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1970 Tiny Dancer: This is the beginning of what turned into an excellent primer for 70s music. We listened to a LOT more than disco back then, kids! It all starts with this pretty straight forward list of noteable albums for the year 1970 and then both Tom and the newsgroup really get in the swing of things and ... well, just keep clicking on Next to savour it all. I've also provided direct links by year at the bottom of each page if you wish to jump ahead. BTW, this is by no means a closed discussion to be sealed in virtual plastic. If your choice of a noteworthy album has not been posted then feel free to send it in. Same goes for any trivia and/or comments you'd like to make about the current choices. Just email me (tinyd@bell.net) with your ideas and they'll probably be added to the site. Where available, Amazon.Com links have been provided if you would like to purchase the album. They'll open in a new window if you want to just visit Amazon to sample the tunes (usually around 5 small Real Audio files to choose from, more if it's a double album). Enjoy and start taking notes, you 70s music heathens! ;-) Take it away, Tom! I was just going through some old notebooks and came across a list I had compiled of mostly rock LPs of the 1970s, year by year. I'll post them a year at a time, and see if there are any additions or comments you would like to make. Enjoy. - Tom 1970 - What an amazing year this was, musically speaking! The Beatles - Let It Be ("Across The Universe") Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath ("The Wizard," "Black Sabbath") Jeff Troutman: Paranoid ("Iron Man," "Electric Funeral," "Fairies Wear Boots") was also released later in the year. Chicago - Chicago II Joe Cocker - Mad Dogs and Englishmen Alice Cooper - Love It To Death ("I'm 18") Creedence Clearwater - Cosmo's Factory ("Travellin' Band," "Up Around the Bend", "Lookin' Out My Back Door") Crosby Stills Nash and Young - Deja Vu ("Teach Your Children", "Almost Cut My Hair", "Helpless", "Woodstock", "Our House") Derek and the Dominoes - Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs Deep Purple - In Rock The Doors - Morrison Hotel/Hard Rock Cafe ("Roadhouse Blues") Nick Drake - Bryter Layter Bob Dylan - New Morning Free - Fire and Water ("Alright Now") Grateful Dead - Workingman's Dead ("Casey Jones," "Uncle John's Band") Grateful Dead - American Beauty ("Truckin'," "Sugar Magnolia") Jeff Troutman: Also Live Dead. They were busy boys in 1970! Jimi Hendrix - Band of Gypsys Hot Tuna - Hot Tuna Jefferson Airplane - Blows Against The Empire Jeff Troutman: Actually a Paul Kantner solo project released under the Paul Kantner/Jefferson Starship moniker. First use of the Starship name. The Airplane released their Worst Of compilation this year, IIRC. Jethro Tull - Benefit Elton John - Tumbleweed Connection Tiny Dancer: No big radio hits off this one but it has the fan classics "Come Down In Time", "Love Song", "Talking Old Soldiers" and "Burn Down The Mission" which became the cue for Elton to kick away his piano bench and start doing handstands on the keyboard back then. Bet he wishes he could do that now ;-) Jeff Troutman: I think his second, self-titled LP came out in 1970 as well. Tiny Dancer: That is correct, sir. The Elton John album contained his first monster hits, "Your Song" and "Border Song" along with one of my long-time faves, "Sixty Years On". As a matter of interest, his first album, Empty Sky, was released in England in '69 but didn't get to the States until '75. Janis Joplin - Pearl ("Me and Bobby McGee", "Mercedes Benz") King Crimson - Lizard Jeff Troutman: Their 2nd LP, In The Wake Of Poseidon, came out earlier in the year. The Kinks - Lola Vs. Powerman and The Moneygoround ("Lola") Led Zeppelin - III ("Immigrant Song") John Lennon - Plastic Ono Band ("Working Class Hero," "Mother", "Power To The People") Mc5 - Back in the USA Van Morrison - Moondance ("Moondance", "Into The Mystic") Mott The Hoople - Mad Shadows Pink Floyd - Atom Heart Mother Rolling Stones - Get Your Ya Yas Out The Stooges - Fun House James Taylor - Sweet Baby James ("Fire and Rain") Traffic - John Barleycorn Must Die The Who - Live At Leeds Neil Young - After The Goldrush ("Southern Man") Jeff Troutman adds: The Velvet Underground - Loaded ("Sweet Jane", "Rock & Roll") James Gang - Rides Again Humble Pie - Humble Pie Fleetwood Mac - Kiln House (first LP without founder Peter Green) David Bowie - The Man Who Sold The World Eric Clapton - Eric Clapton ("After Midnight", "Blues Power", "Let It Rain") andy749 adds: Mountain - Climbing ("Mississippi Queen") Patrick adds: Three Dog Night - Naturally ("Joy To The World," "One Man Band," "Liar") From December, 1970, on the ABC/Dunhill label, this album put them on the map with their biggest hit "Joy To The World" which was released a few months later and was #1 in the spring of 1971. Tiny Dancer: Surprisingly (to me anyway) this was their sixth album. They released three in 1969: their debut, Three Dog Night with the hit cover of Nilsson's "One"; Suitable For Framing with another hit cover, Laura Nyro's "Eli's Coming", which they made their own (also "Celebrate" and what has to be the earliest cover of an Elton John song, "Lady Samantha") and a live album, Captured Live At The Forum with "One," "Eli's Coming" and a wonderful version of Otis Redding's "Try A Little Tenderness". In 1970, before Naturally, they released It Ain't Easy (another massive hit with Randy Newman's "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)" and a successful cover of Elton's "Your Song") and a greatest hits package which didn't include Hoyt Axton's "Joy To The World", Golden Bisquits ("One," "Mama Told Me (Not To Come)," "Eli's Coming," "Your Song," "Celebrate," "One Man Band"). Whew! I'm exhausted just thinking about it! Tiny Dancer: adds: Bread - On The Waters ("Make It With You") After making a splash with their debut album Bread in 1969 and the massive hit "It Don't Matter To Me", Bread released their second album and hit the charts again with "Make It With You". The Carpenters - Close To You ("Close To You," "We've Only Just Begun") The Carpenters - Ticket To Ride ("Someday," "All Of My Life," "Ticket To Ride") The Carpenters released their second and third albums this year (their first, Offering, was released in 1969 with no hit singles that I'm aware of) and they have one of their top hits of the decade with "Close To You". Neil Diamond - Tap Root Manuscript ("Cracklin' Rosie") Neil's first album of the decade produced one of his biggest hits. The Guess Who - Share The Land ("Bus Rider," "Do You Miss Me Darlin'?," "Hand Me Down World," "Hang On To Your Life") First release this decade but certainly not their first album (they had recorded a stunning seven lps since '65) this is the quintessential Canuck rock 'n' roll band and they started the 70s with a bang! The Guess Who - American Woman ("American Woman," "No Time," "No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature") See what I mean?! Forget Lenny Kravitz's version of the title track (which makes NO sense sung by an American!) this is what you want. Excellent stuff. Kris Kristofferson - Me And Bobby McGee ("Me And Bobby McGee," "Help Me Make It Through The Night," "For The Good Times," "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down") After Janis Joplin had the hit with the title track his record company rereleased his first album, Kristofferson, from 1969 under the new title and thus was born one of the best singer/songwriters to come out of the decade. Gordon Lightfoot - The Best Of Gordon Lightfoot ("Softly," "For Lovin' Me," "Early Morning Rain," "Black Day In July," "Canadian Railroad Trilogy," "Did She Mention My Name," "Pussywillows Cat-Tails") By 1970 Lightfoot had already released five albums and this excellent collection of hits launched him into a decade that would see him rise to god-like status in Canada. Heck, we were taught to sing "Canadian Railroad Trilogy" in grade school! Gordon Lightfoot - If You Could Read My Mind Originally released as Sit Down Young Stranger the title track still stands as a classic. Joni Mitchell - Ladies Of The Canyon ("Big Yellow Taxi," "Woodstock," "The Circle Game") Joni's biggest album just made it into the 70s with three huge hits. The Partridge Family - The Partridge Family Album ("I Think I Love You," "Point Me In the Direction of Albuquerque," "I Can Feel Your Heartbeat") Debut album of the groovy TV family we all wanted to be a part of. Linda Ronstadt - Silk Purse ("Will You Love Me Tomorrow?") Rolling Stone (6/25/70) - "It is Linda Rondstadt's voice that makes this record; she endows the songs with a feeling that she has shown since the first Stone Poneys' album, and she has developed her Country style considerably since her last album." Linda first recorded with the Stone Poneys in 1967 (Evergreen, I believe) and they had a Top 20 hit with Michael Nesmith's (The Monkees) "Different Drum" off their second album, Evergreen, Vol. 2. After recording one more album she left the group and released her first solo recording, Hand Sown Home Grown, in 1969 ("Silver Threads & Golden Needles"). This, her second album, was the real breakthrough with the big cover hit of The Shirelles' "Will You Love Me Tomorrow?". Paul Williams - Just An Old Fashioned Love Song ("Waking Up Alone," "We've Only Just Begun," "That's Enough For Me") First released in 1968 this was re-released to cash in on The Carpenters' fame ("We've Only Just Begun"). He may not have been the world's greatest singer but his songwriting skills ruled the airwaves in the 70s and I've always had a soft spot for him. 1970/ 1971/ 1972/ 1973/ 1974 1975/ 1976/ 1977/ 1978/ 1979 
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