The B-52's is the debut album by American new wave band the B-52's. The kitschy lyrics and mood, and the hook-laden harmonies helped establish a fanbase for the band, who went on to release several chart-topping singles. The album cover was designed by Tony Wright (credited as Sue Ab Surd). The B-52's peaked at number 59 on the Billboard 200, and "Rock Lobster" reached number 56 on the Billboard Hot 100. Shortly before his death, John Lennon said he enjoyed the album. In 2003, the television network VH1 named The B-52's the 99th greatest album of all time. In 2020, The B-52's was ranked number 198 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Critical reception

Critical reception for The B-52's was generally favorable; critics praised the album's kitschy lyrics and party atmosphere. In his "Consumer Guide" column for The Village Voice, music critic Robert Christgau remarked on his fondness "for the pop junk they recycle—with love and panache," while also noting that he was "more delighted with their rhythms, which show off their Georgia roots by adapting the innovations of early funk (a decade late, just like the Stones and Chicago blues) to an endlessly danceable forcebeat format." In a retrospective review, Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic wrote: "Unabashed kitsch mavens at a time when their peers were either vulgar or stylish, the Athens quintet celebrated all the silliest aspects of pre-Beatles pop culture – bad hairdos, sci-fi nightmares, dance crazes, pastels, and anything else that sprung into their minds – to a skewed fusion of pop, surf, avant-garde, amateurish punk, and white funk." Rolling Stone writer Pat Blashill concluded that "On The B-52's, the best little dance band from Athens proved that rock & roll still matters if it's about sex and hair and moving your body. Even if you have to shake-bake shake-bake it like a Shy Tuna." Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani stated that "(l)ike any over-the-top act, the B-52's wears thin, but the band successfully positioned themselves as pop-culture icons—not unlike the musical antiquities they emulated." The B-52's was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. In 2003, Rolling Stone ranked The B-52's number 152 on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time, maintaining the ranking in a 2012 update of the list and dropping it to number 198 in a 2020 update. In 2003, VH1 named it the 99th greatest album of all time. In 2013, The B-52's was ranked number 452 on New Musical Express magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 1995, The B-52's was named number 42 on the top 100 alternative albums list of all time by the Spin Alternative Record Guide. Rolling Stone ranked the album number 28 on its 2013 list of 100 best debut albums of all time, dropping it to number 43 in a 2022 update. In 2023, Paste magazine's staff placed The B-52's at number 86 on their list of the 100 greatest debut albums of all time. PopMatters magazine named it number 40 on its 2024 list of the 50 best post-punk albums ever. In the 1979 Pazz & Jop year-end critics poll, The B-52's album was ranked number 7. New Musical Express ranked it number 12 on their critics' list of the best albums of 1979.

Track listing

Personnel

The B-52's Technical

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications