Best Albums of the 1970s

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Listed below are the best albums of the 1970s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 54,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade

Decade:

Year:

1970s decade summary

Year	Albums The number of albums from each year featuring in the greatest album charts.	Score Total rank score for each year (made up of the total rank score from all albums in that year)	Top Ranked Album The top ranked album from each year and where it ranks in the overall chart.
1970	2,089	256,003	Paranoid (52nd)by Black Sabbath
1971	2,184	324,880	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (12th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	2,249	255,825	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (7th)by David Bowie
1973	2,132	261,765	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	2,036	138,582	Red (139th)by King Crimson
1975	2,164	220,579	Wish You Were Here (5th)by Pink Floyd
1976	2,181	149,725	Songs In The Key Of Life (82nd)by Stevie Wonder
1977	2,182	251,845	Rumours (21st)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	2,234	145,373	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (210th)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	2,157	208,802	London Calling (20th)by The Clash
Total	21,608	2,213,379

The best artists of the 1970s were Pink Floyd, David Bowie, Led Zeppelin, Neil Young, The Rolling Stones, The Clash, Fleetwood Mac, Black Sabbath, The Who and Stevie Wonder.

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20.

Blue

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

1,350 charts

Rank Score:

17,212

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

85 (1,475 votes)

Comments:

111

111.

Hejira

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1976

Appears in:

374 charts

Rank Score:

3,700

Rank in 1976:

Rank in 1970s:

111

Overall Rank:

481

Average Rating:

80 (438 votes)

Comments:

127.

Court And Spark

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1974

Appears in:

492 charts

Rank Score:

3,220

Rank in 1974:

Rank in 1970s:

127

Overall Rank:

552

Average Rating:

82 (571 votes)

Comments:

161.

The Hissing Of Summer Lawns

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

312 charts

Rank Score:

2,521

Rank in 1975:

Rank in 1970s:

161

Overall Rank:

709

Average Rating:

80 (400 votes)

Comments:

264.

Ladies Of The Canyon

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

252 charts

Rank Score:

1,347

Rank in 1970:

Rank in 1970s:

264

Overall Rank:

1,301

Average Rating:

80 (297 votes)

Comments:

466.

For The Roses

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

160 charts

Rank Score:

643

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

466

Overall Rank:

2,471

Average Rating:

79 (196 votes)

Comments:

562.

Don Juan's Reckless Daughter

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

94 charts

Rank Score:

479

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

562

Overall Rank:

3,136

Average Rating:

75 (137 votes)

Comments:

964.

Mingus

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

54 charts

Rank Score:

225

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

964

Overall Rank:

5,872

Average Rating:

72 (90 votes)

Comments:

Total albums: 8. Page 1 of 1

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year	Albums	%

1970	107	11%
1971	97	10%
1972	102	10%
1973	108	11%
1974	99	10%
1975	99	10%
1976	88	9%
1977	92	9%
1978	109	11%
1979	99	10%

Artist	Albums	%

David Bowie	12	1%
Genesis	10	1%
Miles Davis	8	1%
Joni Mitchell	8	1%
Pink Floyd	8	1%
Yes	8	1%
AC/DC	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	386	39%
	370	37%
	42	4%
	37	4%
	36	4%
	24	2%
	20	2%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	976	98%
Yes	24	2%

Live?	Albums	%
No	941	94%
Yes	59	6%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	988	99%
Yes	12	1%

« View best albums of the 1960sView best albums of the 1980s »

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Best Albums of the 1980s
1. The Queen Is Dead by The Smiths
2. Doolittle by Pixies
3. Remain In Light by Talking Heads
4. Disintegration by The Cure
5. The Stone Roses by The Stone Roses
6. The Joshua Tree by U2
7. Hounds Of Love by Kate Bush
8. Daydream Nation by Sonic Youth
9. Thriller by Michael Jackson
10. Closer by Joy Division
11. Purple Rain by Prince And The Revolution
12. Master Of Puppets by Metallica
13. Surfer Rosa by Pixies
14. Rain Dogs by Tom Waits
15. Appetite For Destruction by Guns N' Roses
16. Graceland by Paul Simon
17. Spirit Of Eden by Talk Talk
18. Back In Black by AC/DC
19. Murmur by R.E.M.
20. Moving Pictures by Rush