OPINION: 1971: The Greatest Year In Music History

Recently, I was listening to some of my favorite albums on Spotify and realized that they were released in the same year of 1971. Coincidence? I began to look into it a bit more and again realized that more were released that year, as well. And as it turns out, many more. It seems like 1971 was the year for music, a lot of creativity was in the air and it all was turned into instant classics.

 

Below is a list of the many great, influential, and important albums released that year. The list is extensive, but that’s why 1971 was the greatest year in music history. In no particular order:

 

L.A. Woman – The Doors

 

 

This was The Doors’ last album before Jim Morrison’s death in 1973.  L.A. Woman is arguably one of their best albums as they take it back to the genre of music they were making in the beginning. This album boasts the song by the same title and “Riders on the Storm,” which is a long kinda-jazz influenced haunting song about a killer on the road. Luckily this was their last album before Jim died and not The Soft Parade.

 

Master of Reality – Black Sabbath

 

 

Black Sabbath’s third album is known for setting the foundation for doom metal, sludge metal and stoner rock. This album in particular compared to their other ones is a lot heavier. This album includes the famous songs “Sweet Leaf” and “Children of the Grave.”

 

Surf’s Up – The Beach Boys

 

 

The Beach Boys’ 17th album is regarded as one of their best due to the great number of songs in it and their social-critical lyrics.

 

Blue – Joni Mitchell 

 

 

Blue is regarded as Joni Mitchell’s best album because of the raw emotion put into it. It was influenced by the break up with her then-boyfriend, Graham Nash. The split was so impactful that it created one of the most beautiful albums ever. Rolling Stone Magazine puts Blue at number 3 on the 500 greatest albums of all time.

 

Who’s Next – The Who 

 

 

Kind of sad to say but not many have given The Who a chance. They know some songs but never really delve into them. Maybe it’s because they don’t really have a gimmick, they’re just a solid rock band and unfortunately they don’t really stick out. Most people either love The Who or don’t really care about them, rarely are people in between. Example, their album Who’s Next is their only album to go #1 on the UK charts and #4 in the US following despite their talent. This album includes the songs “Baba O’Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again.”

 

Meddle – Pink Floyd 

 

 

When you think about Pink Floyd’s best songs you probably think about their longer ones, like “Shine On You Crazy Diamond,” “Atom Heart Mother,” or “Echoes.” This is the album that included “Echoes” and another great one titled “Fearless.” Aside from having really good songs, this album marks the change from Pink Floyd taking influence from Syd Barret to Roger Waters.

 

Nursery Cryme – Genesis

 

 

This was the first album to feature Phil Collins on drums and Steve Hackett on guitar. Although it may not be Genesis’ greatest album, apart from marking the beginning of the band as we most famously know it, it featured a couple really fine compositions like “The Musical Box” and “The Fountain of Salmacis.” At only 39 minutes, it is their shortest album.

 

The Inner Mounting Flame – The Mahavishnu Orchestra

 

 

Carlos Santana was once asked who he thought was the greatest guitar player that he worked with and his response was that it was undoubtedly John McLaughlin. John McLaughlin came from working with Miles Davis on various albums but namely the album “Bitches Brew.” The story goes that after John decided to break away from Davis and form his own band, Davis was the one who sat with Sony executives to grant McLaughlin a deal. Thus The Inner Mounting Flame came into being. The album is explosive, mixing many genres with jazz to create a genre that could stand on its own known as jazz fusion. McLaughlin’s skill is apparent all throughout the record.

 

Every Picture Tells A Story – Rod Stewart 

 

 

Rod Stewart’s third album, it mixed hard rock, folk and blue. Immediately successful upon release, it topped #1 in both the UK and US. To this day it’s regarded as one of his best as it always manages to hang in there when Rolling Stone makes a list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. The album includes his classic “Maggie May” and “Reason to Believe.”

 

What’s Going On – Marvin Gaye

 

 

Marvin Gaye’s 11th studio album, it’s a concept album from the point of view of a Vietnam veteran returning home and seeing how things are. The songs in the album explore many topics such as poverty, social injustices, the Vietnam War and even the destruction of the ecosystem. Some famous songs included in this record are “What’s Going On” and “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology).”

 

Sticky Fingers – The Rolling Stones

 

 

Probably their best and most famous album, this record includes too many great songs to name them all but a couple of my favorite tracks are “Sway” and “Dead Flowers.” One thing is for certain, that if I wanted to introduce a friend to The Rolling Stones, this would be the one I recommend. For the Stones, this album is a throwback to their simple blues roots.

 

Imagine – John Lennon

 

 

Perhaps John Lennon’s most famous solo album, this record features the song titled the same as the record as well as other really popular hits such as “Jealous Guy” and “Oh Yoko!”

 

Ram – Paul McCartney

 

 

Even though this album wasn’t received well by critics, over the years it’s developed a sort of cult following. This album showcases Paul McCartney’s wide range of vocal talent as he sings in different styles on this album.

 

All Things Must Pass – George Harrison 

 

 

Although this album was technically released in November of 1970, I chose to include it in this list as two other Beatles also released albums in 1971. This was George Harrison’s first solo album and probably his best. By choosing to go on on his own, he was able to take full control and make the music he wanted to. This album features the song “My Sweet Lord.” But think about it, in 1971 three former Beatles put out (arguably) their best solo work. Worth a mention at least and another reason why 1971 was the year.

 

Honorable mentions:

 

Aqualung – Jethro Tull

Led Zeppelin IV – Led Zeppelin

Fragile – Yes

The Yes Album – Yes

Teaser and the Firecat – Cat Stevens

There’s a Riot Goin’ On – Sly & The Family Stone

Electric Warrior – T. Rex

Hunky Dory – David Bowie

Pearl – Janis Joplin

Straight Up – Badfinger

Maggot Brain – Funkadelic

Budgie – Budgie

Hot Pants – James Brown

America – America

Satori – Flower Travellin’ Band

 

Final Thoughts

 

Even though claiming that 1971 was the greatest year in music history is a subjective claim, you can’t deny that many heavy-hitting records were released that year. Although these aren’t all of the albums that came out that year, it’s a few I could write about.