Best Albums of the 1980s
Explore the best albums of the 1980s, based on over 2 million album rankings across 60,000 charts
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Last updated: 3 hours ago
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"Moving Pictures was a last hurrah for prog rock, which was falling out of favour by the early 80s. Rush had never, and would never again, achieve the greatness they did on Moving Pictures. Perfectly balancing their hard rock and softer electronic sounds. Featuring some of their best know hits in ..." Reply
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souplipton | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 8
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
8,639
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"This is an album that is so short and sweet and it is packed full of enjoyable moments that make it so easy to fall in love with. Tracks like Computer World and Computer Love are so catchy and have such an amazing rhythm that you feel like you are getting infected by them. Musically, it can sound..." Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,416
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"Welcome back King Crimson, though in an entirely different guise from their late 60s/70s style and sound. Though it's not bad by any means, I've never been overly convinced that Adrian Belew was the best vocalist for KC and I very much prefer their earlier works." Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,197
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"The darkest of the Banshees's album juju invites into a world of tribal cruelty fueled by soaring vocals and hammering drums." Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,048
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"I bought the original "uncensored" version of this masterpiece with the "banned" track Qu'ran. Another exotic beauty." Reply
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CellarDoor | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 2
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,642
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"Queen meets Radiohead with an 80s vibe. Loved it! Some beautiful songs on here and they all flow so well into each other. ELO gets a good amount of shit on BEA, but I don't see why." Reply
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Jasonconfused | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 4
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,381
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"One of their earliest albums, this may be their best. Not bloated and overlong like some of their later "masterpieces" (e.g. Disintegration, Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me), this album reveals the genius of the band, and especially Robert Smith. Lovely and svelte, from front to back. Bravo!" Reply
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imimesis | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 2
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,148
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"There's nothing to make you say "yeah, that's a good song" because the music's simply there and has no impact." Reply
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swhaze | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 3
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,023
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"Proof that minimalism works! A Roland TB303, a TR808, a couple of lead synths and a suitcase full of creativity. Although the lead vocal is not on a par with similar bands of the era, coupled with two female backing singers it really worked. After the departure of Ian Craig Marsh and Martyn Ware ..." Reply
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,001
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""Why are these songs not taught in schools?" - Jack White. I love that." Reply
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Hayden | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 5
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,889
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Total albums: 120. Page 1 of 12
Best Albums of the 1980s composition
| Year | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | 118 | 12% | |
| 1981 | 120 | 12% | |
| 1982 | 108 | 11% | |
| 1983 | 96 | 10% | |
| 1984 | 100 | 10% | |
| 1985 | 87 | 9% | |
| 1986 | 93 | 9% | |
| 1987 | 87 | 9% | |
| 1988 | 99 | 10% | |
| 1989 | 92 | 9% |
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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|||
| The Cure | 10 | 1% | |
| Prince | 8 | 1% | |
| Iron Maiden | 8 | 1% | |
| Depeche Mode | 8 | 1% | |
| Elvis Costello | 8 | 1% | |
| The Smiths | 8 | 1% | |
| Rush | 8 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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 |
411 | 41% | |
| |
391 | 39% | |
 |
40 | 4% | |
 |
28 | 3% | |
 |
23 | 2% | |
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21 | 2% | |
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11 | 1% | |
| Show all | |||
Best Albums of the 1980s chart changes
| Biggest climbers Biggest climbers in top 100 since last month |
|---|
Up 4 from 70th to 66th |
Up 4 from 62nd to 58th |
Up 2 from 102nd to 100th |
| Biggest fallers Biggest fallers in top 100 since last month |
|---|
Down 4 from 57th to 61st |
Down 2 from 33rd to 35th |
Down 2 from 38th to 40th |
| New entries New entries in top 100 since last month |
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Up 2 from 102nd to 100th |
| Leavers Leavers from top 100 since last month |
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Down 1 from 100th to 101st |
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