I *almost* thought you where serious when I saw Bon Jovi (to each their own right..and I did say it should be accessible) but as soon as I saw Metal Machine Music I knew it was a gag. Some of these lists are awesome. After much deliberation, heres mine in no particular order.

Pearl Jam-VS
Black Sabbath-Paranoid
Soundgarden-Superunknown
The Beatles-Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Jimi Hendrix- Are You Experinced?
Cream-Disraeli Gears
Mad Season-Above
Pink Floyd-Dark Side of the Moon
Led Zeppelin-IV
Weezer-The Blue Album

I had to leave at least 5 others off the list. Ah well.

maybe I took the word accessible a little too far...

Most of mine are nowhere near the significance of albums on other lists

Hard to narrow it down to 10, but here it goes:

AC/DC - Back in Black (surprised no one mention this one)
Beatles - Revolver
Black Sabbath - Sabotage
Guns 'N' Roses - Appetite for Destruction
Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced?
Led Zeppelin - IV
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon
Queens of the Stone Age - Songs for the Deaf
Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers
ZZ Top - Eliminator

Not only did you forget Bon Jovi, you forgot one of your other favorites....Poison.

Chuck Berry - Chuck Berry Is On Top
Beatles - A Hard Days Night
Bob Dylan - Bringing It All Back Home
Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's
Zeppelin - II
Pink Floyd - DSOTM
Fleetwood Mac - Rumors
Nirvana - Nevermind
Radiohead - OK Computer

i tried to cover the big trends of popular music... i think i touched bases with almost every genre. optimally, i would have included some kind of hair-metal to set up Nevermind, but there was just no room. i also didn't come close to touching anything r&b tinged (including hip hop).

you could waste all 10 albums tracing the evolution of rock through the 60's and still come up way short.

I was wondering about this one. You'd certainly want to hear it at some point if you want a more complete picture of how rock music came to be, but still, it's a folk album; there's nothing rock about it. I don't think I'd go with Blonde on Blonde either if only because it'd be a bit overwhelming for someone "who knows nothing about rock." But who knows? That might be a good thing. Still, I'd say Highway 61 Revisited or Bring It All Back Home would be better choices, and right now I'm leaning toward the latter.

By the way, I'm a little shocked that you guys are totally dismissing Bon Jovi.

yeah that is true. i just wanted to include a Dylan record to show his impact on rock songwriting, and i think Brining It All Back Home would be a wiser choice. a more rock sound, and probably more lyrically influential and boundary-pushing than Freewheelin'. good call. i shall edit my first post.

Except for the Chuck Berry and Fleetwood Mac, how would Blonde on Blonde be anymore overwhelming than any other recording the Grasshoppa listed?

It certainly does display Dylan at the top of his game, but as I understand it we're looking for albums that can expand someone's views on rock. To someone who is not at least vaguely familiar with Dylan's music, Blonde on Blonde will most likely come across as a drawn-out rambling mess.

Bring It All Back Home, however, is a transition album that pretty well displays what Dylan was about at that period in his career and what he was doing for rock. It's the one I've usually suggested for people who are interested in his music.

But then I know someone who almost exclusively listens to top 40 rap, and Desire is what eventually convinced her that Dylan was worth his salt.

Beach Boys-Pet Sounds
Beatles-Sgt. Pepper
Beach Boys-SMiLE Bootlegs
Pink Floyd-Piper At The Gates Of Dawn
Greatful Dead-Skeletons from the Closet
Jefferson Airplane-Surrealistic Pillow
Modest Mouse-Good News For People Who Love Bad News
Beatles-Rubber Soul
The Clash-London Calling
Fountains of Wayne-Welcome Interstate Managers