Top 26 Music Albums of 1981
by
Romanelli 
- Chart updated: 10/08/2025 16:15
- (Created: 04/12/2012 17:07).
- Chart size: 26 albums.
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This chart is currently filtered to only show albums from Foreigner. (Remove this filter)
Produced By ROBERT JOHN “MUTT” LANGE & MICK JONES
1. Night Life
2. Juke Box Hero
3. Break It Up
4. Waiting For A Girl Like You
5. Luanne
6. Urgent
7. I’m Gonna Win
8. Woman In Black
9. Girl On The Moon
10. Don’t Let Go
11. Juke Box Hero (Nearly Unplugged Version)
12. Waiting For A Girl Like You (Nearly Unplugged Version)
When former Spooky Tooth guitarist Mick Jones and King Crimson’s sax player Ian MacDonald formed Foreigner in 1977, this was the last band you’d think was going to turn into a massive hit making machine. But, during the late seventies through the mid eighties, Foreigner was just that. And they were never hotter than on 4. Led by Jones (MacDonald was gone by now) and lead singer Lou Gramm, the band put together their most consistent album, and overall their best. Foreigner had slimmed down to a trio by the time of this album, but there was plenty of room for other instruments. The heavy dose of synthesizers is supplied by a not yet famous Thomas Dolby, while Junior Walker provides a scorching sax solo on the biggest hit from 4, “Urgent”. As is usually the case with Foreigners albums, the hits are memorable…while the remaining tracks tend to be forgettable.
The real weapon that Foreigner possessed was in the powerhouse voice of Gramm. One of rock’s greatest singers, he was never better than on “Juke Box Hero”. Not a great song by any means, Gramm makes it a great track with his scorching “one guitar” vocals. “Waiting For A Girl Like You” is the required ballad, and it’s a very good and catchy one. And of course, “Urgent” was on the radio it seemed like the entire summer of 1981. “Night Life” and “Break It Up” are also interesting, but after that, the rest is predictably filler. 4 was one of those albums that was just released at the perfect time…there was a void in rock in 1981, and Foreigner stepped up and filled it nicely. It sounds like 1981. After a greatest hits album, they went on to release the hugely successful Agent Provocateur in 1984 before starting to run out of hits. This is as close as Foreigner ever got to great. [First added to this chart: 03/24/2016]
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Top 26 Music Albums of 1981 composition
Artist | Albums | % | |
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Rickie Lee Jones | 1 | 4% | |
Brian Eno & David Byrne | 1 | 4% | |
The Police | 1 | 4% | |
Joan Armatrading | 1 | 4% | |
Agent Orange | 1 | 4% | |
George Benson | 1 | 4% | |
Rush | 1 | 4% | |
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Top 26 Music Albums of 1981 chart changes
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Other year charts by Romanelli
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Top 35 Music Albums of 1980 | ![]() | 1980 year chart | 2025 | ![]() |
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Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
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80/100 ![]() | 08/24/2022 06:17 | ![]() | ![]() | 85/100 |
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