Best Albums of the 1970s

Listed below are the best albums of the 1970s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 55,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade
Decade:
Year:
1970s decade summary
YearAlbums 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.
19702,097254,374
19712,191322,555
19722,256253,062
19732,138258,570
19742,044137,777
Red (140th)by King Crimson
19752,175219,372
19762,198148,458
19772,190250,010
19782,246143,975
19792,169206,642
Total21,7042,194,796

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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Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
893
Rank in 1973:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
889
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
887
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • iTunes
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
885
Rank in 1978:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • iTunes
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
872
Rank in 1972:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
870
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1976
Appears in:
Rank Score:
866
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1979
Appears in:
Rank Score:
863
Rank in 1979:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
859
Rank in 1978:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1971
Appears in:
Rank Score:
859
Rank in 1971:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 37 of 100

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year Albums %


1970 107 11%
1971 98 10%
1972 102 10%
1973 107 11%
1974 98 10%
1975 101 10%
1976 84 8%
1977 95 10%
1978 110 11%
1979 99 10%
Artist Albums %


David Bowie 12 1%
Genesis 10 1%
Yes 9 1%
AC/DC 8 1%
Elton John 8 1%
Jethro Tull 8 1%
The Rolling Stones 8 1%
Show all
Country Albums %


United Kingdom 385 38%
United States 373 37%
Canada 42 4%
Germany 37 4%
Mixed Nationality 36 4%
Brazil 24 2%
Jamaica 20 2%
Show all
Compilation? Albums %
No 976 98%
Yes 25 2%
Live? Albums %
No 941 94%
Yes 60 6%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 989 99%
Yes 12 1%
Best Ever Artists
1. The Beatles
2. Radiohead
3. Pink Floyd
4. David Bowie
5. Bob Dylan
6. Led Zeppelin
7. The Rolling Stones
8. Arcade Fire
9. The Velvet Underground
10. Nirvana
11. Kendrick Lamar
12. Neil Young
13. The Smiths
14. Miles Davis
15. The Beach Boys
16. Kanye West
17. R.E.M.
18. Pixies
19. Jimi Hendrix
20. Bruce Springsteen
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