Best Albums of 1981

Listed below are the best albums of 1981 as calculated from their overall rankings in over 56,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade
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summaryThe best artists of 1981 were Rush, Kraftwerk, King Crimson, Siouxsie And The Banshees, Brian Eno & David Byrne, Electric Light Orchestra, The Cure, The Human League, Black Flag and This Heat.
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Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
9,418
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,548
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,108
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,950
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,759
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,555
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,161
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,137
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • eBay
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
2,023
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • eBay
  • iTunes
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1,918
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100

Best Albums of 1981 composition

Country Albums %


United States 315 32%
United Kingdom 277 28%
Germany 61 6%
Mixed Nationality 40 4%
Australia 36 4%
Japan 30 3%
France 29 3%
Show all
Compilation? Albums %
No 937 94%
Yes 63 6%
Live? Albums %
No 970 97%
Yes 30 3%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 990 99%
Yes 10 1%
Best Artists of the 1960s
1. The Beatles
2. The Velvet Underground
3. Jimi Hendrix
4. Bob Dylan
5. The Beach Boys
6. The Jimi Hendrix Experience
7. The Velvet Underground & Nico
8. Led Zeppelin
9. The Rolling Stones
10. The Doors
11. John Coltrane
12. King Crimson
13. Frank Zappa
14. The Kinks
15. Love
16. Van Morrison
17. Neil Young
18. Charles Mingus
19. Miles Davis
20. The Zombies
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