Style & Beautydiana rossStevie NicksJoni Mitchell

Vintage Photos Of Women In Music Are All The ’70s Style Inspiration You Need

Fall aesthetic: Joni Mitchell wearing a perfectly tilted beret and a neck scarf.
By 

The women who ruled music in the ’70s also knew how to rock the era’s most popular trends.

Whether they were wearing peasant tops, silk blouses, flared jeans or neck scarves, there was just something so effortlessly cool about the way these ladies carried themselves. Now, some 40 years later, we still can’t get enough.

Rockers like Patti Smith and Joan Jett were all about androgynous style, while singers like Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac had a more boho vibe. Then there were the divas like Diana Ross and Donna Summer, who had a certain air of carefree glamor about them that we could only aspire to.

We know the 1980s are back in a big way for fall, but we’re showing some love for the decade prior. As you get ready to refresh your wardrobe for autumn, take some notes from the ladies below:

Patti Smith
Gijsbert Hanekroot via Getty Images
Smith wears a U.S. Air Force shirt in Amsterdam, 1976.
Joan Jett
Michael Ochs Archives via Getty Images
Jett poses for a portrait by her family's home in Canoga Park just outside Los Angeles, in the late '70s.
Stevie Nicks
Fin Costello via Getty Images
The singer in the recording studio in 1975.
Ann Wilson and Nancy Wilson
Donaldson Collection via Getty Images
The sisters and Heart singers pose for a portrait session in May 1977.
Donna Summer
PA Images via Getty Images
Summer arrives at Heathrow Airport for her sold-out concert tour of Britain in 1977.
Cher
Ron Galella via Getty Images
A photo of Cher from 1974.
Joni Mitchell
Michael Ochs Archives via Getty Images
A photo of Mitchell from 1975.
Nina Simone
John Minihan via Getty Images
The jazz singer poses for a photo in 1978.
Dionne Warwick
Mirrorpix via Getty Images
Warwick at Heathrow Airport in 1970.
Joan Baez
Central Press via Getty Images
Baez poses for a photo in 1972.
Carly Simon
Ed Caraeff/Morgan Media via Getty Images
Simon poses for a portrait in 1971 in London.
Carole King
Jim McCrary via Getty Images
The singer and songwriter at her home in California in 1972.
Christine McVie
Fin Costello via Getty Images
The Fleetwood Mac band member at a recording studio in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1975.
Gladys Knight
Michael Putland via Getty Images
Knight performs on a TV show in London, 1976.
Grace Jones
- via Getty Images
A portrait of Jones in 1977.
Janis Joplin
Michael Ochs Archives via Getty Images
A photo of Joplin from 1970.
Debbie Harry
Art Zelin via Getty Images
The Blondie singer sometime in the late '70s.
Diana Ross
Terry O'Neill via Getty Images
The American soul singer poses in a furry jacket in London, 1972.
Pat Benatar
Donaldson Collection via Getty Images
The singer poses for a portrait backstage at the Punch and Judy Theater on Nov. 3, 1979, in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan.
Jane Birkin
REPORTERS ASSOCIES via Getty Images
A portrait of Birkin in 1970.
Aretha Franklin
Mirrorpix via Getty Images
The queen of soul poses for a photo in London, 1972.

CORRECTION: This story has been updated to correct a Getty wire photo caption that misstated the date of a Debbie Harry photo as “around 1970.”

Related

diana rossStevie NicksJoni Mitchellpatti smith1970s

Before You Go

Judy Garland, late 1930s

Old Hollywood Dress Inspiration

|
Submit a tip

Popular in the Community

Close

HuffPost Shopping’s Best Finds

MORE IN LIFE