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	2,076	257,024	Paranoid (52nd)by Black Sabbath
1971	2,177	324,988	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (12th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	2,230	256,957	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (9th)by David Bowie
1973	2,115	262,909	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	2,028	138,550	Red (140th)by King Crimson
1975	2,152	221,710	Wish You Were Here (7th)by Pink Floyd
1976	2,160	149,390	Songs In The Key Of Life (84th)by Stevie Wonder
1977	2,166	253,308	Rumours (21st)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	2,216	145,471	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (209th)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	2,148	210,078	London Calling (20th)by The Clash
Total	21,468	2,220,384

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

David Bowie

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

2,956 charts

Rank Score:

48,473

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

90 (3,475 votes)

Comments:

299

12.

Exile On Main St.

The Rolling Stones

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,931 charts

Rank Score:

21,848

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

16.

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,521 charts

Rank Score:

19,679

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (1,816 votes)

Comments:

142

24.

Close To The Edge

Yes

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,160 charts

Rank Score:

14,602

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

85 (1,435 votes)

Comments:

117

28.

Harvest

Neil Young

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,347 charts

Rank Score:

13,054

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

102

Average Rating:

85 (1,681 votes)

Comments:

35.

Transformer

Lou Reed

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,215 charts

Rank Score:

10,657

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

138

Average Rating:

83 (1,514 votes)

Comments:

58.

Machine Head

Deep Purple

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

792 charts

Rank Score:

7,089

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

240

Average Rating:

83 (998 votes)

Comments:

73.

Thick As A Brick

Jethro Tull

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

631 charts

Rank Score:

5,965

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

295

Average Rating:

83 (828 votes)

Comments:

78.

Foxtrot

Genesis

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

608 charts

Rank Score:

5,725

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

315

Average Rating:

82 (829 votes)

Comments:

79.

Ege Bamyası

Can

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

616 charts

Rank Score:

5,715

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

316

Average Rating:

83 (708 votes)

Comments:

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Total albums: 101. Page 1 of 11

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year	Albums	%

1970	108	11%
1971	97	10%
1972	101	10%
1973	108	11%
1974	99	10%
1975	99	10%
1976	89	9%
1977	91	9%
1978	109	11%
1979	99	10%

Artist	Albums	%

David Bowie	12	1%
Genesis	10	1%
Jethro Tull	9	1%
The Rolling Stones	8	1%
Electric Light Orchestra	8	1%
Miles Davis	8	1%
Wishbone Ash	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	387	39%
	369	37%
	42	4%
	37	4%
	36	4%
	24	2%
	21	2%
Show all

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

Live?	Albums	%
No	940	94%
Yes	60	6%

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

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

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