Robert Christgau: Pazz & Jop 1971: Critics Poll
Albums: Total
| 1. | The Who: Who's Next (Decca) | 540 |
| 2. | The Rolling Stones: Sticky Fingers (Rolling Stones) | 332 |
| 3. | Rod Stewart: Every Picture Tells a Story (Mercury) | 319 |
| 4. | Van Morrison: Tupelo Honey (Warner Bros.) | 315 |
| 5. | John Lennon: Imagine (Apple) | 225 |
| 6. | Joy of Cooking: Joy of Cooking (Capitol) | 194 |
| 7. | Grateful Dead: Grateful Dead (Warner Bros.) | 188 |
| 8. | The Concert for Bangladesh: The Concert for Bangladesh (Apple) | 176 |
| 9. | Joni Mitchell: Blue (Reprise) | 163 |
| 10. | Carole King: Tapestry (Ode) | 156 |
| 11. | Mahavishnu Orchestra: The Inner Mounting Flame (Columbia) | 152 |
| 12. | The Beach Boys: Surf's Up (Brother) | 145 |
| 13. | Janis Joplin: Pearl (Columbia) | 124 |
| 14. | The Kinks: Muswell Hillbillies (RCA Victor) | 120 |
| 15. | Randy Newman: Live (Reprise) | 110 |
| 16. | The Allman Brothers: Live at the Fillmore East (Atlantic) | 98 |
| 17. | Sly and the Family Stone: There's a Riot Goin' On (Epic) | 95 |
| 18. | David Bowie: Hunky Dory (RCA Victor) | 88 |
| 19. | Procol Harum: Broken Barricades (A&M) | 87 |
| 20. | The Move: Message from the Country (Capitol) | 87 |
| 21. | Traffic: The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (Island) | 85 |
| 22. | Jethro Tull: Aqualung (Reprise) | 83 |
| 23. | Jeff Beck Group: Rough and Ready (Epic) | 83 |
| 24. | Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen: Lost in the Ozone (Paramount) | 83 |
| 25. | The Band: Cahoots (Capitol) | 80 |
| 26. | Alice Cooper: Killer (Warner Bros.) | 74 |
| 27. | Yes: The Yes Album (Atlantic) | 65 |
| 28. | Delaney & Bonnie: Motel Shot (Atco) | 62 |
| 29. | Harry Nilsson: Nilsson Schmilsson (RCA Victor) | 60 |
| 30. | Led Zeppelin: IV (Atlantic) | 56 |
Albums: Critics
| 1. | The Who: Who's Next (Decca) | 263 |
| 2. | The Rolling Stones: Sticky Fingers (Rolling Stones) | 180 |
| 3. | Rod Stewart: Every Picture Tells a Story (Mercury) | 171 |
| 4. | Van Morrison: Tupelo Honey (Warner Bros.) | 140 |
| 5. | John Lennon: Imagine (Apple) | 131 |
| 6. | Joy of Cooking: Joy of Cooking (Capitol) | 98 |
| 7. | Sly and the Family Stone: There's a Riot Goin' On (Epic) | 88 |
| 8. | The Kinks: Muswell Hillbillies (RCA Victor) | 85 |
| 9. | The Concert for Bangladesh: The Concert for Bangladesh (Apple) | 78 |
| 10. | David Bowie: Hunky Dory (RCA Victor) | 70 |
| 11. | The Beach Boys: Surf's Up (Brother) | 62 |
| 12. | Carole King: Tapestry (Ode) | 60 |
| Janis Joplin: Pearl (Columbia) | 60 | |
| 14. | Joni Mitchell: Blue (Reprise) | 56 |
| 15. | Jeff Beck Group: Rough and Ready (Epic) | 55 |
| 16. | Grateful Dead: Grateful Dead (Warner Bros.) | 54 |
| 17. | Mahavishnu Orchestra: The Inner Mounting Flame (Columbia) | 52 |
| 18. | Randy Newman: Live (Reprise) | 48 |
| Procol Harum: Broken Barricades (A&M) | 48 | |
| 20. | Jethro Tull: Aqualung (Reprise) | 41 |
Albums: Readers
| 1. | The Who: Who's Next (Decca) | 277 |
| 2. | Van Morrison: Tupelo Honey (Warner Bros.) | 175 |
| 3. | The Rolling Stones: Sticky Fingers (Rolling Stones) | 152 |
| 4. | Rod Stewart: Every Picture Tells a Story (Mercury) | 148 |
| 5. | Grateful Dead: Grateful Dead (Warner Bros.) | 134 |
| 6. | Joni Mitchell: Blue (Reprise) | 107 |
| 7. | Mahavishnu Orchestra: The Inner Mounting Flame (Columbia) | 100 |
| 8. | The Concert for Bangladesh: The Concert for Bangladesh (Apple) | 98 |
| 9. | Carole King: Tapestry (Ode) | 96 |
| Joy of Cooking: Joy of Cooking (Capitol) | 96 | |
| 10. | John Lennon: Imagine (Apple) | 94 |
| 11. | The Beach Boys: Surf's Up (Brother) | 83 |
| 12. | The Allman Brothers: Live at the Fillmore East (Atlantic) | 78 |
| 13. | Janis Joplin: Pearl (Columbia) | 64 |
| 14. | Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen: Lost in the Ozone (Paramount) | 63 |
| 15. | Randy Newman: Live (Reprise) | 62 |
| 16. | The Band: Cahoots (Capitol) | 60 |
| Traffic: The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys (Island) | 60 | |
| 18. | The Move: Message from the Country (Capitol) | 57 |
| 19. | Delaney & Bonnie: Motel Shot (Atco) | 50 |
Village Voice, Feb. 10, 1972
Postscript Notes:
The 84 ballots were separated into two groups: one for recognized critics (39), the other for readers (55). The three tables were originally merged into one, with Total Points, Critics Points (Rank), Readers Points (Rank).