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	1,945	265,525	Paranoid (56th)by Black Sabbath
1971	2,048	342,229	Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV) (12th)by Led Zeppelin
1972	2,072	269,937	The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stard... (9th)by David Bowie
1973	1,981	276,519	The Dark Side Of The Moon (2nd)by Pink Floyd
1974	1,843	142,172	Red (152nd)by King Crimson
1975	2,009	233,977	Wish You Were Here (8th)by Pink Floyd
1976	2,026	155,128	Songs In The Key Of Life (87th)by Stevie Wonder
1977	2,031	264,524	Rumours (23rd)by Fleetwood Mac
1978	2,056	147,127	Darkness On The Edge Of Town (202nd)by Bruce Springsteen
1979	2,009	220,170	London Calling (20th)by The Clash
Total	20,020	2,317,308

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 Dark Side Of The Moon

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1973

Appears in:

4,015 charts

Rank Score:

76,196

Rank in 1973:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

92 (5,141 votes)

Comments:

576

Wish You Were Here

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1975

Appears in:

2,881 charts

Rank Score:

53,485

Rank in 1975:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

91 (3,892 votes)

Comments:

305

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

David Bowie

Year of Release:

1972

Appears in:

2,911 charts

Rank Score:

52,986

Rank in 1972:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

90 (3,402 votes)

Comments:

295

Untitled (Led Zeppelin IV)

Led Zeppelin

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

3,046 charts

Rank Score:

47,072

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

2,720 charts

Rank Score:

38,634

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (3,054 votes)

Comments:

254

Rumours

Fleetwood Mac

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

2,168 charts

Rank Score:

35,297

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

2,178 charts

Rank Score:

31,584

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

87 (3,373 votes)

Comments:

259

Animals

Pink Floyd

Year of Release:

1977

Appears in:

1,693 charts

Rank Score:

26,868

Rank in 1977:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

Comments:

Year of Release:

1979

Appears in:

1,904 charts

Rank Score:

26,561

Rank in 1979:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

86 (2,247 votes)

Comments:

185

10.

Who's Next

The Who

Year of Release:

1971

Appears in:

2,110 charts

Rank Score:

25,517

Rank in 1971:

Rank in 1970s:

Overall Rank:

Average Rating:

86 (2,458 votes)

Comments:

199

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100

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%
Joni Mitchell	8	1%
Pink Floyd	8	1%
Electric Light Orchestra	8	1%
Yes	8	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	385	38%
	375	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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