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: 3 hours ago).
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1980s decade summaryThe best artists of the 1980s were The Smiths, Prince, The Cure, Pixies, Talking Heads, U2, Metallica, Kate Bush, R.E.M. and The Stone Roses.
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
639
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"To me, My War is the story of side 2 of Damaged taken to its final bleak conclusion. Not a pretty picture I'm afraid. A lot harder to route for our protagonist at this point. From a completely musical point of view, Damaged is a far more varied and thus to me more interesting. Quite unique to see..."  [+]  Reply
- | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help 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:
639
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"James Thirlwell, better known as Foetus, became a protagonist of both the London and the New York counterculture, and, ultimately, one of the most significant musicians of the decade, wedding the punk aesthetics to theatrical and classical-music ambitions. 'Nail', his masterpiece of reckless nihi..."  [+]  Reply
- hairymarx1 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (3 helpful | 1 unhelpful) Help 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:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
636
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
634
Rank in 1982:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"A love Rickie-Lee, quite similar in tone and style as Joni, but with some nice new sound and vibes to give it some personal touch. A Very refreshing album and it still sounds up to date even being over 40 years old!"  Reply
- Jboy56 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help 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:
634
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
633
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
377.
"I remember the first time listening to this and thinking it was repetitive and without skill. I frequently go on black/death metal kicks but this is by far the singular most oppressive thing I've ever heard. it's painful to listen to and makes me genuinely sick, makes my muscles ache. I feel like..."  [+]  Reply
- jackbrown8786 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +8 votes (8 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help 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:
633
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Normally I prefer studio versions, but some of the songs here (e.g. Sultans of Swing and Telegraph Road) are so great that I never play the studio versions anymore. Mark Knopfler at his best!"  Reply
- BasMeijer | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help 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:
631
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Saw Marillion on Real to Reel Tour in 1984 and only owned this album at the time, played (I believe) all the tracks off this. I am a fan of the Fish era 8 minute plus epics, can happily sit through the 20 odd minutes of Grendel so this is a favourite of mine. Preferred to Script, superceded by Mi..."  [+]  Reply
- Rich150 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help 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:
631
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Following a relatively fallow creative period for the Captain, the master returned to form with the album 'Shiny Beast'. In my opinion, as great a record as this record is, his follow-up, 'Doc At The Radar Station', is even better. This album is a kind of distillation of 'Trout Mask' for the post..."  [+]  Reply
- hairymarx1 | Helpful?  (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful) Help 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:
631
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 38 of 100

Best Albums of the 1980s composition

Recognised  Decade Charts (2020s)
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