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: 5 hours ago).
"Steve Earle's best record. He must have been really trying hard to make it in the music business because the production suffers a bit, sometimes it works but often it can sound dated. The songs are solid though. Recommended. Track Pick: Someday" Reply
Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
470
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Comments:
"Their classic album and brilliant introduction to the warped perfectionism of Lawrence Felt. As well as All the People I Like Are Those That Are Dead, A Wave Crashed on Rocks, and Hours of Darkness Have Changed My Mind are highlights." Reply
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johnner | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
469
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"I agree CDoor. This is an overlooked gem of an album that deserves wider recognition. As you imply, Tuxedomoon represented the more interesting and intellectual strand of the new-wave/post-punk bands to have emerged during the late 1970s and early 1980s (eg. Rip Rig and Panic, James White and the..." [+] Reply
"This is more than a gorgeous collection of wonderful choruses, this is vaudeville in the post-punk era, this is The Residents in the world of alternative pop, cabaret songs for demential grotesque cartoons. These dynamic, crazy, irreverent music pills have nothing to envy to underground rock hero..." [+] Reply
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Kalos | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
466
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Comments:
"Sounding organic and alive this is a thoroughly impressive debut. Conjuring recollections of the paisley-soaked '60s and the lush sounds of '70s soul, all distilled through the multicultural flowering of the late '80s. Much like Prince, he plays nearly every instrument on the record, making this ..." [+] Reply
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~SMiLE~ | 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:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
466
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"This album is a lot better than people give it credit for... Some of Weller's most beautiful songs in "Ghosts" and "Carnation," and "Town Called Malice" is an all-time classic. There's not really any useless songs on this, and he's trying a lot of new styles, most of which turn out fairly well." Reply
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Sandinistar | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
464
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Comments:
"Okay, when I first got this I would only ever listen to Soup Is Good Food. But as the months go by each song has opened itself up to me (apart from Goons Of Hazard). And this is a hugely diverse album indeed! This Could Be Anywhere proves Jello as a sheer talented songwriter. A different type of ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
464
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Comments:
"While this is still an artist finding his groove, there is a ton of ambition in a few tracks, notably Red Army Blues, which begins with layered acoustic guitar and moves through a seven minute epic lyric. The title track closer is a beauty that completely prefigures everything he accomplished on ..." [+] Reply
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jhuik | 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.
"Gotta say, this is a really solid album. Probably Motley Crue's best and their most perfect blend of heavy metal and glam metal. Motley Crue will always remain a dumb band, but they've got some good hard rocking tunes." Reply
Year of Release:
1983
Appears in:
Rank Score:
462
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Comments:
"After having one of the most productive years of his song writing career, releasing a ton of classic songs willy-nilly as non-album singles, b-sides and eps, Weller suffered extreme writers block. The resulting album, Cafe Blue, was scraped together from jam sessions and pointless re-recorded ver..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
462
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Total albums: 1,000. Page 49 of 100
Best Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 121 | 12% | |
| 1981 | 119 | 12% | |
| 1982 | 107 | 11% | |
| 1983 | 95 | 10% | |
| 1984 | 101 | 10% | |
| 1985 | 88 | 9% | |
| 1986 | 91 | 9% | |
| 1987 | 89 | 9% | |
| 1988 | 97 | 10% | |
| 1989 | 92 | 9% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| The Cure | 10 | 1% | |
| Iron Maiden | 8 | 1% | |
| The Smiths | 8 | 1% | |
| Rush | 8 | 1% | |
| The Fall | 7 | 1% | |
| Depeche Mode | 7 | 1% | |
| R.E.M. | 7 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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412 | 41% | |
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392 | 39% | |
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40 | 4% | |
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29 | 3% | |
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22 | 2% | |
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19 | 2% | |
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12 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Member Levels | |
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