Best Albums of the 1980s
Listed below are the best albums of the 1980s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 58,000 greatest album charts. (Chart last updated: 2 hours ago).
"First New Order album sounds just like Joy Division without Ian Curtis' voice and lyrics. It's still a really good record and it's understandable that it would sound like their last record(i.e.. Joy Division) but it can't help being weighed down by that great band. Still, a good album, just livin..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,090
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Richard Thompson, a founding member of Fairport Convention, is one of the more underrated guitarists of the rock era. Shoot Out The Lights is the 6th and final album he made with his wife Linda, and it's easily their best work. 6 of the songs came from an album they recorded with Gerry Rafferty t..." [+] Reply
- 
Romanelli | 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:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,088
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Recorded with the band circled around a single microphone in Toronto's Church of the Holy Trinity, this album's intimacy and immediacy reflects the surroundings in which it was made. The result is a a languid, dreamy, haunting listening experience. The band's sound centers on the custard-smooth v..." [+] Reply
- 
buzzdainer | 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:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,082
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"New Wave was never the most coherent of genres and this release only marginally fits into that categorisation. The loose guitars, not-so-subtle synths and pounding drums, alongside Matt Johnson’s soulful vocals, make for a wonderful listen, however. Worth your time. Rating: Very Good Best track: ..." [+] Reply
- 
IanFrance | 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:
Rank Score:
1,077
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"You just can't go wrong with this album. A brilliant record full of great songs. It flows amazingly well considering it was a sort of compilation album, because it certainly feels like it's all part of a plan. Lovely songs in, old, liars A-E, and, until I believe in my soul. The obvious highlight..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,075
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"In my opinion, this is the best of the early Nick Cave albums. Your funeral... my trial, is a brooding masterpiece. Kicking off with, sad waters, one of the most beautiful songs Cave has ever written, and that's followed by the even better circus fable, the carny, a stunning track, Nick Cave at h..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,075
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"WINTER THAWS Something happened. What is not clear. But something happened in between Treasure and Victorialand. Some of my sources (& I have many) tell me that Guthrie & Frasier rekindled their love. Others tell me that bassist Simon Raymonde, who was absent for this session & not missed in the ..." [+] Reply
- 
Repo | 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:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,069
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Architecture and morality, OMD's second album, is by far their best. It's a stunning electro pop record that still sounds absolutely fantastic today. The beautiful, souvenir, and, Joan of arc, are the most famous and accessible tracks, but there is a lot more interesting and challenging music to ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,063
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Sting's first, and best, solo record. While I can't imagine The Police performing this material, Sting was still writing very good songs and using this as a platform for his own distinctive sound. His later efforts would be much more MOR, and much less interesting. Best cuts: the bluesy "Consider..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,060
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"My favorite female record ever. A singer songwriter record, with softly spoken words about loving someone till it hurt them, with bitter sweet pain, songs about feeling solitude, about being in a violent relationship." Reply
Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,056
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 25 of 100
Best Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 119 | 12% | |
| 1981 | 119 | 12% | |
| 1982 | 107 | 11% | |
| 1983 | 96 | 10% | |
| 1984 | 100 | 10% | |
| 1985 | 87 | 9% | |
| 1986 | 92 | 9% | |
| 1987 | 87 | 9% | |
| 1988 | 98 | 10% | |
| 1989 | 96 | 10% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 10 | 1% | |
| Iron Maiden | 8 | 1% | |
| Depeche Mode | 8 | 1% | |
| The Smiths | 8 | 1% | |
| Rush | 8 | 1% | |
| U2 | 7 | 1% | |
| The Fall | 7 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
 |
414 | 41% | |
 |
392 | 39% | |
 |
40 | 4% | |
 |
27 | 3% | |
 |
22 | 2% | |
 |
20 | 2% | |
 |
12 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
If you enjoy our site, please consider supporting us by sparing a few seconds to disable your ad blocker.
A lot of hard work happens in the background to keep BEA running, and it's especially difficult to do this when we can't pay our hosting fees :(
We work very hard to ensure our site is as fast (and FREE!) as possible, and we respect your privacy.
A lot of hard work happens in the background to keep BEA running, and it's especially difficult to do this when we can't pay our hosting fees :(
We work very hard to ensure our site is as fast (and FREE!) as possible, and we respect your privacy.
