Want to get lost in some serious storytelling through music? Why not take a walk back to the 1970s and listen to a few iconic concept albums from that period? This list of the best concept albums from the 1970s is far from exhaustive; it really was the golden era of concept work!
1. ‘The Wall’ by Pink Floyd
This wouldn’t be a list of the best concept albums from the 1970s without praising Pink Floyd’s The Wall from 1979. This incredible concept record spawned a film that gained similar acclaim, so it’s safe to say this album is one of the best from that decade.
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The Wall follows a musician with an explosive ego who becomes engrossed in drugs (and fascism!) and becomes convinced everyone in his life is out to get him. By the end of the record, it’s clear that his biggest enemy was himself all along. The overall record is a stunning examination of human beings, war, and desire.
2. ‘2112’ by Rush
This concept album by Rush deserves way more love, though it is considered one of the band’s best works. Released in 1976, 2112 follows the story of a man and his guitar in a dystopian, grizzly, futuristic hellscape. It’s a prog-rock, heavy metal masterpiece that explores the human need for freedom and beauty with a sci-fi aesthetic.
3. ‘There’s A Riot Goin’ On’ by Sly And The Family Stone
There’s A Riot Goin’ On doesn’t always come up in conversations about concept albums, and that’s really not fair. This 1971 funk concept album has all the positive aspects of funk as a feel-good genre, set as the background music for a story about the literal death of the American dream in the 1960s.
It’s poetic genius in many ways, despite its main songwriter being torn apart by a few different hard drugs at the time of its inception. Sly And The Family Stone shined a light on the rough state of the U.S. in the wake of tragedies like the Vietnam War, the Kent State massacre, and more with this album.
4. ‘Quadrophenia’ by The Who
Thousands of English teens in the mid-1960s heard this album for the first time and felt seen. If you don’t quite fit that demographic, there is still a lot one can gain from this legendary 1973 album from The Who. Quadrophenia is the ultimate existential crisis packed into approximately 90 minutes of music.
Photo by David Redfern
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