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 45,000 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	1,759	282,247	Paranoid (62nd)by Black Sabbath
1971	1,820	371,230	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (11th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	1,867	291,977	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (9th)by David Bowie
1973	1,797	300,413	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	1,669	149,157	Red (160th)by King Crimson
1975	1,841	253,546	Wish You Were Here (8th)by Pink Floyd
1976	1,788	159,486	Songs In The Key Of Life (97th)by Stevie Wonder
1977	1,822	282,224	Rumours (25th)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	1,832	153,453	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (193rd)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	1,822	238,959	London Calling (18th)by The Clash
Total	18,017	2,482,691

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

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The Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1973

Appears in:

3,833 charts

Rank Score:

87,713

Rank in 1973:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

92 (4,920 votes)

Comments:

550

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

2,751 charts

Rank Score:

60,494

Rank in 1975:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

91 (3,708 votes)

Comments:

289

The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars

David Bowie

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

2,770 charts

Rank Score:

59,981

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

90 (3,230 votes)

Comments:

280

Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV)

Led Zeppelin

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

2,925 charts

Rank Score:

54,529

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

2,622 charts

Rank Score:

45,345

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (2,941 votes)

Comments:

243

Rumours

Fleetwood Mac

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

2,040 charts

Rank Score:

37,134

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

2,106 charts

Rank Score:

36,654

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

1,837 charts

Rank Score:

30,917

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (2,135 votes)

Comments:

176

Animals

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

1,607 charts

Rank Score:

30,140

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

88 (2,543 votes)

Comments:

185

10.

Who's Next

The Who

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

2,028 charts

Rank Score:

28,901

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

86 (2,356 votes)

Comments:

192

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Total albums: 975. Page 1 of 98

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year	Albums	%

1970	108	11%
1971	99	10%
1972	101	10%
1973	111	11%
1974	93	9%
1975	95	10%
1976	93	9%
1977	93	9%
1978	111	11%
1979	96	10%

Artist	Albums	%

David Bowie	11	1%
Jethro Tull	10	1%
Genesis	9	1%
AC/DC	8	1%
The Rolling Stones	8	1%
Yes	8	1%
Pink Floyd	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	396	40%
	369	37%
	40	4%
	40	4%
	38	4%
	21	2%
	20	2%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	975	98%
Yes	25	3%

Live?	Albums	%
No	944	94%
Yes	56	6%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	990	99%
Yes	10	1%

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

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