Top 50 Music Albums of 1986
by 
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 12/30/2025 00:45
- (Created: 04/12/2012 02:48).
- Chart size: 50 albums.
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[First added to this chart: 04/12/2012]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10,697
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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1986 – SIRE
Produced By MORRISSEY & JOHNNY MARR
1. The Queen Is Dead
2. Frankly, Mr. Shankly
3. I Know It’s Over
4. Never Had No One Ever
5. Cemetry Gates
6. Bigmouth Strikes Again
7. The Boy With The Thorn In His Side
8. Vicar In A Tutu
9. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
10. Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others
The Smiths were probably the greatest band of the eighties, and The Queen Is Dead was their finest album. Led by the strange, unusual and pompous singer Morrissey and the excellent guitar work of Johnny Marr, the band hit their creative peak on their third album, before things got weird and they started hating each other. Morrissey’s flair for the dramatic, Marr’s hugely underrated guitar work, and the band’s ease with utilizing strings and winds make their best batch of songs exceptional. And there is some really great stuff here. “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side”, “Frankly Mr. Shankly”, “Cemetry Gates” and “Bigmouth Strikes Again” may not have been hits here in the US, but that’s more a testament to how misguided the American music tastes were at the time than anything negative about the quality of The Queen Is Dead. In short, a lot of us were missing out. Big time.
Remember…this was 1986. Pretty much everything, especially from England, was buried in plastic beats and synthesizers. The Smiths were different. They were a very guitar based band, and their songwriting was light years ahead of their contemporaries. On The Queen Is Dead, everything about this band was working on all cylinders. Hard to believe that they would be gone for good just a year later, but they were. The rooms got too small for Morrissey and Marr to be in together. They haven’t made any music together since 1987, but the magic of The Queen Is Dead lives on. There is not a weak track on this, not a wasted note, not a bad lyric, or a piece of it that you’d want done differently. This is the shining moment of a great band that was only here for a short time. The Smiths were the class of a decade, and their legacy lives with this extraordinary album. Must have! [First added to this chart: 08/07/2012]
Produced By MORRISSEY & JOHNNY MARR
1. The Queen Is Dead
2. Frankly, Mr. Shankly
3. I Know It’s Over
4. Never Had No One Ever
5. Cemetry Gates
6. Bigmouth Strikes Again
7. The Boy With The Thorn In His Side
8. Vicar In A Tutu
9. There Is A Light That Never Goes Out
10. Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others
The Smiths were probably the greatest band of the eighties, and The Queen Is Dead was their finest album. Led by the strange, unusual and pompous singer Morrissey and the excellent guitar work of Johnny Marr, the band hit their creative peak on their third album, before things got weird and they started hating each other. Morrissey’s flair for the dramatic, Marr’s hugely underrated guitar work, and the band’s ease with utilizing strings and winds make their best batch of songs exceptional. And there is some really great stuff here. “The Boy With The Thorn In His Side”, “Frankly Mr. Shankly”, “Cemetry Gates” and “Bigmouth Strikes Again” may not have been hits here in the US, but that’s more a testament to how misguided the American music tastes were at the time than anything negative about the quality of The Queen Is Dead. In short, a lot of us were missing out. Big time.
Remember…this was 1986. Pretty much everything, especially from England, was buried in plastic beats and synthesizers. The Smiths were different. They were a very guitar based band, and their songwriting was light years ahead of their contemporaries. On The Queen Is Dead, everything about this band was working on all cylinders. Hard to believe that they would be gone for good just a year later, but they were. The rooms got too small for Morrissey and Marr to be in together. They haven’t made any music together since 1987, but the magic of The Queen Is Dead lives on. There is not a weak track on this, not a wasted note, not a bad lyric, or a piece of it that you’d want done differently. This is the shining moment of a great band that was only here for a short time. The Smiths were the class of a decade, and their legacy lives with this extraordinary album. Must have! [First added to this chart: 08/07/2012]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
33,662
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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1986-GEFFEN
Produced By DANIEL LANOIS & PETER GABRIEL
1. Red Rain
2. Sledgehammer
3. Don't Give Up
4. That Voice Again
5. In Your Eyes
6. Mercy Street
7. Big Time
8. We Do What We're Told (Milgram's 37)
9. This is The Picture (Excellent Birds)
After leaving Genesis, Peter Gabriel released four solo albums called Peter Gabriel. Not big on album titles, he called his 5th album So (to be followed by Us and Up). So is where Gabriel finally got everything right. Mixing his maturing songwriting with world beats and his strong political sense, he found his way to three memorable hits ("Sledgehammer", "Big Time", and the beautiful "In Your Eyes"). And the rest isn't bad, either. "Red Rain" is powerful. "Mercy Street" and "We Do What We're Told" are in no way filler. And lastly, he fills it out with not one but two excellent duets: with Kate Bush on "Don't Give Up" and Laurie Anderson on "This Is The Picture".
So is the high mark of Gabriel's career. Since, he has released only two albums of new songs (plus one album of covers and one that is orchestral reworkings of previously released songs). But he was on the mark here. Too bad the songs dried up so quickly. [First added to this chart: 04/14/2012]
Produced By DANIEL LANOIS & PETER GABRIEL
1. Red Rain
2. Sledgehammer
3. Don't Give Up
4. That Voice Again
5. In Your Eyes
6. Mercy Street
7. Big Time
8. We Do What We're Told (Milgram's 37)
9. This is The Picture (Excellent Birds)
After leaving Genesis, Peter Gabriel released four solo albums called Peter Gabriel. Not big on album titles, he called his 5th album So (to be followed by Us and Up). So is where Gabriel finally got everything right. Mixing his maturing songwriting with world beats and his strong political sense, he found his way to three memorable hits ("Sledgehammer", "Big Time", and the beautiful "In Your Eyes"). And the rest isn't bad, either. "Red Rain" is powerful. "Mercy Street" and "We Do What We're Told" are in no way filler. And lastly, he fills it out with not one but two excellent duets: with Kate Bush on "Don't Give Up" and Laurie Anderson on "This Is The Picture".
So is the high mark of Gabriel's career. Since, he has released only two albums of new songs (plus one album of covers and one that is orchestral reworkings of previously released songs). But he was on the mark here. Too bad the songs dried up so quickly. [First added to this chart: 04/14/2012]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
7,120
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
1986-MCA
Produced By EMORY GORDY JR & TONY BROWN
1. Guitar Town
2. Goodbye's All We've Got Left
3. Hillbilly Highway
4. Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' Tough)
5. My Old Friend The Blues
6. Someday
7. Think It Over
8. Fearless Heart
9. Little Rock 'N' Roller
10. Down The Road
From the opening track of his debut album on, it was clear that Steve Earle was not going to be your typical country artist. And he's been proving that ever since. Earle has more twang than the most Southern of rock bands, and enough rock and roll to make his contemporaries in the country community cringe. Earle's songs are about real life, and his songs cut deep.
"My Old Friend The Blues" "Think It Over", "Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' tough)" and the title track are what made, and have always made him since, simply great. Guitar Town is a fine debut album, and a good starting point for a career that only got better and better. [First added to this chart: 04/11/2012]
Produced By EMORY GORDY JR & TONY BROWN
1. Guitar Town
2. Goodbye's All We've Got Left
3. Hillbilly Highway
4. Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' Tough)
5. My Old Friend The Blues
6. Someday
7. Think It Over
8. Fearless Heart
9. Little Rock 'N' Roller
10. Down The Road
From the opening track of his debut album on, it was clear that Steve Earle was not going to be your typical country artist. And he's been proving that ever since. Earle has more twang than the most Southern of rock bands, and enough rock and roll to make his contemporaries in the country community cringe. Earle's songs are about real life, and his songs cut deep.
"My Old Friend The Blues" "Think It Over", "Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' tough)" and the title track are what made, and have always made him since, simply great. Guitar Town is a fine debut album, and a good starting point for a career that only got better and better. [First added to this chart: 04/11/2012]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
467
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
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Produced by Daniel Van Patten. This underrated punk band has been around since 1979, yet they've made exactly 3 studio albums. This Is The Voice, from 1986, is a great mix of surf and punk, and is one of rock's lost classics. Should be huge, but it's not. Too melodic for punk, too heavy for surf, the Agents found their audience in skateboarders. This is their best work, pulling from a variety of influences and sounding better and more cohesive with each listen. Long live Agent Orange!
[First added to this chart: 04/11/2012]
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[First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
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1986-GEFFEN
Produced By TODD RUNDGREN
1. Summer's Cauldron
2. Grass
3. The Meeting Place
4. That's Really Super, Supergirl
5. Ballet For A Rainy Day
6. 1000 Umbrellas
7. Season Cycle
8. Earn Enough For Us
9. Big Day
10. Another Satellite
11. The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul
12. Dear God
13. Dying
14. Sacrificial Bonfire
XTC was always an underrated band flying under the radar, mainly because of their inability to tour to promote their albums (Andy Partridge has terrible stagefright). On Skylarking, they got everything right. This is easily their best work, a beautiful stream of songs that showcases all the best things about the band. Partridge and Colin Moulding do their best Lennon-McCartney impersonation with the songwriting, and the continuity of the music, implemented by producer Rundgren, makes this a non stop beautiful ride. Everything goes right for the band...they even got a bona fide hit in the surprising "Dear God".
XTC never matched Skylarking, although they made some great records (and some great misses). Former Tubes drummer Prairie Prince plays on this (XTC had been without an official drummer for years). This is their best work, and unlike anything else in their catalog. Oh...and "Grass" is one great tune to chill out to as well! [First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Produced By TODD RUNDGREN
1. Summer's Cauldron
2. Grass
3. The Meeting Place
4. That's Really Super, Supergirl
5. Ballet For A Rainy Day
6. 1000 Umbrellas
7. Season Cycle
8. Earn Enough For Us
9. Big Day
10. Another Satellite
11. The Man Who Sailed Around His Soul
12. Dear God
13. Dying
14. Sacrificial Bonfire
XTC was always an underrated band flying under the radar, mainly because of their inability to tour to promote their albums (Andy Partridge has terrible stagefright). On Skylarking, they got everything right. This is easily their best work, a beautiful stream of songs that showcases all the best things about the band. Partridge and Colin Moulding do their best Lennon-McCartney impersonation with the songwriting, and the continuity of the music, implemented by producer Rundgren, makes this a non stop beautiful ride. Everything goes right for the band...they even got a bona fide hit in the surprising "Dear God".
XTC never matched Skylarking, although they made some great records (and some great misses). Former Tubes drummer Prairie Prince plays on this (XTC had been without an official drummer for years). This is their best work, and unlike anything else in their catalog. Oh...and "Grass" is one great tune to chill out to as well! [First added to this chart: 04/13/2012]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,398
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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[First added to this chart: 02/06/2013]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
12,542
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
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1986 – WARNER BROS.
Produced By BOB MOULD & GRANT HART
1. Crystal
2. Don’t Want To Know If You Are Lonely
3. I Don’t Know For Sure
4. Sorry Somehow
5. Too Far Down
6. Hardly Getting Over It
7. Dead Set On Destruction
8. Eiffel Tower High
9. No Promise Have I Made
10. All This I’ve Done For You
Husker Du was important on so many levels. Previously known for punk and hardcore music, Candy Apple Grey, their fifth album, finds the band slowing things down some and bringing to the public (but not inventing) what people would later call indie rock. This was an album plagued with internal fighting between Bob Mould and Grant Hart, the pressure of not selling out with their new major label deal with Warners, and the larger new audience that the deal included. There was pressure for a hit, which they didn’t get (although Hart’s “Sorry Somehow” was close). Also, their last three albums had been pretty unbeatable, so there was that pressure as well. And while they didn’t reach the heights of Zen Arcade or Flip Your Wig or New Day Rising, they did a pretty fine job of dealing with it all. Candy Apple Grey is not Husker Du’s best album, but it’s still a fine effort, and an important chapter in their history.
Remember…when you listen to this, that this was the mid 1980’s. This music was not yet popular. And Husker Du was never a hit machine. But what they were was a three piece wall of sound that made very listenable and entertaining music. Candy Apple Grey falls in line just after the band’s peak, and they would be gone after their next album (Warehouse: Songs And Stories) due to infighting and problems with their label. But Husker Du was one of the best and most interesting bands of the decade. And highly influencial. This album is an important part of the legacy the band left behind, and is well worth hearing more than just once. This is the older brother of bands like Nirvana and Soul Asylum and Pixies, and their place in history is solid. This is not their best work, but this is not an inferior effort by any means. If you see this (or any of their other albums) available, do yourself a favor and snatch it up. [First added to this chart: 04/03/2018]
Produced By BOB MOULD & GRANT HART
1. Crystal
2. Don’t Want To Know If You Are Lonely
3. I Don’t Know For Sure
4. Sorry Somehow
5. Too Far Down
6. Hardly Getting Over It
7. Dead Set On Destruction
8. Eiffel Tower High
9. No Promise Have I Made
10. All This I’ve Done For You
Husker Du was important on so many levels. Previously known for punk and hardcore music, Candy Apple Grey, their fifth album, finds the band slowing things down some and bringing to the public (but not inventing) what people would later call indie rock. This was an album plagued with internal fighting between Bob Mould and Grant Hart, the pressure of not selling out with their new major label deal with Warners, and the larger new audience that the deal included. There was pressure for a hit, which they didn’t get (although Hart’s “Sorry Somehow” was close). Also, their last three albums had been pretty unbeatable, so there was that pressure as well. And while they didn’t reach the heights of Zen Arcade or Flip Your Wig or New Day Rising, they did a pretty fine job of dealing with it all. Candy Apple Grey is not Husker Du’s best album, but it’s still a fine effort, and an important chapter in their history.
Remember…when you listen to this, that this was the mid 1980’s. This music was not yet popular. And Husker Du was never a hit machine. But what they were was a three piece wall of sound that made very listenable and entertaining music. Candy Apple Grey falls in line just after the band’s peak, and they would be gone after their next album (Warehouse: Songs And Stories) due to infighting and problems with their label. But Husker Du was one of the best and most interesting bands of the decade. And highly influencial. This album is an important part of the legacy the band left behind, and is well worth hearing more than just once. This is the older brother of bands like Nirvana and Soul Asylum and Pixies, and their place in history is solid. This is not their best work, but this is not an inferior effort by any means. If you see this (or any of their other albums) available, do yourself a favor and snatch it up. [First added to this chart: 04/03/2018]
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
545
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album
- #Sponsored
[First added to this chart: 02/12/2023]
Total albums: 50. Page 1 of 5
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Top 50 Music Albums of 1986 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Georgia Satellites | 1 | 2% | |
| Europe | 1 | 2% | |
| Hank Williams | 1 | 2% | |
| The Smiths | 1 | 2% | |
| Various Artists | 1 | 2% | |
| Beastie Boys | 1 | 2% | |
| Eddie Money | 1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 50 Music Albums of 1986 chart changes
| Biggest fallers |
|---|
| Down 1 from 49th to 50thLive/1975-85 by Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band |
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Top 50 Music Albums of 1986 ratings
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Showing all 4 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ! | 05/06/2018 17:53 | TrekkiELO | 75 | 88/100 |
| ! | 04/20/2015 11:35 |  calsper | 646 | 71/100 |
| ! | 04/30/2014 09:42 | PauloPaz | 1,759 | 89/100 |
| ! | 11/23/2012 20:44 | Johnnyo | 2,568 | 80/100 |
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From calsper 04/20/2015 11:35 | #139888
calsper 04/20/2015 11:35 | #139888
Great chart, but not too fond of Genesis, sorry, my own faulty aversion. =) Please check uot my charts if you like.
Best Casper
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From Johnnyo 11/23/2012 20:44 | #55743
Nice start.
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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