Serving as the successor to 1975's Made in the Shade, it covers material from the recording sessions of It's Only Rock 'n Roll (1974), Black and Blue (1976), Some Girls (1978) and Emotional Rescue (1980).

All tracks on Sucking in the Seventies, except "Shattered" and "Everything Is Turning to Gold" were mixed or edited specifically for this release.

The album includes an otherwise unreleased live version of "When the Whip Comes Down", which was recorded during the band's 1978 tour in Detroit.

Released in the spring of 1981, as Tattoo You was nearing its completion, Sucking in the Seventies reached #15 in the U.S., going gold, but failed to chart in the UK.

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic writes: The amazing thing is that Sucking in the Seventies captures the garish decadence and ennui of the band better than the proper albums from this period.