The standard old “if I had to limit myself to 100 albums for the rest of my life…”-type list.

Rule #1: no “best ofs” or compilations I’ve made myself.

Exception: live recordings and compilations of old blues artists limited to a specific time period).

Rule #2: try to stick to one album per artist.

And, yes, albums do still matter in the age of digital music.

(This list is based on a smaller list I worked out a few years ago.)

Ordered chronologically, subject to my whims, and based not necessarily on artistic merit alone (or at all). You’ll note there aren’t 100 albums yet and that there are some variations from the original list of 50. This is a work in progress until I die.