1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the "1001 Before You Die" series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics to be the most important, influential, and best in popular music between the 1950s and the 2010s. The book is edited by Robert Dimery, an English writer and editor who had previously worked for magazines such as "Time Out" and "Vogue". Each entry in the book's roughly chronological list  of albums is accompanied by a short essay written by a music critic, along with pictures, quotes, and additional information (such as the album's running time and producer). Compilations of various artists, and most film soundtracks, are excluded. Selection and sorting methodology. In the book's introduction, general editor Robert Dimery notes that the selections were also intended to bring attention to gifted songwriters. Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello and Nick Cave are named as examples. The release dates are chosen from the date the album first released in the artist's home country, and the version is the first  one released. In most cases, bonus tracks added for later versions are ignored. The editors also attempted to ensure that each album profiled was still available for purchase. Soundtracks that were not original material from a particular artist were also excluded. Editions. The 2005 edition starts with Frank Sinatra's "In the Wee Small Hours", and ends with "Get Behind Me Satan" by the White Stripes. As the book has been reissued several times, some albums are removed in each edition to make space for more recent albums. The 2010 edition ends with "It's Blitz!" by the Yeah, Yeah , Yeahs, while 2013 edition ends with "The Next Day" by David Bowie. The 2016 edition ends with "Blackstar", also by David Bowie. The 2018 edition ends with "Microshift" by Hookworms. The 2021 edition ends with "Heaux Tales" by Jazmine Sullivan. Critical reception. In February 2006, "Publishers Weekly" called the book a "bookshelf-busting testament to music geeks' mania for lists" and said it was "about as comprehensive a 'best-of' as any sane person could want". The reviewer added: "For music lovers, it doesn't get much better." Genres. Most of the book's recommendations are rock and pop albums  from the Western world. "1001 Albums" also features selections from world music, rhythm and blues, blues, folk, hip hop, country, electronic music, and jazz. The rock and pop albums include such subgenres as punk rock, grindcore, heavy metal, alternative rock, progressive rock, easy listening, thrash metal, grunge and rockabilly. Classical and modern art music are excluded. Artists. These artists have the most albums in the 2017 edition.