Best Albums of 1981

Listed below are the best albums of 1981 as calculated from their overall rankings in over 52,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade
Decade:
Year:
1981 year summaryThe best artists of 1981 were Rush, Kraftwerk, King Crimson, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Brian Eno & David Byrne, Electric Light Orchestra, The Cure, The Human League, Black Flag and This Heat.
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Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
22
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
22
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
22
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
21
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 47 of 100

Best Albums of 1981 composition

Country Albums %


United States 303 30%
United Kingdom 284 28%
Germany 58 6%
Mixed Nationality 41 4%
Australia 36 4%
France 29 3%
Japan 27 3%
Show all
Compilation? Albums %
No 938 94%
Yes 62 6%
Live? Albums %
No 970 97%
Yes 30 3%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 990 99%
Yes 10 1%
Recognised  Decade Charts (2020s)
1. 100 Best Albums of the 2010s: Staff Picks by Billboard (2019)
2. The A.V. Club's 50 best albums of the 2010s by The A.V. Club (2019)
3. Top 50 Albums of the 2010s by The Wild Honey Pie (2019)
4. NME's Greatest Albums of The Decade: The 2010s by New Music Express (2019)
5. Gorilla vs. Bear Albums of the 2010s by Gorilla vs. Bear (2019)
6. The 50 best albums of the decade – 2010 to 2019 by Independent (2019)
7. BrooklynVegan's Top Albums of 2010s by BrooklynVegan (2020)
8. The 200 Best Albums of the 2010s by Pitchfork (2019)
9. All The Best Albums Of The 2010s, Ranked by Uproxx (2019)
10. 100 Best Albums of the 2010s by Rolling Stone (2019)
11. Top 100 Albums of the Decade by Crack Magazine (2019)
12. The Needle Drop's Top Albums Of The 2010s by The Needle Drop (2019)
13. The 101 Best Albums of the 2010s by Spin (2020)
14. The 50 Best Albums of the Decade by Deep Cuts (2019)
15. The 100 Best Albums Of The 2010s by Stereogum (2019)
16. Top 100 Albums of the 2010s by Consequence of Sound (2019)
17. The 100 Best Albums of the 2010s by Paste (2019)
18. Tiny Mix Tapes 2010s: Favorite 100 Music Releases of the Decade by Tiny Mix Tapes (2019)
19. BEST OF 2011 - 2020: Die besten Alben des Jahrzehnts by laut (2020)
20. Die besten Platten 2010-2019 by Spex (2019)
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