The Grammy Award for Album of the Year is an award presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales, chart position, or critical reception." Album of the Year is the most prestigious category at the Grammy Awards and is one of the general field categories that have been presented annually since the 1st Annual Grammy Awards in 1959 alongside Best New Artist, Record of the Year, and Song of the Year. Credit rules Over the years, the rules on who was presented with an award have changed: 1959–1965: Artist only. 1966–1998: Artist and producer. 1999–2002: Artist, producer, and recording engineer or mixer. 2003–2017: Artist, featured artist, producer, mastering engineer, and recording engineer or mixer. 2018–2020: Artist, featured artist, producer, songwriter (of new material), mastering engineer, and recording engineer or mixer (only those who were credited on at least 33% playing time...