Rockissue

Though the number of singles and deep cuts listed here, relative to the number of albums, increases for a few years, 1982-1984, due to the appearance of "synth pop"/ New Romantic/ Second British Invasion acts, the album reigns supreme in Eigthies Rock/ Soul/ Country. In the overall tally, dating back to 1918, albums finally overtake the number of songs in 1987. This date seems appropriate enough, as the mainstream of American pop was by that point losing the innocent charm that it had possessed in the quintessential "Eighties" years, 1983-1985; Guns n' Roses' debut album certainly let the Hair Metal bands know that their days were numbered, and the biggest stars of those halcyon mid-Eighties days were beginning to chart courses toward either Easy Listening or pitiful dalliances with New Jack Swing and Hip Hop. In both British and American Rock, the Indie scene comes to dominate, leading to labels, radio, and promoters creating tags like Alternative and College to try to capture some of its energy and turn it into a mainstream phenomenon that the older, Baby Boom generation could embrace. Meanwhile, after its "Outlaw" Country-Rock phase, the realm of Country and Western became as staid and reactionary as what remained of mainstream Rock, setting the stage for the genre's rebirth in the Nineties—Garth Brooks and so on—as unadultered showbiz.

For the Eighties, 400 tracks are listed, 681 albums. The totals through 1989 are 1999 tracks and 2147 albums.

← 1980 →

Acclaimed Music Top Albums, Top Songs

Playlist Research Top Pop Hits, Top Albums

Tunecaster Top 100 Songs

Wikipedia 1980 in Music

one-hundred albums

ABBA - Super Trouper

A. C./ D. C. - Back in Black

Adam and the Ants - Kings of the Wild Frontier

Bauhaus - In the Flat Field

The Beat - I Just Can't Stop It

Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band - Doc at the Radar Station

The B-52's - Wild Planet

Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell

Blondie - Autoamerican

David Bowie - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps)

The Brothers Johnson - Light Up the Night

The Buggles - The Age of Plastic

Kate Bush - Never for Ever

Eugene Chadbourne - There'll Be No Tears Tonight

Change - The Glow of Love

The Circle Jerks - Group Sex

Circle X - Prehistory

The Clash - Sandinista!

Cold Chisel - East

Elvis Costello and the Attractions - Get Happy!!

The Cramps - Songs the Lord Taught Us

The Cure - Seventeen Seconds

The Dead Kennedys - Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables

Devo - Freedom of Choice

Dexys Midnight Runners - Searching for the Young Soul Rebels

Diamond Head - Diamond Head [Lightning to the Nations]

Echo and the Bunnymen - Crocodiles

The Fall - Grotesque (After the Gramme)

Family Fodder - Monkey Banana Kitchen

The Feelies - Crazy Rhythms

The Flying Lizards

Fred Frith - Gravity

Peter Gabriel[ 3]

The Gap Band III

Girlschool - Demolition

Half Japanese - 1/2 Gentlemen/ Not Beasts

Daryl Hall - Sacred Songs

Daryl Hall/ John Oates - Voices

Butch Hancock - The Diamond Hill

Human Sexual Response - Fig. 14

Iron Maiden

The Jacksons - Triumph

The Jam - Sound Affects

Japan - Gentlemen Take Polaroids

Grace Jones - Warm Leatherette

Joy Division - Closer

Judas Priest - British Steel

Killing Joke

The Laughing Clowns

Loverboy

Lydia Lunch - Queen of Siam

Teena Marie - Irons in the Fire

Paul McCartney - McCartney II

Motörhead - Ace of Spades

M. X.-80 Sound - Out of the Tunnel

N. R. B. Q. - Tiddlywinks

Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Organisation

Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz

Robert Palmer - Clues

The Passage - Pindrop

Polyrock

The Pretenders

Prince - Dirty Mind

Pylon - Gyrate

Queen - The Game

R. E. O. Speedwagon - Hi Infidelity

The Residents - Commercial Album

Rockpile - Seconds of Pleasure

Diana Ross - Diana

Rush - Permanent Waves

Ryuichi Sakamoto - B-2 Unit

Saxon - Wheels of Steel

Saxon - Strong Arm of the Law

The Selecter - Too Much Pressure

Phil Seymour

Silicon Teens - Music for Parties

Slave - Stone Jam

The Soft Boys - Underwater Moonlight

The Sound - Jeopardy

The Specials - More Specials

Splint Enz - True Colours

Bruce Springsteen - The River

Squeeze - Argybargy

Steely Dan - Gaucho

The Suburbs - In Combo

Suicide - Alan Vega/ Martin Rev

Yukihiro Takahashi - Murdered by the Music

Talking Heads - Remain in Light

The Teardrop Expldoes - Kilimanjaro

Pete Townshend - Empty Glass

Tuxedomoon - Half-Mute

U. B. 40 - Signing Off

U2 - Boy

Van Halen - Women and Children First

The Vapors - New Clear Days

Stevie Wonder - Hotter than July

X - Los Angeles

XTC - Black Sea

Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth

Zapp

forty-seven singles and deep cuts

Air Supply - 'All out of Love', Lost in Love

The Angry Samoans - Inside My Brain [E. P.]

Pat Benatar - 'Hit Me with Your Best Shot', Crimes of Passion

Black Flag - Jealous Again [E. P.]

Blondie - 'Call Me', [Various artists] American Gigolo: Original Soundtrack Recording

Irene Cara - 'Fame', [Various artists] Fame: Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture

Joe “King” Carrasco and the Crowns - 'Party Weekend', Party Weekend [new version, 1983]

The Jim Carroll Band - 'People Who Died', Catholic Boy

Neil Diamond - 'Love on the Rocks', The Jazz Singer: Original Songs from the Motion Picture

Neil Diamond - 'America', The Jazz Singer: Original Songs from the Motion Picture

Dire Straits - 'Romeo and Juliet', Making Movies

Dire Straits - 'Tunnel of Love', Making Movies

Sheena Easton - '9 to 5' ['Morning Train (9 to 5)'], Take My Time [1981]

The Fall - 'How I Wrote 'Elastic Man'

The Fall - 'Totally Wired'

Mickey Gilley - 'Stand by Me', [Various artists] Urban Cowboy: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

The Jam - 'Going Underground'

Billy Joel - 'It's Still Rock and Roll to Me', Glass Houses

George Jones - 'He Stopped Loving Her Today', I Am What I Am

Journey - 'Any Way You Want It', Departure

Joy Division - 'Atmosphere'

Joy Division - 'Dead Souls'

Joy Division - 'Love Will Tear Us Apart'

Kano - 'I'm Ready', Kano

Kool and the Gang - 'Celebration!', Celebrate!

Lakeside - 'Fantastic Voyage', Fantastic Voyage

John Lennon - 'Just Like (Starting Over)', [John Lennon/ Yoko Ono] Double Fantasy

Loose Joints - 'Is It All Over My Face'

Martha and the Muffins - 'Echo Beach', Metro Music

Ronnie Milsap - 'Smoky Mountain Rain', Greatest Hits

Willie Nelson - 'On the Road Again', [Willie Nelson and Family] Honeysuckle Rose: Music from the Original Soundtrack

Odyssey - 'Use It Up and Wear It Out', Hang Together

Dolly Parton - '9 to 5', 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs

The Pointer Sisters - 'He's So Shy', Special Things

The Police - 'Don't Stand So Close to Me', Zenyattà Mondatta

Kenny Rogers - 'Lady', Kenny Rogers' Greatest Hits

The Rolling Stones - 'Dance (Pt. 1)', Emotional Rescue

The Rolling Stones - 'She's So Cold', Emotional Rescue

Roxy Music - 'Oh Yeah', Flesh and Blood

Roxy Music - 'Over You', Flesh and Blood

The S. O. S. Band - 'Take Your Time (Do It Right)', S.O.S.

This Heat - Health and Efficiency [E. P.]

Visage - 'Fade to Grey', Visage

Tom Waits - 'Jersey Girl', Heartattack and Vine

Tom Waits - 'On the Nickel', Heartattack and Vine

Was (Not Was) - 'Wheel Me Out'

Tatsuro Yamashita - 'Ride on Time', Ride on Time

two archival and compilation albums

The Action - The Ultimate! Action

The Cure - Boys Don't Cry