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: 2 hours ago).
"I'm surprised The Big Express doesn't get more love here. Seems like everyone loves Skylarking, but I personally prefer The Big Express." Reply
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meccalecca | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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"This is a really interesting album - I like how it plays around with different tones and sounds in a way that almost sounds like noise rock filtered through a post-punk lens. Unfortunately, all the chaos results in very few songs that work, and the ones that are interesting outstay their welcome ..." [+] Reply
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babyBlueSedan | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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"I purchased this Masterpiece on its release and everyone thought I was insane, but I'm still here living the dream and still listening to this on the same piece of Vinyl" Reply
"Incredible indie pop album from the early 80s that still stands up today. Unfortunately it seems this record is really overlooked; many songs are immediately catchy and unique for the time. Admittedly, the ending few songs don't speak to me much, but this album caught me off guard with how fun it..." [+] Reply
""The Last of the True Believers" is the fourth studio album by Nanci Griffith and the most generally the highly acclaimed album by critics and fans. Producer Jim Rooney captured lightning in a bottle with Griffith's third album "Once in a Very Blue Moon." But would lightning strike twice? Yes! Ro..." [+] Reply
"Almost 3 years after Rock for Light Bad Brains came back with a change of pace heavier sound which would lead the way for many alternative bands to come." Reply
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Brandon8 | Helpful? (Log in to vote) | +1 votes (1 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
286
Rank in 1986:
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!
"This album is completely underrated in the VM canon and has some very poorly thought out out ratings here. Go back and listen again, people! Spanish Steps opens the album... leading into The Mystery which can be thought of as Van's mature revisitation of Into the Mystic. Queen of the Slipstream i..." [+] 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.
"Great country rock album from Steve Earle. A superb Americana record full of great sweaty and dusty rock'n'roll. Enjoyable." Reply
"Love & Rockets is made up of all of the former members of Bauhaus except for lead singer Peter Murphy. Generally Daniel Ash took over vocals though David J sings at times. If anyone worried whether they'd still be creative, this album laid those worries to rest. Express is one of the best post pu..." [+] Reply
Total albums: 1,000. Page 72 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 | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| 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% | |
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392 | 39% | |
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40 | 4% | |
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30 | 3% | |
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22 | 2% | |
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20 | 2% | |
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12 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
