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: 59 minutes ago).
"Heartattack and vine, is half, a dirty rock album, and half, beautiful piano ballads. Waits growls and hollers on the opening title track, a great bluesy cut. Waits also goes for that gritty rock sound on the excellent, downtown, the percussion heavy, til' the money runs out, and the penultimate ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,054
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Quite easily the best album of 1981 and second best Journey album. They were so full of confidence here and the songs just explode with energy. Steve Perry is one of the best ever rock singers and he is absolutely on fire here. The last two songs will give you goosebumps since Steve's singing is ..." [+] Reply
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Daydreamer | 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:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,047
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"An excellent album. I have only got into Talk Talk recently. Bought this on new vinyl. 'Such a Shame', Tomorrow Started' and 'It's My Life' are my favourite tracks. I love the blend of subtle synth washes which accentuate the amazing voice of Mark Hollis." Reply
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,041
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This is THE Pretenders album. Pretty incredible they were able to regroup after losing half their original lineup to overdoses and put out of the best record of their career. Filled with long-surviving classics (Middle of the Road, Back on the Chain Gang, My City Was Gone, 2000 Miles) and really ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,038
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Perhaps the least well regarded of their first four albums, I have a soft spot for Porcupine, and I certainly like it more than Heaven Up Here. Plus, ‘The Cutter’ was the best song on their first three albums, that is a belief that I will hold until I die." Reply
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Crumpet | 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:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,038
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This was the first Queen album for me having bought into their singles at that time. It prompted me to get their back catalogue and I found some excellent work back there. They are a top band with songs that everyone sings probably without always knowing who they are. This album gave us Radio GaG..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,036
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Part of the middle-era Tom Waits trilogy along with Swordfishtrombone and Rain Dogs. This album is usually considered the lowest of the 3 because it is the only one that has "weak" spots. I concede that point. Originally released as a double album in its original vinyl format it dose have moments..." [+] Reply
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Robert Anton Wilson | 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:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,032
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This was the perfect follow up to Reign in Blood. They were never going to top the fury of that album, but by taking it down a notch they showed a different side and it worked well." Reply
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Decurso | 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:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,025
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Certainly one of the greatest ever post-punk albums. An under rated gem!" Reply
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Secondsoul | 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:
1,020
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"recorded undersea off the coast of cape cod the sky hinted of snow we wore sweaters and knit hats we built a fire on the beach to keep warm and roasted twinkies we passed some Nyquil around and swapped stories about our dorms Dean told a story about seeing Neil Young in concert then we packed up ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,004
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 26 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 | |||
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| Best Artists of 1970 | |
|---|---|
| 1. Black Sabbath | |
| 2. Neil Young | |
| 3. George Harrison | |
| 4. Simon & Garfunkel | |
| 5. John Lennon | |
| 6. Miles Davis | |
| 7. Van Morrison | |
| 8. Creedence Clearwater Revival | |
| 9. Led Zeppelin | |
| 10. The Beatles | |
| 11. The Stooges | |
| 12. The Velvet Underground | |
| 13. Grateful Dead | |
| 14. Derek & The Dominos | |
| 15. Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young | |
| 16. Crosby, Stills & Nash | |
| 17. Santana | |
| 18. Carlos Santana | |
| 19. Deep Purple | |
| 20. Cat Stevens |
