The Ultimate Question.. WHO IS THE GREATEST ROCK BAND OF THE 70'S?

[Cosmic Harmony]

Technically??

Well then technically I think Queen is. For one thing they are the highest selling rock band from the 70's and while that may not automatically spell greatness but it doesn't hurt at all.

 

[Foxhound]

Well then technically I think Queen is. For one thing they are the highest selling rock band from the 70's....

First of all I take it you mean worldwide and not just U.K. sales. But otherwise:

1. Do you mean sales of records and tapes during the 1970-1979 period?

2. Do you mean sales of records/tapes/CDs released in the seventies up to and including the present day?

3. Do you mean sales of records/tapes/CDs up to and including the present day by bands that started out in the seventies?

 

[Cosmic Harmony]

1. Do you mean sales of records and tapes during the 1970-1979 period?

2. Do you mean sales of records/tapes/CDs released in the seventies up to and including the present day?

3. Do you mean sales of records/tapes/CDs up to and including the present day by bands that started out in the seventies?

What I mean is that Queen is the highest selling rock band to come out of the 70's. The question is "Who is the greatest rock band of the 70's?" not "Who was the greatest rock band during the 70's?". As in present tense.

Though "greatest" is really just based on popular opinion anyway so I do have to agree with Annie to a large degree.

First of all I take it you mean worldwide and not just U.K. sales.

Yes, I do mean worldwide, though if I wanted to bring the UK into this by itself then I've pointed out that Queen has the highest selling album there with "Queen's Greatest Hits" and have the most dominant chart history ever there.

 

[Odysseus]

I thought the Eagles Greatest Hits (released in the 70's) was the eternal bestseller album of all time. I don't feel it equates them as being the best band from the 70's however. It's a loaded question. There are so many top shelf performers from the 70's that it would be ridiculously hard to single out just one band or performer.

Not just the in the 70's but The Beatles, Elvis, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin are the all time (and i think, continuously current) sales leaders when it comes album sales.

 

[Cosmic Harmony]

I thought the Eagles Greatest Hits (released in the 70's) was the eternal bestseller album of all time..

The Eagles were and have always been bigger in the US than the UK and while, yes, and while their greatest hits is among the highest selling albums off all time worldwide it is nowhere near being the bestseller of all time in the UK. The top three albums in UK sales are "Queen's Greatest Hits", "Sgt. Pepper", and then "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?".

Worldwide it gets beat by "Back In Black", "Bat Out Of Hell", and "Dark Side Of The Moon" for sure before they all get royally tromped upon by "Thriller", the high selling album ever by more than twice "Back In Black"'s (the second highest selling album of all time) sales.

Not just the in the 70's but The Beatles, Elvis, Bob Dylan and Led Zeppelin are the all time (and i think, continuously current) sales leaders when it comes album sales.

The Beatles and Elvis occupy the two highest selling spots, yes. Zep however has been officially outsold by the likes of Queen, ABBA, Michael Jackson, Elton John, The Bee Gees, AC/DC, and The Rolling Stones. Bob Dylan has sold something like...70 million albums over his career but while that is quite an accomplishment, in terms of sales he doesn't crack the top 80.

 

[rtbuck]

It's tough to say but through my eyes what I witnessed during the 70's was 3 bands which I feel ruled the 70's & they are: Kiss, The Rolling Stones, & Led Zeppelin. I may have missed the first 5 or 6 years of the 70's but I more than made up for that by gaining knowledge of those years by frequenting half price bookstores & buying old Creem, Circus, Hit Parader, & Rock Scene magazines for 25 - 50 cents a piece.

Back then those magazines ruled what I listened to. I never was too huge on the mighty Zep but there's no denying their fame. The Stones popularity was unreal in the
70's as tours were constantly selling out stadiums. Kiss was a machine breaking attendence records set by the Beatles in Japan, selling out arenas, & with all of their merchandising everyone knew the 4 faces of Kiss. I don't think (since '76) a month went by where Kiss wasn't on the cover of a magazine.

From sitting here thinking of the 70's, realistically I'd give it to the greatest Rock & Roll band in the world...The Rolling Stones with Kiss in a very very close second

 

[tomcat]

 

[Foxhound]

From sitting here thinking of the 70's, realistically I'd give it to the greatest Rock & Roll band in the world...The Rolling Stones....

Now that Sid has passed out face down on the floor and is no longer threatening me with that broken beer glass, I can agree with Bucky. The Rolling Stones it is!

 

[Odysseus]

The Eagles were and have always been bigger in the US than the UK and while, yes, and while their greatest hits is among the highest selling albums off all time worldwide it is nowhere near being the bestseller of all time in the UK. The top three albums in UK sales are "Queen's Greatest Hits", "Sgt. Pepper", and then "(What's the Story) Morning Glory?".

Worldwide it gets beat by "Back In Black", "Bat Out Of Hell", and "Dark Side Of The Moon" for sure before they all get royally tromped upon by "Thriller", the high selling album ever by more than twice "Back In Black"'s (the second highest selling album of all time) sales.



The Beatles and Elvis occupy the two highest selling spots, yes. Zep however has been officially outsold by the likes of Queen, ABBA, Michael Jackson, Elton John, The Bee Gees, AC/DC, and The Rolling Stones. Bob Dylan has sold something like...70 million albums over his career but while that is quite an accomplishment, in terms of sales he doesn't crack the top 80.

I read some list, billboard or something, a year or so ago and Led Zeppelin was in the top five. I thought that was kind of pushing it compared to those other bands you've listed Cosmic, of whom I agree are top sellers. It doesn't matter to me if Zep sells every day or once a year. They'll always be top shelf in my book!

 

[DaKillerWolf]

For me it would be BLACK SABBATH. Followed by Deep Purple ,Ronnie James Dio era Rainbow, and Pink Floyd. So many great 70's bands though......