David Bowie, Badfinger, Cat Stevens, The Velvet Underground, and Van Morrison are among the acts that released outstanding albums in November 1970. And yet none of them made our list of five notable LPs released that month.

That should tell you that it was an especially incredible time to be alive if you were a music fan. Here’s a sampling of the fantastic albums that arrived 55 years ago this month in November 1970.

‘All Things Must Pass’ by George Harrison

George Harrison released a perfect storm of an album with All Things Must Pass. On the one hand, he was at a creative peak. Then you have to factor into the equation all the songs he had lying in wait that The Beatles had turned down. Harrison delved heavily into the quest for otherworldly truths that had always been his calling card on songs like “My Sweet Lord” and the title track. Meanwhile, fathoms-deep songs like “Run Of The Mill” and “Isn’t It A Pity” depict the human frailties that make spirituality a necessary balm.

‘Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs’ by Derek And The Dominos

Quite ironic that the same month George Harrison was releasing his masterpiece, his good buddy Eric Clapton was unleashing perhaps his finest work. And much of it dealt with Clapton’s longing for Harrison’s wife. Clapton had a lot of help. Duane Allman offered the chance for double-barre guitar attacks. Bobby Whitlock delivered singing and songwriting help. And the rhythm section of Carl Radle and Jim Gordon proved indispensable. The Dominos only stuck around for a single album. But they left behind a majestic blues-rock collection.

‘American Beauty’ by The Grateful Dead

Having tapped into a rich songwriting vein earlier that year with Workingman’s Dead, the band went right back to it with an equally rich and affecting LP. They didn’t have much choice, as they were pretty broke. Their poverty was the music world’s gain. Once again, Jerry Garcia and Robert Hunter delivered a series of gems, including the parable-like “Ripple” and the mischievous “Friend Of The Devil”. But Phil Lesh (“Box Of Rain”) and Bob Weir (“Sugar Magnolia”) also delivered arguably their finest studio creations as well.

‘Lola Versus Powerman And The Moneyground, Part One’ by The Kinks

The title suggested a sequel that never came. But that’s all right considering all that The Kinks brought to the table with this sprawling LP. It’s trapped somewhere between Ray Davies’ conceptual ambitions (many of the songs have to deal with the music industry) and a collection of great one-off tracks. Among the latter are “Lola”, which vaulted the band back into the limelight in America, the elegiac “This Time Tomorrow”, and “Strangers”, perhaps the best song ever written and sung by Dave Davies.

‘Twelve Dreams Of Dr. Sardonicus’ by Spirit

This is the one record that probably has escaped the casual fans reading this article. But we urge you to check out the peak effort of these California psych-rockers. Start with a heaping helping of musical ambition mixed with eccentricity, add a solid portion of hippy-ish sentiments, toss in a dose of environmental concerns, and round it all up with a title that sounds like a Vincent Price movie. The whole coheres somehow. And individual parts like “Nature’s Way” and “Mr. Skin” make a case for this being one of the most underrated LPs of that era.

Photo by GAB Archive/Redferns