100 Greatest Albums of 1978

1978 record album covers for One Nation Under A Groove, Parallel Lines, C'est Chic, and Stranger In Town
Criteria: These 1978 albums were chosen for their initial and lasting popularity and their influence and impact on rock music in general. Also considered is critical acclaim. The list includes rock and roll and related genres that were influential on rock music.

Note: Yearly album lists go by earliest 'release date'.
Not necessarily the year an album peaked in the U.S. charts.
  1. One Nation Under A Groove - Funkadelic
  2. Parallel Lines - Blondie
  3. C'est Chic - Chic
  4. Stranger In Town - Bob Seger
  5. Van Halen - Van Halen
  6. This Year's Model - Elvis Costello
  7. Here, My Dear - Marvin Gaye
  8. Darkness On The Edge Of Town - Bruce Springsteen
  9. The Cars - The Cars
10. Motor Booty Affair - Parliament
11. 52nd Street - Billy Joel
12. Showdown - The Isley Brothers
13. Some Girls - The Rolling Stones
14. Babylon By Bus - Bob Marley
15. Energy - The Pointer Sisters
16. Q: Are We Not Men?  A: We Are Devo - Devo
17. Love Tracks - Gloria Gaynor
18. More Songs About Buildings And Food - Talking Heads
19. Bootsy? Player Of The Year - Bootsy Collins
20. Cheap Trick At Budokan - Cheap Trick
21. Chaka - Chaka Khan
22. Destiny - The Jacksons
23. Rose Royce III: Strikes Again - Rose Royce
24. The Man Machine - Kraftwerk
25. Natural High - The Commodores
26. 2 Hot - Peaches & Herb
27. Excitable Boy - Warren Zevon
28. Central Heating - Heatwave
29. Dire Straits - Dire Straits
30. So Full Of Love - The O'Jays
31. All Mod Cons - The Jam
32. Is It Still Good To Ya - Ashford & Simpson
33. Outlandos d'Amour - The Police
34. Waiting For Columbus - Little Feat
35. Raydio - Raydio
36. Third/Sister Lovers - Big Star
37. Togetherness - L.T.D.
38. Live And More - Donna Summer
39. Cool Ruler - Gregory Isaacs
40. Easter - Patti Smith Group
41. Come And Get It - Rick James
42. Double Vision - Foreigner
43. Street Player - Rufus & Chaka Khan
44. Chairs Missing - Wire
45. A Briefcase Full Of Blues - The Blues Brothers
46. The Modern Dance - Pere Ubu
47. Etta Is Better Than Evah - Etta James
48. Cheryl Lynn - Cheryl Lynn
49. Stained Class - Judas Priest
50. Kaya - Bob Marley & the Wailers
51. Life Is A Song Worth Singing - Teddy Pendergrass
52. Public Image First Edition - Public Image Ltd.
53. Give 'Em Enough Rope - The Clash
54. Infinity - Journey
55. A Taste of Honey - A Taste Of Honey
56. Don't Look Back - Boston
57. Money Talks - The Bar-Kays
58. Cruisin' - The Village People
59. Who Are You - The Who
60. Night People - Lee Dorsey
61. Pieces Of Eight - Styx
62. If You Want Blood - AC/DC
63. Night Flight To Venus - Boney M.
64. Return Of The Wanderer - Dion
65. Step Two - Sylvester
66. London Town - Wings
67. Norma Jean - Norma Jean Wright
68. Live And Dangerous - Thin Lizzy
69. Heaven Tonight - Cheap Trick
70. Adventure - Television
71. Road To Ruin - The Ramones
72. Blue Valentine - Tom Waits
73. Get It Out'cha System - Millie Jackson
74. My Radio Sure Sounds Good To Me - Larry Graham & Graham Central Station
75. Blam!! - The Brothers Johnson
76. Jazz - Queen
77. Funk Or Walk - The Brides Of Funkenstein
78. Comes A Time - Neil Young
79. Marcus' Children - Burning Spear
80. Blondes Have More Fun - Rod Stewart
81. Street Hassle - Lou Reed
82. The Man - Barry White
83. Best Dressed Chicken In Town - Dr. Alimantado
84. So Alone - Johnny Thunders
85. New Dimensions - The Three Degrees
86. Wavelength - Van Morrison
87. The Bottom Line - O.V. Wright
88. Germfree Adolescents - X-Ray Spex
89. Shiny Beast (Bat Chain Puller) - Captain Beefheart
90. Truth n' Time - Al Green
91. But Seriously, Folks - Joe Walsh
92. Very Extremely Dangerous - Eddie Hinton
93. Summertime Groove - Bohannon
94. Live On The Queen Mary - Professor Longhair
95. Harder Than The Rest - Culture
96. Another Music In A Different Kitchen - The Buzzcocks
97. Just Another Band From East L.A. - Los Lobos
98. Do What You Wanna Do - The Dramatics
99. Golden Time Of Day - Maze featuring Frankie Beverly
100. Move It On Over - George Thorogood & The Destroyers

One Nation Under A Groove by Funkadelic album cover
Parallel Lines by Blondie album cover
C'est Chic by Chic album cover
Stranger In Town by Bob Seger album cover
Van Halen by Van Halen album cover
This Year's Model by Elvis Costello album cover
 DigitalDreamDoor Editor Picks for 1978
  Lew's choice - An unheralded great album from 1978
   City to City - Gerry Rafferty
  Bruce's choice:
   Tracks on Wax 4 - Dave Edmunds
  Brett's choice:
   Not Shy - Walter Egan


Top 100 Albums by Year: