13 Classic Albums That Are (Unbelievably) Turning 60 This Year

How The Time Flies

Albums are a lot like children – they turn into 60-year-olds before you know what hit you. And indeed, there are a lot of classic albums turning 60 this year that don’t sound a day over 20. How? HOW?

Many of the albums made by the class of 1964 were truly groundbreaking and served as the template for a lot of music being made today. Some of it was also not particularly revolutionary, but it was pretty fun to listen to anyway.

The following are our picks for the 13 most timeless albums released in 1964.

1. ‘A Hard Day's Night’ by the Beatles

Release date: July 10, 1964 

The virtual definition of “all killer, no filler,” the Beatles’ “A Hard Day's Night” has not one song on it that you will be tempted to skip, and it was also the album that saw them turn away from R&B covers in favor of writing their own songs. That was the right decision, as this album contains such classics as "And I Love Her" and the title track, as well as songs like "If I Fell," "Things We Said Today," and "I'll Be Back," all of which should have been hits.

2. ‘Getz/Gilberto’ by Stan Getz and João Gilberto

Release date: March 1, 1964 

“Getz/Gilberto” is a collaboration between American saxophonist Stan Getz and Brazilian guitarist João Gilberto, with pianist Antônio Carlos Jobim also making contributions. The album features the vocal stylings of Astrud Gilberto on "The Girl from Ipanema," which film lovers will recall from the climax of the movie “The Blues Brothers,” albeit in elevator muzak form.

3. ‘The Times They Are a-Changin'‘ by Bob Dylan

Release date: February 10, 1964 

When “The Times They Are a-Changin'” was released, it was considered by some to be a dour and humorless affair, exemplified by the folk singer’s unsmiling mug on the album cover. Years later, this very political album is considered a classic, and the title track just keeps staying relevant, no matter what happens to be going on in the world at the time.

4. ‘Folk Singer’ by Muddy Waters

Release date: January 30, 1964 

Apart from the fact that this is an acoustic album by the normally electrified Muddy Waters, there is nothing even remotely “folk” about the music therein. “Folk Singer” is one of the bluest albums ever made, and we advise people going through personal travails to avoid it entirely. On the other hand, if you want to milk a bad mood for everything it’s worth, throw this record on immediately.

5. ‘Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.’ by Simon & Garfunkel

Release date: October 19, 1964 

“Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M.” was the debut album by Simon & Garfunkel, formerly known as Tom & Jerry before Columbia Records signed them. Interestingly, it didn’t sell particularly well upon release, and it wasn’t until its 1966 reissue that it started to catch on. This was mostly due to the song “The Sound of Silence” getting copious overdubs of bass, drums, and electric guitar, which turned it into a Byrds-adjacent radio hit. The rest is history.

6. ‘The Rolling Stones’ by the Rolling Stones

Release date: April 17, 1964

The debut album by the Rolling Stones, which is also known as “England’s Newest Hit Makers,” gives no indication that this band would one day write songs like “Start Me Up.” Fully ten of its twelve songs were written by somebody else, and it’s full of energetic rave-ups that make it very easy to believe these dudes were doing a lot of speed at the time. They would eventually mature into great songwriters and pen material that’s still in regular rotation today on the radio, but if you want to hear what they were capable of at roughly 20 years of age and overflowing with raw energy, this is it.

7. ‘People’ by Barbra Streisand

Release date: September 1, 1964

“People” was Barbra Streisand’s fourth studio album and her first to top the Billboard album charts. Distinguished by the title track, this album quickly became a favorite of fans old and new, and helped bring the singer the international success she still enjoys today. The album was inducted into the National Recording Registry of the Library of Congress in 2017, although there’s scant evidence that people who need people are the luckiest people in the world.

8. ‘I Walk the Line’ by Johnny Cash

Release date: June 22, 1964

Johnny Cash had been churning out album after album since the 1950s, so his 1964 album “I Walk the Line” was his 12th studio album in seven years. It featured several new songs and new recordings of his older ones, such as the title track. That undisputed classic was covered by numerous artists, such as the Everly Brothers and Rodney Crowell, and it sounds as raw and timeless today as it did 60 years ago.

9. ‘Kinks’ by The Kinks

Release date: October 2, 1964

Full disclosure—the self-titled debut album by the Kinks shows a band still in development, so it was a few years before they became the band people think of today when they hear the group’s name. However, the album contains “You Really Got Me,” which many musicologists describe as one of the earliest heavy metal songs ever recorded, thanks to its extremely primitive, distorted guitar riff. So the next time you’re listening to “The Triumph of Steel” by Manowar, remember that it all started here.

10. ‘The Animals’ by the Animals

Release date: September 1, 1964

The Animals were part of the British Invasion, a movement that took American blues music across the Atlantic Ocean and electrified it for the nation’s teenagers. It features classic songs by such American blues masters as John Lee Hooker and Fats Domino, but it’s best known for the track, "House of the Rising Sun," the story of a house of ill repute in New Orleans. Today, in the Nicki Minaj era, it’s pretty tame, but it was exciting, raw, and gritty at the time of its release.

11. ‘Meet The Beatles!’ by The Beatles

Release date: January 20, 1964

The Beatles had been releasing music in their native England since 1962, but it wasn’t until 1964 that they received a stateside debut release, “Meet the Beatles!” People who had heard the Fab Four’s first couple of releases were familiar with all the material since it was mostly compiled from those albums. Still, this record is how millions of American teenyboppers first heard the band, and we think it’s safe to say that making it was a good business move.

12. ‘Dusty’ by Dusty Springfield

Release date: October 1, 1964

1964’s “Dusty” was the second album released in the United States by British singer Dusty Springfield. It was still a few years before she released her best-known song, “Son of a Preacher Man,” but “Dusty” still has a great track list featuring songs by Ray Charles and Burt Bacharach among many others, and her singing voice is, as always, stellar.

13. ‘Walk Don't Run Vol. 2’ by the Ventures

Release date: August 1, 1964

Nobody really makes instrumental surf music anymore, but when they did, the Ventures were undisputed masters of the form. By the time they recorded the “Walk Don't Run Vol. 2” album, they had already racked up several hits, and this album features some of those hits in re-recorded form. Chief among those is "Walk Don't Run '64," which is honestly not that different from the original. Oh well, it’s still a pretty cool tune.

This article was produced and syndicated by MediaFeed.