Best Year For Music of the Rock Era

70's somewhere

1977 was quite awesome:
http://rateyourmusic.com/charts/top/album/1977

the best post-punk (and power-pop) year is the best year for me

1977, a bumper year for the Bowie/Iggy/Eno nexus: Low/Heroes/Idiot/Lust For Life/Before & After Science

1977 is a transition year between punk and post punk, which were 70's touchstones rock styles, and it contains the best of both styles (see link),add to that the Cheap Trick and Shoes album, the 2 Bowie's Eno produced records, and other classic i forgot, it's probably the bets 70's year.
considering the fact that the 70's is arguably the best century in rock music, 1977 is the best year.

the best decade, escuses

Wat is the best/favourite decade in rock history? (poll close 14th of may)

1979 also v. strong:

http://rateyourmusic.com/charts/top/album/1979

1967. Just a ridiculous amount of great music came out that year.

http://rateyourmusic.com/charts/top/album/1967

1970

The Stooges - Fun House
Van Morrison - Moondance
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Amon Düül II - Yeti
Neil Young - After The Gold Rush
Soft Machine - Third
Curtis Mayfield - Curtis
Velvet Underground - Loaded
Miles Davis - Bitches Brew
Led Zeppelin III
Alice Coltrane - Ptah the El Daoud
Tangerine Dream - Electronic Meditation
Popol Vuh - Affenstunde
Funkadelic - Free Your Mind And Your Ass Will Follow
John Lennon - Plastic Ono Band
Twink - Think Pink
Brigitte Fontaine - Comme a la Radio
Al Green - Al Green Gets Next To You
Herbie Hancock - Fat Albert Rotunda
Nick Drake - Bryter Layter
Miles Davis - A Tribute To Jack Johnson
Free - Fire And Water
Os Mutantes - A Divina Comedia Ou Ando meio Desligado
James Brown - Sex Machine
Santana - Abraxas
Randy Newman - 12 Songs
Van Der Graaf Generator - H To He, Who Am The Only One
Miles Davis - Live-Evil
The Who - Live At Leeds
The Art Ensemble Of Chicago - Les stances Sophie
Rod Stewart - Gasoline Alley
The Rolling Stones - Get Yer Ya Ya's Out!
Jimi Hendrix - Band Of Gypsys
Harry Nilsson - Nilsson Sings Newman
MC5 - Back In the U.S.A.
McCoy Tyner - Extensions
Traffic - John Barleycorn Must Die
Fairport Convention - Full House
Derek & The Dominoes - Layla
The Kinks - Lola
Spirit - The Twelve Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus
Nico - Desertshore
Badfinger - No Dice
Grateful Dead - American Beauty
Lee Hazelwood - Cowboy In Sweden
Deep Purple - In Rock
Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band - Lick My Decals Off Baby

http://www.fastnbulbous.com/rock.htm#1970

1967 is classic, but Played-Out for me

1982 cllosely followed by 1967

Are we still in the rock era then?

Snark, love it. Yes.

1977 has got a lot of symbolism.

There was a song called "Can't wait for 78"

it was written in 1977.

ALso, a song called "Winter of '79"

That was also written in 1977.....

Watch out for Louis, Ishmael.
What is some recent music with drum breaks?

But for real though:

(1966) Aaron Neville - Tell It Like It Is
(1966) Arthur Conley - Sweet Soul Music
(1966) Bob Dylan - Rainy Day Women #12 & 35 (Everybody Must Get Stoned)
(1966) Crispian St. Peters - I'm the Pied Piper
(1966) Donovan - Mellow Yellow
(1966) Donovan - Sunshine Superman
(1966) Dusty Springfield - You Don't Have To Say You Love Me
(1966) Eddie Floyd - Knock on Wood
(1966) Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - Working My Way Back To You
(1966) Gary Lewis & The Playboys - She's Just My Style
(1966) James & Bobby Purify - I'm Your Puppet
(1966) James Brown - It's a Man's, Man's, Man's World
(1966) Jimmy Ruffin - What Becomes of the Brokenhearted
(1966) Johnny Rivers - Poor Side of Town
(1966) Johnny Rivers - Secret Agent Man
(1966) Jr. Walker & The All Stars - How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved By You)
(1966) Lee Dorsey - Working in a Coalmine
(1966) Los Bravos - Black is Black
(1966) Lou Christie - Lightnin' Strikes
(1966) Marvin Gaye - It Takes Two
(1966) Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels - Devil with a Blue Dress On-Good Golly Miss Molly
(1966) Nancy Sinatra - These Boots are Made for Walkin'
(1966) Napoleon XIV - They're Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa!
(1966) Neil Diamond - Cherry, Cherry
(1966) New Vaudeville Band - Winchester Cathedral
(1966) Paul Revere & The Raiders - Kicks
(1966) Percy Sledge - When a Man Loves a Woman
(1966) Peter & Gordon - Lady Godiva
(1966) Peter & Gordon - Woman
(1966) Petula Clark - My Love
(1966) Question Mark & The Mysterians - 96 Tears
(1966) Robert Parker - Barefootin'
(1966) Sam & Dave - Hold On I'm Comin'
(1966) Sam the Sham & the Pharaohs - Little Red Riding Hood
(1966) Simon & Garfunkel - A Hazy Shade of Winter
(1966) Simon & Garfunkel - Homeward Bound
(1966) Simon & Garfunkel - I am a Rock
(1966) Simon & Garfunkel - The 59th Street Bridge Song (Feelin' Groovy)
(1966) Simon & Garfunkel - The Sound of Silence
(1966) SSgt. Barry Sadler - The Ballad of the Green Berets
(1966) Stevie Wonder - A Place in the Sun
(1966) The Association - Along Comes Mary
(1966) The Association - Cherish
(1966) The Beach Boys - God Only Knows
(1966) The Beach Boys - Good Vibrations
(1966) The Beach Boys - Sloop John B
(1966) The Beach Boys - Wouldn't It Be Nice
(1966) The Beatles - Eleanor Rigby
(1966) The Beatles - Good Day Sunshine
(1966) The Beatles - Got to Get You Into My Life
(1966) The Beatles - Yellow Submarine
(1966) The Bobby Fuller Four - I Fought The Law
(1966) The Byrds - Eight Miles High
(1966) The Chiffons - Sweet Talking Guy
(1966) The Cyrkle - Red Rubber Ball
(1966) The Elgins - Heaven Must Have Sent You
(1966) The Happenings - See You In September
(1966) The Hollies - Bus Stop
(1966) The Isley Brothers - This Old Heart Of Mine (Is Weak For You)
(1966) The Left Banke - Walk Away Renée
(1966) The Lovin' Spoonful - Summer in the City
(1966) The Lovin' Spoonful - What A Day For A Daydream
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - California Dreamin'
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - Go Where You Wanna Go
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - I Call Your Name
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - I Saw Her Again Last Night
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - Monday, Monday
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - Trip, Stumble & Fall
(1966) The Mamas & The Papas - Words of Love
(1966) The Marvelettes - Don't Mess With Bill
(1966) The Mindbenders - A Groovy Kind of Love
(1966) The Miracles - I Heard it Through the Grapevine
(1966) The Monkees - (I'm Not Your) Steppin' Stone
(1966) The Monkees - (Theme From) The Monkees
(1966) The Monkees - I'm a Believer
(1966) The Monkees - Last Train to Clarksville
(1966) The Monkees - Mary, Mary
(1966) The Monkees - Saturday's Child
(1966) The Outsiders - Time Wont Let Me
(1966) The Rolling Stones - Mother's Little Helper
(1966) The Rolling Stones - Paint It Black
(1966) The Rolling Stones - Under My Thumb
(1966) The Seekers - Georgy Girl
(1966) The Supremes - You Can't Hurry Love
(1966) The Supremes - You Keep Me Hangin' On
(1966) The Temptations - Ain't Too Proud to Beg
(1966) The Temptations - Beauty is Only Skin Deep
(1966) The Temptations - Get Ready
(1966) The Troggs - Wild Thing
(1966) The Young Rascals - Good Lovin'
(1966) Tommy Roe - Sweet Pea
(1966) Wilson Pickett - Land of 1000 Dances
(1966) Wilson Pickett - Mustang Sally

1966 is pretty hard to improve upon - Blonde on Blonde, Revolver, Aftermath, Pet Sounds, Dictionary of Soul, Face to Face, etc.
1979 may have been the most interesting year for music - Metal Box, Entertainment!, B-52s, Cut (Slits), The Raincoats, The Specials, Unknown Pleasures, Fear of Music, 154 (Wire), Y (Pop Group), The Germs, Broken English.

1951? What about The Boswell Sisters' tongue-swallowing "Rock and Roll" from 1934??

"Leur Rock'n'Roll qui date de 1934 (!) était, selon François Jouffa, un des disques favoris de Mme. Presley mère lorsqu'elle était enceinte du futur Elvis! Prémonition?"

I went with 1981, the Best Year for (Pop) Music of the ROck Era.

1971

good thread

1983. With 1982 and 1981 close behind.

I'm going to go with my year of birth, not just because of that but also when MC & I got married our gift to our guests was an all-1967 cd...

http://rateyourmusic.com/charts/top/single/1967

'77. High punk/reggae/dub/disco. Tail end krautrock/prog/funk/afro-beat. Pretty much unfuckwithable.

Pappa, you forgot "96 Tears." And "Don't Look Back"!

Looking at sheer numbers of great albums, it was a close one between 1979 and 1977. 1979 had 14 albums I rated a 10, a total of 103 9+ or better; 1977 16 10s, 100. I went with 1979 just to personal preferences.

1972 was a strong year with 14/76, 1980 7/109, 1981 10/97. Things dropped off sharply in 1982. 1967 doesn't compare that well, with 4/48. Maybe I had to be there, ha.

'71

I'm curious: how do people's votes correspond to their birth years? I was born in 1970, and have a strong preference for 1966.

I picked 1983, born in 1970 and was 12 during most of 1983.

I knew it would go this way. Reactionary to a fault, all's ye.

I am considering every year between 1995 and 2007 inclusive except 2000 and 2006, btw.

Pappa, you forgot "96 Tears." And "Don't Look Back"!

96 Tears was covered:

(1966) Petula Clark - My Love
(1966) Question Mark & The Mysterians - 96 Tears
(1966) Robert Parker - Barefootin'

As for Don't Look Back, are you referring to the late 1965 Temptations track, or the 1966 track by The Remains that was on Nuggets (and sounds like a blueprint for Joe Jackson's early work)?

I never knew the Remains' track beyond Nuggets, so I didn't include it in my list of canonized hits. Great song regardless!

I'm curious: how do people's votes correspond to their birth years?

I was born in 1972, went with 1967 (Beatles, JA, Monkees, Four Tops, JB, Aretha, Turtles, Association, Stones, Donovan, Beach Boys all doing amazing things to great commercial effect).

I think 1966 wins by a fair margin.

The canonization of 1967 as a great year almost seems to me to be a veiled praising of Clive Davis changing the backrooms of the music industry form Tin Pan Alley to Rock n drugs.

I prefer Donovon's 65 era Jazzier pieces than his psyche, although they both had ups and downs. Also, A Gift from a Flower to a Garden was Dec 67 in the UK, and 1968 for the US. There is a Mountain was his only real hit of 1967.

Brian Wilson closed up the Smile shop in v v early 1967 after putting in all 1966 on the project (after hearing Strawberry Fields on the radio). And of course, when Brian packed it in, we got Smiley Smile, Wild Honey, et al for 1967+, which I am a fan of, but I refuse to be contrarian enough to act like they are beyond 1966's Pet Sounds/Good Vibes.

The Beatles released Revolver in 1966, took a few months off, then recorded Strawberry Fields, When I'm 64, and Penny Lane all for the 1966 Christmas rush. EMI's marketing plans/packaging cause those songs to seem like 1967 by today's timeline. But then again, the Beatles didn't stop being the Beatles in 1967, 1968, or hell, not even during the Get Back mess that dragged into 1969.

As well documented and over-focused on now, 1967 was the year of Monterey. Between that and the zeitgeist, we got debatable music such as Big Brother and Holding Company/Janie Joplin, Jefferson Airplane, The Doors, Moody Blues, et al. And the Stones became inspired for Satanic. I am NOT in the camp that thinks this all was a move in the right direction, despite "Let's Spend the Night Together".

Let's keep in mind the he Beach Boys were on the Monterey bill initially. They dropped off (for various excuses, the least imo not being Carl's draft dodging), and they've since spent more recorded hours saying it was a good thing as they were "outdated" by then, seemingly overlooking that the Association was on the bill, who as you point out, had a couple hits that year.

Motown specifically was riding high on BOTH sides of their transition as The Supremes' Reflections shows compared to Marvin and Tammi's Precious Love. Wow on both counts.

Sunshine Pop shone that year (whereas Bhudda Records type bubblegum didn't surface until 1968 with Ohio Express and 1910 Fruitgum), and made an effective attempt to cash in on everything of the era. 5th Dimension, The Cowsills, and Spanky & Our Gang being the biggest breakthroughs, but like Motown at that moment, I think it just fused the immediate past with the prospective future. It couldn't be anything but temporary. Motown obviously switched gears in the next couple years.

The Monkess, are, well, The Monkees. They were designed to be effective. They were. And Mike Nesmith was a damn fine tunesmith dating back to when The Paul Butterfield Blues Band recorded his song Mary Mary in 1966, so a number of the songs featured in the show endlessly were due to his input as much as Neil Diamond/Boyce & Hart.

People forget now that James Brown had a history of releasing a powerhouse tune, then taking a year or so before realizing what he did and returning to form (Please, Please, Please and Cold Sweat both stood alone in that sense during their respective times).

The Turtles are always wow, but both Elenore and You Showed Me are 1968. Happy Together was their sole 1967 hit.

So to compare 1966 pop singles to 1967, the great, sometimes overlooked singles to me are:

Brenton Wood - Gimme Little Sign
Diana Ross & The Supremes - Reflections
Dionn Warwick - I Say a Little Prayer
Frankie Valli - Can't Take My Eyes Off You
Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons - C'mon Marianne
Herman's Hermits - There's a Kind of Hush All Over the World
Jackie Wilson - (Your Love Keeps Lifting Me) Higher and Higher
Jay & The Techniques - Apples, Peaches, Pumpkin Pie
Martha Reeves & The Vandellas - Jimmy Mack
Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell - Your Precious Love
Smokey Robinson & The Miracles - The Tears Of A Clown
Spanky & Our Gang - Sunday Will Never Be the Same
The 5th Dimension - Up, Up and Away
The Association - Never My Love
The Association - Windy
The Bee Gees - To Love Somebody
The Box Tops - The Letter
The Buckinghams - Don't You Care
The Buckinghams - Kind of a Drag
The Cowsills - The Rain, the Park, and Other Things
The Five Americans - Western Union
The Foundations - Baby, Now That I've Found You
The Hollies - Carrie Ann
The Kinks - Waterloo Sunset
The Lemon Pipers - Green Tambourine
The Music Explosion - Little Bit o'Soul
The Soul Survivors - Expressway to Your Heart
The Stone Poneys - Different Drum (as written by Michael Nesmith!)
The Supremes - Love is Here and Now You're Gone
The Tremeloes - Here Comes My Baby
The Turtles - Happy Together
The Young Rascals - Groovin'
Van Morrison - Brown Eyed Girl

I'm partial to '74

http://rateyourmusic.com/charts/top/album/1974

I'm sure some ilxor will point out that Penny Lane was finished in February 67, and other inconsistencies of mine. I think my point stands though.

xx-post

2000-2008 : 0 votes

the current decade needs some time for perspective

Yeah, I meant the Remains, Pappa. Sorry about Question Mark.

And Louis: What's more reactionary, praising a year when invention was in the air -- was the air -- or a 21st Century year full of pale rock Xeroxes?

http://eil.com/newgallery/The-Stooges-1970-338770.jpg

Chosen partly because I've heralded that year's supremacy many times in various threads here, and can't back off now. Also partly because, unlike my other contenders (1966, '67, '69, '77, '84) it's such a non-canonical year. I'd estimate that a dozen of my alltime top 40 date from 1970. Plus, a few other faves were recorded that year.

(Born 1967. Earliest musical-enjoyment memories: probably '71.)

I agree with Geir that 1983 had a lot of action for some strange reason. I was ten...

http://www.acclaimedmusic.net/

1977, 1986, 1992 look good from quick glance

1969

1 24 The Beatles Abbey Road
2 31 The Rolling Stones Let It Bleed
3 38 The Band The Band
4 54 Captain Beefheart and His Magic Band Trout Mask Replica
5 66 Led Zeppelin II
6 96 Dusty Springfield Dusty in Memphis
7 113 The Who Tommy
8 131 Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin
9 141 King Crimson In the Court of the Crimson King
10 155 The Flying Burrito Bros The Gilded Palace of Sin
11 160 Nick Drake Five Leaves Left
12 168 Neil Young with Crazy Horse Everybody Knows This Is Nowhere
13 174 Sly and the Family Stone Stand!
14 185 Elvis Presley From Elvis in Memphis
15 193 The Velvet Underground The Velvet Underground
16 200 The Stooges The Stooges
17 203 Frank Zappa Hot Rats
18 216 MC5 Kick Out the Jams
19 223 Creedence Clearwater Revival Green River
20 313 Crosby, Stills and Nash Crosby, Stills and Nash
21 323 Creedence Clearwater Revival Willy and the Poorboys
22 344 Miles Davis In a Silent Way
23 358 Isaac Hayes Hot Buttered Soul
24 359 Grateful Dead Live/Dead
25 407 Fairport Convention Liege and Lief
26 456 Tim Buckley Happy Sad
27 480 Fairport Convention Unhalfbricking
28 503 Scott Walker Scott 4
29 556 Quicksilver Messenger Service Happy Trails
30 682 Johnny Cash At San Quentin
31 697 Bob Dylan Nashville Skyline
32 710 The Kinks Arthur (Or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire)
33 721 Frank Zappa Uncle Meat
34 836 Alexander Skip Spence Oar
35 906 Blood, Sweat & Tears Blood, Sweat & Tears
36 988 Jefferson Airplane Volunteers
37 995 Blind Faith Blind Faith
38 996 Procol Harum A Salty Dog
39 1055 Leonard Cohen Songs from a Room
40 1183 Scott Walker Scott 3
41 1187 Joe Cocker With a Little Help from My Friends
42 1242 Santana Santana
43 1246 Pentangle Basket of Light
44 1305 Nico The Marble Index
45 1318 Laura Nyro New York Tendaberry
46 1399 Fleetwood Mac Then Play On
47 1496 Can Monster Movie
48 1537 Terry Riley A Rainbow in Curved Air
49 1570 Jethro Tull Stand Up
50 1575 The Tony Williams Lifetime Emergency!
51 1598 Jeff Beck Group Beck-Ola
52 1623 Creedence Clearwater Revival Bayou Country
53 1677 John McLaughlin Extrapolation
54 1692 The Art Ensemble of Chicago People in Sorrow
55 1751 Chicago Transit Authority Chicago Transit Authority
56 1784 Grateful Dead Aoxomoxoa
57 1790 Pharoah Sanders Karma
58 1918 Rod Stewart An Old Raincoat Won't Ever Let You Down/ The Rod Stewart Album
59 1944 The Soft Machine 2
60 1962 Townes Van Zandt Our Mother the Mountain
61 2007 The Youngbloods Elephant Mountain
62 2014 The Temptations Cloud Nine
63 2026 Joe Cocker Joe Cocker!
64 2150 Boz Scaggs Boz Scaggs
65 2222 Amon Düül II Phallus Dei
66 2250 Sun Ra Atlantis
67 2252 Bukka White The Legacy of the Blues
68 2337 Fairport Convention What We Did On Our Holidays
69 2357 Jack Bruce Songs for a Tailor
70 2400 The Jackson 5 Diana Ross Presents the Jackson 5
71 2424 Charlie Rich The Fabulous Charlie Rich
72 2479 John Stewart California Bloodlines
73 2527 Herbie Mann Memphis Underground
74 2603 Kevin Ayers Joy of a Toy
75 2679 George Russell Electronic Sonata for Souls Loved by Nature
76 2699 Wayne Shorter Super Nova
77 2730 Buffy Sainte-Marie Illuminations
78 2826 Aretha Franklin Soul '69
79 2915 Miles Davis Filles de Kilimanjaro
80 2943 Roberta Flack First Take

Some albums "bubbling under" the all-time top 3000:

Johnny Winter Johnny Winter
Johnny Winter Second Winter
Cream Goodbye
Richie Havens Richard P. Havens 1983
B.B. King Completely Well
Silver Apples Contact
The Moody Blues On the Threshold of a Dream
Sir Douglas Quintet Mendocino
Thunderclap Newman Hollywood Dream
Joni Mitchell Clouds
Euphoria A Gift from Euphoria
John Mayall The Turning Point
Ten Years After Ssssh
Judy Henske & Jerry Yester Farewell Aldebaran

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Mmmhmm.

Too many lists within lists here. Gives me a headache.

Anyway, the correct answer is 2008.

I'd like to vote for something during my lifetime, as at times I've been kind of militant about tracking down new music instead of working through the canon, but Zuckerzeit + Autobahn + Musik von Harmonia and other krautrock, Drumming, Kimono My House, dub, funk... 1974 is looking pretty good right now.

gonna go with 1999 altho 1997, 2003 and 2005 are pushing it real close

i mean even 2007 was in contention, last year was fucking good

2007 was excellent

I couldn't pick a single year. '69-'72, lots of my favourite records came out then, '78-'~85-ish also good, plus good times here and there up till the end of the nineties. I couldn't pick a favourite out of all that lot.

i might be ready to rep for 2001 as it happens, had i not picked '82

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

I'm so happy 3 other people voted for the same year as me. yippee.

Why was 2007 good?

Uh no one voted for it so who are you asking?

i mean even 2007 was in contention, last year was fucking good
-- Just got offed, Tuesday, June 17, 2008 2:00 PM (Yesterday)

2007 was excellent
-- the next grozart, Tuesday, June 17, 2008 2:10 PM (Yesterday)

1978 didn't get a single vote. Poor Robert Stigwood.....

Why was 2007 good?

battles, of montreal.... ummm... dah i can't think!

How is Robert Stigwood of the Rock Era in 1978?

Well, Robert Stigwood dominated 1978 rather completely. Or his artists and projects did at least.

yeah, but it wasn't "rock", right?

Just because it's the "rock era" doesn't mean everything is "rock".

It could be argued part of the "Grease" soundtrack is rock though. Well, kinda sorta...

http://991.com/newGallery/Bee-Gees-Sgt-Peppers-Lonel-151200.jpg