The best album by every artist in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's class of 2023

Best Album: Shotgun Willie (1973)Frustrated with Nashville, Willie Nelson headed to Austin in 1972 with aims of becoming part of a scene filled with blissed-out groovers like local hero Doug Sahm. Signing with Atlantic Records, Nelson recorded Shotgun Willie, the album on which he minted the persona that turned him into a legend: a redneck hippie raised on Western swing, singing sad songs and waltzes to an audience filled with rockers. He’s made many other albums in the 50 years since Shotgun Willie, but this 1973 LP remains the purest distillation of his outlaw charm. Honorable Mention: Willie & The Family Live (1978)Anybody wondering why this country legend has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame should turn to this double-LP from Willie Nelson and his trusty backing band the Family. This doesn’t rock so much as it rolls—a loose, lively attack that, from a certain angle, can seem like the forefather of jam bands.

Best Album: Rage Against The Machine (1992)Arriving with the subtlety of a firebomb upon its release in 1992, Rage Against The Machine’s debut album melded the rhythms of rap with the velocity and force of heavy metal, a combination that would become commonplace by the decade’s end. Imitators could sometimes summon the wallop of drummer Brad Wilk and bassist Tim Commerford—they’d play with the muscle, if not the heavy swing of this pair—but no other group attempted the wild contortions of guitarist Tom Morello or the politically charged lyrics of vocalist Zac de la Rocha, elements that distinguish Rage Against The Machine to this day. Honorable Mention: Evil Empire (1996)The four years separating Rage Against The Machine and Evil Empire seemed like an eternity in the 1990s, but the band didn’t squander that time. Without losing any of their might, Rage expanded their palette and sharpened their execution, devising a record that hits harder and lingers longer than its predecessor.

Best Album: One Of A Kind Love Affair (1991)/The Complete Atlantic Singles: The Thom Bell Productions 1972-1979 (2023)One of the last great R&B vocal harmony groups, the Spinners had their first hits on Motown—Stevie Wonder wrote the ebullient “It’s A Shame”—but hit their groove when they started working with producer Thom Bell at Atlantic Records. Between 1972’s “I’ll Be Around” and 1980s’s “Cupid/I’ve Loved You For A Long Time,” they were a fixture on the pop and R&B charts, releasing such classics as “I’ll Be Around,” “One Of A Kind (Love Affair),” “Could It Be I’m Falling In Love?,” “Ghetto Child,” “Then Came You,” “Games People Play” and “The Rubberband Man.” Streaming services don’t do right by the group: you need to seek out either this year’s The Complete Atlantic Singles: The Thom Bell Productions 1972-1979 or, better still, the old Rhino comp One Of A Kind Love Affair, which has their early 1960s hits. Honorable Mention: The Spinners (1973)The Spinners may have mastered 45 rpm singles, but they also made strong albums, starting with their self-titled debut for Atlantic. With tracks like “I’ll Be Around,” “One of a Kind (Love Affair),” “Ghetto Child” and “Could It Be I’m Falling In Love,” this has so many winners that it can play like a greatest hits album.

Best Album: Rumble! The Best Of Link Wray (1993)One of the few musicians who have a legitimate claim to the invention of the power chord, Link Wray created the immortal “Rumble”—a slow, swaggering instrumental that plays like a back alley threat. Wray made many other greaser classics with his backing band the Ray Men, some of which are available on streaming services, but many are not. After sampling “Rumble,” “Ace of Spades” and “Jack the Ripper,” go seek out the Rhino compilation Rumble! The Best Of Link Wray, which is the best distillation of his dangerous, leather-clad rock and roll.Honorable Mention: Link Wray (1971) As great as “Rumble” and its sequels are, this eponymous 1971 LP from Link Wray reveals the full scale of his gifts. Fitting firmly within the early 1970s trend of funky country-rock, the album finds Wray embracing his Native American roots on a collection of passionate, backwoods rockers.

Best Album: Rufus—Rufusized (1974) Rufus kicked around for a couple of years before Chaka Khan joined the band in 1972, an addition that helped give them shape. But they didn’t fully come together until Stevie Wonder gave them the sinewy funk of “Tell Me Something Good” in 1974. The group quickly rushed out a sequel, Rufusized, that found them hitting a sweet spot between rock and soul that proved to have a remarkably lasting influence. Set aside Chaka Khan’s later cover of his “I Feel For You”: it’s hard not to hear Prince’s slinky blend of pop and funk in these grooves.Honorable Mention: What Cha’ Gonna Do For Me (1981)On her own for a few years, Chaka Khan already had a big, definitive hit under her belt with the 1978 disco anthem “I’m Every Woman” when she released What Cha’ Gonna Do For Me, which gave her another R&B number one hit in its title track. Partway between yacht-soul and dance, “What Cha’ Gonna Do For Me” was further proof of Khan’s versatility, how she could shift with the times without losing sight of her vibrant, distinctive style.

Best Album: Blood, Sweat & Tears—Child Is The Father To The Man (1968)A journeyman who is best known for playing the Hammond organ on Bob Dylan’s “Like A Rolling Stone,” Al Kooper spent most of his career occupying a space just out of the spotlight, either playing in the wings or sitting behind the production boards for bands ranging from Lynyrd Skynyrd to the Tubes. A list of his credits makes a convincing case for his induction to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: he’s on Blonde On Blonde, Electric Ladyland, Let It Bleed and Who’s Next, all contenders for Best Album Ever Made. Nevertheless, it’s Child Is Father To The Man—the lone album he made with Blood, Sweat & Tears, a band he founded with the explicit purpose of blending jazz, rock, pop, and soul—that hints at the full range of Kooper’s talents. As eccentric as it is immediate, Child Is The Father To The Man lacks the corny punch Blood, Sweat & Tears later developed and instead sounds like a series of successive worlds opening. Honorable Mention: Super Session (With Stephen Stills And Mike Bloomfield) (1968)  Immediately after leaving Blood, Sweat & Tears, Al Kooper served as a ringleader for two blues-rock jam sessions, each showcasing a hot-shot guitarist. Side one features Mike Bloomfield, former guitarist for the Paul Butterfield Blues Band who, like Kooper, played on Dylan’s Highway 61 Revisited. Side two is dedicated to Stephen Stills, who was in the process of leaving Buffalo Springfield. Kooper is the through line, greasing the proceedings with his Hammond and ensuring things stay loud and loose.