Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s by JamesMowbray 
- Chart updated: 03/15/2024 23:15
- (Created: 02/13/2017 14:40).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
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[First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
18,004
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
168
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[First added to this chart: 01/25/2018]
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
9,806
Rank in 1971:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
22,191
Rank in 1975:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 05/16/2018]
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
23,083
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
12,536
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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Buy album
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The second instalment of the Bowie's famed Berlin trilogy may be the most abstract despite the wide retrospective success of its title track. Using the template set by 'Low' of having a second instrumental half, Bowie is more present on the tracks featuring vocals, however these are gloomier and weirder than their counterparts on 'Low'.
Opener 'Beauty and the Beast' begins with swelling instrumentation and gets to the point much faster than previous opener 'Speed of Life'. The vocal delivery is reminiscent of Bowie's work as the Thin White Duke on 1976's 'Station to Station'. The track has some more regular features of the pop of its time such as the use of backing singers but the wild instrumentation separates it entirely from the mainstream music surrounding it, giving the album an unpredictable feel from the offset as well as providing more energy than had been seen from Bowie in years.
'Joe the Lion' goes even stranger with a much wilder vocal performance than the authoritative delivery on 'Beauty and the Beast'. The multiple guitar lines give a very grand atmosphere that carries across much of the first half of the record.
Following this Bowie produces what is probably the greatest track ever written. 'Heroes' was inspired at the time by Bowie witnessing married producer Toni Visconti kissing a backing singer by the Berlin wall. Over time the speech marks have been effectively dropped from the title since the more conflicting original subject of the track has faded, and instead it has been given a very hopeful quality, mainly because of the timeless line "we could be heroes just for one day". King Crimson's Robert Fripp provides the constant lead guitar riff that never fades into the background, staying essential to the composition throughout. The instrumentation builds throughout the track with the introduction of synths, guitar lines and backing singers. This is matched by Bowie's vocal performance growing in intensity throughout and providing the absolute heart of the song. This effect was achieved by a genius decision on Visconti's part of moving the microphone away from Bowie throughout the song, forcing him by the end to shout in order to be heard.
'Sons of the Silent Age' calms down the atmosphere of the record anchored by a vocal performance echoing Bowie's earlier work. Every element of the track builds significantly when the chorus hits giving a very different feel to the stranger and more experimental verses, which feature unpredictable drum patterns that sometimes disappear completely.
'Black Out' once again raises the tempo and volume of the record before the (mostly) instrumental second half kicks in. This is probably the wildest track on the album, featuring portions where Bowie's vocal delivery speeds up out of nowhere forcing all the instrumentation to attempt to catch up. The slightly echoing vocals only serve to add to the sense of chaos that defines this track, providing the last bursts of energy before the more controlled latter half of the project.
'V-2 Schneider' is not quite an instrumental but Bowie's repeat of the track's title feels more like one of the wide array of instruments at Eno, Bowie and Visconti's disposable, partly because of the distortion used. The track is similarly energetic but organised to 'Low' track 'A New Career in a New Town' helping fill in the gap between the non instrumental tracks of the record, and the more deeply experiemental instrumental ones that follow.
'Sense of Doubt' is an interesting experiment in the use of Eno's Oblique Strategies deck with Bowie drawing "emphasise differences" and Eno drawing "make everything as similar as possible". The result is a battle between an oppressive piano piece and more beautiful synths, with the difference in each only emphasising the core property of each instrument every time it enters, and creating a very conflicted, uneasy atmosphere.
The tone calms significantly with 'Moss Garden' the first genuinely relaxing piece on the album which still remains interesting and experimental with the use of what I think is a burning sound effect and instrumental lines that end much sooner than expected. The tone is very similar to that of Japanese instrumental music, and the calm nature fits perfectly with the title of 'Moss Garden'. Though the deeper sound effects used intermittently in the background prevent the track from sounding breezy and remind me of similar moments in Radiohead's 'Kid A'.
'Neuköln' ends the instrumental portion of 'Heroes', going for a much darker tone than 'Moss Garden' due to the descending synths and guitars, coupled with Bowie's wild playing of the saxophone, used sparingly enough so as not to derail the order of the track, until the very end where it becomes the only instrument, making the closing of the track the most eerie and forlorn part.
The vocals return in final track 'The Secret Life of Arabia', but this is far from a straightforward track with its layered and distorted vocal lines and abstract lyrics. As with the rest of the sung tracks on album, infectious guitar riffs are combined with the more futuristic elements of the track perfectly.
The first two albums of the Berlin Trilogy represent the peak powers of Bowie, Eno and Visconti all hitting at once to create some of the best records ever. 'Heroes' manages to continue the standard set by 'Low', and feels connected without being more of the same. Though the title track is rightly lauded in all music circles, it has unfortunately overshadowed nine other sublime tracks that form Bowie's second classic of 1977. Final instalment in the trilogy, 'The Lodger' also manages to feel connected to these records whilst having its own identity, but it did represent a drop in quality that 'Heroes' did not. Unfortunately Bowie's following foray into pop superstardom would provide greatly diminishing returns, but after 40 years Bowie would produce his last masterpiece to stand tall with 'Heroes' and his other masterpieces of the 70s.
Best Track: "Heroes" [First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Opener 'Beauty and the Beast' begins with swelling instrumentation and gets to the point much faster than previous opener 'Speed of Life'. The vocal delivery is reminiscent of Bowie's work as the Thin White Duke on 1976's 'Station to Station'. The track has some more regular features of the pop of its time such as the use of backing singers but the wild instrumentation separates it entirely from the mainstream music surrounding it, giving the album an unpredictable feel from the offset as well as providing more energy than had been seen from Bowie in years.
'Joe the Lion' goes even stranger with a much wilder vocal performance than the authoritative delivery on 'Beauty and the Beast'. The multiple guitar lines give a very grand atmosphere that carries across much of the first half of the record.
Following this Bowie produces what is probably the greatest track ever written. 'Heroes' was inspired at the time by Bowie witnessing married producer Toni Visconti kissing a backing singer by the Berlin wall. Over time the speech marks have been effectively dropped from the title since the more conflicting original subject of the track has faded, and instead it has been given a very hopeful quality, mainly because of the timeless line "we could be heroes just for one day". King Crimson's Robert Fripp provides the constant lead guitar riff that never fades into the background, staying essential to the composition throughout. The instrumentation builds throughout the track with the introduction of synths, guitar lines and backing singers. This is matched by Bowie's vocal performance growing in intensity throughout and providing the absolute heart of the song. This effect was achieved by a genius decision on Visconti's part of moving the microphone away from Bowie throughout the song, forcing him by the end to shout in order to be heard.
'Sons of the Silent Age' calms down the atmosphere of the record anchored by a vocal performance echoing Bowie's earlier work. Every element of the track builds significantly when the chorus hits giving a very different feel to the stranger and more experimental verses, which feature unpredictable drum patterns that sometimes disappear completely.
'Black Out' once again raises the tempo and volume of the record before the (mostly) instrumental second half kicks in. This is probably the wildest track on the album, featuring portions where Bowie's vocal delivery speeds up out of nowhere forcing all the instrumentation to attempt to catch up. The slightly echoing vocals only serve to add to the sense of chaos that defines this track, providing the last bursts of energy before the more controlled latter half of the project.
'V-2 Schneider' is not quite an instrumental but Bowie's repeat of the track's title feels more like one of the wide array of instruments at Eno, Bowie and Visconti's disposable, partly because of the distortion used. The track is similarly energetic but organised to 'Low' track 'A New Career in a New Town' helping fill in the gap between the non instrumental tracks of the record, and the more deeply experiemental instrumental ones that follow.
'Sense of Doubt' is an interesting experiment in the use of Eno's Oblique Strategies deck with Bowie drawing "emphasise differences" and Eno drawing "make everything as similar as possible". The result is a battle between an oppressive piano piece and more beautiful synths, with the difference in each only emphasising the core property of each instrument every time it enters, and creating a very conflicted, uneasy atmosphere.
The tone calms significantly with 'Moss Garden' the first genuinely relaxing piece on the album which still remains interesting and experimental with the use of what I think is a burning sound effect and instrumental lines that end much sooner than expected. The tone is very similar to that of Japanese instrumental music, and the calm nature fits perfectly with the title of 'Moss Garden'. Though the deeper sound effects used intermittently in the background prevent the track from sounding breezy and remind me of similar moments in Radiohead's 'Kid A'.
'Neuköln' ends the instrumental portion of 'Heroes', going for a much darker tone than 'Moss Garden' due to the descending synths and guitars, coupled with Bowie's wild playing of the saxophone, used sparingly enough so as not to derail the order of the track, until the very end where it becomes the only instrument, making the closing of the track the most eerie and forlorn part.
The vocals return in final track 'The Secret Life of Arabia', but this is far from a straightforward track with its layered and distorted vocal lines and abstract lyrics. As with the rest of the sung tracks on album, infectious guitar riffs are combined with the more futuristic elements of the track perfectly.
The first two albums of the Berlin Trilogy represent the peak powers of Bowie, Eno and Visconti all hitting at once to create some of the best records ever. 'Heroes' manages to continue the standard set by 'Low', and feels connected without being more of the same. Though the title track is rightly lauded in all music circles, it has unfortunately overshadowed nine other sublime tracks that form Bowie's second classic of 1977. Final instalment in the trilogy, 'The Lodger' also manages to feel connected to these records whilst having its own identity, but it did represent a drop in quality that 'Heroes' did not. Unfortunately Bowie's following foray into pop superstardom would provide greatly diminishing returns, but after 40 years Bowie would produce his last masterpiece to stand tall with 'Heroes' and his other masterpieces of the 70s.
Best Track: "Heroes" [First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,370
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,824
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 02/15/2017]
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
23,547
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,097
Rank in 1978:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1970 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1971 | 14 | 14% | |
| 1972 | 8 | 8% | |
| 1973 | 10 | 10% | |
| 1974 | 11 | 11% | |
| 1975 | 11 | 11% | |
| 1976 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1977 | 13 | 13% | |
| 1978 | 10 | 10% | |
| 1979 | 11 | 11% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| Pink Floyd | 5 | 5% | |
| David Bowie | 5 | 5% | |
| Brian Eno | 3 | 3% | |
| Fela Kuti & Africa 70 | 3 | 3% | |
| Lou Reed | 3 | 3% | |
| Nico | 2 | 2% | |
| Throbbing Gristle | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
38 | 38% | |
| |
27 | 27% | |
 |
8 | 8% | |
 |
7 | 7% | |
 |
6 | 6% | |
 |
4 | 4% | |
 |
3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 46 from 58th to 12th Here Come The Warm Jets by Brian Eno |
| Up 40 from 73rd to 33rd Close To The Edge by Yes |
| Up 27 from 42nd to 15th After The Gold Rush by Neil Young |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 81 from 15th to 96th Exile On Main St. by The Rolling Stones |
| Down 73 from 20th to 93rd The Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd |
| Down 67 from 25th to 92nd Horses by Patti Smith |
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| Top 100 Albums of the 1970s | Pitchfork | 1970s decade chart | 2004 | |
| Pitchfork: The 100 Best Albums Of The 1970s | WayneMC | Custom chart | 2020 | |
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Other decade charts by JamesMowbray
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2020s | JamesMowbray | 2020s decade chart | 2021 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2010s | JamesMowbray | 2010s decade chart | 2022 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2000s | JamesMowbray | 2000s decade chart | 2019 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | JamesMowbray | 1990s decade chart | 2019 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | JamesMowbray | 1980s decade chart | 2018 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s | JamesMowbray | 1970s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1960s | JamesMowbray | 1960s decade chart | 2022 | |
| Top 60 Music Albums of the 1950s | JamesMowbray | 1950s decade chart | 2019 | |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1970s ratings
86/100 (from 2 votes)
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Showing all 2 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 90/100  | 09/11/2017 08:41 |  bobbyb5 | | 90/100 |
| 80/100 | 08/13/2017 20:02 |  thirstyDog | | 86/100 |
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90/100
From bobbyb5 09/11/2017 08:41
bobbyb5 09/11/2017 08:41
Nice!!
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