There will eventually be a poll in a week or two. Here’s how it works -
Any band or musical artist nominated by more than one Doper in this thread will be entered in the poll. Wiki or YouTube links are encouraged. Discussion is encouraged. All opinions, however wrongheaded (eg. contrary to mine), will be welcomed. Dopers are welcome to submit more than one nomination.
Not necessarily restricted to rock or pop - Jazz, fusion, blues, country, whatever - make your case.
The Seventies-ness of any band or musical artist is itself rather subjective - I don’t personally associate a lot of punk or new wave bands with the 70s but rather with the 80s, although Sex Pistols, Talking Heads, XTC and Dead Kennedys all started out in the late 70s. Your call - the poll will determine whether your opinion is widely held or not.
Just to make the collection of names easier for me, please bold or super-size the name of the band/artist.
First off, I’d like to nominate Gentle Giant. Not as well known as Genesis or Strawbs, but fantastic musicians who made remarkable music.
Some references - Gentle Giant wiki. The Advent of Panurge live from German TV. (Who else would do lyrics based on Rabelais?) Proclamation - from the studio recording of ‘The Power and the Glory’. Knots - from the studio recording ‘Octopus’.
That’s why music should be split into half-decades, because any music more than 5 years different than another will automatically feel out of place even if it is otherwise similar.
So, having a “turn of the 70s” (i.e. 1968-1973) poll or an “early 70s” (1970-1975) poll would work, but music from 1975 doesn’t share much at all with the music from 1968.
Well, you mentioned band or artist, so I’m going with Leo Kottke, who probably did his best, most aggressive and original work in the seventies (not that he’s been a slouch since then). I consider My Feet Are Smiling (1972) to be one of the all-time great albums.
There are tons of great acts from the seventies, but Leo caught my attention way back when I was a kid, and he’s the only one from that era I really still keep up with.
Joni Mitchell was at the top of her game in the 1970s. Just an *incredible *musician and songwriter. And she chose good band mates. I can’t think of anyone else who possessed similar talent during the same time period.
My favourite “70s band” is Throbbing Gristle (1976-1981). Though they were fairly underground back then and I don’t think any videos exist of them prior to 1980. Here are some of their songs of the late '70s: United, Hamburger Lady, Persuasion.
All these acts should be on the ballot (even though there are numerous people on this list I don’t like) because EITHER:
a) They were extremely popular for a substantial period of time (Peter Frampton is not on my list because he was HUGE but for just one year)
b) They were extremely influential
MANY Seventies acts I love(d) are not on this list because, in my opinion, they just weren’t popular enough or influential enough. Not everyone will agree with me, but I would never choose a band that I LOVED but which only had a cult following as “Best Act of the Seventies,” while several acts I DON’T particularly like (the Bee Gees, for instance) MIGHT be deserving of the title.
Aerosmith
Alice Cooper
Bee Gees
David Bowie
Chicago
Creedence Clearwater Revival
Deep Purple
John Denver
Neil Diamond
Eagles
Fleetwood Mac
Grateful Dead
Hall & Oates
Jackson 5
Billy Joel
Elton John
King Crimson
Kiss
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Queen
The Ramones
Rolling Stones
Diana Ross
Paul Simon
Bruce Springsteen
Rod Stewart
Barbra Streisand
Van Halen
Stevie Wonder
The Stooges - well, the debut album only just missed the 70s Television - punk was a broad church Bowie - he had an astonishing decade, and I wonder how much of it he remembers Pink Floyd - I much prefer the post-Syd stuff Joy Division - Verged into the eighties, but very much a seventies band
**Roxy Music **- Very inventive, even after Brian Eno left Sly and the Family Stone - should be on the list just for *Family Affair
* ABBA - pop music done perfectly Springsteen - two of his best three albums were released in the 70s Born to Run, and Darkness on the Edge of Town
All of the bands/artists listed by WordMan and astorian strike me as entirely appropriate to include on the ballot, so if any of them need a second, consider them seconded.
Also I’d at least consider Elvis Costello Cheap Trick Electric Light Orchestra Bob Dylan
and at least three of the Beatles, as solo artists (John Lennon, Paul McCartney (with & without Wings), and George Harrison)
When the time comes to vote for just one, my vote is probably going to go to Stevie Wonder.
That timeframe gets extended but only for a year or two in the 21st century. 2002 music definitely feels out of place compared to 2009 music, even within the same subgenre to me.
Stevie Wonder wins this. Talking Book, Innervisions, Songs in the Key of Life, et al. Plus he toured with the Stones and played Sesame Street. Stevie Wonder owned the 70s because his appeal was so much broader than any other act listed, and his talent was never more on display. He wrote the lyrics, composed, produced, and often played every instrument you’re hearing on the track, especially so with Innervisions.