Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s
by 
videoheadcleaner 
- Chart updated: 10/25/2025 10:45
- (Created: 11/22/2011 14:58).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
There are 11 comments for this chart from BestEverAlbums.com members and Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s has an average rating of 88 out of 100 (from 27 votes). Please log in or register to leave a comment or assign a rating.
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[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,071
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
26,253
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
27,655
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 01/17/2012]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
649
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,202
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,028
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 11/22/2011]
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,067
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 06/29/2013]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
584
Rank in 1985:
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 | 13 | 13% | |
| 1981 | 11 | 11% | |
| 1982 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1983 | 6 | 6% | |
| 1984 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1985 | 15 | 15% | |
| 1986 | 12 | 12% | |
| 1987 | 7 | 7% | |
| 1988 | 9 | 9% | |
| 1989 | 6 | 6% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 4 | 4% | |
| Killing Joke | 4 | 4% | |
| Talk Talk | 3 | 3% | |
| Talking Heads | 3 | 3% | |
| David Bowie | 3 | 3% | |
| Peter Gabriel | 3 | 3% | |
| Harold Budd | 3 | 3% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 1 from 100th to 99th Island Life by Grace Jones |
| Up 1 from 99th to 98th Scary Monsters by David Bowie |
| Up 1 from 98th to 97th Little Creatures by Talking Heads |
| New entries |
|---|
| Ambient 2: The Plateaux Of Mirror by Harold Budd / Brian Eno |
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s similar charts
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| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | Rafion | 1980s decade chart | 2021 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | DanielU | 1980s decade chart | 2020 |  |
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| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | henriknaess | 1980s decade chart | 2023 |  |
| The 500 Greatest Albums Of The 1980s | Uncut | 1980s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Greatest albums of the 1980s | Ultimate Record Collection (Magazine) | 1980s decade chart | 2024 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s |  Secondsoul | 1980s decade chart | 2015 |  |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | Brandonjtg | 1980s decade chart | 2021 |  |
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Other decade charts by videoheadcleaner
| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2020s | videoheadcleaner | 2020s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2010s | videoheadcleaner | 2010s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 2000s | videoheadcleaner | 2000s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1990s | videoheadcleaner | 1990s decade chart | 2025 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s | videoheadcleaner | 1980s decade chart | 2025 | |
videoheadcleaner has created 4 other 1980s decade charts - click here to explore them all.
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 27 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 02/06/2022 07:52 |  Rug | 8 | 100/100 |
| ! | 12/11/2019 07:10 |  Boltzmann | 247 | 79/100 |
| ! | 12/11/2019 02:59 | MiltonAda99 | 1 | 100/100 |
| ! | 12/10/2019 09:17 |  kynes | 25 | 94/100 |
| ! | 05/08/2019 00:20 | edubs | 247 | 89/100 |
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 is rated in the top 10% of all charts on BestEverAlbums.com. This chart has a Bayesian average rating of 87.9/100, a mean average of 88.7/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 88.7/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 8.2.
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s favourites
Showing all 4 members who have added this chart as a favourite
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s comments
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From MiltonAda99 12/11/2019 03:01 | #245522
It's not my favourite decade but what a perfect list.. I should gonna check those albums. The fact that you put The Colour of Spring by Talk Talk on the number one it says everything.
Magnificent.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From vancevisuals 05/07/2019 21:14 | #235970
such a different list but at least we can agree on Peter Gabriel, The Talking Heads and David Bowie
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
ForegroundNoise 05/07/2019 08:14 | #235949
ForegroundNoise 05/07/2019 08:14 | #235949
An interesting mix of stuff from a decade I find hard to love. Would be nice to see some albums outside of the anglophone bubble (+ some notes would be great!), here's a few you might enjoy:
Hiroshi Yoshimura - Wave Notation 1: Music For Nine Postcards
Klaus Mitffoch - Klaus Mitffoch
CCCP Fedeli alla Linea - 1964-1985 ...
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
HoldenM 08/16/2015 08:27 | #147761
HoldenM 08/16/2015 08:27 | #147761
Amazing chart, especially for such a great decade.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From 
greatson 06/27/2014 09:45 | #115443
greatson 06/27/2014 09:45 | #115443
I like your chart - lot`s of good New Wave albums that marginally missed my chart.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From guigs13 01/16/2013 02:32 | #61626
Perfect decade, perfect chart!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Secondsoul 12/14/2012 12:47 | #57868
Secondsoul 12/14/2012 12:47 | #57868
This is a good list, lot's of my favourites in there!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Johnnyo 05/02/2012 11:16 | #41382
I'm not the biggest fan of The Cure but despite their prevelence @ the top your chart I have to take my hat off to you. Excellent chart.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From abcdefgiz 01/19/2012 19:13 | #35476
good
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From videoheadcleaner 12/31/2011 03:15 | #34023
videoheadcleaner 12/31/2011 03:15 | #34023
@ GARY - I have never really got into metal. Sorry...
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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