'70s Music -- An Introduction

Posted on Sep 30th 2009 4:33PM by Adam Horne
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Though the psychedelic '60s had ended, '70s music marked a time of great experimentation, as new media outlets helped bring different cultures and audiences closer together than ever before. Rock music was expanding and branching out into new genres: hard rock acts like Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath filled arenas with their explosive sounds while progressive rockers like Rush and King Crimson took cues from experimental classical music to help expand the boundaries of traditional rock music. In other parts of the country, the once underground punk scene started entering the mainstream due to the success of the Ramones, Sex Pistols, and the reggae-infused Clash.

Other new genres were exploding in popularity as well. Donna Summer, the Village People and the Bee Gees' wildly popular 'Saturday Night Fever' '70s music contributions ushered in the disco era to eager club-goers across the country. In the world of jazz, artists like Miles Davis and the Mahavishnu Orchestra, refusing to isolate themselves from popular modern music, added electric guitar and rock sounds to traditional jazz, creating a new genre known as 'jazz fusion.' Towards the end of the decade, the funk genre was beginning to evolve into what would become modern day hip hop, thanks largely in part to the popularity of 'Rapper's Delight,' the 1979 hit single by the Sugarhill Gang.

Popular Styles in '70s Music

Funk
Disco
Art Rock
Progressive Rock
Hard Rock
Punk
Glam Rock
Jazz Fusion
Reggae
Lite Rock

Top Albums in '70s Music

Led Zeppelin, 'Led Zeppelin IV' (1971)
Neil Young, 'Harvest' (1972)
Elton John, 'Greatest Hits' (1974)
Boston, 'Boston' (1976)
Eagles, 'Hotel California' (1976)
Peter Frampton, 'Frampton Comes Alive' (1976)
Fleetwood Mac, 'Rumours' (1977)
'Saturday Night Fever' Soundtrack (1977)
Michael Jackson, 'Off the Wall' (1979)
Pink Floyd, 'The Wall' (1979)

Top Artists in '70s Music

Eagles
Pink Floyd
Led Zeppelin
Fleetwood Mac
Boston
Elton John
Bee Gees
Steve Miller Band
The Rolling Stones
Lynyrd Skynyrd

Online Radio Stations for '70s Music

Super '70s Radio
'70s Country Radio