Best Year For Heavy Metal

1971

Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin [IV]
Black Sabbath - Master of Reality
Alice Cooper - Killer
Alice Cooper - Love It to Death
Flower Travellin' Band - Satori
Uriah Heep - Look at Yourself
Deep Purple - Fireball
Uriah Heep - Salisbury
MC5 - High Time
Mountain - Nantucket Sleighride
Budgie - Budgie
UFO - Flying: UFO II - Space Rock
Dust - Dust
Pink Fairies - Never Never Land
Cactus - One Way...or Another
Grand Funk Railroad - E Pluribus Funk
Bull Angus - Bull Angus
Cactus - Restrictions
Bolder Damn - Mourning
Jeronimo - Jeronimo
Sir Lord Baltimore - Sir Lord Baltimore
Nazareth - Nazareth
Thin Lizzy - Thin Lizzy

1972

Deep Purple - Machine Head
Black Sabbath - Vol 4
Captain Beyond - Captain Beyond
Uriah Heep - Demons and Wizards
Blue Öyster Cult - Blue Öyster Cult
Uriah Heep - The Magician's Birthday
Flower Travellin' Band - Made in Japan
Dust - Hard Attack
Budgie - Squawk
Alice Cooper - School's Out
Bang - Bang
Bang - Mother / Bow to the King
Scorpions - Lonesome Crow
Lucifer's Friend - Where the Groupies Killed the Blues
Jeronimo - Time Ride
Elf - Elf
Pink Fairies - What a Bunch of Sweeties
Black Widow - III
Cactus - 'Ot 'n' Sweaty
Nitzinger - Nitzinger
Bull Angus - Free for All
Styx - Styx
Thin Lizzy - Shades of a Blue Orphanage

1973

Iggy and The Stooges - Raw Power
Led Zeppelin - Houses of the Holy
Black Sabbath - Sabbath Bloody Sabbath
Alice Cooper - Billion Dollar Babies
Budgie - Never Turn Your Back on a Friend
Montrose - Montrose
Buffalo - Volcanic Rock
Blue Öyster Cult - Tyranny and Mutation
Nazareth - Razamanaz
Nazareth - Loud 'n' Proud
Thin Lizzy - Vagabonds of the Western World
Flower Travellin' Band - Make Up
Captain Beyond - Sufficiently Breathless
Aerosmith - Aerosmith
Queen - Queen
Pink Fairies - Kings of Oblivion
Uriah Heep - Sweet Freedom
Deep Purple - Who Do We Think We Are
Alice Cooper - Muscle of Love
Geordie - Hope You Like It
Styx - Styx II
Nitzinger - One Foot in History
Lucifer's Friend - I'm Just a Rock 'n' Roll Singer
Babe Ruth - Amar Caballero

1974

Blue Öyster Cult - Secret Treaties
Queen - Sheer Heart Attack
UFO - Phenomenon
Deep Purple - Burn
Budgie - In for the Kill
Queen - Queen II
Buffalo - Only Want You for Your Body
KISS - KISS
Scorpions - Fly to the Rainbow
Aerosmith - Get Your Wings
Geordie - Don't Be Fooled by the Name
Ted Nugent & the Amboy Dukes - Tooth, Fang & Claw
Nazareth - Rampant
Deep Purple - Stormbringer
KISS - Hotter Than Hell
Thin Lizzy - Night Life
Rush - Rush
Montrose - Paper Money
Ted Nugent & the Amboy Dukes - Call of the Wild
Elf - Carolina County Ball
Uriah Heep - Wonderworld
Styx - Man of Miracles
Judas Priest - Rocka Rolla
Styx - The Serpent Is Rising

1975

Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti
Queen - A Night at the Opera
Black Sabbath - Sabotage
Rainbow - Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow
Alice Cooper - Welcome to My Nightmare
Nazareth - Hair of the Dog
UFO - Force It
Aerosmith - Toys in the Attic
Ted Nugent - Ted Nugent
Budgie - Bandolier
Thin Lizzy - Fighting
The Dictators - Go Girl Crazy!
Rush - Fly by Night
Angel - Angel
Rush - Caress of Steel
KISS - Dressed to Kill
Deep Purple - Come Taste the Band
Styx - Equinox
AC/DC - High Voltage
Elf - Trying to Burn the Sun
Uriah Heep - Return to Fantasy
Babe Ruth - Babe Ruth
Montrose - Warner Bros. Presents Montrose!
Babe Ruth - Stealin' Home

1976

Rainbow - Rising
Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak
Rush - 2112
Aerosmith - Rocks
Scorpions - In Trance
Thin Lizzy - Johnny the Fox
UFO - No Heavy Petting
Queen - A Day at the Races
Scorpions - Virgin Killer
AC/DC - Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap
KISS - Destroyer
AC/DC - T.N.T.
Starz - Starz
Blue Öyster Cult - Agents of Fortune
Led Zeppelin - Presence
KISS - Rock and Roll Over
Ted Nugent - Free-for-All
Angel - Helluva Band
Triumph - Triumph
The Runaways - The Runaways
Styx - Crystal Ball
Paris - Paris
Y & T - Yesterday and Today
Nazareth - Close Enough for Rock 'n' Roll
Budgie - If I Were Brittania I'd Waive the Rules
Montrose - Jump on It
Lucifer's Friend - Mind Exploding
Black Sabbath - Technical Ecstasy
Nazareth - Play 'n' the Game
Uriah Heep - High and Mighty
Geordie - Save the World
Krokus - Krokus

1977

Rush - A Farewell to Kings
AC/DC - Let There Be Rock
UFO - Lights Out
Scorpions - Taken by Force
Cheap Trick - Cheap Trick
Thin Lizzy - Bad Reputation
Judas Priest - Sin After Sin
Cheap Trick - In Color
Queen - News of the World
Heart - Little Queen
Legs Diamond - Legs Diamond
Blue Öyster Cult - Spectres
KISS - Love Gun
Riot - Rock City
Starz - Violation
Uriah Heep - Firefly
Ted Nugent - Cat Scratch Fever
Motörhead - Motörhead
Nazareth - Expect No Mercy
Triumph - Rock & Roll Machine
Angel - On Earth as It Is in Heaven
Ian Gillan Band - Clear Air Turbulence
Aerosmith - Draw the Line
The Runaways - Queens of Noise
The Dictators - Manifest Destiny
David Coverdale - Whitesnake
Uriah Heep - Innocent Victim
Ian Gillan Band - Scarabus
Ram Jam - Ram Jam
The Runaways - Waitin' for the Night
Sammy Hagar - Sammy Hagar
Goddo - Goddo
Captain Beyond - Dawn Explosion
Sammy Hagar - Musical Chairs
Thor - Keep the Dogs Away
Krokus - To You All
Quiet Riot - Quiet Riot

1978

Rush - Hemispheres
Van Halen - Van Halen
Rainbow - Long Live Rock 'n' Roll
Cheap Trick - Heaven Tonight
AC/DC - Powerage
Rose Tattoo - Rose Tattoo
UFO - Obsession
The Dictators - Bloodbrothers
Queen - Jazz
Styx - Pieces of Eight
Ace Frehley - Ace Frehley
Legs Diamond - A Diamond Is a Hard Rock
Ram Jam - Portrait of the Artist as a Young Ram
David Coverdale - Northwinds
Gillan - Gillan
Whitesnake - Trouble
Budgie - Impeckable
Y & T - Struck Down
Paul Stanley - Paul Stanley
Whitesnake - Snakebite
The Godz - The Godz
Black Sabbath - Never Say Die!
Nantucket - Nantucket
Goddo - Who Cares
Starz - Attention Shoppers!
Uriah Heep - Fallen Angel
Shakin' Street - Vampire Rock
Geordie - No Good Woman
The Runaways - And Now... The Runaways
Krokus - Painkiller
Gene Simmons - Gene Simmons

1979

Motörhead - Overkill
AC/DC - Highway to Hell
Thin Lizzy - Black Rose: A Rock Legend
Scorpions - Lovedrive
Motörhead - Bomber
Trust - Trust
Riot - Narita
Gillan - Mr. Universe
Cheap Trick - Dream Police
Van Halen - Van Halen II
Nazareth - No Mean City
Triumph - Just a Game
Whitesnake - Lovehunter
Rainbow - Down to Earth
Led Zeppelin - In Through the Out Door
Starz - Coliseum Rock
Motörhead - On Parole
Blue Öyster Cult - Mirrors
Saxon - Saxon
KISS - Dynasty
Sammy Hagar - Street Machine
Axe - Axe
Aerosmith - Night in the Ruts
Samson - Survivors
Ted Nugent - State of Shock
Blackjack - Blackjack
Talas - Talas
Legs Diamond - Fire Power
Goddo - An Act of Goddo
Fist - Round One
TKO - Let It Roll
Helix - Breaking Loose
The Godz - Nothing Is Sacred

How can it *not* be 1970?

― Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Friday, October 11, 2013 4:00 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

There's a lot more that opens up if we include stuff that is listed as "Hard Rock"...

― Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Friday, October 11, 2013 4:02 AM (6 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yeah, 1970 has to be it. Deep Purple In Rock also came out that year. Plus Hawkwind's debut. Total quality over quantity

All of this OTM. (You had me on SLB.) Throw in borderline stuff like Fun House, Thank Christ For the Bomb, Free Your Mind & Your Ass Will Follow, Plastic Ono Band, etc. Waning days of psychedelia, blues boom meeting new amplification techniques, all of that stuff.

Thanks guys, this thread is killer to check out some different records and bands on youtube! What is wild about heavy metal in the early days is that a listener pretty much could know almost all of the legit bands before it exploded out into myriads of groups and sub categories.

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/aug/14/heavy-metal-thrash-1985-defining-year-metallica-anthrax-slayer

1970 totally the year for general heaviness. Add Yeti to the mix.

nycnative still 86 for you?

Something makes me smile about the idea of metallers getting together and discussing which was the best vintage, as if heavy metal were wine, y'know. "Oh my, such a fine crop harvested in '88 by the harvesters of sorrow... and what's this?" ... "This be 'Reign In Blood', '86 vintage!" ... "Oooh, this is totally on the nose"

"I'm getting... *clicks fingers*... hints of apocalyptic doom, I'm getting sick riffs, I'm getting... *clicks fingers* whiffs of thundering blastbeats... this should go well with a serving of sweat and headbanging at the Headbanger's Ball"

"I heartily don't recommend the '97 vintage 'Re-Load', tastes like brine with a vague hint of piss" ... "Oh yeah, that's fair!"

*at this point, Devin Townsend enters the room*

HevyDevy: "Olive?"

1985 was the weakest year on the 80s, easily. I'll post an attempt at a 1988 list right away here.
― A. Begrand, Wednesday, April 4, 2007 12:54 AM (8 years ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

1985 was the year the music died. punk, hardcore, new wave. everything started to sound shittier too. i'll never understand it. everything in 1984 sounded glorious and in 1985 records sounded like phil collins tin can nightmares. must have been the new technology. things got better later on.

(hardcore especially. 1980 to 1984 a genius record every week and then all of a sudden MRR covers nothing but mr. t experience and doggy style or bl'ast! thank god for sweden and finland....)

this is great, by the way:

http://decibelmagazine.com/blog/2015/8/13/they-did-it-all-for-the-nookie-decibel-explores-the-rise-and-fall-of-nu-metal

I'll never understand it. everything in 1984 sounded glorious and in 1985 records sounded like phil collins tin can nightmares. must have been the new technology.'

Two words: Digital Reverb

Yeah I mean it's kind of an oversimplification but I consider 84 to be the tail end of analog synth pop and by 86 we are fully into digital workstation synth pop. Metal gets all hissy and tinny the further the decade goes on. SST is basically over by 86. I feel like once the whole flyte time and freestyle models are fully digested things get good again but middle of 80s is rough

Two words: Digital Reverb

Was going to say, two more words: drum triggers, but apparently those came along a few years later.

I always liked 1992 in general

I haven't read the thread yet but 72 is my initial answer but will probably change once I can Think about it for awhile.

Cheesy, but I do really like the harmony guitars in the break on Orion. Great to hum while waiting to cross the street

Maybe OP was right doe. I mean 86 has Efilnikufesin

maybe brian needs to poll this so we can get a definitive answer