Best Albums of the 1980s
Listed below are the best albums of the 1980s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 59,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 3 hours ago).
"This album is breathtaking. It's a kind of merging of the Cramps 'voodoobilly', Robert Johnson's Delta blues, Louisiana's swamp rhythms, Jim Morrison's dark and sensual dialectics, and California's hardcore scene. The end result is an hypnotic amphetaminic demonic rock'n'roll that bridged a fine ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,783
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Has anyone noticed, the three symbols are their heads? Misunderstood album. It is a dark, serious, album, other than "Everything she does is magic". I love "Darkness", no one else seems to." Reply
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ChrisPBacon | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (6 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,777
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Despite being largely an "odds and sods" collection of leftovers from previous albums, it works amazingly well as its own album and IMO is the last true classic Stones album before overpriced nostalgia tours and endless Greatest Hits recyclings became the norm." Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,777
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"REM's third album is actually my favourite of their early records, it has a very rustic feel, their first genuine Americana moment, featuring tales of the great outdoors, of railroads, and, old men with stories to tell. It's REM as The Band. It's got some of their best early songs, feeling gravit..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,768
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Average Rating:
Comments:
"correction: this album is not excellent.... it's PERFECT !" Reply
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cartoken | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (6 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,768
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Great debut album for Ozzy. Great name, great album cover, great music. Apart from the obvious fan favourites, there are some other diamonds on this album. Let's not forget the input of Don Airey either, who sadly gets a mention so small, that you need a magnifying glass to find it on the rear of..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,761
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"I'm confused by the previous statement. Aside from being on SST in the 80's, what do those bands really have in common?" Reply
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Mr. Shankly | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +8 votes (8 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,758
Rank in 1984:
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Average Rating:
Comments:
"Best Punk album I ever heard." Reply
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alelsupreme | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +9 votes (9 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,746
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Otherwise known as, security, Peter Gabriel's fourth album sees him expanding his sound and embracing more world music textures. Some excellent tracks in, San Jacinto, shock the monkey, and, wallflower, which is probably my favourite song on the LP. Some beautiful moments here. Another superb Pet..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,727
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"One of the best albums in a rich Iron Maiden catalog. A lot of their 80's material is pretty underrated on BEA. Even the weakest songs on here are still pretty unique and catchy. The strongest points are the first two tracks and the closer. Some of the most epic moments in the Maiden discography...." [+] Reply
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AAL2014 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
A maximum of 5 top-voted qualifying comments are selected for each album. To provide the best experience for visitors, comments are excluded if they refer to data corrections, contain excessive profanity, are written in all caps, are non-English, are too short, consist of conversations between users, or contain lists of best tracks etc.
Year of Release:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,719
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 16 of 100
Best Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 121 | 12% | |
| 1981 | 119 | 12% | |
| 1982 | 107 | 11% | |
| 1983 | 96 | 10% | |
| 1984 | 101 | 10% | |
| 1985 | 88 | 9% | |
| 1986 | 91 | 9% | |
| 1987 | 89 | 9% | |
| 1988 | 97 | 10% | |
| 1989 | 91 | 9% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 10 | 1% | |
| Iron Maiden | 8 | 1% | |
| The Smiths | 8 | 1% | |
| Rush | 8 | 1% | |
| U2 | 7 | 1% | |
| The Fall | 7 | 1% | |
| Depeche Mode | 7 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
 |
412 | 41% | |
 |
391 | 39% | |
 |
40 | 4% | |
 |
29 | 3% | |
 |
22 | 2% | |
 |
20 | 2% | |
 |
12 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
