Rock

Where to start: 8 rock albums, in order

Click a cover to hear 30-second previews. Start at the top; each record takes you a little further.

1. 01

   A Hard Day's Night

   The Beatles · 1964

   Thirteen Lennon–McCartney songs, no covers, played bright and fast; the title track's opening chord and the close harmonies are early rock at full charge.

   Beat music
2. 02

   Led Zeppelin IV

   Led Zeppelin · 1971

   'Black Dog', 'Rock and Roll' and 'Stairway to Heaven' on one record: heavy riffs and folk textures that stay melodic.

   Hard rock
3. 03

   Revolver

   The Beatles · 1966

   The Beatles turning the studio into an instrument: tape loops, backwards guitar and Indian strings, with 'Eleanor Rigby' and 'Here, There and Everywhere' keeping it tuneful.

   Psychedelic rock
4. 04

   Nevermind

   Nirvana · 1991

   Quiet verses, loud choruses and Kurt Cobain's melodies; the record that put alternative rock on the radio.

   Alternative rock
5. 05

   Marquee Moon

   Television · 1977

   Two guitars weave melodic lines and counter-melodies around each other in long, precise pieces; punk's energy with art-school patience.

   Punk rock
6. 06

   The Velvet Underground & Nico

   The Velvet Underground · 1967

   Drones, viola noise and plain-spoken songs about city life, made with Andy Warhol and the singer Nico; its influence outran its sales.

   Experimental rock
7. 07

   John Lennon/Plastic Ono Band

   John Lennon · 1970

   Guitar, piano, bass and drums with little else; Lennon sings about childhood, belief and loss, raw enough to be uncomfortable.

8. 08

   Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

   The Beatles · 1967

   A studio-built song cycle that treats the album as a single experience: sound effects, orchestral textures, and songs that flow into one another. It fills the landmark-concept-album slot Dark Side of the Moon would have held.

Previews courtesy of Apple Music.

Which one did you like best? Its tag below the cover is the branch to dig into next.

How rock grew

5 periods, each with the branches that appeared in it. Branches with a dot have their own page.

1. 1940s–1950s

   Rock and roll

   Rock began as rock and roll, a blend of blues, rhythm and blues, country and gospel. Chuck Berry, Little Richard and Elvis Presley set the template, and rockabilly and Latin rock grew up beside it.

   Rock and rollComedy rockLatin rockBrazilian rock
2. 1960–1964

   The beat boom and garage rock

   Beat groups led by the Beatles brought guitar-band rock across the Atlantic, while thousands of young bands answered with rough three-chord songs in garages and clubs. Soft rock and instrumental rock filled the radio in between.

   Beat musicGarage rockInstrumental rockSoft rockJam band

   On the route: record 1

3. 1965–1969

   Psychedelia and the album era

   Studios became instruments. Psychedelic rock stretched songs with effects and drones, hard rock turned up the volume, and progressive and experimental rock pushed the album toward long forms.

   Pop rockPsychedelic rockRoots rockExperimental rockHard rockProgressive rock

   On the route: record 2, record 3, record 6

4. 1970s

   Arena stages, glam and punk

   Rock split between the huge and the small: arena rock, glam and heavy metal aimed at stadiums, while punk and new wave stripped the music back to speed and direct anger. Southern and heartland rock kept a rootsier line.

   Arena rockGlam rockClassic rockSouthern rockHeavy metalPunk rockNew wave musicHeartland rock

   On the route: record 5

5. 1980s onward

   Alternative and after

   Alternative rock grew from punk's independence and reached the mainstream in the 1990s with Nirvana. Rock kept splintering into local and hybrid scenes: visual kei in Japan, punk blues and rap rock.

   Alternative rockDeathrockVisual keiPunk bluesRock kapakModern rock

   On the route: record 4

Pick a branch of rock

The 8 branches people play most. Each has its own 8 albums and lineage.

1. 1940sRock and rollBlues and country over a driving backbeat, built for dancing.Open on the genre map →
2. 1960sBeat musicTight harmonies, ringing guitars and short, hook-filled songs.Open on the genre map →
3. 1960sPsychedelic rockEffects, drones and stretched-out songs that open up.Open on the genre map →
4. 1960sHard rockLoud riff guitar, a heavy rhythm section and a singer pushing on top.Open on the genre map →
5. 1960sProgressive rockLong, composed pieces, odd meters and concept albums.8 albums · open →
6. 1970sPunk rockFast, brief and loud; three chords and direct, angry words.Open on the genre map →
7. 1970sAlternative rockGuitar noise with melodies and quiet-loud shifts, sung with a sideways attitude.8 albums · open →
8. 1960sExperimental rockRock's tools turned on themselves: drones, noise and unusual forms.Open on the genre map →

Go deeper

What we have written about rock, newest first.

1. 2026-09-18Pink Floyd, Album by Album: From Pompeii's Echoes to The WallAn empty Roman amphitheatre in 1971, Syd's exit and four men relearning how to write songs, the prism, the burning handshake, the pig over Battersea — and where to start listening.
2. 2026-09-17Radiohead: Five People, One Constantly Changing RoomFrom the rehearsal room at Abingdon School to the era anxiety of OK Computer, the sonic reconfiguration of Kid A, and the reapproach of In Rainbows, this retrospective follows the choices of the five members and their long-time collaborators to look back on Radiohead's music, friendship, and change. Includes all nine studio albums plus three alternative rock extended recommendations.