Few eras in music history crackle with as much raw energy, excess, and pure creative electricity as the 1970s. It was a decade of stadium anthems, guitar gods, and voices that could shatter glass or break your heart. These artists didn’t just top charts – they defined an entire generation’s idea of what rock and roll could be. Decades later, the question lingers like a power chord fading out in a massive arena: what ever happened to them? Some are still out there grinding, some have stepped away, and some left us far too soon. Let’s dive in.
1. Robert Plant – Still Roaming, Still Restless
Robert Plant was the lead singer and lyricist of Led Zeppelin from the band’s founding in 1968 until their breakup in 1980, after which he launched a successful solo career, sometimes collaborating with artists like Alison Krauss. Regarded by many as one of the greatest singers in rock music, he is known for his flamboyant persona, raw stage performances, and his powerful, wide-ranging voice. Plant released a new album called Saving Grace in 2025 and performed intimate shows to celebrate it. He announced a return US tour with Saving Grace in March and April, confirming that another leg was on the way.
2. Jimmy Page – The Reclusive Guitar Genius
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968, comprising vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist-keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham, with a heavy guitar-driven sound drawing from blues and folk influences. Jimmy Page, now 82, remains one of the most celebrated guitarists in rock history. The band’s biographical documentary film, titled Becoming Led Zeppelin, was first screened at the Venice Film Festival in 2021 and marked the first time the band’s members had agreed to participate in such a project – the completed film premiering in IMAX in several countries on 7 February 2025. Page himself has largely stayed out of the public spotlight in recent years, with no new solo material or touring activity confirmed as of early 2026.
3. Mick Jagger – The Unstoppable Frontman
Mick Jagger boasts a career at the forefront of rock music for decades, fronting The Rolling Stones with classic tracks like “Satisfaction” and “Paint It Black.” Now 82 years old, Jagger continues to defy any conventional notion of aging gracefully – or gracefully stepping aside. In 2023, Elton John guest-starred on The Rolling Stones’ album Hackney Diamonds, which climbed to number one in the UK. The Stones remain active and relevant, a fact that still manages to feel genuinely surprising every single time.
4. David Bowie – A Legacy That Never Dims
David Bowie rose to towering prominence in the 1970s with his shape-shifting Ziggy Stardust persona and landmark albums like The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and Heroes, becoming one of the most influential artists in rock history. Though Bowie passed away in 2016, his estate continues to generate significant income through royalties from his classic albums. His innovative approach to music still resonates today, and his legacy includes not only groundbreaking music but also successful art exhibitions showcasing his work posthumously. Honestly, it’s hard to think of another artist whose influence has aged quite so timelessly.
5. Elton John – Farewell to the Road, Hello to Everything Else
During the early 1970s, Elton John released some of his most influential, critically acclaimed, and commercially successful work, including the singles “Your Song,” “Rocket Man,” “Candle in the Wind,” “Goodbye Yellow Brick Road,” “Tiny Dancer,” and “Bennie and the Jets.” His Farewell Yellow Brick Road tour was his 49th and final concert tour, beginning in 2018 and ending in Stockholm, Sweden, in July 2023, consisting of 330 concerts worldwide and grossing $939.1 million. On December 1, 2024, John revealed that he had lost his eyesight, disclosing that a severe eye infection contracted in July had left him blind in one eye and with only limited vision in the other. Although retired from touring, John has said he will continue to “do the odd show” and is in the early planning stages of recording a new album.
6. Stevie Nicks – The Witch of Rock is Still Casting Spells
It’s hard to think of 1970s rock without Fleetwood Mac coming to mind. The band dominated the decade with their record-breaking Rumours album, along with Tusk and the self-titled 1975 album. The now 77-year-old Nicks has been touring for parts of five decades, and remarkably, she hasn’t released a studio album of new material in more than ten years – yet she has remained highly relevant thanks to her embrace of modern female pop and rock stars, which opened the door for a live tour that began in 2023. Since Christine McVie’s death in November 2022, surviving members including Stevie Nicks and Mick Fleetwood have continually insisted Fleetwood Mac is done.
7. Fleetwood Mac – Still Charting, Never Touring Again
Fleetwood Mac no longer tour and haven’t released a new album in decades – but they still rank among 2025’s biggest artists. Their landmark 1977 album Rumours has spent an astonishing 650 weeks on the Billboard chart and remains the highest-ranking classic rock title currently charting. Since Christine McVie’s death in November 2022, surviving members have continually insisted Fleetwood Mac is done, though that hasn’t stopped fans from hoping and theorizing – and Billboard’s statistics prove there’s clearly still enormous interest in the band.
8. Bruce Springsteen – The Boss Still Punching the Clock
Known as “The Boss,” Springsteen’s career spans over four decades, marked by classic albums like Born to Run and Born in the U.S.A., with his energetic performances and storytelling ability earning him a dedicated fan base and critical acclaim. After 40 years of cultivating a reputation as a relentless, high-energy performer, Springsteen is still touring regularly and is known for his marathon performances across nearly 20 headline tours. The Boss, now 76, kept playing at a high level for three hours a night in 2023 and 2024 – documented in the Disney+ and Hulu film Road Diary: Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band, released in October 2024.
9. Billy Joel – The Piano Man Closes the Curtain
Billy Joel became one of the defining voices of 1970s rock and pop with albums like The Stranger and 52nd Street, scoring multiple Grammy Awards and becoming one of the best-selling artists of all time. If you live in New York, it feels like you could accidentally stumble into a Billy Joel concert. He started a residency at Madison Square Garden that lasted for 74 straight months before the COVID-19 pandemic stopped it. That Madison Square Garden residency ultimately closed in 2024 with its 150th show – a remarkable milestone for any artist to hit in a single venue. Joel has indicated he will step back from major touring, making that 150th show feel like the proper end of a chapter.
10. Peter Gabriel – A Glorious Return After 21 Years
Peter Gabriel defined art rock in the 1970s as the frontman of Genesis, before launching one of the most celebrated solo careers in rock history with albums like So. In 2023, Gabriel released I/O, his tenth studio album and first in 21 years, and toured off the record to rave reviews. After leaving Genesis, Gabriel never slowed down, dropping a song from I/O every full moon of 2023 before eventually releasing the full record. Per Yardbarker, his return proved there are just some artists who can deliver the goods no matter how much the years add up.
11. Ann Wilson (Heart) – Cancer, Courage, and a Comeback
Heart’s debut album Dreamboat Annie catapulted them to fame with classics like “Magic Man” and “Crazy on You,” selling over 22.5 million copies within the US, and the band accumulated four Grammy nominations with top ten Billboard hits across four decades. Heart had to cut their 2024 tour short due to Ann Wilson’s cancer treatment, but the singer successfully completed her treatment and made a triumphant return to the stage alongside her bandmates in late February 2025. The band will also celebrate their golden anniversary, marking 50 years since the release of Dreamboat Annie in 1975.
12. Alice Cooper – The Shock Rock Legend That Never Stops
It’s been a long time since Alice Cooper sang about the tribulations of being 18, but the shock-rock legend has always had a timeless quality to his music and persona – and unlike some of his peers, he has never really stopped, carving out 29 albums with the original Alice Cooper band and as a solo artist. In August 2023, he released the live-recorded album Road and spent the majority of 2023 on three different tours alongside Rob Zombie, Def Leppard, and Mötley Crüe. At 77, Cooper remains one of the hardest-working performers from his generation – a genuinely impressive run.
13. Iggy Pop – Forever the Godfather of Punk
Iggy Pop’s credentials as a proto-punk icon are undeniable, and his 2023 album Every Loser was described as splendidly raucous, standing proudly against almost any other entry in his checkered solo career. Some 25,000 people flocked to Iggy’s Dog Day Afternoon extravaganza at London’s Crystal Palace Park, showing there’s still a massive appetite for his performances. Now in his late 70s, Pop remains the kind of performer who makes younger artists look slightly embarrassed – which, let’s be honest, is exactly how it should be.
14. The Eagles – The Long Goodbye Was Very Long Indeed
Eagles singer-songwriter Glenn Frey died in 2016 at the age of 67 and bassist Randy Meisner passed away at 77 in 2023. The remaining Eagles – Timothy B. Schmit, Don Henley, and Joe Walsh – are all now 78. The Eagles’ legacy was encapsulated in their Long Goodbye Tour, which spanned into 2024. Per Ultimate Classic Rock’s year-end data for 2025, the Eagles still played 28 shows during the year, which suggests the goodbye has been extended once more, in the most Eagles fashion imaginable.
15. Rod Stewart – Still Standing, Still Strutting
Rod Stewart became one of rock’s most recognizable voices in the early 1970s with hits like “Maggie May” and “Every Picture Tells a Story,” going on to sell over 250 million records worldwide, per official artist biographies. Now 81 years old, Stewart has continued to tour internationally and release music well into the 2020s. He has spoken publicly about a throat cancer diagnosis earlier in his career that he overcame, and as of 2026 he remains one of the most active performers from his era – still delivering that unmistakable rasp from the stage.
16. Freddie Mercury (Queen) – Gone, But Genuinely Irreplaceable
Freddie Mercury was the flamboyant, impossibly gifted frontman of Queen, whose 1970s albums like A Night at the Opera and News of the World cemented the band’s place in rock history. Mercury died of bronchopneumonia, a complication of AIDS, on November 24, 1991, at the age of 45. Elton John, who had lost Mercury as a close friend to AIDS, subsequently founded the Elton John AIDS Foundation in 1992, an organization that has raised over $600 million to support HIV-related programs in 55 countries. Queen, now fronted by Adam Lambert, continues to tour globally in Mercury’s honor.
17. David Gilmour (Pink Floyd) – Solitary, Selective, and Still Brilliant
David Gilmour anchored Pink Floyd’s sound throughout the 1970s, co-writing albums like The Dark Side of the Moon and Wish You Were Here – two of the most critically acclaimed records in rock history. Gilmour, now 79, has continued to pursue his solo career. Interestingly, Journey’s Greatest Hits ranks behind only The Dark Side of the Moon and Bob Marley’s Legend in terms of total weeks spent on the Billboard 200, a statistic that speaks volumes about how enduring Gilmour’s work with Pink Floyd remains. He released his solo album Luck and Strange in 2024 to critical praise and undertook a subsequent tour.
18. Brian Wilson – A Heartbreaking Final Chapter
Brian Wilson co-founded the Beach Boys in the late 1950s but reached his creative pinnacle in the early-to-mid 1970s with projects that pushed pop music into entirely new sonic territory. His work on Pet Sounds and Smile became foundational texts for generations of musicians. Tragically, as reported on the music history site On The Records, Brian Wilson passed away on June 11, 2025, just nine days before his 83rd birthday. Wilson had been living with a neurocognitive disorder in his final years, with a court granting a conservatorship over his affairs. He left behind one of the most extraordinary catalogs in American music history.
19. Eric Clapton – Still Playing, Still Debated
Eric Clapton, now 80 years old, rose to superstardom in the 1970s through albums like 461 Ocean Boulevard and Slowhand, following his earlier band work with Cream, Blind Faith, and Derek and the Dominos. He has remained one of rock’s most prolific live performers across six decades. Clapton continued to tour into the mid-2020s despite well-documented health challenges, including peripheral neuropathy that has affected his ability to play. He is, without question, one of the most technically gifted guitarists who ever lived – and also one of the most complicated public figures in classic rock.
20. Peter Frampton – Playing Through It All
Frampton turned 74 in 2024 and celebrated by going out on a tour of North America. He has never let age define him or keep him from playing live – which, after all, is the reason he became a star in the first place through his landmark 1976 live album Frampton Comes Alive. In addition, Frampton has released two studio records since 2021, though the most recent, Frampton Forgets the Words, was an instrumental project. Per Ultimate Classic Rock’s year-end concert data for 2025, Peter Frampton played 31 shows during the year, a remarkable output for an artist who was diagnosed with inclusion body myositis, a progressive muscle disease, back in 2019.
What stands out most about all of these artists isn’t just their chart records or their tours – it’s that so many of them are still here, still swinging. Some are defying illness, others are quietly passing the torch, and a few have left behind legacies that younger artists are still trying to decode. Which of these stories surprised you the most? Drop your thoughts in the comments.
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