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).
"I diagree with others that this album has lots of filler. This is far and away my favorite Maiden album, and the "filler" tracks, like Back in the Village, are some of my favorites on the record." Reply
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,989
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This album is at times sloppy. The production sounds strangely out of wack. There are some complaints that can be levied against this album. The thing is that this album is So Goddamn Good despite any of that bullshit that it doesn't really matter! The lyrics of Paul Westerberg stand tall on here..." [+] Reply
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Mercury | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +2 votes (2 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,940
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Comments:
"The year is 1989 . What was I doing in 1989 ? I was taking copious drugs whilst listening to the likes of Pixies , Material & The Jesus and Mary Chain . I was NOT listening to Galaxy 500 On Fire . Fast forward 28 years & I'm reading another best of list & note this Album has a 97% all time review..." [+] Reply
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Brad1770 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +6 votes (6 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,888
Rank in 1989:
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"Their masterpiece, every single track on this album is great. This whole album has a similar sound to the best track from their last album ‘The Cutter’ due to the rich instrumentation, which is a great thing in my book. The best of the best include ‘Silver’, ‘Seven Seas’, ‘Ocean Rain’ and, of cou..." [+] Reply
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Crumpet | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,869
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Average Rating:
Comments:
"Several other Bruce Springsteen records--Nebraska, Born to Run, Darkness on the Edge of Town, and Born in the U.S.A.--are all candidates for my favorite from his catalog. But I'm going with The River because I think it is the album where his artistic vision is most fully realized. Here Springstee..." [+] Reply
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buzzdainer | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (5 helpful | 1 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1980
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,860
Rank in 1980:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"I feel like I should explain my last comment. When most people people think of emotional 80's music, their mind usually jumps to The Smiths. And while I really enjoy The Smiths, their music, and their lyrics, I don't feel like they're describing problems I've had or things I've thunk, so it's har..." [+] Reply
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sageamagoo | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +3 votes (3 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,683
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"Oh this album is so much fun. I'm being totally serious. It's heavy, loud, and fast. I have no idea how they can play and sing so fast but it really takes me by storm and makes my adrenaline pump. The high-pitched tales of the terrors of hell are awesomely hilarious. Completely over the top lyric..." [+] Reply
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dmercado | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +5 votes (5 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,644
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"When people think of Prince's best album, usually people point to either Purple Rain or Sign O' The Times. For me personally, I point to 1999 as his best album. It includes 3 classic hits (1999, Little Red Corvette, Delirious) and it includes hands down the best fusion of rock, funk, R&B, & new w..." [+] Reply
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joedec | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +4 votes (4 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1982
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,639
Rank in 1982:
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"I have always loved those "I was there " album stories , for example "I was there when Sgt Peppers came out " or " I was there when Joshua Tree was released " .... well I have my very own "I was there " moment , I was there when 'Isn't Anything' was released in 1988 and I'll never forget it . I p..." [+] Reply
- Brad1770 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +11 votes (11 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:
3,635
Rank in 1988:
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Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
"This album confuses me. Sometimes I feel like it is pretty good, but not quite great. Other times I feel like it is my favorite album of all time. Tracks 1-7 are some of my favorite U2 songs except for the instrumental 4th of July. After that there isn't too much going on. I like this album more ..." [+] Reply
Year of Release:
1984
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,606
Rank in 1984:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 7 of 100
Best Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 121 | 12% | |
| 1981 | 123 | 12% | |
| 1982 | 107 | 11% | |
| 1983 | 98 | 10% | |
| 1984 | 102 | 10% | |
| 1985 | 88 | 9% | |
| 1986 | 93 | 9% | |
| 1987 | 89 | 9% | |
| 1988 | 97 | 10% | |
| 1989 | 91 | 9% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||
| The Cure | 10 | 1% | |
| Rush | 8 | 1% | |
| Iron Maiden | 8 | 1% | |
| The Smiths | 8 | 1% | |
| Talking Heads | 7 | 1% | |
| U2 | 7 | 1% | |
| The Fall | 7 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
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|||
 |
416 | 41% | |
 |
392 | 39% | |
 |
40 | 4% | |
 |
30 | 3% | |
 |
22 | 2% | |
 |
20 | 2% | |
 |
12 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
