Top 27 Music Albums of 1978
by mrmcrook 
What a shit hot year for album releases. Absolutely fantastic year for music. Usually the last 10-20% or so at the end of a year chart are duds. The below average. Not so with this year. Apart from the top place, it was very hard to place all the rest in an order of favoritism as they are all really great albums.
My favorite songs of 1978
AC/DC - Down Payment Blues (plus everything else on this album)
Blondie - Picture This (plus everything else on this album)
Rainbow - Kill the King
Ramones - I Wanna Be Sedated
Thin Lizzy - Are You Ready.
The Rolling Stones - Shattered.
The Who - Who Are You
The Cars - Good Times Roll.
Judas Priest - Beyond the Realm of Death
Kate Bush - Wuthering Heights
Ted Nugent - Great White Buffalo
- Chart updated: 08/21/2026 22:15
- (Created: 09/30/2020 03:31).
- Chart size: 27 albums.
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98.00* Best album of AC/DC (along with Highway to Hell). One of the greatest up tempo rock & roll albums of all time. This is when they were at there absolute prime. All killer, no filler. It really is one of the most under rated albums of all time. 05/25
[First added to this chart: 10/30/2020]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,574
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94.16* The ultimate of anything New Wave. It's bloody brilliant. Magnificent listen from start to finish. Not one filler track among them. All tracks well slotted to make this an all time classic. Nothing else she done comes close. Fantastic. Just bloody fantastic 02/25
[First added to this chart: 10/30/2020]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,196
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91.17 One of the best live albums out there. The versions on this surpass that of the studio albums. More kick, more oomph. The second half way surpassing the first with the tempo and rock riffing going into top gear.
[First added to this chart: 10/30/2020]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
948
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90.00 Massively surprised with how good this is. One of the best albums from the Stones. For me, definitely the best they put out in the 70's. Every song has such a classic feel about it. "Far Away Eyes' is one of the greatest country songs ever written. 06/24
[First added to this chart: 03/01/2024]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,993
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88.111* This would probably be my favorite Priest album. Massively under rated and often overlooked because it didn't have any "hits' on it. For fuck's sake, plenty of these tracks could of been pushed and been just as popular as 'Living after Midnight' or 'You got Another Thing Coming' if made mainstream. This is a fantastic album from start to finish. Definitely one of there best. 09/25
[First added to this chart: 10/30/2020]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
997
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85.55 This always seems to be forgotten about in the subject of greatest ever debut albums. The opening three songs alone cement that. Way, way better than expected. The tracks I didn't know previously are as good as the ones I did. Bloody fantastic album. Reminded me of Devo in parts.
[First added to this chart: 09/13/2022]
Year of Release:
1978
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Rank Score:
5,491
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84.09 A fantastic live album. Good showcase of a 70's guitar king
[First added to this chart: 10/30/2020]
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83.63 Van Halen's magnum opus. They would be at the top of the list for any band whose debut album was their best. By far. This is when they were at their hard rock guitar driven best. I'd actually forgotten how good this was after a lengthy period between hearings
[First added to this chart: 10/30/2020]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,326
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83.250* The last album Dio did with them before he headed to Sabbath. Almost level par with 'Rising'. An excellent classic Hard Rock / Metal album with some of their most legendary songs. Dio's fucking marvelous. 08/26
[First added to this chart: 04/11/2026]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
642
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83.166* Overall a touch slower (but not by much) and a bit more melodic than what came before. But still impeccable. Hence the mightiness on The Ramones. Love their cover of 'Needles and Pins' 09/25
[First added to this chart: 09/12/2025]
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
894
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Total albums: 27. Page 1 of 3
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Top 27 Music Albums of 1978 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Judas Priest | 2 | 7% | |
| AC/DC | 2 | 7% | |
| The Who | 1 | 4% | |
| Thin Lizzy | 1 | 4% | |
| UFO | 1 | 4% | |
| Bruce Springsteen | 1 | 4% | |
| The Rolling Stones | 1 | 4% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 27 Music Albums of 1978 chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
Up 6 from 16th to 10th |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
Down 1 from 10th to 11th |
Down 1 from 11th to 12th |
Down 1 from 12th to 13th |
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Showing all 2 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 07/09/2021 20:11 |  Rhyner | 1,463 | 99/100 |
| ! | 07/09/2021 04:11 | svk4ever | 14 | 83/100 |
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