That's hard. I'll give you a few based on my limited knowledge:

1959 -- strictly from a jazz standpoint, the releases included Kind of Blue, Time Out, The Shape of Jazz to Come, Ella Fitzgerald Sings the George and Ira Gershwin Songbook and Blowin' The Blues Away.

1968 -- across the board, a pivotal year in history is also a pivotal year in music. Electric Ladyland, Beggars Banquet, Dock of the Bay, Lady Soul and At Folsom Prison are just some of the releases.

1971 -- I'm with you on that year: What's Goin' On, Blue, There's A Riot Goin' On, Sticky Fingers, L.A. Woman, Maggot Brain, Al Green Gets Next To You and Pieces of A Man among them.

1977 -- this may be the deepest year of small-p popular music in my lifetime. so many artists released their best albums/classic albums, and so many artists were breaking out and breaking new ground, and the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack set off a cultural revolution. Hell, even the Star Wars score was legendary.

1984 -- this year was arguably the biggest in pop history. Prince, Madonna and Bruce Springsteen joined MJ in superstardom. New artists like R.E.M. were breaking ground and rap music was continuing to build a critical mass of artists releasing quality albums.

1987 -- this year may have been the 80's 1977, with Prince and MJ releasing commercial and/or artistic smashes, U2 reaching superstardom, alternative music finding a place in the mainstream, and hip-hop becoming a cultural and commercial force.

1994 -- alternative and hip-hop music dominated, and for my , 1994 is the greatest year in hip-hop history.

[Edited 12/28/20 15:54pm]

ReddBlitz said:

Didn't Rolling Stone already confirm 1984 as THE year?

>

I'm gonna throw in 1991 becasue that's the year Nirvana ushered in the alternative movement, a period close to my heart.

CynicKill said:

JayCrawford said:

CynicKill said:

Didn't Rolling Stone already confirm 1984 as THE year?

>

I'm gonna throw in 1991 becasue that's the year Nirvana ushered in the alternative movement, a period close to my heart.

Did they say 1984? If so then I'm kinda surprised because everywhere I go is always 1968. But 84 was a crazy year for music.

They said something to the fact that it was the best year for pop songs.

CynicKill said:

1. 1984

2. 1985

3. 1986

4. 1991

5. 1992

6. 1983

7. 1981

8. 1977

9. 1975

10. 1979

1. 1982: The Prince vs. Rick James feud at it's biggest showdown. Prince going after Rick with both barrels this year with "1999" which was not only his best album ever, but also a double album. Rick had out "Throwin' Down" which was one of his baddest albums ever. It was kinda like "Street Songs" part 2 kinda like "Controversy" felt like "Dirty Mind" part 2. Those two were fighting to the death back then. Then Prince had come back with not just one side project, but two, which was The Time and Vanity 6. Rick was doing the same thing with albums from The Mary Jane Girls and the Stone City Band which didn't come out until a few months later until 1983 but you've got to remember, Prince's albums came out in late 1982 so the battle between all those acts had spilled over to clash with Rick's.

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This was also the year that so many 12 Inch versions were coming out with extra added feels to them than previous 12 Inches. Previous 12 Inches seemed to take a song and just extend different portions from the album version and repeat them over and over. But 1982 seemed to be the year when more and more of them would go back in and record portions of the song that sounded totally different and then add them throughout the album version which extended the song. 12 Inches like Prince's "Little Red Corvette", Donna Summer's "Love Is In Control", The Barkays' "Do It (Let Me See You Shake)" and "She Talks To Me With Her Body", George Clinton's "Atomic Dog", The Gap Band's "You Dropped A Bomb On Me", Con Funk Shun's "Ms. Got The Body".....all great 12 Inches that year with added extended portions sounding different than the album versions.

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Space funk was all over the place that year. It started with Soul Sonic Force's "Planet Rock". Not only was the vocal side good, but you could flip the 12 Inch over and the instrumental was even better and it wasn't just the same as the A side with no vocals, it was a totally different version with breakdowns, more explosions, more vocoder. It was just hot. Planet Patrol did the same with the "Play At Your Own Risk" 12 Inch, The Jonzun Crew also with "Pack Jam". Prince had the entire "1999" album that year that was futuristic. When the album began with the lines.... "Don't worry. I won't hurt you.".... it made me think of a futuristic space creature that had just come to Earth and had taken over. Stacy Lattisaw had out "Attack Of The Name Game". Instant Funk with "No Stoppin' That Rockin'". Warp 9 with "Nunk (New Wave Funk)". Bootsy's Rubberband with "Body Slam". It was 1982 and we thought we were hearing what the 2000s would sound like. Boy, were we wrong and never imagined in our wildest dreams that the 2000s would be the snoozefest that it turned out to be.

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2. 1984: The beginning of my senior year in high school (1984-1985). I always thought about musical years in terms of the grade I was in school back then than the actual year. Like the previous year above this one, 1982. When I was typing it, I was actually thinking in my head (sophomore year, 10th grade). Anyway, 1984 was the Prince explosion. "Purple Rain", The Time, Apollonia 6, Sheila E, Sheena Easton's "Sugar Walls". Tina Turner was hot that year with her "Private Dancer" album. So much great funk that year also from folks like The Barkays, Midnight Star, Lakeside, Jermaine Stewart, Paul Hardcastle, Roy Ayers, Griffin, Chaka Khan, The Jacksons, Roger, Klymaxx, Carol Lyn Townes, Egyptian Lover, Twilight 22, Pretty Tony.

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3. 1979 - Disco, disco, disco. Donna Summer was at her best ever with "Bad Girls". Foxy was back with "Hot Number". Con Funk Shun with "Chase Me". Rick had two albums that year, "Bustin' Out Of L Seven" and "Fire It Up". Michael Jackson had the "Off The Wall" album. This was the year I first discovered Prince with "I Wanna Be Your Lover". Mass Production with "Firecracker". Shalamar had out "The Second Time Around" and a really hot one "Right In The Socket". Lakeside's "Rough Riders" album. The Whispers "And The Beat Goes On". Lipps, Inc. "Funkytown". Jams were all over the place.

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4. 1978 - I was originally going to stop with a "Top Three" list but I can't mention 1979 without mentioning 1978 because that's the year that led up to the 1979 climax. Plus, I always get a lot of songs from 1978 blurred with 1979 because I always think of music in terms of the grade I was in school (6th Grade: 1978-1979). All these spilled over and seemed to lead up to and blend with 1979. Foxy's "Get Off" which is my alltime favorite disco song. Amii Stewart's "Knock On Wood" with those cracks of thunder and hard knocking sounds...that was a HOT one. The Village People, Chic, A Taste Of Honey, The Jacksons, Bell and James, David Naughton's "Makin' It", Isaac Hayes "Don't Let Go", Donna Summer's "Last Dance", "McArthur's Park", and "Heaven Knows", Peaches and Herb. Disco, disco, DISCO all over the place and it was HOT.