Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s by 
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 06/19/2025 14:15
- (Created: 12/04/2011 20:38).
- Chart size: 100 albums.
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This chart is currently filtered to only show albums from Dire Straits. (Remove this filter)
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1985 – WARNER BROTHERS
Produced By NEIL DORFSMAN & MARK KNOPFLER
1. So Far Away
2. Money For Nothing
3. Walk Of Life
4. Your Latest Trick
5. Why Worry
6. Ride Across The River
7. The Man’s Too Strong
8. One World
9. Brothers In Arms
The greatest commercial achievement for Dire Straits also turned out to be the beginning of the end of the band. The last five years had been a struggle for Mark Knopfler and company following the excellent Making Movies. Love Over Gold had the exceptional 14 minute track “Telegraph Road”, but not much else. This had been followed by a somewhat lame extended play and a disappointing live album (Alchemy). So, when Brothers In Arms exploded in 1985, it was actually something of a surprise. That they became the poster band for MTV was even more surprising. “Money For Nothing”, with its cheesy slick animated video and backup vocals by Sting, became ridiculously enormous. The better tracks fared not as well, but don’t disappoint. “So Far Away” is a fine song, but points the way to more mellowness to come. “The Man’s Too Strong” and “Your Latest Trick” are better representative of what Dire Straits was now about…this was fast turning into one of the mellowest bands in the world…had they continued on, they may have gotten even softer.
The two tracks that people identify most with the album are actually the two that don’t fit in. “Money For Nothing” is that huge guitar riff over some badly recorded snare shots and “I want my MTV”. The other is “Walk Of Life”, which (thankfully) sounds nothing like anything the band ever recorded. The rest is Knopfler maturing, and even though the sound is sometimes so quiet you can barely hear it, it’s pretty strong work. The tracks are long…five of the nine are over six minutes long. It’s the stuff that didn’t get hammered into the radio over and over that will stick with you. The hits are disposable and dated, and the album would be better without them. But songs like the title track, “Why Worry”, and “Ride Across The River”, while sounding like whispers compared to earlier Dire Straits tracks, have a definite beauty about them. The band made only one more album, six years after this, and then they were gone. But there’s enough to make you smile here. You just won’t spend much time rocking out to it. [First added to this chart: 12/07/2011]
Produced By NEIL DORFSMAN & MARK KNOPFLER
1. So Far Away
2. Money For Nothing
3. Walk Of Life
4. Your Latest Trick
5. Why Worry
6. Ride Across The River
7. The Man’s Too Strong
8. One World
9. Brothers In Arms
The greatest commercial achievement for Dire Straits also turned out to be the beginning of the end of the band. The last five years had been a struggle for Mark Knopfler and company following the excellent Making Movies. Love Over Gold had the exceptional 14 minute track “Telegraph Road”, but not much else. This had been followed by a somewhat lame extended play and a disappointing live album (Alchemy). So, when Brothers In Arms exploded in 1985, it was actually something of a surprise. That they became the poster band for MTV was even more surprising. “Money For Nothing”, with its cheesy slick animated video and backup vocals by Sting, became ridiculously enormous. The better tracks fared not as well, but don’t disappoint. “So Far Away” is a fine song, but points the way to more mellowness to come. “The Man’s Too Strong” and “Your Latest Trick” are better representative of what Dire Straits was now about…this was fast turning into one of the mellowest bands in the world…had they continued on, they may have gotten even softer.
The two tracks that people identify most with the album are actually the two that don’t fit in. “Money For Nothing” is that huge guitar riff over some badly recorded snare shots and “I want my MTV”. The other is “Walk Of Life”, which (thankfully) sounds nothing like anything the band ever recorded. The rest is Knopfler maturing, and even though the sound is sometimes so quiet you can barely hear it, it’s pretty strong work. The tracks are long…five of the nine are over six minutes long. It’s the stuff that didn’t get hammered into the radio over and over that will stick with you. The hits are disposable and dated, and the album would be better without them. But songs like the title track, “Why Worry”, and “Ride Across The River”, while sounding like whispers compared to earlier Dire Straits tracks, have a definite beauty about them. The band made only one more album, six years after this, and then they were gone. But there’s enough to make you smile here. You just won’t spend much time rocking out to it. [First added to this chart: 12/07/2011]
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,308
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
86
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- #Sponsored
1980-WARNER BROSTHERS
Produced By JIMMY IOVINE & MARK KNOPFLER
1. Tunnel Of Love
2. Romeo And Juliet
3. Skateaway
4. Expresso Love
5. Hand in Hand
6. Solid Rock
7. Les Boys
I seem to be running into a lot of “topheavy” albums lately…Bringing Down The Horse, Excitable Boy…albums that seem to be front loaded with the best songs, only to weaken as it goes. Making Movies, the third album from Dire Straits, is most definitely one of those. Depending on which side you listen to first, it’s either one of the finest albums ever made, or it’s a sort of a clunker for the band. But what can’t be denied is that “Tunnel Of Love”, “Romeo And Juliet”, and “Skateaway” makes for one of the greatest three track sequences in rock history. With David Knopfler now out of the band, they work as a trio, and it’s as tight as can be. These three songs are beautiful, expansive, and extremely well written.
After that, there’s a serious drop off. The remaining four tracks aren’t bad, they just can’t compare to the first three. Knopfler’s expert playing carries everything, but it is a let down. Still, Making Movies is worth having for just the first half alone. 3 songs, 20 minutes of pure Dire Straits heaven. And then 4 tracks of filler. [First added to this chart: 11/21/2012]
Produced By JIMMY IOVINE & MARK KNOPFLER
1. Tunnel Of Love
2. Romeo And Juliet
3. Skateaway
4. Expresso Love
5. Hand in Hand
6. Solid Rock
7. Les Boys
I seem to be running into a lot of “topheavy” albums lately…Bringing Down The Horse, Excitable Boy…albums that seem to be front loaded with the best songs, only to weaken as it goes. Making Movies, the third album from Dire Straits, is most definitely one of those. Depending on which side you listen to first, it’s either one of the finest albums ever made, or it’s a sort of a clunker for the band. But what can’t be denied is that “Tunnel Of Love”, “Romeo And Juliet”, and “Skateaway” makes for one of the greatest three track sequences in rock history. With David Knopfler now out of the band, they work as a trio, and it’s as tight as can be. These three songs are beautiful, expansive, and extremely well written.
After that, there’s a serious drop off. The remaining four tracks aren’t bad, they just can’t compare to the first three. Knopfler’s expert playing carries everything, but it is a let down. Still, Making Movies is worth having for just the first half alone. 3 songs, 20 minutes of pure Dire Straits heaven. And then 4 tracks of filler. [First added to this chart: 11/21/2012]
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,888
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 2. Page 1 of 1
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
|
| 1980 | 14 | 14% | |
| 1981 | 7 | 7% | |
| 1982 | 11 | 11% | |
| 1983 | 7 | 7% | |
| 1984 | 8 | 8% | |
| 1985 | 5 | 5% | |
| 1986 | 10 | 10% | |
| 1987 | 11 | 11% | |
| 1988 | 13 | 13% | |
| 1989 | 14 | 14% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
 |
|
|
| U2 | 3 | 3% | |
| R.E.M. | 3 | 3% | |
| Bruce Springsteen | 3 | 3% | |
| X (US) | 3 | 3% | |
| Journey | 2 | 2% | |
| The Jesus And Mary Chain | 2 | 2% | |
| Hüsker Dü | 2 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s chart changes
| Biggest climbers |
|---|
| Up 9 from 75th to 66th Mirage by Fleetwood Mac |
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 66th to 67th Building The Perfect Beast by Don Henley |
| Down 1 from 67th to 68th The Nightfly by Donald Fagen |
| Down 1 from 68th to 69th Dr. Feelgood by Mötley Crüe |
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s ratings
84/100 (from 29 votes)
where:
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 29 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
 80/100  | 02/06/2025 15:30 | BorderFreeAndrew | | 80/100 |
| 85/100 | 01/31/2025 14:12 | SomethingSpecial | | 85/100 |
| 70/100 | 01/23/2022 16:11 |  IlMala | | 95/100 |
| 80/100 | 10/22/2020 01:13 | leniad | | 85/100 |
| 85/100 | 09/05/2020 14:13 | MasterOfPuppets | | 91/100 |
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 83.9/100, a mean average of 81.4/100, and a trimmed mean (excluding outliers) of 83.2/100. The standard deviation for this chart is 13.4.
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Top 100 Music Albums of the 1980s comments
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80/100
From BorderFreeAndrew 02/06/2025 15:33
Nice to see Adam Ant's "Friend or Foe" so high (a seriously underrated album), along with several other forgotten classics that tend to be ignored when most people make an 80's chart.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
80/100
From leniad 10/22/2020 01:13
Respect
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70/100
From 0129114 06/24/2020 03:52
some solid picks m8.
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80/100
From 
Liedzeit 11/24/2018 10:49
Liedzeit 11/24/2018 10:49
It is nice to see an 80s chart as chart of the day for a change. And what a pathetic decade it was if even someone like you who obviously knows a lot of stuff cannot come up with better records than these. TW are okay but as no. 1? The first decent LP enters at place 23, in my opinion.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
90/100
From 
ForegroundNoise 11/24/2018 09:24
ForegroundNoise 11/24/2018 09:24
Really like your notes!!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
100/100
From 
buzzdainer 07/16/2016 15:13
buzzdainer 07/16/2016 15:13
I love your take on the eighties! I really appreciate your #1 pick, as supergroups tend to be written off as inferior to the works of their individual members--an assumption that the Traveling Wilburys blew out of the water. Full Moon Fever, Disintegration, Doolittle, and The River are all great albums, too. Also really nice to see Blue Earth in your top ten, as I've been a huge fan of the Jayhawks for many years and love that album. Excellent work overall, especially on your notes!
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85/100
From BraddlesHendo 12/01/2014 14:31
Great albums I guess some I wouldn't play so much. We have quite a few similar choices
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
75/100
From 
tgarritsen 01/13/2014 15:59
tgarritsen 01/13/2014 15:59
Interesting number one pick.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
85/100
From guigs13 01/10/2013 01:33
Nice chart!
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From davidhuret 12/11/2012 09:04
Good choice at #1.
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