Best Albums of 2011

Be it by digital download or old-fashioned CD, most of us have purchased one musical album or another during 2011, but which one is the absolute best album of 2011? Just as we all have different musical tastes, the best albums of 2011 are diverse in the genre of music they include from the likes of rock and pop to rap and R&B to country and gospel and everything in between.

According to Nielson SoundScan, "21" by British songstress Adele and "Born This Way" by shock-pop singer Lady Gaga were the best selling albums for the first half of 2011. Mumford & Sons with "Sign No More," Jason Aldean with "My Kinda Party" and Bruno Mars with "Doo Wops & Hooligans" rounded out the top five. The charts of album sales however only show half of the story (and half of the year) as just because a particular album sold the most does not mean it's definitely better than others.

The answer to which album is best is quite subjective as we all have our own favorites. Many may prefer the Top 40 sounds like those from Katy Perry and her record "Teenage Dream," Britney Spears and her release of "Femme Fatale" and P!nk for her album "Greatest Hits" while others will opt more for lighter sounds like Taylor Swift's "Speak Now," Justin Bieber's "My World 2.0," or Lady Antebellum's "Need You Now."

Those looking for a more robust sound may lean toward the likes of the Foo Fighters, with their album "Wasting Light," Five Finger Death Punch with their release of "American Capitalist" or even Red Hot Chili Peppers and their "I'm With You." Let's not forget about country music as well as rap and R&B, all of which is represented with country albums like "Eleven" from Martina McBride and rap records like the highly anticipated Jay-Z and Kanye West collaboration in "Watch the Throne."

While we all may never agree on which music is the best, it's likely that we can all conclude that these are the best albums of 2011 regardless of genre.