This is a list of 1970s music albums that multiple music journalists, music magazine, and professional music review websites have considered to be among the best of the 1970s and of all time, separated into the years of each album's release. The albums listed here are included on at least four separate "best/greatest of the 1970s/all time" lists from different professional publications (inclusive of all genres and nationalities) as chosen by their editorial staffs or by a sample size of an entire publication's audience, or hall of fame awards and historical preservation measures.
List 1970 Release DateAlbumArtistGenre(s)LabelNotesAccoladesJanuary 2, 1970The Madcap LaughsSyd Barrett Psychedelic folk folk rock experimental rock psychedelic rock avant-popHarvestAccoladesBridge over Troubled WaterSimon & Garfunkel Christian pop pop rock folk rockColumbiaReception and legacyMoondanceVan Morrison Rhythm and blues soul rock jazz pop Irish folkWarner Bros.Regarded as a precursor to the 1970s adult-oriented rock and soft rock radio formats.Legacy and reappraisalSweet Baby JamesJames Taylor Folk rockWarner Bros.ReceptionBlack SabbathBlack SabbathHeavy metalVertigoWidely regarded as the first true heavy metal album, with the opening title track, "Black Sabbath" being referred to as the first doom metal song.William Irwin, Black Sabbath and Philosophy: Mastering Reality (Hoboken: Wiley-Blackwell, 2012), It is considered one of the darkest albums.Retrospective reviews and legacyMarch 11, 1970Déjà VuCrosby, Stills, Nash & YoungFolk rockAtlanticLegacyBand of GypsysJimi Hendrix Rock psychedelic funk funk rock funkPolydor/Track (UK)
Capitol (US)
Barclay (France)Influence and legacyMiles Davis.comBitches BrewMiles Davis Jazz fusion avant-garde jazz jazz-rock avant-funk psychedeliaColumbiaConsidered a progenitor of the jazz rock genre, as well as a major influence on rock and '70s crossover musicians.Reception and legacyMarch 1970Cold FactRodriguez Folk rock psychedelic folkSussex Rolling Stone Germany's Top 500 Albums of All Time (2023): #185 1000 Dischi Fondamentali FIP's "The 250 essential albums" Alain Gardinier's "More Than 100 Albums That Have Forged the History of Music in the United States"April 1970YetiAmon Düül II Krautrock progressive rock psychedelic rock avant-garde raga rockLiberty/Repertoire Hartbeat!'s Greatest Albums Of All Time: #29 Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": #244 1000 Dischi Fondamentali: "300 Imperdibilii" Rolling Stone's 50 Greatest Prog Rock Albums of All Time: #41Let It BeThe Beatles Rock bluesAppleLegacyLive at LeedsThe WhoHard rock Track (UK) Decca (US)Commonly ranked by music critics as one of the greatest live albums and rock recordings of all time.AccoladesDeep Purple in RockDeep Purple Hard rock heavy metalHarvestAccoladesWorkingman's DeadGrateful Dead Roots rock folk rock country rock blues rockWarner Bros. Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 409 Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums: No. 371 Grammy Hall of Fame Induction Tom Moon's 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You DieJune 1970ThirdSoft Machine Jazz rock progressive rock electronicCBS (UK), Columbia (USA)Consists of four long-form suites that each take up one side of the double album. The Wire (UK)'s The 100 Most Important Records Ever Made FNAC's The 1000 Best Albums of All Time: #485 Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die Tom Moon's 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You DieJuly 7, 1970Fun HouseThe Stooges Proto-punk hard rock experimental rock avant-punk punk jazz garage rockElektraRegarded as significant in the development of punk rock. It is considered one of the heaviest albums.Legacy and influenceCosmo's FactoryCreedence Clearwater RevivalRockFantasyAll six of the album's singles charted in the top 5 of the Billboard Hot 100. Grammy Hall of Fame Induction Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 413 Pitchfork's "The 100 Best Albums of the 1970s": No. 54 Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You DieSeptember 18, 1970ParanoidBlack SabbathHeavy metalVertigoWidely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential heavy metal albums of all time, often cited as a key influence for the development of the genre and one of its earliest albums.AccoladesSeptember 19, 1970After the Gold RushNeil Young Folk rock country folk country rockRepriseAccoladesAbraxasSantana Latin rock Chicano rock jazz fusion psychedelic rock blues rockColumbiaCritical reception LegacyLed Zeppelin IIILed ZeppelinFolk rockAtlanticRelease and receptionLayla and Other Assorted Love SongsDerek and The DominosBlues rockPolydor, AtcoDouble album.Layla and Other Assorted Love SongsNovember 23, 1970Tea for the TillermanCat StevensFolk rockIsland (UK/Europe)
A&M (US/Canada)Critical receptionAll Things Must PassGeorge Harrison Rock folk rockAppleTriple album.Ben Gerson, "George Harrison All Things Must Pass" , Rolling Stone, 21 January 1971, p. 46 (retrieved 5 June 2013).LegacyNovember 1970LoadedThe Velvet Underground Rock pop proto-punkCotillion Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 242 Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums: No. 295 Pitchfork's "The 100 Best Albums of the 1970s": No. 14 The Guardian's "The 100 Best Albums Ever": No. 91American BeautyGrateful Dead Folk rock country rock psychedelic rockWarner Bros.ReceptionNovember 1970StarsailorTim Buckley Avant-rock psychedelia jazz fusionStraightReception and legacy Sunday Herald's: "The 103 Best Albums Ever, Honest"John Lennon/Plastic Ono BandJohn Lennon Rock avant-popAppleRetrospective assessments and legacyJanuary 1970Liberation Music OrchestraCharlie HadenAvant-garde jazzImpulse! Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 163 Jazzwise's "100 Jazz Albums That Shook the World" Blow Up's "The 600 Essential Albums" Rolling Stone Germany's 100 Best Jazz Albums: #26
1971 Release DateAlbumArtistGenre(s)LabelNotesAccoladesPearlJanis Joplin Blues rock soul bluesColumbia Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 259 FNAC's The 1000 Best Albums of All Time: #44 NME's "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time": #207 Grammy Hall of Fame InducteeTapestryCarole King Soft rock pop Ode A&MCommercial performance Cultural impactFebruary 19, 1971The Yes AlbumYes Progressive rockAtlantic Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 258 Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die Colin Larkin's All Time Top 1000 Albums: No. 317 Classic Rock & Metal Hammer's The 200 Greatest Albums of the 70'sIf I Could Only Remember My NameDavid Crosby Psychedelic folk freak folk folk rockAtlanticAcclaimed for its uniquely austere mood, eclectic improvisation, and otherworldly harmony singing. Considered to be a progenitor of the freak folk genre. Modern reception Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 95February 1971Journey in SatchidanandaAlice Coltrane Spiritual jazz modal jazz avant-garde jazzImpulse! Paste's "The 300 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 80 Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 446 Treble's "The Top 150 Albums of the ’70s": No. 30 Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 45March 5, 1971Drake, Gabrielle, Nick Drake: Remembered for a While, Little, Brown and Company, 2014.Bryter LayterNick Drake Folk folk-popThe following sources label the album "folk-pop":
chamber folk folk rockIslandLegacy Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 25March 19, 1971Songs of Love and HateLeonard CohenContemporary folkColumbiaIt is considered one of the darkest albums.ReceptionMarch 19, 1971AqualungJethro Tull Hard rock folk rock progressive rockChrysalis/Island (Europe)
Reprise (America, Japan and Oceania)AccoladesHistoire de Melody NelsonSerge Gainsbourg French pop avant-funkPhilipsWidely considered by music critics to be one of the greatest French-language albums in popular music history.Magazine Rolling Stone, n°18 of February 2010, FNAC's The 1000 Best Albums of All Time: #2 NME's "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time": #142 Pitchfork's "The 100 Best Albums of the 1970s": No. 21 Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 42April 8, 1971In the Land of Grey and PinkCaravan Progressive rock psychedelic rock Canterbury sceneDeram Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 255 Rolling Stone's 50 Greatest Prog Rock Albums of All Time: #34 Classic Rock & Metal Hammer's The 200 Greatest Albums of the 70's Ondarock's Rock Milestones ListL.A. WomanThe Doors Blues rock psychedelic rockElektra Rolling Stone Germany's Top 100 Albums of All Time (2012): No. 56 Hartbeat!'s Greatest Albums Of All Time Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 87 Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You DieSticky FingersThe Rolling Stones Hard rock roots rock rock and roll country rockRolling StonesLegacyWhat's Going OnMarvin GayeSoulTamlaRegarded by music historians as a classic of 1970s soul, and significant to the development of progressive soul.AccoladesMay 28, 1971Every Picture Tells a StoryRod Stewart Folk rock roots rockMercuryLegacy Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 110May 1971StormcockRoy HarperProgressive folk, folk baroqueHarvestConsists of lengthy songs with dense orchestral arrangements, inspiring several progressive folk and alternative rock acts. NME's "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 377 Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 129 Blow Up's "The 600 Essential Albums" The Guardian's "1000 Albums to Hear Before You Die"BlueJoni Mitchell Folk folk rockRepriseRegarded as a landmark of songwriting and composition. It is considered one of the darkest albums.AccoladesAt Fillmore EastThe Allman Brothers Band Blues rock Southern rockCapricornDouble live album, widely regarded as one of the greatest live albums of all time. pp16–17.Release and critical receptionJuly 12, 1971Maggot BrainFunkadelic Psychedelic funk funk rock R&B acid rock psychedelic soulWestboundRegarded as among the most intense and best guitar records ever made, as a representation of the tumultuousness and decay of the 1970s. Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 136 Pitchfork's "The 100 Best Albums of the 1970s": No. 17 Robert Dimery's 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die Sunday Herald's: "The 103 Best Albums Ever, Honest"Who's NextThe Who Hard rock arena rock Track (UK) Decca (US)Critical reception and legacyAugust 6, 1971Master of RealityBlack SabbathHeavy metalVertigoRegarded by several music critics as the foundation of doom metal, stoner rock, and sludge metal.Taylor 2006, pg. 199, "Some say that Master of Reality was the first stoner metal album. The album as a whole is more late 1960s Heavy Psych in the vain of May Blitz, Grand Funk Railroad, and Leaf Hound." It is considered one of the heaviest albums.Reception and legacyAugust 30, 1971Surf's UpThe Beach Boys Progressive pop Brother/RepriseRetrospective assessmentsAugust 1971Tago MagoCan Krautrock psychedelic rock experimental rock avant-funkUnited ArtistsConsists of long-form experimental tracks blending rock and jazz improvisation, funk rhythms, and musique concrète tape editing techniques. Cited as an influence by many alternative bands.AccoladesElectric WarriorT. Rex Glam rock hard rock Fly (UK) Reprise (US)Widely considered to be the first glam rock album, and an influence to hard rock, punk, and new wave."AccoladesOctober 1971John PrineJohn Prine Folk countryAtlantic Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 149 Paste's "The 300 Greatest Albums of All Time": No. 181 Uncut's "The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1970s": No. 162 33⅓ InstallmentNovember 1, 1971There's a Riot Goin' OnSly and the Family Stone Psychedelic funk avant-soul avant-pop