1970's - Top 50

12-16-08 1970’s – Top 50 (from “Rock Album Best 100” Japanese book)

1. SEX PISTOLS – Never Mind The Bullocks…
2. NEIL YOUNG – After The Goldrush
3. JOHN LENNON – Plastic Ono Band
4. CAROLE KING – Tapestry
5. THE ROLLING STONES – Exile On Main Street
6. SLY & THE FAMILY STONE – There’s A Riot Going On
7. ELVIS COSTELLO – My Aim Is True
8. THE ROLLING STONES – Sticky Fingers
9. DEREK & THE DOMINOS – Layla
10. THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND – At Fillmore East
11. PINK FLOYD – Dark Side Of The Moon
12. BOB DYLAN – Blood On The Tracks
13. T. REX – Electric Warrior
14. JAMES TAYLOR – Sweet Baby James
15. BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN – Born To Run
16. GEORGE HARRISON – All Things Must Pass
17. LED ZEPPELIN – IV
18. STEELY DAN – Aja
19. LITTLE FEAT – Dixie Chicken
20. JOHN LENNON – Imagine
21. NEIL YOUNG – Harvest
22. PATTI SMITH – Horses
23. TELEVISION – Marquee Moon
24. THE WHO – Who’s Next?
25. CROSBY, STILLS, NASH & YOUNG – Déjà Vu
26. VAN MORRISON – Moondance
27. JACKSON BROWNE – Late For The Sky
28. DAVID BOWIE – Ziggy Stardust
29. THE RAMONES – self-titled debut
30. PAUL & LINDA McCARTNEY – Ram
31. RY COODER – Chicken Skin Music
32. DAVID BOWIE – Low
33. TODD RUNDGREN – Something / Anything
34. BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS – Catch A Fire
35. DR. JOHN – Gumbo
36. THE EAGLES – Hotel California
37. ERIC CLAPTON – 461 Ocean Blvd.
38. THE POP GROUP – Y
39. JONI MITCHELL – Blue
40. JEFF BECK – Blow By Blow
41. LOU REED – Berlin
42. PAUL BUTTERFIELD / BETTER DAYS – Better Days
43. ROXY MUSIC – self-titled debut
44. JONI MITCHELL – Court And Spark
45. THE BAND – Northern Lights – Southern Cross
46. BOB DYLAN – Desire
47. T. REX – The Slider
48. LOU REED – Transformer
49. MIKE OLDFIELD – Tubular Bells
50. THE CLASH – self-titled debut

And some titles in the 70’s Top 100 not making the Top 50: TRAFFIC – “John Barleycorn Must Die”, THE SPECIALS – self-titled debut, VARIOUS ARTISTS – “No New York”, LEON RUSSELL – self-titled debut, ROBERT WYATT – “Rock Bottom”, PINK FLOYD “Atom Heart Mother”, DEEP PURPLE “In Rock”, SOFT MACHINE - "Third”, CAN “Tago Mago”, GODLEY & CRÈME – “Freeze Frame”, 10cc – “How Dare You!” and “Original Soundtrack”, THE SLITS “Cut” and BLACK SABBATH – self-titled debut. Again, likely the editor's picks - no number of votes indicated.

I guess for me, the big surprise here were all the Lou Reed Albums! And that’s sort of an odd Paul Butterfield album, too. And I have long-known of the Japanese fascination with Dr. John “Gumbo” – above all other Dr. John albums (they always kept an LP of it in print, all through the 80’s). No “Band On The Run”? No Ventures? And yet another inexplicable Pop Group record.