Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s
by 
CharlieBarley 
My 80s chart has an unashamed large quota of 80s pop in it. The 80s were a brilliant decade for both pop and indie. They were also the decade of my childhood so 80s pop is going to figure quite highly in any 80s chart of mine due to nostalgia. Still I hope there is enough indie and r'n'b music in there too to make it a balanced chart.
- Chart updated: 04/15/2022 17:45
- (Created: 11/13/2016 08:23).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 2 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s has an average rating of 86 out of 100 (from 10 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
18,254
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,059
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
22,297
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 01/09/2018]
Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,729
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
18,048
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 09/28/2021]
Year of Release:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
564
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,499
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 12/01/2020]
Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,331
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,276
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
[First added to this chart: 11/13/2016]
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
784
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 100. Page 1 of 10
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1981 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1982 | 7 | 7% | |
| 1983 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1984 | 10 | 10% | |
| 1985 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1986 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1987 | 14 | 14% | |
| 1988 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1989 | 12 | 12% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 8 | 8% | |
| The Smiths | 4 | 4% | |
| R.E.M. | 3 | 3% | |
| U2 | 3 | 3% | |
| Depeche Mode | 3 | 3% | |
| Bruce Springsteen | 3 | 3% | |
| They Might Be Giants | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| |
56 | 56% | |
 |
29 | 29% | |
 |
5 | 5% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
 |
2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 6 from 12th to 6thLive "Under A Blood Red Sky" by U2 |
| Up 5 from 13th to 8thThe Lion And The Cobra by Sinéad O'Connor |
| Up 5 from 10th to 5thHounds Of Love by Kate Bush |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 3 from 6th to 9thLegend: The Best Of Bob Marley And The Wailers by Bob Marley & The Wailers |
| Down 3 from 7th to 10thThe Visitors by ABBA |
| Down 3 from 8th to 11thBorn In The U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s similar charts
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | Ashmark | 1980s decade chart | 2018 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | Juneof44 | 1980s decade chart | 2016 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s |  Pastiche | 1980s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | tim0505 | 1980s decade chart | 2026 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | PeterSmith | 1980s decade chart | 2022 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | Foxforce5 | 1980s decade chart | 2026 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s |  JR | 1980s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s |  SomethingSpecial | 1980s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | mjbreuer | 1980s decade chart | 2016 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | Madrocker | 1980s decade chart | 2019 | |
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Other decade charts by CharlieBarley
CharlieBarley has shared 6 more decade charts with the community. Browse them all here.| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 38 Music Albums of the 2020s | CharlieBarley | 2020s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2010s | CharlieBarley | 2010s decade chart | 2023 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2000s | CharlieBarley | 2000s decade chart | 2023 | |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
av = trimmed mean average rating an item has currently received.
n = number of ratings an item has currently received.
m = minimum number of ratings required for an item to appear in a 'top-rated' chart (currently 10).
AV = the site mean average rating.
Showing latest 5 ratings for this chart. | Show all 10 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 06/17/2023 14:32 |  Tamthebam | 651 | 85/100 | |
| 09/08/2022 10:52 |  Larcx13 | 1,139 | 86/100 | |
| 11/14/2021 22:22 |  Rhyner | 1,452 | 99/100 | |
| 11/03/2020 23:07 | leniad | 669 | 85/100 | |
| 06/04/2020 05:34 | matterhornrider | 99 | 93/100 |
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).
(*In practice, some charts can have several thousand ratings)
This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 86.4/100, a mean average of 87.0/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 87.0/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 8.7.
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s favourites
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s comments
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From CharlieBarley 11/03/2020 23:41 | #260157
CharlieBarley 11/03/2020 23:41 | #260157
I like greatest hits records
Some of them have as much character as a studio album.
Plus even Rolling Stone magazine included comps in its top 500, notably The Great Twenty Eight by Chuck Berry (which has been hotly debated over before in the forums).
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From leniad 11/03/2020 23:08 | #260152
just 30 albums in common
why enter greatist hits records for this list friend?
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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| Best Ever Artists | |
|---|---|
| 1. The Beatles | |
| 2. Radiohead | |
| 3. Pink Floyd | |
| 4. David Bowie | |
| 5. Bob Dylan | |
| 6. Led Zeppelin | |
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| 14. The Smiths | |
| 15. R.E.M. | |
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| 19. The Cure | |
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