What is the best psychedelic rock album of all time?

Mind-expanding sonic journeys that bent reality and redefined what a rock record could do. From 1967 San Francisco to modern studio dream-states, the contenders span five decades. Pick your trip.

Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band

The Beatles' 1967 psychedelic masterpiece, a studio-boundary-breaking album that defined what rock music could aspire to be.

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Are You Experienced

Jimi Hendrix Experience's 1967 debut, a mind-bending fusion of blues and psychedelia that redefined guitar playing entirely.

2/14

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn

Pink Floyd's 1967 debut led by Syd Barrett, a whimsical and avant-garde psychedelic album unlike anything before or since.

3/14

Forever Changes

Love's 1967 baroque psychedelic masterpiece featuring orchestral arrangements and Arthur Lee's dark, poetic songwriting.

4/14

Electric Ladyland

Jimi Hendrix's expansive 1968 double album, the most ambitious and immersive psychedelic rock recording of the era.

5/14

The Doors

The Doors' 1967 debut blending blues, psychedelia, and Jim Morrison's Dionysian poetry into a distinctly dark vision.

6/14

Surrealistic Pillow

Jefferson Airplane's 1967 album that put San Francisco on the psychedelic map with Grace Slick's commanding vocals.

7/14

Revolver

The Beatles' 1966 album marking their transition into studio-bound psychedelic experimentation with Tomorrow Never Knows.

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The Psychedelic Sounds of the 13th Floor Elevators

The 13th Floor Elevators' 1966 debut, the first album to use the word psychedelic on its cover, raw and revolutionary.

9/14

Disraeli Gears

Cream's 1967 album fusing blues with vivid psychedelic imagery and Eric Clapton's luminous lead guitar playing.

10/14

Currents

Tame Impala's 2015 modern psychedelic masterpiece blending synthesizers and dreamy production into a contemporary classic.

11/14

S.F. Sorrow

The Pretty Things' 1968 concept album, the first rock opera, a pioneering psychedelic narrative predating The Who's Tommy.

12/14

Cheap Thrills

Big Brother and the Holding Company's 1968 album featuring Janis Joplin's ferocious live vocal performances in a psychedelic setting.

13/14

The Soft Parade

The Doors' 1969 album featuring full orchestral arrangements and Jim Morrison's most ambitious lyrical explorations.

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