Best Albums of the 1980s

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171.

Black Sea 

 XTC

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"I'm not quite sure how this is only rated as XTC's 6th best album on BEA. Perhaps people are listening to the CD reissue which for some strange reason added the bonus tracks Smokeless Zone, Don't Lose Your Temper & The Somnombulist right in the middle of the original track listing instead of tagg...""I'm not quite sure how this is only rated as XTC's 6th best album on BEA. Perhaps people are listening to the CD reissue which for some strange reason added the bonus tracks Smokeless Zone, Don't Lose Your Temper & The Somnombulist right in the middle of the original track listing instead of tagging them onto the end. Respectable Street is a classic with a timeless English subject matter. Other great tracks follow including Generals & Majors, Love at first sight, Towers of London, the brilliant Burning with Optimism's Flame and the catchy pop of Sgt Rock. "  [+]  Reply

- LittleM1971 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +13 votes (13 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:

224 charts

Rank Score:

1,561

Rank in 1980:

28

Rank in 1980s:

171

Overall Rank:

1,114

Average Rating:

 79 (240 votes)

Comments:

8

172.

English Settlement 

 XTC

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"Exemplifies, more than any other XTC album, why I sometimes describe them as the band the Beatles would have been if they'd had to challenge themselves to expand the range of pop music beyond the range already established, before them, by the Beatles. Dense, layered, fussy, but exuberant songs as...""Exemplifies, more than any other XTC album, why I sometimes describe them as the band the Beatles would have been if they'd had to challenge themselves to expand the range of pop music beyond the range already established, before them, by the Beatles. Dense, layered, fussy, but exuberant songs as spiky and nerd-punk as "No Thugs in Our House", as whimsically twerpy as "Down in the Cockpit", as African and anthemic as "Melt the Guns", as prettily angular as "All of a Sudden", as gently haunting as "Runaway", as warped, subtle, and medieval as "Senses Working Overtime", and, when the chorus hits, as overflowing with perfect joy as "Senses Working Overtime"."  [+]  Reply

- Voxpoptart | 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:

1982

Appears in:

299 charts

Rank Score:

1,559

Rank in 1982:

16

Rank in 1980s:

172

Overall Rank:

1,115

Average Rating:

 79 (359 votes)

Comments:

15

173.

The Game 

 Queen

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"This is a very solid record in terms of music. 10 solid songs, with good melodies, and interesting instrumentation. The problem lies in the lack of stand out material. Everything here is very simple, and in many ways very 50s. Tracks like Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Save Me, Play the Game, ar...""This is a very solid record in terms of music. 10 solid songs, with good melodies, and interesting instrumentation. The problem lies in the lack of stand out material. Everything here is very simple, and in many ways very 50s. Tracks like Crazy Little Thing Called Love, Save Me, Play the Game, are all nice sounding tracks, but they don't really have anywhere exciting to go. Nonetheless, this is a consistently pleasant listen, with 10 good songs, possibly a few great ones in there too. ***Definitely in terms of Queen's older sound, Dragon Attack comes closest with it's awesome bassline and cool middle eight."  [+]  Reply

- clockworkfiction3 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +5 votes (5 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:

322 charts

Rank Score:

1,558

Rank in 1980:

29

Rank in 1980s:

173

Overall Rank:

1,117

Average Rating:

 75 (514 votes)

Comments:

30

174.

Peace Sells... But Who's Buying? 

 Megadeth

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"Even if he doesn't seem to realize it to this day, being thrown out of Metallica was undoubtedly the best thing that could have happened to Mustaine, not least because, well, it eventually paved the way for this - a distinctive, punkish, scorching and urgent beast of an album further elevated by ...""Even if he doesn't seem to realize it to this day, being thrown out of Metallica was undoubtedly the best thing that could have happened to Mustaine, not least because, well, it eventually paved the way for this - a distinctive, punkish, scorching and urgent beast of an album further elevated by prog-minded sequencing, an awesome crank-it-up-right-through-your-eardrums mixing and mastering job (which is also remarkably "wet" for a quality 80's thrash metal record) and some really memorable visual art direction. The A side is particularly impressive and shouldn't be missed by anyone remotely interested in the (sub)genre."  [+]  Reply

- HAUSU | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 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:

1986

Appears in:

308 charts

Rank Score:

1,556

Rank in 1986:

14

Rank in 1980s:

174

Overall Rank:

1,119

Average Rating:

 78 (419 votes)

Comments:

25

175.

The Sensual World 

 Kate Bush

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"If 1985's Hounds Of Love saw Bush channel her adolescent high spirits for the last time, The Sensual World served as a coming of age. Having turned 30, she delivered her most rounded mature album to date. She acknowledged her irish heritage, taking inspiration both from the Celtic instrumentation...""If 1985's Hounds Of Love saw Bush channel her adolescent high spirits for the last time, The Sensual World served as a coming of age. Having turned 30, she delivered her most rounded mature album to date. She acknowledged her irish heritage, taking inspiration both from the Celtic instrumentation, and, at least in the case of the title track, from James Joyce's most sensual of characters, Molly Bloom. There is a broader folk influence too, which is partly down to Bush's brother Paddy, a fan of ethnic music. It is he who introduced her to The Trio Bulgarka, traditional Bulgarian singers who appear throughout the album. Michael Nyman arranges strings on "Reaching Out"; Nigel Kennedy appears on "The Fog" and "Heads We're Dancing"; Dave Gilmour plays on "Love And Anger" and "Rocket's Tail". Even her father, credited as Dr. Bush, contributes spoken word dialog to "The Fog", a song nominally about a parent teaching their child to swim -symbolism that is not hard to decipher. (An aditional track, "Walk Straight Down The Middle", featured on the cd). Although champions of her teenage spectral keening might have wished she had remained forever young, Kate breaks new ground, welcoming an era where global influences are paired with computerized proficiency. There is a distinct quality of womanly sexuality to The Sensual World too, as well as an attempt to address outside of her Kentish back yard. Whereas once she sounded as if she was happiest playing organ in the barn behind her parents' house, here she sings as a fully accomplished recording artist ready for international success. "Growing up for most people is just trying to stop escaping... But I'm not sure if people ever grow up properly." Kate Bush, 1989"  [+]  Reply

- serpico | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (7 helpful | 1 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:

1989

Appears in:

343 charts

Rank Score:

1,530

Rank in 1989:

15

Rank in 1980s:

175

Overall Rank:

1,139

Average Rating:

 78 (449 votes)

Comments:

21

176.

Somewhere In Time 

 Iron Maiden

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"Somewhere in time, is always thought of as the weakest of the Bruce Dickinson eighties albums, and yes, Alexander the great, is terrible, but the rest, especially the first side, is great. Caught somewhere in time, is a great opening track, and, wasted years, is a great pop metal anthem. Sea of m...""Somewhere in time, is always thought of as the weakest of the Bruce Dickinson eighties albums, and yes, Alexander the great, is terrible, but the rest, especially the first side, is great. Caught somewhere in time, is a great opening track, and, wasted years, is a great pop metal anthem. Sea of madness, is underrated, and, heaven can wait, is great. Off the second side, stranger in a strange land, is the best, with, long distance runner, and, Deja vu, enjoyable filler. A fun Iron Maiden album, as always. "  [+]  Reply

- garycottier | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 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:

1986

Appears in:

247 charts

Rank Score:

1,530

Rank in 1986:

15

Rank in 1980s:

176

Overall Rank:

1,140

Average Rating:

 78 (400 votes)

Comments:

20

177.

Eliminator 

 ZZ Top

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"ZZ Top acending to the top of their carreer with a mix between blues and rock. This album contains the top hits "Sharp Dressed Man", "Gimme All Your Lovin" and "Legs". 9 good songs from 11 tracks provide a good listening experience. (album rating: 68,64 %)"  Reply

- nocturnaldelight | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 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:

352 charts

Rank Score:

1,530

Rank in 1983:

18

Rank in 1980s:

177

Overall Rank:

1,141

Average Rating:

 76 (381 votes)

Comments:

26

178.

The Ascension 

 Glenn Branca

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"Fascinating and spellbinding instrumental music. I haven't listened to a lot of Swans, but I can hear their origins in the pounding drone-grooves that these compositions frequently settle into. All in all, this is a powerful listen, but I honestly can't see myself returning to it. Edit: I returne...""Fascinating and spellbinding instrumental music. I haven't listened to a lot of Swans, but I can hear their origins in the pounding drone-grooves that these compositions frequently settle into. All in all, this is a powerful listen, but I honestly can't see myself returning to it. Edit: I returned to it"  [+]  Reply

- kieranthewalrus | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 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:

216 charts

Rank Score:

1,523

Rank in 1981:

15

Rank in 1980s:

178

Overall Rank:

1,148

Average Rating:

 79 (215 votes)

Comments:

14

179.

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Floating Into The Night 

 Julee Cruise

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"The sadness and beauty in every song is so seducing and dreamy. This speaks to me in a deep level. I feel like this is somehow the soundtrack that's always playing inside my mind and I only found out now that I actually heard this album."  Reply

- patriciatoledo | 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:

1989

Appears in:

208 charts

Rank Score:

1,518

Rank in 1989:

16

Rank in 1980s:

179

Overall Rank:

1,151

Average Rating:

 79 (197 votes)

Comments:

15

180.

Searching For The Young Soul Rebels 

 Dexys Midnight Runners

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"Fantastic album! A mixture of Punk, Jazz, & Soul. You wouldn't think that would work, but it seriously does."  Reply

- Hayden | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 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:

242 charts

Rank Score:

1,511

Rank in 1980:

30

Rank in 1980s:

180

Overall Rank:

1,157

Average Rating:

 75 (281 votes)

Comments:

18

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 18 of 100

Best Albums of the 1980s composition

Top 1,000 Top 500 Top 250 Top 100

Year	Albums	%
1980	121	12%
1981	119	12%
1982	107	11%
1983	95	10%
1984	101	10%
1985	88	9%
1986	91	9%
1987	89	9%
1988	97	10%
1989	92	9%

Artist	Albums	%
The Cure	10	1%
Iron Maiden	8	1%
The Smiths	8	1%
Rush	8	1%
The Fall	7	1%
Depeche Mode	7	1%
R.E.M.	7	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%
	412	41%
	392	39%
	40	4%
	29	3%
	22	2%
	19	2%
	12	1%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	965	97%
Yes	35	4%

Live?	Albums	%
No	981	98%
Yes	19	2%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	988	99%
Yes	12	1%