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 51,000 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	1,941	265,679	Paranoid (56th)by Black Sabbath
1971	2,043	342,637	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (12th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	2,070	270,049	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (9th)by David Bowie
1973	1,977	276,800	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	1,842	142,123	Red (153rd)by King Crimson
1975	2,007	234,157	Wish You Were Here (8th)by Pink Floyd
1976	2,020	155,164	Songs In The Key Of Life (88th)by Stevie Wonder
1977	2,029	264,482	Rumours (23rd)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	2,049	147,255	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (202nd)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	2,005	219,935	London Calling (20th)by The Clash
Total	19,983	2,318,282

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

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

David Bowie

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

2,910 charts

Rank Score:

53,034

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

90 (3,401 votes)

Comments:

295

12.

Exile On Main St.

The Rolling Stones

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,884 charts

Rank Score:

23,895

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

15.

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,488 charts

Rank Score:

21,032

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (1,777 votes)

Comments:

141

24.

Close To The Edge

Yes

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,126 charts

Rank Score:

15,040

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

85 (1,402 votes)

Comments:

113

27.

Harvest

Neil Young

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,305 charts

Rank Score:

13,769

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

104

Average Rating:

84 (1,643 votes)

Comments:

35.

Transformer

Lou Reed

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,198 charts

Rank Score:

11,619

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

134

Average Rating:

83 (1,492 votes)

Comments:

58.

Machine Head

Deep Purple

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

768 charts

Rank Score:

7,373

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

243

Average Rating:

83 (971 votes)

Comments:

70.

Thick As A Brick

Jethro Tull

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

610 charts

Rank Score:

6,481

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

283

Average Rating:

83 (803 votes)

Comments:

73.

Foxtrot

Genesis (UK)

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

603 charts

Rank Score:

6,334

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

291

Average Rating:

83 (801 votes)

Comments:

81.

Ege Bamyası

Can

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

588 charts

Rank Score:

5,785

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

318

Average Rating:

83 (686 votes)

Comments:

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Total albums: 106. Page 1 of 11

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year	Albums	%

1970	106	11%
1971	102	10%
1972	105	11%
1973	108	11%
1974	97	10%
1975	96	10%
1976	89	9%
1977	93	9%
1978	107	11%
1979	98	10%

Artist	Albums	%

David Bowie	11	1%
Genesis (UK)	10	1%
Jethro Tull	9	1%
Electric Light Orchestra	8	1%
The Rolling Stones	8	1%
AC/DC	8	1%
Joni Mitchell	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	386	39%
	373	37%
	42	4%
	39	4%
	32	3%
	23	2%
	21	2%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	976	98%
Yes	25	2%

Live?	Albums	%
No	944	94%
Yes	57	6%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	989	99%
Yes	12	1%

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

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