[Music] 1971, a year without parallel.

[Stato]

You can do this with any year and will be able to do it with this year fifty years from now. Its not about the quality of the albums its about the age of the person experiencing the nostalgia. For example, 1979 was the year I started noticing music in a big way. The list of albums from that year is easily better than the one from 1971.

AC/DC - Highway to Hell
Talking Heads - Fear of Music
Chic - Risque
Elvis Costello - Armed Forces
The Undertones - The Undertones
The Specials - The Specials
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Gang of Four - Entertainment
Thin Lizzy - Black Rose
Madness - One Step Beyond
Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps
Marianne Faithful - Broken English
Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures
The Cure - Three Imaginary Boys
The Who - Quadrophenia
XTC - Drums & Wires
Nick Lowe - Labour of Lust
Emmy Lou Harris - Blue Kentucky Girl
Blondie - Eat to the Beat
The Bee Gees - Spirits Having Flown
The Clash - London Calling
The Fall - Live At The Witch Trials
Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle
Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
The Human League - Reproduction

And, although not an album, it was also the year that Rapper's Delight was released. So whereas 1971 had some classic rock, singer songwriter sets and soul, eight years later there was all of this plus punk, new wave, disco, electro, the ska rebirth, the beginnings of hip hop and, in London Calling, the album most often regarded by musos as the best of the decade.

2021 would have all of this plus everything else that has come since. There is a temptation for all of us to answer the question 'Which is the best year for pop music?' with 'When I was most interested'. We should really be saying: 'Next year. Always next year.'

 

[schmunk]

You can do this with any year and will be able to do it with this year fifty years from now. Its not about the quality of the albums its about the age of the person experiencing the nostalgia. For example, 1979 was the year I started noticing music in a big way. The list of albums from that year is easily better than the one from 1971.

True - for me that year was probably 1991: (not all my cup of coffee, but albums considered classics of their genre)

Nirvana - Nevermind
Pearl Jam - Ten
Primal Scream - Screamadelica
Massive Attack - Blue Lines
REM - Out Of Time
U2 - Achtung Baby
Teenage Fanclub – Bandwagonesque
Soundgarden - Badmotorfinger
The KLF – The White Room
RHCP - Blood Sugar Sex Magik
Pixies - Trompe Le Monde
Bryan Adams - Waking Up The Neighbours (I did say they weren't all to my taste...)

 

[happypig]

1967 runs it close with
Sgt Pepper
Disraeli Gears
Velvet Underground and Nico
Forever changes
Are You Experienced
The Doors
Magical Mystery Tour
Strange Days

 

[Garry Nelson's teacher]

And personally I think we have nothing now which will be being talked about in 50 years.

But maybe i'm just too old

That's a great point. And even better that if the likes of you and me are proved wrong, we won't be around to witness it!

 

[Garry Nelson's teacher]

Just before (we) baby boomers get swamped in a sea of nostalgia, and to balance things out a bit, here is one person's list of the worst music of 1971. You might not agree with all of them, but there are some real crimes against music (if not the whole of humanity) listed here.

https://nerdwithanafro.com/2018/01/26/top-10-list-worst-songs-of-1971/

 

[lawros left foot]

You can do this with any year and will be able to do it with this year fifty years from now. Its not about the quality of the albums its about the age of the person experiencing the nostalgia. For example, 1979 was the year I started noticing music in a big way. The list of albums from that year is easily better than the one from 1971.

AC/DC - Highway to Hell
Talking Heads - Fear of Music
Chic - Risque
Elvis Costello - Armed Forces
The Undertones - The Undertones
The Specials - The Specials
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Gang of Four - Entertainment
Thin Lizzy - Black Rose
Madness - One Step Beyond
Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps
Marianne Faithful - Broken English
Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures
The Cure - Three Imaginary Boys
The Who - Quadrophenia
XTC - Drums & Wires
Nick Lowe - Labour of Lust
Emmy Lou Harris - Blue Kentucky Girl
Blondie - Eat to the Beat
The Bee Gees - Spirits Having Flown
The Clash - London Calling
The Fall - Live At The Witch Trials
Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle
Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
The Human League - Reproduction

And, although not an album, it was also the year that Rapper's Delight was released. So whereas 1971 had some classic rock, singer songwriter sets and soul, eight years later there was all of this plus punk, new wave, disco, electro, the ska rebirth, the beginnings of hip hop and, in London Calling, the album most often regarded by musos as the best of the decade.

2021 would have all of this plus everything else that has come since. There is a temptation for all of us to answer the question 'Which is the best year for pop music?' with 'When I was most interested'. We should really be saying: 'Next year. Always next year.'

I was 12 in 1971, a lot of the albums I have mentioned I didn’t hear for at least 10-15 years after their release. Far more from this year have gone on to be acknowledged as either seminal or classic albums than many other years. It’s not just me who thinks this, What’s going on, Tapestry, Blue, Hunky Dory, among others, are all acknowledged to be classics that will be remembered as groundbreaking/genius long after many that came after have been long forgotten.

And ,by the way, I can’t stand Joni Mitchell’s music , but I do understand why people do.

 

[Is it PotG?]

Just before (we) baby boomers get swamped in a sea of nostalgia, and to balance things out a bit, here is one person's list of the worst music of 1971. You might not agree with all of them, but there are some real crimes against music (if not the whole of humanity) listed here.

https://nerdwithanafro.com/2018/01/26/top-10-list-worst-songs-of-1971/

Certainly agree with My Sweet Lord, prefer He's So Fine.

 

[Sid in the Sharknado]

Just before (we) baby boomers get swamped in a sea of nostalgia, and to balance things out a bit, here is one person's list of the worst music of 1971. You might not agree with all of them, but there are some real crimes against music (if not the whole of humanity) listed here.

https://nerdwithanafro.com/2018/01/26/top-10-list-worst-songs-of-1971/

I can only assume he's never heard The Song is Over off Who's Next.

Or Tarkus, if he's criticising Uncle Albert for being "a mess".

 

[Pevenseagull]

A couple more greats from 1971

Can - Tago Mago

Me

 

[albionalbino]

Arsenal in disguise.

 

[studio150]

You can do this with any year and will be able to do it with this year fifty years from now. Its not about the quality of the albums its about the age of the person experiencing the nostalgia. For example, 1979 was the year I started noticing music in a big way. The list of albums from that year is easily better than the one from 1971.


The Who - Quadrophenia


'

I think you will find that a few NSC posters actually bought this in 1973 when it was released

 

[Icy Gull]

You can do this with any year and will be able to do it with this year fifty years from now. Its not about the quality of the albums its about the age of the person experiencing the nostalgia. For example, 1979 was the year I started noticing music in a big way. The list of albums from that year is easily better than the one from 1971.

AC/DC - Highway to Hell
Talking Heads - Fear of Music
Chic - Risque
Elvis Costello - Armed Forces
The Undertones - The Undertones
The Specials - The Specials
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
Pink Floyd - The Wall
Gang of Four - Entertainment
Thin Lizzy - Black Rose
Madness - One Step Beyond
Neil Young - Rust Never Sleeps
Marianne Faithful - Broken English
Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures
The Cure - Three Imaginary Boys
The Who - Quadrophenia
XTC - Drums & Wires
Nick Lowe - Labour of Lust
Emmy Lou Harris - Blue Kentucky Girl
Blondie - Eat to the Beat
The Bee Gees - Spirits Having Flown
The Clash - London Calling
The Fall - Live At The Witch Trials
Gary Numan - The Pleasure Principle
Fleetwood Mac - Tusk
The Human League - Reproduction

And, although not an album, it was also the year that Rapper's Delight was released. So whereas 1971 had some classic rock, singer songwriter sets and soul, eight years later there was all of this plus punk, new wave, disco, electro, the ska rebirth, the beginnings of hip hop and, in London Calling, the album most often regarded by musos as the best of the decade.

2021 would have all of this plus everything else that has come since. There is a temptation for all of us to answer the question 'Which is the best year for pop music?' with 'When I was most interested'. We should really be saying: 'Next year. Always next year.'

Gary fecking Newman wouldn’t even have made the Top 100 if his electronic shite had been released back in 1971. Unlistenable crap for me

All about opinions but I see very few albums from that year that come close to 1971 releases

 

[big nuts]

Gary fecking Newman wouldn’t even have made the Top 100 if his electronic shite had been released back in 1971. Unlistenable crap for me

All about opinions but I see very few albums from that year that come close to 1971 releases

I’d favour 1979 myself.

 

[Lincolnshire Seagull]

This is all very well, but the main thing about 1971 is that we avoided relegation and then started our famous promotion season under Pat Saward.

 

[drew]

I thought this was going to be about decimalisation being introduced.

Not quite, he's picked 12 albums instead of 10!

 

[zefarelly]

Gary fecking Newman wouldn’t even have made the Top 100 if his electronic shite had been released back in 1971. Unlistenable crap for me

All about opinions but I see very few albums from that year that come close to 1971 releases

almost 10 very good albums, but you can't really compare.

 

[Robinjakarta]

1967 runs it close with
Sgt Pepper
Disraeli Gears
Velvet Underground and Nico
Forever changes
Are You Experienced
The Doors
Magical Mystery Tour
Strange Days

1967 beats the sh*t out of 1971 IMO. Add:

The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
Axis Bold as Love
Younger than Yesterday
Surrealistic Pillow
After Bathing at Baxter's
Buffalo Springfield Again
Songs of Leonard Cohen
John Wesley Harding
The Who Sell Out
Days of Future Passed

1966 probably next best with Pet Sounds, Revolver and much more.

 

[Stato]

Gary fecking Newman wouldn’t even have made the Top 100 if his electronic shite had been released back in 1971. Unlistenable crap for me

All about opinions but I see very few albums from that year that come close to 1971 releases

I'm no fan either, but I mentioned it because it is considered a very influential album by fans of the genre.

 

[Stato]

I think you will find that a few NSC posters actually bought this in 1973 when it was released

Of course. My mistake. It was presumably the film soundtrack album in 1979.

 

[McTavish]

Just before (we) baby boomers get swamped in a sea of nostalgia, and to balance things out a bit, here is one person's list of the worst music of 1971. You might not agree with all of them, but there are some real crimes against music (if not the whole of humanity) listed here.

https://nerdwithanafro.com/2018/01/26/top-10-list-worst-songs-of-1971/

This made me chuckle: "Imagine the Jackson 5, but white and not good. You would get the Osmonds."