The 1970s were the golden era of what we now call classic rock, a time when blockbuster albums that not only hit big at the time, but would also become beloved for decades to come, seemed to be released on a regular basis. Yet even in that rarefied air, there are a few LPs that stand out from the rest, records that are as influential and iconic as they are popular. Here is the best of the best of 70s classic rock, listed in chronological order.
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1. Who’s Next by The Who (1971)
Pete Townshend originally intended a massive multimedia project to follow up the 1969 “rock opera” Tommy. But when the more ambitious aspects of what was to be known as Lifehouse didn’t quite come together, the band simply focused on perfecting the music that they had written for it. The resulting album turned out to be the quartet’s finest assemblage of songs, bookended by the stunning epics “Baba O’ Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”
2. IV by Led Zeppelin (1971)
Led Zeppelin flashed introspective sides of their persona to go along with their thunderous rock on their first three albums. But it was on their fourth record, the one with the unpronounceable title, that all their disparate influences cohered. Jimmy Page’s ambition sparked “Stairway to Heaven,” Robert Plant’s touch with lyrics flowered on “Misty Mountain Hop” and “The Battle of Evermore,” and, on the opening one-two-punch of “Black Dog” and “Rock and Roll” and the mammoth closer “When the Levee Breaks,” they set the standard for hard rock for the rest of the decade.
3. Exile on Main St. by Rolling Stones (1972)
Riding high on the success of Sticky Fingers (1971) but forced to flee their home country for tax purposes, the Rolling Stones set up a portable recording studio in Keith Richards’ dank French villa (the song title “Ventilator Blues” gives you some idea of the atmosphere.) They then exhausted their songwriting coffers for an incredible compendium of rock, country, soul, and blues, spread out over four vinyl sides. The ramshackle nature of the productions rankled some (most notably Mick Jagger), but the majority of listeners heard a thrillingly diverse masterpiece.
4. The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars by David Bowie (1972)
Set aside for a moment the concept trappings and the innovation of writing an album from the perspective of a fictional character. David Bowie’s real achievement in Ziggy Stardust was how he became such an eloquent spokesman for outcasts and outsiders everywhere. (You’re not alone, he shouts in the album’s closing moments.) That he did it in the middle of a song cycle at turns raunchy (“Suffragette City”), introspective (“Starman”), and elegiac (“Five Years”) was icing on the cake.
5. Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd (1973)
It took Pink Floyd several albums to find their footing after original leader Syd Barrett’s mental breakdown left them rudderless. Once they realized that Roger Waters’ pointed lyrics could seamlessly coincide with their atmospheric soundscapes, there was no stopping them. Dark Side of the Moon details, in sometimes harrowing fashion, all the different causes of madness (“Money,” “Time,” war on “Us and Them”). But it ultimately proved relatable because of its overriding message of empathy: Don’t be afraid to care, the band exhorts on “Breathe.”
6. Goodbye Yellow Brick Road by Elton John (1973)
By the time he settled into a French chateau for two weeks of recording in May 1973, Elton John had already released six albums in a span of less than five years. How then did he reach back and deliver a double album filled with songs (the title track, “Saturday Night’s Alright for Fighting,” “Bennie and the Jets,” “Candle in the Wind”) that would loom large in his legend? Credit goes to his outstanding band, Bernie Taupin’s ever-widening lyrical scope, and John’s musical genius and ambition. Listen to how it all comes together on the unforgettable opening song suite “Funeral for a Friend/Love Lies Bleeding.”
7. Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen (1975)
After two albums of hype and critical acclaim but tempered commercial success, Bruce Springsteen’s career was somewhat on the ropes. Producer Jon Landau helped Springsteen steer his musical approach in a more rocking direction, and the new sound fit perfectly with the larger-than-life street operas constructed for Born to Run. Springsteen coalesced all his formative musical influences into the epic title track, while his storytelling in songs like “Thunder Road” and “Jungleland” made tragic heroes out of small-town miscreants. He had released great stuff before, but Springsteen the world conqueror begins here.
8. Hotel California by Eagles (1976)
Personnel changes (Bernie Leadon out, Don Felder and Joe Walsh in) and the songwriting growth of Don Henley and Glenn Frey transformed the Eagles into an exceedingly literate and decadently rocking outfit by the middle of the decade. On Hotel California, they took a good look around at their West Coast environs, unpacked all its hedonism and heartbreak on killer hits like the title track, “Life in the Fast Lane,” and “New Kid in Town,” and then eulogized the whole scene on the showstopping closer “The Last Resort.”
9. Rumours by Fleetwood Mac (1977)
As you can tell by the previous entries, the rock scene of the ‘70s was largely a man’s world. But with ace songwriters Christine McVie and Stevie Nicks giving as good as they got from Lindsey Buckingham, Fleetwood Mac offered a more multisided dialogue to rock listeners. The fact that the band (also including John McVie and Mick Fleetwood) was embroiled in a series of hookups and breakups with each other while making Rumours just gave songs like “The Chain,” “Go Your Own Way,” and “You Make Loving Fun” a lived-in authenticity that proved irresistible to both critics and record-buyers.
10. Damn the Torpedoes by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1979)
As many classic rock stalwarts staggered through the second half of the decade, it took a scrappy kid from Florida to uphold its traditions. Petty’s songwriting had been a surety since the band’s 1976 debut. On the Heartbreakers’ third album, the sheen added by producer Jimmy Iovine was just what gritty tales of love and loss like “Refugee,” “Here Comes My Girl,” and “Even the Losers” needed to hit home in a big way on radio, helping transform Petty from underdog to icon in the process.
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