Out Magazine asked the questions “What makes an album great? And perhaps even more critical for this list, what makes a great album gay?” and then got some help. As they note:
To create our list of the 100 Greatest, Gayest Albums of All Time, we polled more than 100 actors, comedians, musicians, writers, critics, performance artists, label reps, and DJs, asking each to list the 10 albums that left the most indelible impressions on their lives. After receiving responses from Boy George, Rufus Wainwright, Cyndi Lauper, the Indigo Girls’ Amy Ray, Candis Cayne, Perez Hilton, Nate Berkus, Jake Shears, John Cameron Mitchell, Wilson Cruz, Justin Bond, Darren Hayes, Junior Vasquez, Bruce Vilanch, Janis Ian, the Cliks, Ari Gold, Holly Johnson, and a slew of others, we tallied the results to determine our top-100 list.
You’ll notice we expanded the catalog to include not only records by queer musicians but also any records that have had relevance to those voting…
Unfortunately, you don’t get to see the individual lists, though there are comments from the voters interspersed throughout. Also, what’s not explained is how you decide which George Michael album’s the queerest. As we’ve learned, lists don’t ever make 100% sense.
100 The Beatles – Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band
99 Joni Mitchell – For The Roses
98 Ferron – Testimony
97 Janis Ian – Between The Lines
96 Nick Drake – Bryter Layter
95 Culture Club – Kissing To Be Clever
94 Hair Original Broadway Cast – Hair
93 Sade – Lovers Rock
92 Morrissey – Viva Hate
91 Grace Jones – Nightclubbing
90 Kate Bush – The Kick Inside
89 Fifth Column – To Sir With Hate
88 Hüsker Dü – Zen Arcade
87 Madonna – Confessions On A Dance Floor
86 Madonna – Madonna
85 Nina Simone – Anthology
84 Cyndi Lauper – True Colors
83 Bette Midler – The Divine Miss M
82 Cher – Believe
81 Scissor Sisters – Ta-Dah
80 Rufus Wainwright – Want One
79 T. Rex – Electric Warrior
78 Various – The Rocky Horror Picture Show Soundtrack
77 New Order – Substance
76 Ani DiFranco – Imperfectly
75 Carole King – Tapestry
74 Michael Jackson – Off the Wall
73 Various – Fame Soundtrack
72 Donna Summer – Once Upon a Time
71 Elton John – Captain Fantastic and the Brown Dirt Cowboy
70 Rent Original Broadway Cast – Rent
69 Frances Faye – Caught In The Act
68 Nirvana – Nevermind
67 Hüsker Dü – Candy Apple Grey
66 Soft Cell – Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret
65 Le Tigre – Le Tigre
64 Patti Smith – Easter
63 Björk – Debut
62 Jeff Buckley – Grace
61 Sleater-Kinney – Dig Me Out
60 R.E.M. – Automatic For The People
59 Bronski Beat – The Age of Consent
58 Liz Phair – Exile in Guyville
57 Prince – Dirty Mind
56 Team Dresch – Personal Best
55 David Bowie – Diamond Dogs
54 Tori Amos – Little Earthquakes
53 Culture Club – Colour By Numbers
52 Kate Bush – Hounds of Love
51 Frankie Goes To Hollywood – Welcome to the Pleasuredome
50 Rufus Wainwright – Poses
49 Patti Smith – Horses
48 Cris Williamson – The Changer and the Changed
47 The Magnetic Fields – 69 Love Songs
46 Madonna – Ray of Light
45 Bikini Kill – Pussy Whipped
44 Pet Shop Boys – Very
43 Prince – Purple Rain
42 ABBA – Gold
41 Melissa Etheridge – Yes I Am
40 Pet Shop Boys – Behavior
39 Laura Nyro And Labelle – Gonna Take A Miracle
38 Dusty Springfield – Dusty In Memphis
37 Blondie – Parallel Lines
36 Madonna – Erotica
35 Yaz – Upstairs At Eric’s
34 Donna Summer – Bad Girls
33 The Smiths – Hatful Of Hollow
32 The Smiths – Meat Is Murder
31 Sarah McLachlan – Fumbling Towards Ecstacy
30 Diana Ross – Diana
29 Pet Shop Boys – Actually
28 Queen – The Game
27 Eurythmics – Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)
26 Scissor Sisters – Scissor Sisters
25 k.d. lang – Ingénue
24 Sylvester – Living Proof
23 Deee-Lite – World Clique
22 The Gossip – Standing In The Way Of Control
21 David Bowie – Hunky Dory
20 Queen – A Day at the Races
19 The B-52s – The B-52′s
18 George Michael – Listen Without Prejudice, Vol. I
17 Lou Reed – Transformer
16 Queen – A Night at the Opera
15 George Michael – Faith
14 Erasure – The Innocents
13 Ani DiFranco – Dilate
12 The Velvet Underground & Nico – The Velvet Underground & Nico
11 Various – Hedwig And The Angry Inch Soundtrack
10 Antony And The Johnsons – I Am A Bird Now
09 Cyndi Lauper – She’s So Unusual
08 Madonna – The Immaculate Collection
07 Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
06 The Smiths – The Queen is Dead
05 Judy Garland – Judy at Carnegie Hall
04 Indigo Girls – Indigo Girls
03 Tracy Chapman – Tracy Chapman
02 The Smiths – The Smiths
01 David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars
Out on Ziggy:
It’s ironic that an album with an opener forecasting Earth’s expiration and a closer tackling celebrity excess and self-destruction remains one of the most liberating, uplifting records of all time — about as ironic as a straight man topping this list. Robust, swaggering anthems “Ziggy Stardust” and “Suffragette City” prove this space odyssey is far from morbid or apocalyptic, yet it is on standouts like the languid, gender-flirting “Lady Stardust” and brash come-on “Moonage Daydream” — in which the singer asks for a raygun to be placed to his head with almost masochistic sexual glee — that Ziggy and his Spiders really shine. When in the grand finale, “Rock ‘n’ Roll Suicide,” Bowie wails “Oh no love! You’re not alone!” over a sea of theatrical strings, you know he was singing for every exiled, dejected, sexually confused young kid who longed for a world of greater possibilities.
“At a time when social and sexual taboos were just starting to break down, Bowie as Ziggy created a world where the possibilities were limitless. You could be whatever you wanted to be.” — Boy George
You guys bummed? No Radiohead. You can read the list in context over at Out.
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We were robbed!
I look at the list and almost every album has an androgyny about it or a dance beat. Nirvana sticks out like a sore thumb..
Don’t worry Lars.
You’ll always be the gayest to us….
This list is gay.
um, geez folks, where’s Depeche Mode? “Boys Say Go!” – helloooo, ‘Master & Servant”, “Strangelove”…the gayest band of all time, except Erasure…also ‘Le Tigre’ is way, way too low here, and really all their albums should be on this list, especially the latter ones. other conspicuous absences – Judas Priest, Promise Ring, Village People, Jane’s Addiction, just my $.02.
promise ring because they had a gay member or lyrically?
or are you just being a jerk?
i am asking sincerely.
How can you complain about what’s left out? This list is totally random.
it’s been a while since we’ve had any boar man…
The storyline’s too rushed for any boar hunting.
uhh, where is Huggy Bear….Courtney, she is practically a drag queen….Siouxsie, this list blows…Stevie Nicks, Bella Donna should be #1
You know how I know you’re gay…….
Good call on the Depeche Mode. They should be in the top ten, at least. “Out” really missed the mark on that.
Book of Love??? Kylie:Fever, Lunachicks:Pretty Ugly…Lil Kim: Notorious K.I.M., Voluptuos Horror of Karen Black: The anti-naturalist
Gaye Bikers on Acid — http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nz2F4cUDCYE
Damn, onceler, you’re right, Judas Priest is also a obvious one; can’t believe they don’t have them.
No Mika…. you’ve got to be kidding.
Some of favorite albums of all time are here. I am so gay! No kidding, I am.
P.S> I own all Depeche Mode albums. And where the heck is Duran Duran?
Hercules and Love Affair is seriously missing. That album is great, and totally gay.
How did Rufus Wainwright only peak at #50 in a gay-list??
I’d have slipped him in (so to speak) at #1 with Poses.
I would put Poses in the bisexual category. Remember the line in Greek Song ‘you turn me on, you turn me on, but so does she’?
Oh yeah, I forgot that! He probably lost about half his gay-cred with that line.
Yeah, DM should have been there, but to be fair this was based on a poll of 100 musicians and entertainers, not simply the editors say-so. Nice to see The Smiths getting props four times!
george michael is gay?
WHERE’S COLDPLAY?
shouldn’t 1-4 be Coldplay?
another coldplay joke
Maybe it’s because the new season of Entourage starts this weekend or maybe I’m sorely uneducated in that list of 100 actors, musicians, blah, blah, blah that were polled on this list, but it most certainly includes one Ari Gold.
Come to think of it, Ari is definitely qualified – Lloyd can vouch for him.
No Placebo OR Patrick Wolf. That’s upsetting.
no belle & sebastian?
just further confirmation that homosexuals have bad taste.
i disagree but that was pretty funny.
This list ignores THE VILLAGE PEOPLE therefore its useless. There is no gayer song than YMCA, no gayer album or band.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLXhTeP5K18
Dude, don’t you read, this is the 100 GREATEST, gayest albums of all time. Sure the village people are super gay, but they are definitely not great, and that is why they are not on this list.
What about Songs From the Big Chair by Tears for Fears? Isn’t “Everybody Wants to Rule the World” about the homosexual agenda?
I kid, I kid! Seriously though, aren’t they gay? A friend told me they were, but maybe maybe he was just immature and thought any British male duo from the 80′s was gay. I’m not sure. Either way that’s a great album.
I do actually think Tears for Fears is a straight duo.
My first thought was Depeche Mode, but I suppose not? Okay, for some reason they didn’t make the cut, but why exactly did Nirvana make the list!?
The only “gay” thing I’ve thought of is the dresses they wore in the In Bloom video….
Kitchens of Distinction… any album…
how provocative… hahhaa.
That pic is def the gayest ive ever seen.
“Gonna Take Miracle’s” just is what it is…that’s all it has to be. Just slumber party infun ilate in May. If these girls came on your subway car singing like this, you’d give them everything in your wallet… that’s what the record sounds like. When I consider girl music genius the words “idiosyncratic” and “purity” come to mind. Joan of Arc type shit. I’ve noticed some people have no patience for it and then others really do. I think it’s always been like that.,,always, always. (I’m routing for you Marnie!)
i havent seen Bear Force 1 on this list – y’all should be ashamed of yourselves
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hi6yfgOclw
Where’s the new Metallica on the list?
husker du’s candy apple grey? hahah what the fuck? why so much Smith’s too? Morrisey isn’t gay.
Haha. I just saw Depeche Mode 101 from when they toured the US in 1988… I think Martin Gore’s stage getup (leather pants, no, shirt, black and gold suspenders, flat-topped hat) is possibly the gayest outfit I have ever seen. It’s pretty awesome, really. And the construction worker on the front of their album “Construction Time Again” should be a lock for this list.
I’m completely amazed by the person who doesn’t understand why there’s so much Morrissey on there.
haha i remember seeing depeche mode years ago, and martin gore was wearing leather pants, a tight sequined shirt, black angel wings and a black bob wig. for the first 5 songs i thought maybe he was sick or something and they got some girl to fill in on guitar. it wasn’t until the wig came off than i realized he was just wearing the gayest stage costume possible.
The only thing gay about Nevermind is the lyric “God is Gay.” And the fact that it’s overrated.
This list is definitely missing OF MONTREAL and TEGAN & SARA’s “So Jealous”
Super gay. And quality listening.
Yeah, The Gay Parade probably qualifies as a pretty gay album
My friend who sent me this list asked how Nevermind could possibly be gayer than the soundtrack to Hair. I suppose that in and of itself Hair seems gayer?it’s campy, it’s musical theatre, they address things like homosexuality, bisexuality etc. Nevermind, however, is a less generation-specific, it’s accessible to people who don’t like musicals, and it appeals to the misfit in everyone, even those who aren’t inclined to celebrate their idiosyncrasies. It’s about coping with angst. If pink feather boas and androgyny are what you define as “gay,” you’re missing the point. If more gay people (out and proud and closeted and scared/angry alike) connect to a record like Nevermind than something campy (like Hair) that straight people might perceive as “gay,” I think that still makes Nevermind”gayer.”
Surely, The Frogs.
no turbonegro? no pansy division? no limp wrist?
punk rock gets slagged again…
seriously no pansy division? He whooped my ass in tennis the I fucked his ass in bed… it doesn’t get better, I mean gayier than that.
Apparently Out didn’t illegally download Skeletal Lamping.
No Kylie fucking Minogue?
Hidden Cameras?
How do Husker Du records qualify as gay albums? I get that Mould is gay but the dude was basically forced out of the closet by the music press. Doesn’t that kind of defeat the purpose of putting it on a list of great gay albums? Why not his solo stuff after he was outed since he seems a lot more comfortable now?
I’m also surprised Franz Ferdinand didn’t show up. I don’t think any of the band members are gay but they sure seem to like writing about gay sex.
Gay is s sexual orientation, but it’s also a sensibility. The fact that many of these albums are by straight musicians is completely beside the point. Bowie isn’t gay, but made some of the queerest albums in modern history. Whether the “dude” from Husker Du was pushed out of the closet or not, if gay music fans like the album, that’s the only criteria this list needs. Tis a shame that no Franz, though… My Michael is classic gay.
That’s a great point. This list could use a few more selections like ‘Nevermind’ and ‘Zen Arcade’ which don’t seem to fit in with stereotypical ‘gay culture’ but talk about the feelings that go along with feeling like an ‘outsider.’ If there is any outlet that has the ability to change this all-to-well-stereotype, it’s Out, which instead seems to be embracing feather boas and androgyny on this list. (That said, there’s no doubt that the musicians who helped make gay culture more ‘acceptable’ to society deserve to be on here, too)
That was meant to be a reply to chris
I think Nirvana’s music may seem a little more “aggressive” than most on the list, but they were very adament about their support of the gay community. Kurt often mentioned how he enjoyed “provoking homophobes”, and Pat Smear was a member for a while, so…..
umm hello, everyone should know why nirvana is on this list. Not only was kurt cobain a proud supporter of gay people, but he also wasn’t afraid to gender-bend a bit (wearing a dress in the “in bloom” video, the cd artwork for “In Utero” features a man in drag
). The question you should really ask is why isn’t nirvana higher on this list?how about the soundtrack to velvet goldmine??? pretty AWESOME & exceptionally gay.
that’s my sixpence….
What about Jobriath?
What about Tom Waits!?
Not only did they omit Pansy Division and Limp Wrist and Hidden Cameras, but also Tribe 8. It’s a miracle they managed to get Team Dresch and Fifth Column in there! In terms of recent stuff, I would suggest Final Fantasy’s “He Poos Clouds.” It seems like Joe Meek deserves a mention – see the recent “Queer Noises 1961-1978″ compilation compiled by Jon Savage.
I don’t hear Kanye complaining about not topping this list yet…
I didn’t think Kanye was into topping, ifyouknowwhatimean… Sorry, cheap joke!
I get the sensibility stuff and all that. I wasn’t trying to say the Husker Du records couldn’t be considered a part of gay culture, but it seems odd to include a band with a musician who didn’t necessarily want his sexual orientation publicly known at that point in his life. Then again, Hart was also gay so whatever. I just figured Mould’s post-Husker work seemed a better representation for this list because of his frame of mind.
What about Lil Wayne’s The Carter III?
Hot Chip should be somewhere on here, ya think?
as far as i know i’ve always thought morrisey was just really really strange, i’ve never heard that like he’s offically gay though? oh well. if Bob Mould is gay then Morrisey HAS to be.
kudos to queers… this list is better than any list ever generated by rolling stone… (minus melissa ethridge, indigo girls, etc–i really can’t stand tampon rock. it’s the worst!)
to repy to bryan’s comment
i don’t want to sound like a shrill, humorless feminist
but seriously, “tampon rock”? seriously, must you categorize all female artists as “tampon rock”? should we categorize all male artists as “prostate rock” or something similarly absurd?
on the actual list: yeah its alright, it seems like i own a lot of these records so yay for my record collection!
Morrissey is by most accounts asexual, but sympathizes with the gay community. I mean, it’s not that hard to discern from his lyrics. “This Charming Man,” “Hand in Glove,” and “Shoplifters of the World Unite” are all pretty blatant.
where is tommy and the buttfux!?!
Hey you guys totally forgot Depeche Mode. Remember Violator? Or Music For The Masses? That album had “Never Let Me Down”…
how is lou reed or the velvet underground gay?
this list almost makes me want to be straight
This list is completely devoid of the Queers. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?
cher @ 82? no streisand? talk about having to alter stereotypes. at least judy garland was in the top ten
Pretty good list, but there is one, gigantic, glaring omission.
Coil’s classic ‘Horse Rotorvator’.
Not only totally gay, but a great album as well.
I mean the first track is ‘The Anal Staircase’!
‘Penetralia’ is also one this one!
It doesn’t get much gayer than that.
Not a single album by Xiu Xiu or Of Montreal, yet Scissor Sisters get both their albums in? I would add Fabulous Muscles and The Gay Parade to this list.
You know how I know you’re gay… You’ve got all these albums in your collection!
oh! people grow up. These kind of lists don’t make any sense because it’s the most stupid thing calling a list lesbian, gay or straight albums. the World is going to explode itself soon. And also, please don’t advertise your sexuality, i’m not saying BE A noble, at least be a people! irritating!!!
I’m actually really surprised by some of the albums that made it on here. I guess I should have a little more faith in my peers. The Gossip, Bikini Kill/Le Tigre, Sleater-Kinney, Patti Smith, all great albums. Lots of forward thinking hetero contributions. I totally agree with the introduction of gay as a sensibility but I think Queer is better as a blanket term for friends and affiliates.
I am also surprised that Kylie Minogue is missing, especially considering some of the Madonna albums that were included. I would have loved to see Huggy Bear on here too, and Placebo. And yes, Rufus is way too low.
Zen Arcade was exactly the 88th gayest album I ever heard. Excellent call!
What’s not gay about Husker Du? Their only straight member has one of the most notorious handlebar mustaches in rock and roll.
I think this list is legit. I mean, for semantics sake, they could’ve gone with “Albums that Inspired Gay Artists”, but that doesn’t read as well as “Big, Gay Album List.” Then again, they’re only pissing off the angry “How Can an Album Be Gay?” crowd, and those guys can just go fuck a record sleeve for all I care.
Also surprised, with as much contemporary music as there is on here, by the lack of Xiu Xiu, but maybe they don’t reach as big an audience as I think they do. In fact, I just saw them play to like thirty to fifty people not too long ago, so it kinda makes sense. As for music I like that just sounds gay, no Sparks? Kimono My House is a classic!
ok where the EFF is THE CURE?!?! ‘love cats??’ ‘lets go to bed??’ weird. kinda surprised i didnt see any glam metal band either, ALL that makeup?? although, yeah i know, those riffs are way too straight…poison though? woulda been cute to see a ‘gay dad’ reference too hehe, ahh defunct britpop acts.
nirvana? really?
of course i get how kurt was a supporter of gay rights and the gay community in general
i but im not sure about the actual music
idk just a thought i could see why someone might think that
WTF? WTF!? This list is downright, straight up, retarded! Of the Wall by Michael Jackson? Nevermind by Nirvana? Grace by Jeff Buckley? Automatic for the People by R.E.M? Michael Stype might be gay but that album is not gay. If Nevermind was gay, how the hell did Ani Difranco beat it by over 40 places? The gay music industry mustn’t have made many great albums because all of the actual gay albums on here, or albums that appeal to gays, are total rubbish. Seriously Culture Club and The Scissor Sisters? WTFFFFFFF? Ahhhh…errrrr…The Beatles? Come again? This list is sad and depressing. By the way Morrissey was a mystery, his lyrics weren’t just full on gay romps either, they were cultural photgraphs of life and adolescents and hes is regarded as a legend for that. Culture Club, George Michael and ABBA are just total crap. The thing is, even if this was The 100 Greatest Albums of All Time, The Smiths and David Bowie would still command top 10 positions.
Lou Reed’s “Transformer” only gets 17? I would put it in my top 3 any day!