Best Albums of the 1970s

Listed below are the best albums of the 1970s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 59,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 2 hours ago).
Best albums by year or decade
Decade:
Year:
1970s decade summaryThe best artists of the 1970s were Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, The Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, The Clash, Fleetwood Mac, Stevie Wonder and The Who.
View chart at point in time
 Show this chart as it was on the following date
Share this chart
Collector's summary (top 1,000) Help The maximum rank used by the Collector's Summary is configurable from your profile (top 1,000 is currently selected). Log in or register to discover the great albums that are missing from your music collection!
Sort Sort by
"I never thought this album could be so good ! It’s almost as good as BIA for me. The tracklist is nice: starting with a classic happy hit of Supertramp, then great varied songs from both singers, and the incredible Fool’s Overture, one of their most accomplished song IMO. Standouts: Give a Little..."  [+]  Reply
- | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,273
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
262.
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,263
Rank in 1971:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"It's hard to put a finger on XTC. I understand why some people don't love them. They manage to be disorienting without the traditional means. The guitars frequently enter into repetitive hypnotic states, with a jagged bounce. Drums & Wires may be their finest collection, and a solid entry point f..."  [+]  Reply
- meccalecca | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (8 helpful | 2 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,262
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,257
Rank in 1970:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This album shows off everything that's great about The Beach Boys: the fact that they could do almost any genre from that time (maybe they should've left rock & roll, but okay); Brian Wilson's genius production techniques; Brian Wilson's out of the box thinking, he basically made Shoegazing with ..."  [+]  Reply
- Boltzmann | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1970
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,249
Rank in 1970:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Billy Joel's follow up to his artistic and commercial peak, the stranger. 52nd street, is a good album, but it just hasn't quite got the edge that it's predecessor had. The first side of the album though is very good. Opening with one of the best examples of that cynical songwriting Joel is so go..."  [+]  Reply
- garycottier | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,241
Rank in 1978:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Lots of people in these comments are saying this album is a disappointment. Completely untrue. Lyrics, musicality and production all much improved from the first album. Sure, it's not as angry or "punk," but at the end of the day, that doesn't matter as much as how enjoyable it is to listen to. A..."  [+]  Reply
- MetaKoopa99 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +5 votes (5 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,238
Rank in 1978:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Released 5 months after Rust Never Sleeps, an almost live album with studio overdubs and removed crowd noise, Young released the fully live Live Rust. Starting off with Young playing solo, he is joined by Carzy Horse and turns in a rocking performance. The song selection is key, and it's mostly g..."  [+]  Reply
- Romanelli | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,235
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
""Katy Lied" is one of Steely Dan's great classic albums ( OK, they all are!) from when they were still a real band, and not "just" the Becker/Fagen duo. The Becker/Fagen aim for perfection is very much apparent here. Great production and playing. Inspired songwriting and dark thought-provoking ly..."  [+]  Reply
- Rovers | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,230
Rank in 1975:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Ramones second and more of the same, possibly even better than the first album. I bought this and Ramones in early 77 as US import pressings and they were barely off my turntable for the whole year – best band ever and a soundtrack to my youth."  Reply
- Dankel | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +5 votes (5 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,227
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 27 of 100

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Best Ever Albums
1. OK Computer by Radiohead
2. The Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd
3. Abbey Road by The Beatles
4. Revolver by The Beatles
5. Wish You Were Here by Pink Floyd
6. In Rainbows by Radiohead
7. The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars by David Bowie
8. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles
9. Kid A by Radiohead
10. The Velvet Underground & Nico by The Velvet Underground & Nico