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	1,983	262,967	Paranoid (58th)by Black Sabbath
1971	2,078	337,655	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (12th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	2,103	266,129	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (9th)by David Bowie
1973	2,020	272,889	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	1,891	141,161	Red (149th)by King Crimson
1975	2,059	231,594	Wish You Were Here (8th)by Pink Floyd
1976	2,053	153,277	Songs In The Key Of Life (87th)by Stevie Wonder
1977	2,065	261,646	Rumours (23rd)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	2,091	146,613	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (198th)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	2,027	217,620	London Calling (20th)by The Clash
Total	20,370	2,291,551

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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21.

Blue

Joni Mitchell

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

1,323 charts

Rank Score:

17,708

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

85 (1,439 votes)

Comments:

108

22.

After The Gold Rush

Neil Young

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

1,506 charts

Rank Score:

16,701

Rank in 1970:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

86 (1,723 votes)

Comments:

129

23.

Songs In The Key Of Life

Stevie Wonder

Year of Release:

1976

Appears in:

1,209 charts

Rank Score:

15,755

Rank in 1976:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

85 (1,288 votes)

Comments:

24.

Close To The Edge

Yes

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,131 charts

Rank Score:

14,734

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

25.

Year of Release:

1976

Appears in:

1,050 charts

Rank Score:

13,637

Rank in 1976:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

85 (1,488 votes)

Comments:

26.

A Night At The Opera

Queen

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

1,378 charts

Rank Score:

13,629

Rank in 1975:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

101

Average Rating:

83 (1,864 votes)

Comments:

129

27.

Harvest

Neil Young

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

1,315 charts

Rank Score:

13,570

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

103

Average Rating:

84 (1,649 votes)

Comments:

28.

Bridge Over Troubled Water

Simon & Garfunkel

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

1,231 charts

Rank Score:

13,543

Rank in 1970:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

104

Average Rating:

84 (1,477 votes)

Comments:

29.

Physical Graffiti

Led Zeppelin

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

1,303 charts

Rank Score:

13,534

Rank in 1975:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

30.

Year of Release:

1970

Appears in:

1,153 charts

Rank Score:

13,527

Rank in 1970:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

106

Average Rating:

85 (1,254 votes)

Comments:

111

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 3 of 100

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year	Albums	%

1970	106	11%
1971	102	10%
1972	103	10%
1973	109	11%
1974	97	10%
1975	97	10%
1976	89	9%
1977	92	9%
1978	106	11%
1979	99	10%

Artist	Albums	%

David Bowie	12	1%
Genesis (UK)	10	1%
Jethro Tull	9	1%
Joni Mitchell	8	1%
Pink Floyd	8	1%
Yes	8	1%
Elton John	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	387	39%
	373	37%
	42	4%
	39	4%
	32	3%
	24	2%
	21	2%
Show all

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

Live?	Albums	%
No	943	94%
Yes	57	6%

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

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

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