Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s by Tamthebam

Not my most favourite decade but once I started compiling this chart I began to realise that it wasn't that bad! I went through some bad times during this time so that may have influenced my choices, I loved Linda Ronstadt's album "What's New" and this made me investigate the original torch singers who first sang the songs on this great albun of covers. RnB/Soul music was what I was listening to most at this time. I enjoy all types of music except heavy metal. I did not include any compilation albums that are already included in my year charts.

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Buy album United States
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Rickie Lee Jones 3rd studio album is one of her best. Gravity, It Must Be Love and Runaround are all brilliant songs , the final tracks are a mini suite - Rorschachs/Theme For The Pope - The Unsigned Painting/The Weird Beast and is a haunting end to the album. [First added to this chart: 10/24/2013]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
159
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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[First added to this chart: 10/24/2013]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
23
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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[First added to this chart: 10/21/2014]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
228
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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[First added to this chart: 10/24/2013]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,249
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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[First added to this chart: 10/24/2013]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
16,302
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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[First added to this chart: 10/21/2014]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
142
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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[First added to this chart: 10/23/2014]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
8,192
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 10/24/2013]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,609
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 8. Page 1 of 1

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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s composition

Year Albums %


1980 13 13%
1981 10 10%
1982 10 10%
1983 8 8%
1984 8 8%
1985 8 8%
1986 9 9%
1987 14 14%
1988 9 9%
1989 11 11%
Artist Albums %


The Smiths 6 6%
Linda Ronstadt 5 5%
Kate Bush 4 4%
Prince 4 4%
Eurythmics 4 4%
Prince And The Revolution 3 3%
The Cure 3 3%
Show all
Country Albums %


United States 55 55%
United Kingdom 40 40%
Mixed Nationality 3 3%
Ireland 2 2%
Compilation? Albums %
No 99 99%
Yes 1 1%
Live? Albums %
No 99 99%
Yes 1 1%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 98 98%
Yes 2 2%

Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s chart changes

Biggest climbers
Climber Up 1 from 47th to 46th
Walk Under Ladders
by Joan Armatrading
Climber Up 1 from 46th to 45th
The Sensual World
by Kate Bush
Climber Up 1 from 45th to 44th
Juju
by Siouxsie And The Banshees
Biggest fallers
Faller Down 7 from 40th to 47th
Red Hot Rhythm And Blues
by Diana Ross
TitleSourceTypePublishedCountry
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980smnorris751980s decade chart2013Unknown
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s Julelios1980s decade chart2019
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980sMARTINBORS1980s decade chart2022
Best Albums of the 1980sSlant Magazine1980s decade chart2012United States
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980sseanie5421980s decade chart2016
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s JR1980s decade chart2024
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980smjbreuer1980s decade chart2016
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980slanadeleswift1980s decade chart2025
Top 94 Music Albums of the 1980s planetneutral1980s decade chart2021Unknown
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980smostlymor1980s decade chart2025

Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s similarity to your chart(s)


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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s ratings

Average Rating: 
89/100 (from 19 votes)
  Ratings distributionRatings distribution Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AV
where:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
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Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 19 ratings for this chart.

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03/14/2025 12:19 SomethingSpecial  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,09585/100
  
80/100
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05/24/2024 15:04 BorderFreeAndrew  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 8580/100
  
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06/28/2021 21:09 Larcx13  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 1,14186/100
  
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12/19/2020 19:18 jnfbn  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 31096/100
  
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12/11/2020 02:44 Lgk21  Ratings distributionRatings distribution 14195/100

Rating metrics: Outliers can be removed when calculating a mean average to dampen the effects of ratings outside the normal distribution. This figure is provided as the trimmed mean. A high standard deviation can be legitimate, but can sometimes indicate 'gaming' is occurring. Consider a simplified example* of an item receiving ratings of 100, 50, & 0. The mean average rating would be 50. However, ratings of 55, 50 & 45 could also result in the same average. The second average might be more trusted because there is more consensus around a particular rating (a lower deviation).
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This chart is rated in the top 4% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 89.1/100, a mean average of 90.8/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 90.8/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 10.5.

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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s comments

Showing latest 10 comments | Show all 13 comments |
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Rating:  
80/100
From 05/24/2024 15:06
Kudos for
a) being brave enough to include a lot of albums that weren't critics' favorites
b) including a lot of RnB/soul albums from the era that tend to forgotten
c) having a unique choice for #1.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 12/19/2020 19:22
Great chart! Don't agree with general dislike of the 80s, i think it's as good as the 90s, and this chart greatly shows one of the reasons why!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 12/11/2020 02:44
Love seeing Pirates at number 1. Such an unbelievable album.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
95/100
From 12/10/2020 17:42
super cool 80s-aficionado list. Rapture is a very cool album
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 12/10/2020 09:42
I have total respect for your very different taste in '80s music to mine, yet we still manage to share 19 albums in common atm - admittedly all from only 8 artists :)
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
90/100
From 06/12/2020 16:40
Very interesting chart. It exposes how few women and black artists I have on my 80s chart by comparison. I think I will start exploring with your Joan Armatrading album from 1980. I only know her from her hits in the 70s. Thanks.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 04/22/2020 01:01
i love your chart: original ( i have never seen rickie lee rated so high),
honest (my observations indicate people listen to a top 20 album and it instantly is on their list),
unique ( leans towards female singers- nothing wrong with that. most lists are male oriented),
surprising ( i also love "rattle and hum" and think it is very unrated. nice to see you enjoy it).
definitely worth writing about- dynamite top 3 picks.
#1 rickie lee #2 linda ronstadt #3 anita baker ( who would have known?).
im not a prince fan like you are- im really shocked to see prince and the revolution in the 90s!
different from what i normally listen to, yet we have some similarities- graceland, rattle and hum, tunnel of love ( this is such an amazing album),REM, john lennon (incredible album). not a lot but some!!
one more thing: i wish you would have written a comment for every album. it gives the album a nice personal touch.
Because of this, im going to give Diana Ross, rickie lee and ronstadt a spin.
thankyou for sharing the list with us.
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 02/27/2020 13:45
Also, thanks for introducing me to Rickie Lee Jones through your charts. Very good!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
100/100
From 02/27/2020 13:33
I don't really like 80's much but this chart is sweet. Just needs some Genesis albums :)
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
Rating:  
75/100
From 02/04/2017 22:32
Shouting Stage and Living My Life. Nice move!!!
Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)

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Best Albums of the 1960s
1. Abbey Road by The Beatles
2. Revolver by The Beatles
3. Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band by The Beatles
4. The Velvet Underground & Nico by The Velvet Underground & Nico
5. Pet Sounds by The Beach Boys
6. The Beatles (The White Album) by The Beatles
7. In The Court Of The Crimson King (An Observation By King Crimson) by King Crimson
8. Highway 61 Revisited by Bob Dylan
9. Rubber Soul by The Beatles
10. The Doors by The Doors
11. Blonde On Blonde by Bob Dylan
12. Are You Experienced by The Jimi Hendrix Experience
13. Led Zeppelin II by Led Zeppelin
14. Electric Ladyland by The Jimi Hendrix Experience
15. Let It Bleed by The Rolling Stones
16. Led Zeppelin by Led Zeppelin
17. Astral Weeks by Van Morrison
18. A Love Supreme by John Coltrane
19. Forever Changes by Love
20. Magical Mystery Tour by The Beatles
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