1970s

A proliferation of new sounds from the disco era included the vocal overdubbed harmonies of Carpenters, ABBA, the Bee Gees, the piano-based pop of Billy Joel and Elton John. Other important pop musicians include Barry Manilow, Rex Smith, Carole King, Jackson Five, The Miracles, Neil Diamond, Kenny Rogers, Roberta Flack, Carly Simon, David Pomeranz, Eric Carmen, Cher, Stevie Wonder, Earth, Wind and Fire, KC and the Sunshine Band and Irene Cara. Australian artists John Farnham and Olivia Newton-John (of Grease the Musical fame) commanded big sales in their home market, with crossover into the UK and for Olivia Newton-John, also the US.

In Turkey, (light western)pop became very popular in the 1970s with stars such as Semiha Yanki, Kamuran Akkor, Ayla Dikmen, Erol Büyükburç, Fikret Senes, Gönül Akkor, Hümeyra, Ilhan Irem, Nermin Candan, Asu Maralman, Yurdaer Dogulu, Zümrüt, Sezen Aksu, Nazan Öncel and Ajda Pekkan reaching superstar status domestically.

During the 1970s in Britain, New Wave and Punk brought bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Ian Dury, Elvis Costello, The Police and The Stranglers into the pop charts. A mod revival spearheaded by The Jam and Madness followed and opened the way for The Specials, UB40 and Dexys Midnight Runners.