Best Albums of the 1970s

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
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.
19702,091255,598
19712,185324,559
19722,249255,519
19732,133261,538
19742,037138,395
Red (139th)by King Crimson
19752,165220,497
19762,181149,586
19772,182251,518
19782,235145,102
19792,157208,589
Total21,6152,210,902

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:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
215
Rank in 1972:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
215
Rank in 1975:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1975
Appears in:
Rank Score:
214
Rank in 1975:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1978
Appears in:
Rank Score:
214
Rank in 1978:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
214
Rank in 1977:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
996.
Live 
Live
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1973
Appears in:
Rank Score:
214
Rank in 1973:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1977
Appears in:
Rank Score:
214
Rank in 1977:
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:
213
Rank in 1971:
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:
213
Rank in 1976:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1972
Appears in:
Rank Score:
213
Rank in 1972:
Rank in 1970s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 100 of 100

Best Albums of the 1970s composition

Year Albums %


1970 107 11%
1971 97 10%
1972 102 10%
1973 108 11%
1974 99 10%
1975 99 10%
1976 88 9%
1977 92 9%
1978 109 11%
1979 99 10%
Artist Albums %


David Bowie 12 1%
Genesis 10 1%
Joni Mitchell 8 1%
Electric Light Orchestra 8 1%
Wishbone Ash 8 1%
Pink Floyd 8 1%
Yes 8 1%
Show all
Country Albums %


United Kingdom 386 39%
United States 370 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 24 2%
Live? Albums %
No 941 94%
Yes 59 6%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 988 99%
Yes 12 1%
Recognised  Decade Charts (2020s)
1. 100 Best Albums of the 2010s: Staff Picks by Billboard (2019)
2. Top 100 Albums of the Decade by Crack Magazine (2019)
3. Top 50 Albums of the 2010s by The Wild Honey Pie (2019)
4. NME's Greatest Albums of The Decade: The 2010s by New Music Express (2019)
5. The 50 best albums of the decade – 2010 to 2019 by Independent (2019)
6. 100 Best Albums of the 2010s by Rolling Stone (2019)
7. The Needle Drop's Top Albums Of The 2010s by The Needle Drop (2019)
8. The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s by Pitchfork (2019)
9. BrooklynVegan's Top Albums of 2010s by BrooklynVegan (2020)
10. The A.V. Club's 50 best albums of the 2010s by The A.V. Club (2019)
11. All The Best Albums Of The 2010s, Ranked by Uproxx (2019)
12. Gorilla vs. Bear Albums of the 2010s by Gorilla vs. Bear (2019)
13. The 50 Best Albums of the Decade by Deep Cuts (2019)
14. The 100 Best Albums Of The 2010s by Stereogum (2019)
15. The 101 Best Albums of the 2010s by Spin (2020)
16. Die besten Platten 2010-2019 by Spex (2019)
17. The 100 Best Albums of the 2010s by Paste (2019)
18. Los 30 mejores discos de la década de 2010 by Esquire España (2023)
19. BEST OF 2011 - 2020: Die besten Alben des Jahrzehnts by laut (2020)
20. Tiny Mix Tapes 2010s: Favorite 100 Music Releases of the Decade by Tiny Mix Tapes (2019)
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