From one perspective, you could look at 1972 as the year of doubles. Stevie Wonder, Al Green, Lou Reed, and Brinsley Schwarz all released two albums in ‘72, and then there were the double albums: Rolling Stones’ Exile on Main St., Todd Rundgren’s Something/Anything?, Allman Brothers Band’s Eat a Peach, the Band’s Rock of Ages, all cornerstones of classic rock. And from one vantage, 1972 can be seen as a watershed year of classic rock, as it did bring Exile on Main St. — an album that routinely pops up near the top of Best Albums Ever lists — David Bowie’s Ziggy Stardust, Elton John’s Honky Chateau, Mott the Hoople’s All the Young Dudes, and Alice Cooper’s School’s Out, plus debuts from Steely Dan, Daryl Hall & John Oates, and Big Star. But 1972 was also a tremendous year for soul (not just the aforementioned Wonder and Green, but the Atlantic debut from the Spinners, Curtis Mayfield’s Super Fly, Bobby Womack’sUnderstanding, and scores of classic soul sides), jazz (Miles Davis’ fusion reached its apotheosis on On the Corner), country-rock (including Rick Nelson’s comeback hit “Garden Party”), sugary-silly AM pop and, of course, glam, which ruled the charts in the U.K. even if it only made moderate headway in the US. Looking back, it’s hard to think of another year that offered so many different sounds, all of which now sound classic, and that’s one of the reasons AllMusic loves 1972.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine 

Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.

Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?

David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Little Feat – Sailin’ Shoes
Big Star – #1 Record
Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill
Paul Simon – Paul Simon
Brinsley Schwarz – Nervous on the Road
Harry Nilsson – Son of Schmilsson
Rod Stewart – Never a Dull Moment
Elton John – Honky Chateau
Mott the Hoople – All the Young Dudes
Badfinger – Straight Up
Randy Newman – Sail Away
Roxy Music – Roxy Music
Brinsley Schwarz – Silver Pistol
Dave Edmunds – Rockpile
Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
T. Rex – The Slider
Daryl Hall & John Oates – Whole Oats

The Spinners – “I’ll Be Around”
Ringo Starr – “Back Off Boogaloo”
The Move – “California Man”
Humble Pie – “30 Days in the Hole”
Slade – “Mama Weeer All Crazee Now”
Rolling Stones – “Tumbling Dice”
The Spinners – “Could It Be I’m Falling in Love”
Carly Simon – “You’re So Vain”
David Bowie – “John, I’m Only Dancing”
The O’Jays – “Back Stabbers”
Mel & Tim – “Starting All Over Again”
T. Rex – “Children of the Revolution”
Looking Glass – “Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl)”
Gilbert O’Sullivan – “Alone Again (Naturally)”
Joe Tex – “I Gotcha”
Wings – “Hi Hi Hi”
Otis Clay – “Trying to Live My Life Without You”
The Who – “Join Together”
Leon Russell – “Tight Rope”
ZZ Top – “Francene”

John Bush
Big Star – #1 Record
Stevie Wonder – Music of My Mind
Terry Callier – Occasional Rain
Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill
Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Marvin Gaye – Trouble Man
Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?
Amazing Blondel – England
Gentle Giant – Three Friends
Yes – Fragile
Lal and Mike Waterson – Bright Phoebus
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Michael Martin Murphey – Geronimo’s Cadillac
NRBQ – Scraps
Little Feat – Sailin’ Shoes
Joe Walsh – Barnstorm
Al Green – Let’s Stay Together
Elton John – Honky Chateau

Big Star – “The Ballad of El Goodo”
Aretha Franklin – “Day Dreaming”
Bobby Charles – “Street People”
The Allman Brothers Band – “Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More”
Chicago – “Saturday in the Park”
Edgar Winter Group – “Frankenstein”
David Bowie – “Suffragette City”
T. Rex – “Metal Guru”
Leon Russell – “Tight Rope”
Milton Nascimento & Lô Borges – “Cravo e Canela”
Waylon Jennings – “Willie and Laura Mae Jones”
George Jones – “We Can Make It”
Merle Haggard – “It’s Not Love (But It’s Not Bad)”
Elvis Presley – “I Was Born About Ten Thousand Years Ago”
The Rolling Stones – “Tumbling Dice”
Roy Wood – “Wake Up”
Elton John – “Rocket Man”
Lou Reed – “Walk on the Wild Side”
The O’Jays – “Love Train”
The Beach Boys – “All This Is That”

Heather Phares
Big Star – #1 Record
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Can – Ege Bamyasi
Wendy Carlos – Clockwork Orange
Carpenters – A Song for You
Cluster – Cluster II
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Bruce Haack – Dance to the Music
Kraftwerk – Kraftwerk 2
Neu! – Neu!
Harry Nilsson – Son of Schmilsson
Raspberries – Raspberries
Lou Reed – Transformer
Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.
Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?
Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill
Syreeta – Syreeta
T. Rex – The Slider
Neil Young – Harvest

Tim Sendra
Big Star – #1 Record
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Al Green – Let’s Stay Together
Al Green – I’m Still in Love with You
J. Geils Band – “Live” Full House
Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly
Van Morrison – Saint Dominic’s Preview
Raspberries – Raspberries
Slade – Slayed?
T. Rex – The Slider

Best song of 1972…probably ever, really.
Chicory Tip – “Son of My Father”

Matt Collar
Big Star – #1 Record
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Bread – Baby I’m-A Want You
Chick Corea – Light as a Feather
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Dave Holland – Conference of the Birds
Pat Martino – Live!
Mott the Hoople – All the Young Dudes
Milton Nascimento & Lô Borges – Clube Da Esquina
Lou Reed – Transformer
Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.
Roxy Music – Roxy Music
Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?
Bill Withers – Still Bill
Woody Shaw – Song of Songs
T. Rex – The Slider
Townes Van Zandt – The Late Great Townes Van Zandt
Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
Yes – Fragile

Thom Jurek
20 jazz, Latin, and R&B albums from 1972:
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Herbie Hancock – Crossings
Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly
Terry Callier – Occasional Rain
Bill Withers – Still Bill
Fania All Stars – Our Latin Thing
Allen Toussaint – Life, Love and Faith
Cannonball Adderley – The Black Messiah
Syreeta – Syreeta
Alice Coltrane – World Galaxy
Paul Bley – Open, to Love
Mahavishnu Orchestra – Birds of Fire
Esther Phillips – From a Whisper to a Scream
Hugh Masekela – Home Is Where the Music Is
Crusaders – 1
Oregon – Music of Another Present Era
Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
Gary Bartz Ntu Troop – Juju Street Songs
Ray Barretto – Barretto Power
Weldon Irvine – Liberated Brother

Andy Kellman 
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Roxy Music – Roxy Music
Herbie Hancock – Crossings
Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
Al Green – I’m Still in Love with You
Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly
Archie Shepp – Attica Blues
Eddie Kendricks – People…Hold On
Donald Byrd – Ethiopian Knights
Alice Coltrane – World Galaxy
Phillip Upchurch – Darkness, Darkness
Bill Withers – Still Bill
Bobby Womack – Understanding
Funkadelic – America Eats Its Young
War – The World Is a Ghetto
Chick Corea – Return to Forever
Terry Callier – Occasional Rain
Aretha Franklin – Young, Gifted and Black
Allen Toussaint – Life, Love and Faith
Can – Ege Bamyasi

The Temptations – “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone”
Stevie Wonder – “Superstition”
The Spinners – “I’ll Be Around”
Al Green – “I’m Still in Love with You”
Roxy Music – “Virginia Plain”
The Dramatics – “In the Rain”
Todd Rundgren – “Hello It’s Me”
The O’Jays – “Back Stabbers”
Joe Henderson – “Terra Firma”
Eddie Kendricks – “Girl You Need a Change of Mind”
Lyn Collins – “Think (About It)”
The Jimmy Castor Bunch – “It’s Just Begun”
Manu Dibango – “Soul Makossa”
The Staple Singers – “I’ll Take You There”
Michael Jackson – “I Wanna Be Where You Are”
Leon Thomas – “Shape Your Mind to Die”
Yes – “Roundabout”
David Bowie – “Suffragette City”
Neu! – “Hallogallo”
The Doobie Brothers – “Toulouse Street”

James Christopher Monger
Lal & Mike Waterson – Bright Phoebus
Lou Reed – Transformer
David Ackles – American Gothic
Randy Newman – Sail Away
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Nitty Gritty Dirt Band – Will the Circle Be Unbroken
John Entwistle – Whistle Rhymes
Plainsong – In Search of Amelia Earhart
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Yes – Close to the Edge
Deep Purple – Machine Head
Steeleye Span – Below the Salt
Stevie Wonder – Talking Book
Barry Dransfield – Barry Dransfield
Neil Young – Harvest
Milton Nascimento & Lo Borges – Clube da Esquina
Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill
Sandy Denny – Sandy
Black Sabbath – Vol. 4
Ralph McTell – Not Till Tomorrow

Big Star – “Ballad of El Goodo”
Mott the Hoople – “All the Young Dudes”
Roxy Music – “Virginia Plain”
Bill Withers – “Use Me”
The Band – “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”
Paul Simon – “Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard”
Stevie Wonder – “Evil”
Elton John – “Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters”
Blue Öyster Cult – “Cities on Flame with Rock and Roll”
The Temptations – “Papa Was a Rollin’ Stone”
Gilberto Gil – “O Sonho Acabou”
Harry Nilsson – “Spaceman”
Alice Cooper – “School’s Out”
T. Rex – “Metal Guru”
Harry Chapin – “Sniper”
Dave Edmunds – “I Hear You Knocking”
Stealer’s Wheel – “Stuck in the Middle with You”
John Cale – “Days of Steam”
Cat Stevens – “Can’t Keep It In”
Gordon Lightfoot – “Don Quixote”

Sean Westergaard
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band – Clear Spot
Captain Beefheart – The Spotlight Kid
Catalyst – Catalyst
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Jimmy Dawkins – All for Business
Funkadelic – America Eats Its Young
Hawkwind – Doremi Fasol Latido
Jimi Hendrix – Hendrix in the West
Jethro Tull – Thick as a Brick
Love Cry Want – Love Cry Want
Mahavishnu Orchestra – Birds of Fire
Harvey Mandel – The Snake
Mandrill – Mandrill Is
Herbie Mann – Hold on, I’m Comin’
Neu! – Neu!
The Residents – Meet the Residents
Sun Ra and His Universe in Blue Arkestra – Universe in Blue
Sun Ra and His Astro Intergalactic Infinity Arkestra – Space Is the Place
Jerry Reed & Chet Atkins – Me & Chet
The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.
Roxy Music – Roxy Music
Carlos Santana/John McLaughlin – Love Devotion Surrender
Frank Zappa – Waka/Jawaka

Matthew Garbutt 
Al Green – Let’s Stay Together
Bill Withers – Still Bill
Curtis Mayfield – Super Fly
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Horace Andy – Skylarking
Jorge Ben – Ben
Junior Byles – Beat Down Babylon
Linda Lewis – Lark
Lou Reed – Transformer
Mott the Hoople – All the Young Dudes
Rod Stewart – Never a Dull Moment
Roxy Music – Roxy Music
Slade – Slayed?
T. Rex – The Slider
The Dramatics – Whatcha See Is Whatcha Get
The Emotions – Untouched
The Staple Singers – Be Altitude: Respect Yourself
The Temptations – All Directions
The Undisputed Truth – Face to Face with the Truth
Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?

Ann Peebles – “Somebody’s on Your Case”
Denise LaSalle – “Man-Sized Job”
Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons – “You’re a Song (That I Can’t Sing)”
Freda Payne – “Unhooked Generation”
Holland-Dozier – “Why Can’t We Be Lovers?”
James Brown – “Talkin’ Loud and Sayin’ Nothin’”
Leroy Smart – “Wreck Up My Life”
Lyn Collins – “Think (About It)”
Prince Jazzbo – “Crabwalking”
Quarteto Em Cy – “Tudo Que Você Pode Ser”
Roxy Music – “Virginia Plain”
Sergio Mendes & Brasil 77 – “After Sunrise”
Status Quo – “Paper Plane”
Stevie Wonder – “Keep on Running”
Terry Callier – “Ordinary Joe”
The Delfonics – “Hey! Love”
The Flirtations – “Hold On to Me Babe”
The Persuaders – “Thin Line Between Love and Hate”
The Supremes – “Automatically Sunshine”
Timmy Thomas – “Why Can’t We Live Together?”

James Wilkinson
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Neil Young – Harvest
Big Star – #1 Record
Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?
Sandy Denny – Sandy
The Beach Boys – Carl and the Passions – So Tough
The Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Mike Nesmith – And the Hits Just Keep on Comin’
Steely Dan – Can’t Buy a Thrill
J.D. Souther – John David Souther
America – Homecoming
Can – Ege Bamyasi
Al Green – Let’s Stay Together
Wizz Jones – Right Now
Townes Van Zandt – High, Low and in Between
Ann Peebles – Straight from the Heart
Graham Nash/David Crosby – Graham Nash/David Crosby
Jackson Browne – Jackson Browne
Pink Floyd – Obscured by Clouds

Elton John – “Tiny Dancer”
Townes Van Zandt – “Pancho and Lefty”
Eagles – “Take It Easy”
Colin Blunstone – “Say You Don’t Mind”
Neil Young & Graham Nash – “War Song”
America – “A Horse with No Name”
Eagles – “Peaceful Easy Feeling”
Faces – “Cindy, Incidentally”
David Bowie – “The Jean Genie”
Duncan Browne – “Journey”
Elvis Presley – “Burning Love”
The Supremes – “Automatically Sunshine”
Colin Blunstone – “I Don’t Believe in Miracles”
The Who – “Join Together”
The Band – “Don’t Do It”
The Supremes – “I Guess I’ll Miss the Man”
America – “I Need You”
David Bowie – “John, I’m Only Dancing”
Mott the Hoople – “All the Young Dudes”
Elvis Presley – “Always on My Mind”

Aneet Nijjar
3 Hür-El – 3 Hür-El
Horace Andy – Skylarking
Aphrodite’s Child – 666
David Bowie – The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust
Terry Callier – Occasional Rain
Can – Ege Bamyasi
Wendy Carlos – Clockwork Orange
Alice Coltrane – World Galaxy
Cymande – Cymande
Cluster – Cluster II
Miles Davis – On the Corner
Deep Purple – Machine Head
Delia Derbyshire – Electrosonic
Phyllis Dillon – One Life to Live
D.R. Hooker – The Truth
Kraftwerk – Kraftwerk 2
Gene Page – Blackula
Annette Peacock – I’m the One
Lou Reed – Transformer
Rolling Stones – Exile on Main St.
Roxy Music – Roxy Music
Syreeta – Syreeta
Tangerine Dream – Zeit
Todd Rundgren – Something/Anything?
Bobby Womack & J. J. Johnson – Across 110th Street
Caetano Veloso – Transa