Top 37 Music Albums of 1976
by 
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 01/16/2026 23:45
- (Created: 04/12/2012 02:56).
- Chart size: 37 albums.
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[First added to this chart: 12/30/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,605
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 04/11/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
434
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 08/02/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,951
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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1976-ASYLUM
Produced by BILL SZYMCZYK
1. Hotel California
2. New Kid In Town
3. Life In The Fast Lane
4. Wasted Time
5. Wasted Time (Reprise)
6. Victim Of Love
7. Pretty Maids All In A Row
8. Try And Love Again
9. The Last Resort
The Eagles were already dripping in hits when Hotel California dropped in 1976. This album made them, until Rumours came out shortly afterward, pretty much the biggest band on the planet. The album boasted two great songs, the almost reggae title track (maybe their most complete song ever), and "Life In The Fast Lane". But what people tend to forget is that while these songs and "Victim Of Love" rocked (with much help from the addition of Joe Walsh on guitar), the rest of the album is pretty snoozy. Even more so than their previous effort, One Of These Nights.
"New Kid In Town" and "Try And Love Again" were hits also, and the vocals were, as always, first rate. But the album is ultimately dragged from it's perceived classic status by the duller tracks "Wasted Time" (and its pointless orchestral reprise) and "the overly long "The Last Resort". A large part of what made Hotel California such a huge hit was the greatest hits album that was released around the same time. Hotel California is a great picture of life in the mid 70's...but as an album, it's not quite as great as we remember it to be. Still, a good effort. But not quite an indispensable classic. [First added to this chart: 04/12/2012]
Produced by BILL SZYMCZYK
1. Hotel California
2. New Kid In Town
3. Life In The Fast Lane
4. Wasted Time
5. Wasted Time (Reprise)
6. Victim Of Love
7. Pretty Maids All In A Row
8. Try And Love Again
9. The Last Resort
The Eagles were already dripping in hits when Hotel California dropped in 1976. This album made them, until Rumours came out shortly afterward, pretty much the biggest band on the planet. The album boasted two great songs, the almost reggae title track (maybe their most complete song ever), and "Life In The Fast Lane". But what people tend to forget is that while these songs and "Victim Of Love" rocked (with much help from the addition of Joe Walsh on guitar), the rest of the album is pretty snoozy. Even more so than their previous effort, One Of These Nights.
"New Kid In Town" and "Try And Love Again" were hits also, and the vocals were, as always, first rate. But the album is ultimately dragged from it's perceived classic status by the duller tracks "Wasted Time" (and its pointless orchestral reprise) and "the overly long "The Last Resort". A large part of what made Hotel California such a huge hit was the greatest hits album that was released around the same time. Hotel California is a great picture of life in the mid 70's...but as an album, it's not quite as great as we remember it to be. Still, a good effort. But not quite an indispensable classic. [First added to this chart: 04/12/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,175
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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1976-JET
Produced By JEFF LYNNE
1. Tightrope
2. Telephone Line
3. Rockaria!
4. Mission (A World Record)
5. So Fine
6. Livin' Thing
7. Above The Clouds
8. Do Ya
9. Shangri-la
Electric Light Orchestra is one of the more interesting bands to watch throughought their history. You can see, album by album, the band and their songs come together (before they fell apart in the 1980's). You can also trace the production skills of Jeff Lynne, who only got better on each album. By the time of A New World Record, Lynne was in a great place as a producer. And he had the hit song thing down as well. This album was a ridiculous success, boasting hits with "Telephone Line", "Livin' Thing", and "Do Ya", an old song Lynne carried over from The Move. The lineup here was their best, and this was their most successful album. It's very good, but maybe not their best.
After this record, the cracks began to show with Out of The Blue. This represents the peak of ELO, a pretty fine album. I do have a bias here: the tour for this album was my very first concert, with Elvin Bishop at McNichols Arena in Denver. [First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Produced By JEFF LYNNE
1. Tightrope
2. Telephone Line
3. Rockaria!
4. Mission (A World Record)
5. So Fine
6. Livin' Thing
7. Above The Clouds
8. Do Ya
9. Shangri-la
Electric Light Orchestra is one of the more interesting bands to watch throughought their history. You can see, album by album, the band and their songs come together (before they fell apart in the 1980's). You can also trace the production skills of Jeff Lynne, who only got better on each album. By the time of A New World Record, Lynne was in a great place as a producer. And he had the hit song thing down as well. This album was a ridiculous success, boasting hits with "Telephone Line", "Livin' Thing", and "Do Ya", an old song Lynne carried over from The Move. The lineup here was their best, and this was their most successful album. It's very good, but maybe not their best.
After this record, the cracks began to show with Out of The Blue. This represents the peak of ELO, a pretty fine album. I do have a bias here: the tour for this album was my very first concert, with Elvin Bishop at McNichols Arena in Denver. [First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,057
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 10/28/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,823
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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[First added to this chart: 10/28/2012]
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1976-CAPITOL
Produced By MIKE FLICKER
1. Magic Man
2. Dreamboat Annie (Fantasy Child)
3. Crazy On You
4. Soul Of The Sea
5. Dreamboat Annie
6. White Lightning & Wine
7. (Love Me Like Music) I'll Be Your Song
8. Sing Child
9. How Deep It Goes
10. Dreamboat Annie (Reprise)
Tell me if you've heard this story before. A pair of siblings lead a band through its debut album in a style that's thought to be dead to great success. They string together a couple more hits over the years, but too many personnel changes and some ill advised changes in style to try and keep up with the changing music scene lead to some unfortunate recordings and a "remember when they were kick ass" feeling among fans....
Anyway, Ann & Nancy Wislon roared out of Seattle with the debut of Heart, bringing the female voice back to rock & roll with a bang. "Magic Man" and "Crazy On You" were monster hits, and there were other great songs as well. The trippy "Soul Of The Sea" and the rocking "Sing Child" made this a hugely successful debut. The main weapon is the voice of Ann Wilson, and the label of Female Led Zeppelin soon followed. Dreamboat Annie is mostly excellent, an important part of the evolution of rock in the 70's, and part of the birth of arena rock. Part of why 1976 was such a great time to be 15.
Heart went on to a still continuing career, but they never matched their debut. Aside from Ann & Nancy, the lineup has been continuously changing, and the writing more diluted with each album. So if you're going to have one Heart album, this is the one you should have. [First added to this chart: 06/21/2013]
Produced By MIKE FLICKER
1. Magic Man
2. Dreamboat Annie (Fantasy Child)
3. Crazy On You
4. Soul Of The Sea
5. Dreamboat Annie
6. White Lightning & Wine
7. (Love Me Like Music) I'll Be Your Song
8. Sing Child
9. How Deep It Goes
10. Dreamboat Annie (Reprise)
Tell me if you've heard this story before. A pair of siblings lead a band through its debut album in a style that's thought to be dead to great success. They string together a couple more hits over the years, but too many personnel changes and some ill advised changes in style to try and keep up with the changing music scene lead to some unfortunate recordings and a "remember when they were kick ass" feeling among fans....
Anyway, Ann & Nancy Wislon roared out of Seattle with the debut of Heart, bringing the female voice back to rock & roll with a bang. "Magic Man" and "Crazy On You" were monster hits, and there were other great songs as well. The trippy "Soul Of The Sea" and the rocking "Sing Child" made this a hugely successful debut. The main weapon is the voice of Ann Wilson, and the label of Female Led Zeppelin soon followed. Dreamboat Annie is mostly excellent, an important part of the evolution of rock in the 70's, and part of the birth of arena rock. Part of why 1976 was such a great time to be 15.
Heart went on to a still continuing career, but they never matched their debut. Aside from Ann & Nancy, the lineup has been continuously changing, and the writing more diluted with each album. So if you're going to have one Heart album, this is the one you should have. [First added to this chart: 06/21/2013]
Year of Release:
1975*
Appears in:
Rank Score:
710
Rank in 1975:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
1976-ELEKTRA
Produced By JACKSON BROWNE
1. Frank And Jesse James
2. Mama Couldn't Be Persuaded
3. Backs Turned Looking Down The Path
4. Hasten Down The Wind
5. Poor Poor Pitiful Me
6. The French Inhaler
7. Mohammed's Radio
8. I'll Sleep When I'm Dead
9. Carmelita
10. Join Me In L.A.
11. Desperados Under The Eaves
Warren Zevon's debut album, Wanted Dead Or Alive, was so bad that it took 6 years for the follow up, Warren Zevon, to be released. What a difference 6 years can make. This collection didn't sell very well initially, but it came to be known as one of rock's true classic albums. Every song is a stunning reminder of why Zevon was so well resepcted in the music industry, and why his fans, once on board the Zevon bandwagon, never leave. And the list of guests on the album...Jackson Browne, Lindsey Buckingham, Phil Everly, Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Stevie Nicks, Bonnie Raitt...is impressive as well.
Linda Ronstadt covered 4 songs from this album, and appeared on his later recordings. He went on to further success, but this album is the one that made him a legend. Strong on every track, lyrically amazing, and stunningly played. A complete classic and an easy 5 stars. [First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Produced By JACKSON BROWNE
1. Frank And Jesse James
2. Mama Couldn't Be Persuaded
3. Backs Turned Looking Down The Path
4. Hasten Down The Wind
5. Poor Poor Pitiful Me
6. The French Inhaler
7. Mohammed's Radio
8. I'll Sleep When I'm Dead
9. Carmelita
10. Join Me In L.A.
11. Desperados Under The Eaves
Warren Zevon's debut album, Wanted Dead Or Alive, was so bad that it took 6 years for the follow up, Warren Zevon, to be released. What a difference 6 years can make. This collection didn't sell very well initially, but it came to be known as one of rock's true classic albums. Every song is a stunning reminder of why Zevon was so well resepcted in the music industry, and why his fans, once on board the Zevon bandwagon, never leave. And the list of guests on the album...Jackson Browne, Lindsey Buckingham, Phil Everly, Glenn Frey, Don Henley, Stevie Nicks, Bonnie Raitt...is impressive as well.
Linda Ronstadt covered 4 songs from this album, and appeared on his later recordings. He went on to further success, but this album is the one that made him a legend. Strong on every track, lyrically amazing, and stunningly played. A complete classic and an easy 5 stars. [First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
582
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/19/2012]
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
12,047
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 37. Page 1 of 4
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Top 37 Music Albums of 1976 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Led Zeppelin | 2 | 5% | |
| Eagles | 2 | 5% | |
| Queen | 1 | 3% | |
| Blue Öyster Cult | 1 | 3% | |
| Dr. Hook And The Medicine Show | 1 | 3% | |
| The Stills-Young Band | 1 | 3% | |
| Rainbow | 1 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| |
21 | 57% | |
 |
10 | 27% | |
 |
1 | 3% | |
 |
1 | 3% | |
 |
1 | 3% | |
 |
1 | 3% | |
 |
1 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 37 Music Albums of 1976 chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 2 from 11th to 9thWarren Zevon by Warren Zevon |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 9th to 10thStation To Station by David Bowie |
| Down 1 from 10th to 11th"Rocks" by Aerosmith |
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Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 8 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 09/04/2024 10:07 | Musyahid | 31 | 92/100 |
| ! | 05/02/2023 11:21 |  pedro1976 | 106 | 85/100 |
| ! | 03/10/2020 01:09 | DJENNY | 4,341 | 100/100 |
| ! | 05/06/2018 17:56 | TrekkiELO | 75 | 88/100 |
| ! | 02/11/2014 21:23 | PauloPaz | 1,759 | 89/100 |
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From Musyahid 09/04/2024 10:07 | #305132
yes it's rocks by aerosmith
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Johnnyo 10/27/2012 09:32 | #53514
Small but beautifully put together chart.
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From ecwashere 10/26/2012 14:33 | #53467
Exellent!
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