narrowcast: My Top 50 Albums of 1971

My Top 50 Albums of 1971

Here's the Spotify playlist with a track from each album:

1. The Who - Who's Next

2. David Bowie - Hunky Dory

3. The Rolling Stones - Sticky Fingers

4. Joni Mitchell - Blue

5. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin IV

6. War - All Day Music

7. The Allman Brothers Band - At Fillmore East

8. Sly And The Family Stone - There's A Riot Goin' On

9. Marvin Gaye - What's Going On

10. Funkadelic - Maggot Brain

11. John Prine - John Prine

12. Carole King – Tapestry

13. Harry Nilsson - Nilsson Schmilsson

14. Jethro Tull - Aqualung

15. The Kinks – Muswell Hillbillies

16. T. Rex - Electric Warrior

17. Leon Russell – Leon Russell and the Shelter People

18. The Doors - L.A. Woman

19. The Beach Boys – Surf’s Up

20. Rod Stewart - Every Picture Tells A Story

21. Loretta Lynn – Coal Miner's Daughter

22. Black Sabbath - Master Of Reality

23. Isaac Hayes – Black Moses

24. Little Feat - Little Feat

25. Elton John - Madman Across The Water

26. Grateful Dead - Grateful Dead (Skull and Roses)

27. Johnny Cash - Man In Black

28. Can - Tago Mago

29. Nick Drake – Bryter Layter

30. Van Morrison - Tupelo Honey

31. Badfinger – Straight Up

32. Traffic - The Low Spark Of High Heeled Boys

33. Bill Withers - Just As I Am

34. David Crosby - If I Could Only Remember My Name

35. Stevie Wonder - Where I'm Coming From

36. Willie Nelson - Yesterday's Wine

37. Todd Rundgren - Runt. The Ballad Of Todd Rundgren

38. Paul & Linda McCartney – RAM

39. Rory Gallagher – Rory Gallagher

40. Leonard Cohen - Songs Of Love And Hate

41. Fraser & DeBolt – Fraser & DeBolt with Ian Guenther

42. Link Wray – Link Wray

43. Carly Simon – Anticipation

44. Dolly Parton – Coat Of Many Colors

45. Loudon Wainwright III - Album II

46. Serge Gainsbourg – Histoire de Melody Nelson

47. Isaac Hayes – Shaft

48. Townes Van Zandt – High, Low, and In Between

49. The Flying Burrito Brothers – The Flying Burrito Brothers

50. Yes - The Yes Album

I knew after reading David Hepworth's excellent book 1971 - Never A Dull Moment: Rock's Golden Year and the Apple TV+ miniseries based on it, "1971: The Year That Music Changed Everything," that this would be a really fun year to run down. But it's still just staggering to look at all these albums in a row and realize how stacked '71 is. It was hard to settle on a ranking because how do you compare your favorite Who album and your favorite Bowie album to your favorite Stones album and your favorite Joni Mitchell album? And there were some great canonical albums that I couldn't fit into my top 50 without making room for some personal favorites and cult classics.

Previously:

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1972

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1973

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1974

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1975

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1976

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1977

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1978

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1979

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1980

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1981

My Top 50 Albums and Top 100 Singles of 1982