Best Albums of the 1980s

« View best albums of the 1970sView best albums of the 1990s »

Listed below are the best albums of the 1980s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 53,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade

Decade:

Year:

1980s decade summary

Year	Albums The number of albums from each year featuring in the greatest album charts.	Score Total rank score for each year (made up of the total rank score from all albums in that year)	Top Ranked Album The top ranked album from each year and where it ranks in the overall chart.
1980	2,129	194,045	Remain In Light (27th)by Talking Heads
1981	2,163	120,381	Moving Pictures (156th)by Rush
1982	2,135	148,511	Thriller (75th)by Michael Jackson
1983	2,131	135,604	Murmur (142nd)by R.E.M.
1984	2,144	171,120	Purple Rain (81st)by Prince And The Revolution
1985	2,146	143,754	Hounds Of Love (58th)by Kate Bush
1986	2,277	170,255	The Queen Is Dead (17th)by The Smiths
1987	2,474	162,412	The Joshua Tree (52nd)by U2
1988	2,562	151,763	Daydream Nation (69th)by Sonic Youth
1989	2,586	197,313	Doolittle (18th)by Pixies
Total	22,747	1,595,157

The best artists of the 1980s were The Smiths, Prince, Pixies, The Cure, Talking Heads, U2, Metallica, Kate Bush, R.E.M. and The Stone Roses.

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751.

Diamanda Galás

Year of Release:

1984

Appears in:

34 charts

Rank Score:

266

Rank in 1984:

Rank in 1980s:

751

Overall Rank:

5,079

Average Rating:

70 (42 votes)

Comments:

752.

Under The Big Black Sun

X (US)

Year of Release:

1982

Appears in:

70 charts

Rank Score:

265

Rank in 1982:

Rank in 1980s:

752

Overall Rank:

5,086

Average Rating:

74 (82 votes)

Comments:

753.

Clara Crocodilo

Arrigo Barnabé

Year of Release:

1980

Appears in:

26 charts

Rank Score:

265

Rank in 1980:

Rank in 1980s:

753

Overall Rank:

5,089

Average Rating:

73 (33 votes)

Comments:

754.

Long Live The Kane

Big Daddy Kane

Year of Release:

1988

Appears in:

68 charts

Rank Score:

265

Rank in 1988:

Rank in 1980s:

754

Overall Rank:

5,091

Average Rating:

76 (60 votes)

Comments:

755.

The Waterboys

Year of Release:

1983

Appears in:

70 charts

Rank Score:

264

Rank in 1983:

Rank in 1980s:

755

Overall Rank:

5,119

Average Rating:

75 (77 votes)

Comments:

756.

The Flat Earth

Thomas Dolby

Year of Release:

1984

Appears in:

53 charts

Rank Score:

263

Rank in 1984:

Rank in 1980s:

756

Overall Rank:

5,125

Average Rating:

73 (47 votes)

Comments:

757.

Echo & The Bunnymen

Year of Release:

1987

Appears in:

70 charts

Rank Score:

263

Rank in 1987:

Rank in 1980s:

757

Overall Rank:

5,129

Average Rating:

74 (96 votes)

Comments:

758.

Avalon Sunset

Van Morrison

Year of Release:

1989

Appears in:

76 charts

Rank Score:

263

Rank in 1989:

Rank in 1980s:

758

Overall Rank:

5,131

Average Rating:

74 (98 votes)

Comments:

759.

Tallulah

The Go-Betweens

Year of Release:

1987

Appears in:

70 charts

Rank Score:

262

Rank in 1987:

Rank in 1980s:

759

Overall Rank:

5,147

Average Rating:

77 (67 votes)

Comments:

760.

Crossroads

Tracy Chapman

Year of Release:

1989

Appears in:

70 charts

Rank Score:

262

Rank in 1989:

Rank in 1980s:

760

Overall Rank:

5,149

Average Rating:

72 (85 votes)

Comments:

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Total albums: 1,000. Page 76 of 100

Best Albums of the 1980s composition

Year	Albums	%

1980	117	12%
1981	123	12%
1982	110	11%
1983	96	10%
1984	102	10%
1985	81	8%
1986	95	10%
1987	86	9%
1988	93	9%
1989	98	10%

Artist	Albums	%

The Cure	10	1%
Iron Maiden	8	1%
Depeche Mode	8	1%
Rush	8	1%
The Smiths	7	1%
R.E.M.	7	1%
Talking Heads	7	1%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	416	42%
	385	38%
	41	4%
	28	3%
	23	2%
	22	2%
	12	1%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	968	97%
Yes	33	3%

Live?	Albums	%
No	977	98%
Yes	24	2%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	988	99%
Yes	13	1%

« View best albums of the 1970sView best albums of the 1990s »

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Best Albums of 1955
1. In The Wee Small Hours by Frank Sinatra
2. Sarah Vaughan by Sarah Vaughan
3. Rock Around The Clock by Bill Haley And His Comets
4. Julie Is Her Name by Julie London
5. Ramblin' Man by Hank Williams
6. Study In Brown by Clifford Brown & Max Roach
7. Shake, Rattle And Roll by Bill Haley And His Comets
8. Concert By The Sea by Erroll Garner
9. Dinah Jams by Dinah Washington
10. Lullabies Of Birdland by Ella Fitzgerald
11. Satch Plays Fats by Louis Armstrong
12. Blue Moods by Miles Davis
13. Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 by Wilhelm Furtwängler / Bayreuth Festpiele Orchester Und Chor
14. Diz And Getz by Stan Getz & Dizzy Gillespie
15. Les And Mary by Les Paul & Mary Ford
16. Helen Merrill by Helen Merrill
17. Lennie Tristano by Lennie Tristano
18. Sarah Vaughan In Hi-Fi by Sarah Vaughan
19. Lotte Lenya Singt Kurt Weill by Lotte Lenya
20. Hamp & Getz by Stan Getz / Lionel Hampton