Question 1 of 20DiscoEasy
1970s music quiz
Dust off your platform shoes for this 70s music quiz. These 20 questions of 1970s music trivia spin through disco dance floors, punk clubs, glam-rock stages, soft-rock radio and funk grooves, with a few Billboard chart brain-teasers to finish off the true fans.
A free quiz from Megan Moran, author of The Ultimate 1970's Quiz Book.
Question 2 of 20Soft RockEasy
Which band released the 1977 soft-rock blockbuster album Rumours?
Question 3 of 20PunkMedium
Punk pioneers the Ramones formed in 1974 in which New York City borough?
Question 4 of 20Glam RockEasy
Which singer's 1972 album introduced his glam-rock alter ego Ziggy Stardust?
Question 5 of 20Soft RockMedium
Besides singing lead, which instrument did Karen Carpenter often play with the Carpenters?
Question 6 of 20DiscoHard
In July 1979, the infamous Disco Demolition Night, when a crate of disco records was blown up, took place at which ballpark?
Question 7 of 20DiscoMedium
Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards wrote and produced Le Freak (1978) for which band they had co-founded?
Question 8 of 20DiscoEasy
Which singer topped the US charts in 1979 with the disco anthem I Will Survive?
Question 9 of 20Funk and SoulMedium
Which 1976 double album earned Stevie Wonder his third Grammy for Album of the Year in four years?
Question 10 of 20Electronic and PopHard
Electronic pioneers Kraftwerk, whose 1974 album Autobahn reached the US top five, formed in which West German city?
Question 11 of 20PunkMedium
Sex Pistols singer Johnny Rotten was born with which name?
Question 12 of 20RockEasy
Which Pink Floyd album, released in 1973, has a cover showing a beam of light passing through a prism?
Question 13 of 20Charts and RecordsMedium
In 2018, which band's 1976 compilation Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) regained the title of best-selling album in US history?
Question 14 of 20Glam RockHard
Which future ambient-music pioneer played synthesizer in glam rockers Roxy Music before leaving in 1973?
Question 15 of 20Soft RockMedium
Which singer-songwriter's 1971 album Tapestry spent 15 straight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard albums chart?
Question 16 of 20DiscoEasy
Which disco group's members dressed as characters including a cop, a cowboy, a construction worker and a biker?
Question 17 of 20Funk and SoulMedium
Which bandleader led the sprawling funk collective behind both Parliament and Funkadelic?
Question 18 of 20Charts and RecordsHard
Which song topped Billboard's year-end Hot 100 chart for 1979?
Question 19 of 20PunkMedium
The famous cover photo of The Clash's 1979 album London Calling shows Paul Simonon smashing what on stage?
Question 20 of 20DiscoHard
Which producer created Donna Summer's groundbreaking 1977 synth-disco hit I Feel Love with Pete Bellotte?
Answer all 20 to see your score.
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Show all the answers, with the facts behind them
- Which group of brothers scored a 1975 US No. 1 with Jive Talkin'? Bee GeesThe song's rhythm was inspired by the sound of the brothers' car crossing Miami's Julia Tuttle Causeway on the way to the studio.
- Which band released the 1977 soft-rock blockbuster album Rumours? Fleetwood MacRumours spent 31 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and won the Grammy for Album of the Year.
- Punk pioneers the Ramones formed in 1974 in which New York City borough? QueensEvery member took the surname Ramone, inspired by Paul Ramon, a stage name Paul McCartney used in the Beatles' early days.
- Which singer's 1972 album introduced his glam-rock alter ego Ziggy Stardust? David BowieHe retired the Ziggy character on stage at London's Hammersmith Odeon on July 3, 1973, the last night of the tour.
- Besides singing lead, which instrument did Karen Carpenter often play with the Carpenters? DrumsThe brother-and-sister duo won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1971.
- In July 1979, the infamous Disco Demolition Night, when a crate of disco records was blown up, took place at which ballpark? Comiskey ParkFans stormed the field afterward, and the home team had to forfeit the second game of the doubleheader to the Detroit Tigers.
- Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards wrote and produced Le Freak (1978) for which band they had co-founded? ChicIt reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 three separate times, spending six weeks in total at the top.
- Which singer topped the US charts in 1979 with the disco anthem I Will Survive? Gloria GaynorIt won the Grammy for Best Disco Recording in 1980, the only year that category was ever awarded.
- Which 1976 double album earned Stevie Wonder his third Grammy for Album of the Year in four years? Songs in the Key of LifeHis two earlier Album of the Year wins came for Innervisions and Fulfillingness' First Finale.
- Electronic pioneers Kraftwerk, whose 1974 album Autobahn reached the US top five, formed in which West German city? DüsseldorfThe album's title track runs more than 22 minutes and filled the entire first side of the original LP.
- Sex Pistols singer Johnny Rotten was born with which name? John LydonAfter the Sex Pistols split, he formed the post-punk band Public Image Ltd in 1978.
- Which Pink Floyd album, released in 1973, has a cover showing a beam of light passing through a prism? The Dark Side of the MoonIt logged 736 weeks on the Billboard 200 between 1973 and 1988, and has since passed 900 weeks in total.
- In 2018, which band's 1976 compilation Their Greatest Hits (1971–1975) regained the title of best-selling album in US history? EaglesIn August 2018 it was certified 38x Platinum, moving past Michael Jackson's Thriller, which had overtaken it in 2009.
- Which future ambient-music pioneer played synthesizer in glam rockers Roxy Music before leaving in 1973? Brian EnoHe first joined as a non-musician technical adviser who could operate a synthesizer, and was replaced by Eddie Jobson.
- Which singer-songwriter's 1971 album Tapestry spent 15 straight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard albums chart? Carole KingShe became the first woman to win the Grammy for Song of the Year, for You've Got a Friend.
- Which disco group's members dressed as characters including a cop, a cowboy, a construction worker and a biker? Village PeopleThe group took its name from New York's Greenwich Village, and its hit Y.M.C.A. joined the National Recording Registry in 2020.
- Which bandleader led the sprawling funk collective behind both Parliament and Funkadelic? George ClintonA replica of the band's Mothership, a spaceship stage prop, is held by the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture.
- Which song topped Billboard's year-end Hot 100 chart for 1979? My SharonaIt was The Knack's debut single, and it spent six weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100.
- The famous cover photo of The Clash's 1979 album London Calling shows Paul Simonon smashing what on stage? His bass guitarIts pink-and-green lettering deliberately copies the design of Elvis Presley's debut album.
- Which producer created Donna Summer's groundbreaking 1977 synth-disco hit I Feel Love with Pete Bellotte? Giorgio MoroderHe went on to win three Academy Awards, the first for his Midnight Express score.
