recording techniques, with “Alligator” being one of the first pop songs recorded with 16-track technology.

The album peaked at number 87 on the Billboard 200 chart and has been certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked it number 288 on their list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band – Trout Mask Replica

Considered by many to be the first truly avant-garde rock album, Trout Mask Replica is also one of the most challenging listens in all of psychedelic rock. Released in 1969, the album was the product of an intense period of collaboration between reclusive genius Captain Beefheart and his band – who were required to live and rehearse together in a remote house in the desert, following a strict regime set out by their leader. The results are both exhilarating and confounding, with Beefheart’s howling vocals and slide guitar work set against a backdrop of highly complex, atonal arrangements. Trout Mask Replica is an album that demands – and rewards – multiple listens, and its influence can be heard in the work of everyone from Frank Zappa to Pixies.