@waytoomuchstuff

I understand what you are saying very well, and I agree that there were some very good bands making some memorable popular, and even progressive music at that time, but for me, it was also a somewhat sad time, because the explosion of wild creativity that characterized the 1960’s (Jefferson Airplane and Jimi Hendrix are examples) was over. Now it was time to take those design cues, polish and perfect them. That certainly had its good points, but the magic was gone. Periods of spontaneous creativity like what happened in the 1960’s are rare and depend on a confluence of social factors, all of which came together at that time.

Again, not to take away or minimize the early 70’s. There were some very good  music created during that time as well.

@emergingsoul Thanks for your crazy comment.

@tony1954

yeah, I read your question. And the list of albums to. And I understood it to mean you’re saying there will never be a year where music was good as in 1971.

Am I missing something?

@curiousjim 

"And I understood it to mean you’re saying there will never be a year where music was good as in 1971. Am I missing something?"

Yes you are.

I said that, up to now, "in my opinion", 1971 had the highest number of great albums.

I never said there would never be a better year ever.

@elrod 

+50!!

@roxy54 

My reference to "a brief moment in time" was intended to be a little broader than 1971 -- perhaps a 20 year period (+/-) from the fifties to the early seventies. I am in agreement with you that some of the pioneers of popular music had produced their greatest works and did, in fact, hit the exit button (or, died) before 1971. My premise is that there was a unique time in history when a massive quantity of participants in the art of making music could devote nearly 100% of the brain power into the production of such. Thus, the suberb examples you listed for 1971 ... and before.