Best Albums of the 1970s
Explore the best albums of the 1970s, based on over 2 million album rankings across 60,000 charts.
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Last updated: 4 hours ago
Last updated: 4 hours ago
"Everything has already been said about this album. Everyone has given their 2 cents about how great it is or how some have said that they cannot hear or comprehend DSOTM's greatness. This album is a stroke of genius from the heart beats that opened with Speak to Me, to the finishing heart beats t..." [+] Reply
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C_Krug2009 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +13 votes (13 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
56,682
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Comments:
"This used to be my favorite record, and honestly I still don't really understand how someone couldn't like it. Of course opinions are subjective, but what is to dislike about this record? Even the longer tracks, which some more casual listeners don't find enjoyable in general, are made in the fas..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
42,174
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"Sadly, I discovered how important Bowie's music is, especially this album, only after he died. I've always been a fan, but I feel slightly guilty for listening mostly to his "hits" prior to his death, leaving me unaware of many great tracks until more recently." Reply
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
40,981
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"Not often can an artist make an album so wonderfully masterful of the rock genre. But this is obviously the case with what is quite possibly the greatest rock album ever made. Despite it doing it doing things that have been done before, many by Led Zeppelin themselves, the ambitiousness of this a..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
36,598
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"This is my favorite pop/rock album with its bohemian flair that never skirts patronizing. Her voice is the siren song which holds the listener captivated from start to finish. The contents of this are sounds and magic, I think. Seriously though, this is one of the best road trip albums I've incor..." [+] Reply
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ptaylor1989 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (6 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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:
29,568
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"This record is pretty much as close to perfect as I've personally heard. It just rolls. Every track has its own unique identity but at the same time adds to the completeness of the whole. The wild diversity of the songs and styles and sounds on this record never seem forced or half-baked. And has..." [+] Reply
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Mercury | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +19 votes (19 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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:
29,099
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"A lot of people complain about its "pretentiousness", and its pompous nature, but quite frankly I don't see it working without these traits. All the emotions and the rage towards the world of one person packaged in an incredibly expressive piece of work. It ranges from melancholic to angry to apa..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
23,633
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"It often gets overshadowed, being sandwiched in between WYWH and the Wall, but it's still as good as the rest of their 70's output. In fact, I rank it above the Wall by a good margin." Reply
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21,371
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"A brooding masterpiece. Like Jim Morrison and The Doors captured L.A in their music and lyrics, so Ian Curtis and Joy Division do the same with Manchester. Unknown pleasures, is a dark record of alienation, loneliness and foreboding. You cannot fail to be drawn into the eerie atmosphere as Curtis..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
20,669
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"If not for this album, The Who would be remembered as a British group with some hit singles and an uneven rock opera. In my opinion, they are lucky the crazy Lifehouse idea fell apart and that they could make one tight album instead of a messy double LP." Reply
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
20,419
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Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100
Best Albums of the 1970s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | 111 | 11% | |
| 1971 | 101 | 10% | |
| 1972 | 96 | 10% | |
| 1973 | 113 | 11% | |
| 1974 | 95 | 10% | |
| 1975 | 97 | 10% | |
| 1976 | 89 | 9% | |
| 1977 | 91 | 9% | |
| 1978 | 104 | 10% | |
| 1979 | 103 | 10% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| Neil Young | 11 | 1% | |
| David Bowie | 11 | 1% | |
| Frank Zappa | 11 | 1% | |
| Bob Marley | 9 | 1% | |
| Paul McCartney | 9 | 1% | |
| Yes | 9 | 1% | |
| Genesis | 9 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
 |
385 | 39% | |
 |
376 | 38% | |
 |
42 | 4% | |
 |
38 | 4% | |
 |
38 | 4% | |
 |
20 | 2% | |
 |
20 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Best Albums of the 1970s chart changes
| Biggest climbers Biggest climbers in top 100 since last month |
|---|
Up 2 from 94th to 92nd |
Up 2 from 89th to 87th |
Up 2 from 65th to 63rd |
| Biggest fallers Biggest fallers in top 100 since last month |
|---|
Down 2 from 64th to 66th |
Down 2 from 92nd to 94th |
Down 1 from 13th to 14th |
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