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: 3 hours ago).
"Been years since I heard this but recently reconnected and loved it - forgot about those album tracks like King Volcano, Who Killed Mister Moonlight, Slice of Life, Honeymoon Croon and Hope. These include some lighter moments from eth masters of gothic" Reply
Year of Release:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
521
Rank in 1983:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Share your opinion and help others discover this album. The top-voted comments are showcased in our aggregate charts!
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
517
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"A criminally underrated album on these charts! I know that Los Angeles is a better album but I’ve always connected better with Wild Gift. Favorites: Adult Books, Once Over Twice, White Girl, We’re Desperate, Universal Corner" Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
517
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Excellent solo album from former band member Robbie Robertson. Excellent song writing, playing, and production create a fantastic album that takes the listener on a terrific journey. Transports the listener to a tranquil place of robertsons creation. Standout tracks: Broken Arrow, somewhere down ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
515
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Bragg paints a wonderfully gloomy and politically desolate picture of 80s Britain, whilst advancing his simple singer-songwriter style excellently. It's an essential piece of political music, that doesn't shy from being brilliantly honest, and delivers itself via the humble charm of Bragg's voice." Reply
- 
DeusExMackia | 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:
Rank Score:
512
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"There's not nearly enough love for this, Gedge's finest hour. Less jangly than George Best, less morose than Seamonsters and all the better for it." Reply
- 
Jimmy Dread | 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.
"This must be one of the most underrated albums of all time. Apart from Bob Marley, I had never been that struck on reggae before I bought this album. 'Signing off' is like nothing else in my collection. There is a lot of saxophone on it, which I've not really heard on other reggae records. The pr..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
506
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Released between Suffer and Against the Grain, this string of albums, along with Stranger Than Fiction are all Punk Rock CLASSICS. This may not be as consistent as Against the Grain or Suffer but it's not far behind, and contains a lot of Bad Religion staple songs like I Want to Conquer the World..." [+] Reply
- 
Larcx13 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 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:
Rank Score:
506
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"I love this album. It's really the follow up to his first album with that lo-fi home made feel. What makes this one different and unique in the McCartney catalogue is it's use of synths. The funky opener coming up is followed by the brilliant temporary secretary. This is really Paul experimenting..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
505
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"A stop gap release between, appetite for destruction, and the, use your illusion, albums. It consists of the, like a suicide, e.p, a four track live recording featuring a cover of Aerosmith's, mama kin, Rose Tattoo's, nice boys, and originals, reckless life, and, move to the city. The album also ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
504
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 45 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 Ever Artists | |
|---|---|
| 1. The Beatles | |
| 2. Radiohead | |
| 3. Pink Floyd | |
| 4. David Bowie | |
| 5. Bob Dylan | |
| 6. Led Zeppelin | |
| 7. The Rolling Stones | |
| 8. Arcade Fire | |
| 9. Neil Young | |
| 10. Nirvana |
