Ultimate Classic Rock's ranking of the 40 best songs of 1976, turning 50 in 2026
05-02-2026
Timeless after half a century. Having published its ranking of the best albums turning fifty in 2026, the magazine Ultimate Classic Rock has now put together its 40 favorite tracks of 1976 in this new list. "The year before punk exploded, rock's old guard made a strong, decisive stand," the magazine recalls in its introduction, "but as our list shows, the music dominating the headlines toward the end of the decade was already starting to change lanes, veering toward something different, spanning pop, disco, soul, punk, folk and progressive. It was an eclectic year, on the verge of something new — and perhaps bigger than the guitar-driven rock'n'roll that had steered much of the first half of the Seventies."
Here, then, is Ultimate Classic Rock's ranking of the 40 best songs of 1976 (full feature here).
40. Gordon Lightfoot – “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald”
39. Wings – "Silly Love Songs"
38. KC and the Sunshine Band – “I’m Your Boogie Man”
37. Manfred Mann’s Earth Band – “Blinded by the Light”
36. The Rolling Stones – “Memory Motel”
35. Paul McCartney and Wings – “Let ‘Em In”
34. England Dan & John Ford Coley – "I'd Really Love to See You Tonight"
33. George Harrison – "Crackerbox Palace"
32. Spinners – “The Rubberband Man”
31. Rod Stewart – “The First Cut Is the Deepest”
30. Boston – "Foreplay/Long Time"
29. Bee Gees – "You Should Be Dancing"
28. Steely Dan – "Kid Charlemagne"
27. Rush – "2112"
26. Led Zeppelin – "Nobody's Fault but Mine"
25. Billy Joel – “New York State of Mind”
24. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – “Breakdown”
23. Daryl Hall & John Oates – "Rich Girl"
22. Steve Miller Band – "Rock'n Me"
21. Al Stewart – “Year of the Cat”
20. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band – “Night Moves”
19. Ramones – "Blitzkrieg Bop"
18. Jackson Browne – “The Pretender”
17. Electric Light Orchestra – "Livin' Thing"
16. Sex Pistols – “Anarchy in the U.K.”
15. Kansas – "Carry On Wayward Son"
14. Boz Scaggs – "Lowdown"
13. Thin Lizzy – “The Boys Are Back in Town”
12. Blue Öyster Cult – “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper”
11. Kiss – "Detroit Rock City"
10. Boston – "More Than a Feeling"
9. AC/DC – "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap"
8. Aerosmith – “Back in the Saddle”
7. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – “American Girl”
6. Peter Frampton – “Do You Feel Like We Do”
5. Fleetwood Mac – “Go Your Own Way”
4. Led Zeppelin – “Achilles Last Stand”
3. ABBA – “Dancing Queen”
2. Stevie Wonder – “Sir Duke”
1. Eagles – “Hotel California”
Below, instead, is the ranking of the 40 best albums of 1976 according to Ultimate Classic Rock (full feature here).
40. Rod Stewart – “A Night on the Town”
39. Blondie – “Blondie”
38. Bad Company – “Run With the Pack”
37. Wings – “Wings at the Speed of Sound”
36. Funkadelic – “Hardcore Jollies”
35. The Rolling Stones – “Black and Blue”
34. ZZ Top – “Tejas”
33. Patti Smith Group – “Radio Ethiopia”
32. ABBA – “Arrival”
31. Miles Davis – “Pangaea”
30. Kansas – “Leftoverture”
29. Al Stewart – “Year of the Cat”
28. Marvin Gaye – “I Want You”
27. Bob Seger & the Silver Bullet Band – “Night Moves”
26. Warren Zevon – “Warren Zevon”
25. Ramones – “Ramones”
24. Judas Priest – “Sad Wings of Destiny”
23. AC/DC – “Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap”
22. Thin Lizzy – “Jailbreak”
21. Kiss – “Rock and Roll Over”
20. Genesis – “A Trick of the Tail”
19. Kiss – “Destroyer”
18. Bob Dylan – “Desire”
17. Rush – “2112”
16. Queen – “A Day at the Races”
15. Billy Joel – “Turnstiles”
14. Electric Light Orchestra – “A New World Record”
13. Joni Mitchell – “Hejira”
12. David Bowie – “Station to Station”
11. Boz Scaggs – “Silk Degrees”
10. AC/DC – “High Voltage”
9. Peter Frampton – “Frampton Comes Alive!”
8. Steely Dan – “The Royal Scam”
7. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – “Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers”
6. Jackson Browne – “The Pretender”
4. Aerosmith – “Rocks”
3. Led Zeppelin – “Presence”
2. Eagles – “Hotel California”
1. Stevie Wonder – “Songs in the Key of Life”
Ride the wave of great music
Add OndaRock to your favorite sources on Google Discover. Don't miss our reviews, milestones and latest news straight in your feed.
This article is an English translation of the original Italian text by Claudio Fabretti, published on OndaRock.it. It was translated with the help of artificial intelligence, under the editorial responsibility of OndaRock's editor-in-chief, Claudio Fabretti.
Latest News
original design & development by
Edoardo M. Cappuccio
Edoardo M. Cappuccio
redesign by
Gabriele Brombin
Anna Quaranta
Gabriele Brombin
Anna Quaranta