10 Best Hard Rock Albums Of The 1970s

10. A Night At The Opera - Queen

This is the one entry on this list that tends to stretch the definition of whether it is really hard rock. With A Night at the Opera, Queen brought their layered rock sound to the masses with stellar theatricality and songwriting finesse. However, songs like "Love of My Life" and "You're My Best Friend" are not necessarily the first thing you think of when it comes to hard rock.

On the other hand, the band's heavy side yields some of the record's strongest moments. "Sweet Lady" is a delightful punk-ish jam and Brian May's "The Prophet's Song" is a hard-edged ride through progressive rock. "I'm In Love With My Car" also offers the swaggering vocals of Roger Taylor as he waxes poetic in his ode to the road.

While it's not hard-edged all the time, the song "Bohemian Rhapsody" is one of the single greatest tracks to come out of the hard-rock canon. By combining three song ideas, Freddie Mercury created a mini-symphony that starts off like a ballad before exploding into a hard rock riff that anyone with a pulse can groove to. This album may not be stuffed with riffs, but what is there is some of the highest quality hard rock you can find.