The case for 1972 as the best year in rock...

[The Dark Elf]

Okay, so there's been a debate on 1971 and 1973 regarding which had the most stellar albums. Perhaps 1972 outshines them both in regards to great releases. It's really quite amazing how many bands not only released one great album, but many released two (Jethro Tull, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Gentle Giant, Stevie Wonder, etc.). Here is a list of my favorites from the year:

Jethro Tull - Thick as a Brick -and- Living in the Past
Yes - Close to the Edge
Genesis - Foxtrot
Gentle Giant - Three Friends -and- Octopus
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Trilogy
Deep Purple - Machine Head -and- Made in Japan
David Bowie - The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars
Procol Harum - Live in Concert with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra
The Rolling Stones - Exile on Main Street
Uriah Heep - Demons and Wizards - and- The Magician's Birthday
Blue Öyster Cult - S/T
Le Orme - Uomo di pezza
Premiata Forneria Marconi - Per un amico
Banco del Mutuo Soccorso - Darwin!
Al Green - Let's Stay Together
Jimi Hendrix - In the West
The Doors - Weird Scenes Inside the Gold Mine
Allman Brothers - Eat a Peach
Neil Young - Harvest
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
Strawbs - Grave New World
Tod Rundgren - Something/Anything
Fleetwood Mac - Bare Trees
Humble Pie - Smokin'
Dr. John - Dr. John's Gumbo
T. Rex - Bolan's Boogie -and- The Slider
Richard Thompson - Henry the Human Fly
Elton John - Honky Chateau
Weather Report - I Sing the Body Electric
Pink Floyd - Obscured by Clouds
Roxy Music - S/T
Aphrodite's Child - 666
Alice Cooper - School's Out
Doobie Brothers - Toulouse Street
Mott the Hoople - All the Young Dudes
Captain Beyond - S/T
Van Morrison - St. Dominic's Preview
Curtis Mayfield - Superfly
The Band - Rock of Ages
Klaus Schulze - Irrlicht
Black Sabbath - Vol. 4
Cat Stevens - Catch Bull at Four
Steeleye Span - Below the Salt
Sandy Denny - Sandy
Budgie - Squawk
Stevie Wonder - Talking Book - and- Music of My Mind
Santana - Caravanserai
Tim Buckley - Greetings from L.A.
Atomic Rooster - Made in England
Lou Reed - Transformer
The Moody Blues - Seventh Sojourn
Paul Simon - S/T
Steely Dan - Can't Buy a Thrill
Edgar Winter - They Only Come Out At Night
War - The World is a Ghetto
Frank Zappa - The Grand Wazoo

[Trane]

Upon scrutiny between those three years, it appears that it wasall downfhill from 71 onwards
(love 72, btw)


14 Jethro Tull Thick as a Brick Eng 1972
14 Santana Caravanserai USA 1972
13 Genesis Foxtrot Eng 1972
13 Gnidrolog Lady Lake Eng 1972
13 Haikara Haikara Fin 1972
13 Mahavishnu Orchestra Birds of Fire Var 1972
13 Out of Focus Four Letter Monday Afternoon Ger 1972
13 Tyner, McCoy Sahara USA 1972
13 Yes Close to the Edge Eng 1972
13 Zappa, Frank Waka / Jawaka USA 1972
13 Zappa, Frank / The Mothers of Invention The Grand Wazoo USA 1972
12 Älgarnas Trädgård Framtiden Är Ett Svävande Skepp, Förankrat I Forntiden Swe 1972
12 Atomic Rooster Made in England Eng 1972
12 Can Ege Bamyasi Ger 1972
12 Coryell, Larry Offering USA 1972
12 Electric Light Orchestra Electric Light Orchestra (aka No Answer) Eng 1972
12 Focus Focus 3 Net 1972
12 Gentle Giant Octopus Eng 1972
12 Gnidrolog In Spite of Harry's Toenail Eng 1972
12 Grobschnitt Grobschnitt Ger 1972
12 Jethro Tull Living in the Past Eng 1972
12 Jumbo DNA Ita 1972
12 Premiata Forneria Marconi Storia Di Un Minuto Ita 1972
12 Procol Harum Live with the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra Eng 1972
12 Quella Vecchia Locanda Quella Vecchia Locanda Ita 1972
12 Soft Machine 6 Eng 1972
12 Tasavallan Presidentti Lambert Land Fin 1972
12 Wishbone Ash Argus Eng 1972
11 Agitation Free Malesch Ger 1972
11 Amon Düül II Carnival in Babylon Ger 1972
11 Ange Caricatures Fra 1972
11 Aphrodite's Child 666 Apocalypse of John Gre 1972
11 Auger, Brian / Oblivion Express Second Wind Eng 1972
11 Birth Control Hoodoo Man Ger 1972 2
11 Buckley, Tim Greetings From LA USA 1972
11 Caravan Waterloo Lily Eng 1972
11 Cargo Cargo Net 1972
11 Catapilla Changes Eng 1972
11 Chicago Live at Carnegie Hall USA 1972
11 Collier Music, Graham Portraits Eng 1972
11 Contraction Contraction Can 1972
11 Return to Forever Return to Forever USA 1972
11 Deep Purple Machine Head Eng 1972
11 Deep Purple Made in Japan Eng 1972
11 Dervieux, Franck Dimension M Can 1972
11 Dionysos Le Prince Croule Can 1972
11 Drake, Nick Pink Moon Eng 1972
11 Dzyan Dzyan Ger 1972
11 Embryo Father, Son and Holy Ghosts Ger 1972
11 Embryo Wiesbaden 1972 Ger 1972
11 Emerson, Lake and Palmer Pictures at an Exhibition Eng 1972
11 Emtidi Saat Ger 1972
11 Flamengo Kure V Hodinkach Cze 1972
11 Flea Topi O Uomini Ita 1972
11 Gnidrolog Live 1972 Eng 1972
11 Hancock, Herbie Crossings USA 1972
11 Jane Together Ger 1972
11 Khan Space Shanty Eng 1972
11 King Crimson Ladies of the Road Eng 1972
11 Lard Free Unnamed Fra 1972
11 Led Zeppelin How The West Was Won Eng 1972
11 Matching Mole Matching Mole Eng 1972
11 Mingus, Charles Let My Children Hear Music USA 1972
11 Missing Link Nevergreen! Ger 1972
11 Mormos Magic Spell Of Mother's Wrath USA 1972
11 Morrison, Van Saint Dominic's Preview Ire 1972
11 Moving Gelatine Plates The World of Genius Hans Fra 1972
11 New Trolls UT Ita 1972
11 Os Mundi 43 Minuten Ger 1972
11 Out of Focus Palermo 1972 Ger 1972
11 Pell Mell Marburg Ger 1972
11 Perigeo Azimut Ita 1972
11 Pohjola, Pekka Pihkasilmä Kaarnakorva Fin 1972
11 Premiata Forneria Marconi Per Un Amico Ita 1972
11 Renaissance Prologue Eng 1972
11 Return to Forever Light as a Feather USA 1972
11 Riley, Terry Persian Surgery Dervishes USA 1972
11 Smith, Johnny 'Hammond' Wild Horses Rock Steady USA 1972
11 Solution Solution Net 1972
11 Sorrenti, Alan Aria Ita 1972
11 Steel Mill Green Eyed God Eng 1972
11 Steig, Jeremy Fusion (aka Something Else) USA 1972
11 Strawbs Grave New World Eng 1972
11 Ten Years After Rock 'n Roll Music to the World Eng 1972
11 Thirsty Moon Thirsty Moon Ger 1972
11 Wallenstein Blitzkreig Ger 1972
11 War All Day Music USA 1972
11 War The World Is A Ghetto USA 1972
11 Yamashta, Stomu & Come to the Edge Floating Music Jpn 1972

[Koreabruce]

LZ's "How The West Was Won" was a live performance that happened in '72. but it wasn't ever released until 2003. Otherwise, I think I'd nominate 72 as a pretty seminal year based on your list.

[hFx]

Okay, so there's been a debate on 1971 and 1973 regarding which had the most stellar albums. Perhaps 1972 outshines them both in regards to great releases. It's really quite amazing how many bands not only released one great album, but many released two (Jethro Tull, Deep Purple, Uriah Heep, Gentle Giant, Stevie Wonder, etc.).

...just what I've been preaching ever since

[2steves]

Great list and seen other polls on other sites that 1972 is the best year for prog and I think it probably was a super nova explosion that got us thru to about 1978.

[JJ88]

I'm always dubious about such concepts, as I said...but I think 1972 was truly an exceptional year for rock. So much innovation and so many new ideas being presented, with many artists reaching an all-time peak. Not such a good year for the icons of 60s rock other than the 'Stones, but then the likes of The Who, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Bob Dylan didn't put out an album in this year (John Lennon did, but let's gloss over that!). No, it was more about a different generation coming to the fore.

[PeterG]

Yes, 72 was great, better than 71 IMO and on a par with 73.


And 72 saw some of my favourite (top 5) albums by specific artists, e.g.

Wishbone Ash - Argus
Jethro Tull - Living in the Past
Stealers Wheel - s/t
Yes - Close to the Edge
Gentle Giant - Three Friends; Octopus
Joni - For The Roses
Genesis - Foxtrot
Emerson, Lake & Palmer - Trilogy
Aretha Franklin - Young, Gifted and Black
BOA - Keep The Faith
Deep Purple - Machine Head; Made in Japan
David Bowie -Ziggy Stardust
Uriah Heep - Demons and Wizards; The Magician's Birthday
Blue Öyster Cult - s/t
Neil Young - Harvest
Crazy Horse - Loose
Jackson Browne - s/t
Nick Drake - Pink Moon
Strawbs - Grave New World
Pink Floyd - Obscured by Clouds
Roxy Music - s/t
Dave Edmunds - Rockpile
MMEB - s/t
Alice Cooper - School's Out
Scorpions - Lonesome Crow
Mott the Hoople - All the Young Dudes
Slade - Slade Alive! ; Slayed?
Hawkwkind - Doremi ....... (1st HW album I ever bought)
Styx - s/t
Van Morrison - Saint Dominic's Preview
Poco - A Good Feelin' To Know
Black Sabbath - Vol. 4
Steeleye Span - Below the Salt
Budgie - Squawk
Stevie Wonder - Talking Book
Pentangle - Solomon's Seal
The Moody Blues - Seventh Sojourn
Crosby & Nash - GN DC
Stephen Stills Manassas
Mountain - Live
April Wine - On Record
Eagles - s/t
Free - Free At Last
Jimmy Cliff - The Harder They Come
GFR - Phoenix

[strawberrybrick]

Another good one...

http://strawberrybricks.com/guide/re...ll/1972-Albums

[Galactic Bulldozer]

What? No Kingdom Come or GoodThunder or Trapeze or Argent or Rare Bird or Triumvirat!!! and Amon Duul too.

No Jade Warrior or Curved AIr...

[PeterG]

Argent were always an acquired taste, and I never acquired it

[Galactic Bulldozer]

Argent were always an acquired taste, and I never acquired it

All Together Now is probably the ideal example why they never made it beyond cult status. One minute a killer AOR anthem, next a rock 'n roll encore in the middle, a Uriah Heep type epic next and then The Nice circa 68 with a pseudo classical suite. I usually rearrange the track order to suit, Russ Ballard tracks generally grouped together.

[Galactic Bulldozer]

I notice that folks submit live albums to further their claims to greatness for that year... I was checking to see if Made in Japan was just another greatest hits live (like the Live at Edmonton album is). I had a chuckle at some of the reviews...

But why release it live if, for the most part, it sounds just like the album? There's one exception: 'Space Truckin'', replete with 20 minutes of organ and drum solos. I play guitar. I know what those are - the same thing as acoustic mini-sets are: a chance for half the band to take a dump or smoke a doobie. They've never impressed me musically. They're just the band coasting on idle in order to extend the set.

With all that said, it's still worth a listen from time to time.
Pros: 'Child in Time', 'Highway Star', 'Strange Kind of Woman'
Cons: Drum solos and organ solos put me to sleep. I can either hang out with dirty hippies or go to church to get my fill of that. Either way, it's forgettable and I don't have to pay a penny.


Note he doesn't mind guitar solos... Yes, M.I.J. has tracks from 2 albums. I don't count live albums in my totals for the year.

[Trane]

All Together Now is probably the ideal example why they never made it beyond cult status. One minute a killer AOR anthem, next a rock 'n roll encore in the middle, a Uriah Heep type epic next and then The Nice circa 68 with a pseudo classical suite. I usually rearrange the track order to suit, Russ Ballard tracks generally grouped together.

That suite is trocious, IMHO (and not just, IMHO )

Indeed, All one really need from Argent is the double live Encore.... Sure it lacks a couple of key tracks from In Deep or Nexus, but

The last two albums (a fairly different band, IMHO) had two good half-album JR/F contents to make a killer JR/F disc, but the rest stunk

[chalkpie]

Its no 1862 but I'll take it.

[WytchCrypt]

'72 was great, but I prefer '73 with:

Topographic > CTTE
Selling England > Foxtrot
Dark Side > Obscured by Clouds
Passion Play > Brick
Brain Salad Surgery > Trilogy

Also some of my fave bands released their debut (or only) album in '73...

Greenslade - s/t
Eno - Warm Jets
Camel - s/t
Fripp & Eno - No Pussyfooting
Queen - s/t
Pete Sinfield - Still

And 2 albums in one year with...

Gentle Giant - Octopus - Glass House
Gong - Flying Teapot - Angel's Egg
Greenslade - s/t - Bedside Manners

And Fripp put together the Wetton/Bruford driven Crimso with Larks Tongues...

[Kcrimso]

One of my great favourites of 1972 is Alan Sorrenti's intense and emotional debut Aria. I wrote a review of the album: https://pienemmatpurot.com/review-al...nti-aria-1972/