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: 6 hours ago).
"Morrissey's solo debut pretty much carried on where the Smiths left off, it was certainly on a par with Strangeways Here We Come, which had appeared only 6 months prior. This was a very nostalgic collection of songs for Morrissey which very clearly reached back into the early 70's. Viva Hate was ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,472
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This a criminally underrated album, and an underrated band in general. As a big fan of new wave, this is one of my favorite albums in the genre. Best tracks: Under the Milky Way, Reptile, Destination, Spark" Reply
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,467
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This album changed my world in 1983. I had a C-cassette that I got from my friend, I just turned it over and over again... Superb and timeless...1990 was a sad year when we lost him. The energy and skill is just unbelievanble" Reply
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Jboy56 | 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:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,453
Rank in 1983:
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"Want something different? Here you go. Bad Brains is a former jazz & fusion band made up of African American Rastafarians who love reggae and fast punk. The album was originally released on cassette only, reissued in 1996 with a bonus track. It's the fastest, most well played punk you'll ever hea..." [+] Reply
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Romanelli | 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:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,453
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Wow how has no one commented on this and how is this rated so low? My favorite Fugazi album." Reply
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,443
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This album and Licensed To Ill by the Beastie Boys bring back some many memories of High School. Both records are a perfect and play together well as a mix." Reply
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llibnanoon | 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:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,409
Rank in 1986:
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Average Rating:
Comments:
"I know I'm in a huge minority, but this is the album I come back to, More than the previous 2. Let it be and Tim are fine albums, But this one gets me juiced more. Alex chilton and can't hardly wait Are two of my favorite songs of all time, and skyway is just emotionally Gorgeous" Reply
Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,409
Rank in 1987:
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Bob Dylan's return to form after the artistic and commercial disasters of knocked out loaded and down in the groove. The key to this success, aside from Dylan's songs, was Bono's urging to use Daniel Lanois as producer. It's a perfect marriage. Lanois' production brings an atmospheric soundscape ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,408
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Rattle and hum, is U2 taking us on a journey of the history of rock. There's covers of The Beatles and Dylan, Hendrix appears on the record, and the band record a handful of songs at sun studios where Elvis recorded his earliest songs. Elsewhere, there's songs about Billie Holiday, references to ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,404
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
200.
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"Was not expecting this. Much more jagged and abrasive than I thought it would be. Very good though, it brings back much of the aggression about punk that post punk had left behind." Reply
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babyBlueSedan | 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:
Rank Score:
1,396
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 20 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 | 92 | 9% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 10 | 1% | |
| The Smiths | 8 | 1% | |
| Rush | 8 | 1% | |
| Iron Maiden | 8 | 1% | |
| R.E.M. | 7 | 1% | |
| Talking Heads | 7 | 1% | |
| U2 | 7 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
 |
412 | 41% | |
 |
392 | 39% | |
 |
40 | 4% | |
 |
29 | 3% | |
 |
22 | 2% | |
 |
20 | 2% | |
 |
12 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Best Artists of the 2000s | |
|---|---|
| 1. Radiohead | |
| 2. Arcade Fire | |
| 3. The Strokes | |
| 4. Coldplay | |
| 5. Sufjan Stevens | |
| 6. Muse | |
| 7. Arctic Monkeys | |
| 8. The White Stripes | |
| 9. Wilco | |
| 10. Animal Collective |
