On this day in 1971 (17 December 1971), David Bowie released his fourth studio album “Hunky Dory”.
Hunky Dory has frequently appeared on several lists of the greatest albums of all time by multiple publications. In 1998, Q magazine readers voted it the 43rd greatest album of all time; in 2000 the same magazine placed it at number 16 in its list of the 100 Greatest British Albums Ever. The album ranked number 16 and number 23 in the 1998 and 2000 editions of Colin Larkin's book All Time Top 1000 Albums, respectively. In their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, Rolling Stone ranked it number 107 in 2003, number 108 in the 2012 revised list, and number 88 in the 2020 revised list. In 2004, Pitchfork ranked the album 80th on their list of the 100 Best Albums of the 1970s, one place above Ziggy Stardust. In the same year, VH1 placed it 47th in their list of the 100 greatest albums. In 2010, Time magazine chose it as one of the 100 best albums of all time, with journalist Josh Tyrangiel praising Bowie's "earthbound ambition to be a boho poet with prodigal style". The same year, Consequence of Sound ranked the album number 18 on their list of the 100 greatest albums of all time. In 2013, NME ranked the album third in their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, behind the Beatles' Revolver and the Smiths' The Queen Is Dead. In 2015, Ultimate Classic Rock included it in their list of the 100 best rock albums from the 1970s. Robert Dimery included the album in his 2005 book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.