iTunes album count is different in list and grid views

[GGJstudios]

I've searched the forums and the web, but I haven't found anyone reporting this kind of issue. In iTunes, if I go to List View with the Browser, it shows a different number of albums than it does if I go to Grid View. Any ideas why?

List View with Browser:

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Grid View:

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[Tom B.]

I have the same discrepancy. It appears that at least part of the difference for me is due to the fact that any song without a album name appears as an 'Unknown Album' in grid view, while they do not appear in the album section browser.

 

[Purpdust]

I know from tagging, sometimes if the tagging is not 100% correct it will split the album into two or more albums.

 

[GGJstudios]

I have the same discrepancy. It appears that at least part of the difference for me is due to the fact that any song without a album name appears as an 'Unknown Album' in grid view, while they do not appear in the album section browser.

I've arranged my library so I have just one "Unknown Album", so that doesn't account for a difference of 73 albums. There's got to be something else I'm missing.

I know from tagging, sometimes if the tagging is not 100% correct it will split the album into two or more albums.

My tagging is probably 99.98% correct, but you triggered a thought that I'll have to research: I wonder if it has something to do with multi-disc albums being treated differently. I'll check it out.

Edit: No, that's not it, either. Multi-disc albums would account for a difference of just over 200, not 73.

 

[ckd]

Perhaps the browser is only matching on album name, while the list view is treating each combination of artist and album name as a separate album?

What happens if you pick, say, "Greatest Hits" in the album section of the browser?

 

[GGJstudios]

Perhaps the browser is only matching on album name, while the list view is treating each combination of artist and album name as a separate album?

What happens if you pick, say, "Greatest Hits" in the album section of the browser?

No, both views still treat two albums of the same name but by different artists as 2 albums, not one.

 

[ckd]

No, both views still treat two albums of the same name but by different artists as 2 albums, not one.

If the browser's "All (xxx Albums)" is actually the count of lines in that scrolling list, it will only count one for all "Greatest Hits" albums (but another one for "Greatest Hits (1990-2000)", etc).

My grid view: 2351 albums. Browser count: 2215. The 136 missing albums? Well, it looks like I have 43 different "Greatest Hits" when I sort on "Album by Artist" and turn on the Artwork column to make it easier to count, so 42 of those could be right there. Two "Acoustic", three "The Best Of", two "Complete Greatest Hits", two "Covers", two "Essentials"...I can see this adding up to 136.

 

[GGJstudios]

If the browser's "All (xxx Albums)" is actually the count of lines in that scrolling list, it will only count one for all "Greatest Hits" albums (but another one for "Greatest Hits (1990-2000)", etc).

My grid view: 2351 albums. Browser count: 2215. The 136 missing albums? Well, it looks like I have 43 different "Greatest Hits" when I sort on "Album by Artist" and turn on the Artwork column to make it easier to count, so 42 of those could be right there. Two "Acoustic", three "The Best Of", two "Complete Greatest Hits", two "Covers", two "Essentials"...I can see this adding up to 136.

That's not the answer. As I already said, I verified that both views treat two albums of the same name but by different album artists as 2 albums, not one. That means "Greatest Hits" by Fleetwood Mac is counted as a separate album from "Greatest Hits" by Santana, in both views.

 

[N002Mack]

Album Sorting Info

I am very meticulous about organizing my iTunes Library and I have dealt with a lot of different headache problems before.

You should check the sorting options for your songs. If the number of albums doesn't match in List and Grid views, check your album sort info. Right click an album and click Get Info, then click the Sorting tab. If the tag under Sort Album is not the same for all songs in that album, it will count as more than one album when the Browser in List view counts them. An easy way to see if your sorting information is messed up is to add the Sort Album column to the View Options on the List View page.

Just make a uniform naming format for all of the albums. For instance, in my library, the first Metallica album is sorted as Metallica 01 and so on...

 

[jake921660]

I have a CD with various artists on it. In grid view they each come up as different albums, 1 per each artist on the CD, but in list view it counts as 1.

 

[GGJstudios]

I have a CD with various artists on it. In grid view they each come up as different albums, 1 per each artist on the CD, but in list view it counts as 1.

To avoid that, put "Various Artists" as the Album Artist, leaving the Artist field with the individual names. Then it will show as one album.

You should check the sorting options for your songs.

That's a good suggestion for many. In my case, all my tag information, including sort information, is accurate. I even change sorting information so "20 Greatest Hits" sorts as "Twenty Greatest Hits" to make things easier to find. I've manually entered all tag information over the years, rather than use any automated process, to ensure consistency.