Best Albums of 1985
Explore the best albums of 1985, based on over 2 million album rankings across 60,000 charts
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"This album is amazing, it perfectly balances pop and art side of Kate Bush. First side is filled with excellently produced, emotionally sung beutiful pop song, obviously Running Up That Hill which is probably top 20 songs of all time, Hounds Of Love, Cloudbusting and also often overlooked The Big..." Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
17,752
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"Well, I'm listening to it right now. I was expecting a nice heartfelt acoustic/folk album, since Tom Waits is the whitest name ever and the album cover looked relatively harmless. HOLY GOD WHAT IS THIS" Reply
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makerofbuckets | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 35
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11,114
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"Overproduced I might say, but I quite enjoy the sounds on here sometimes. I just wish they were implemented in actual good songs with a vocalist that doesn't sound like a poor man's Bob Dylan. I guess they were to busy picking the right guitars to show off their expertise. But the worst thing her..." Reply
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Boltzmann | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 1
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,871
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"The greatest Smiths album because I don't know. I just seem to prefer this over Queen is Dead. Barbarism is especially mindblowing! The guitar on the joke isnt funny anymore fucks me out ma mind erry time aswell. All the tracks are insane!" Reply
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Medelsvensson | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 5
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
6,158
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"Its cool, but it gets really boring really fast. And on some of the songs it sounds like they play the song and then just overdub a ton of treble-y reverb." Reply
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JulianR | Helpful? (Log in to vote) · 6
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,531
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"An interesting mix of the pop readiness of Michael Jackson, the melodic sensibilities of Wham!, and the experiments of The Cure. I wasn't expecting this! Track Picks: Shout The Working Hour Everybody Wants to Rule the World Head Over Heels / Broken Listen" Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
5,147
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"Long time fan of the band, and this is, hands down, my favorite Cure album. It evokes so many memories of my early teens, coming of age…but even now, there’s not a single track I want to skip. When I put this record on, I inevitably listen to the entire thing. I get up, flip sides, and take it al..." Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
4,655
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"The 2023 Ed Stasium remix is exactly the facelift this album needed. Gone is the God-awful tinny drums, reverby vocals and guitars that sound like they were recorded in the hallway on the front cover. Hidden in the masters all these years was a brilliant set of mature, vulnerable songs that sound..." Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,746
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"An excellent mid eighties pop/soft rock album that offered an alternative to a lot of the purely synth led bands/artists of the era. Prefab Sprout were excellent musicians but also offered a unique harmony between the male and females vocals of Paddy McAloon and Wendy Smith. 'When Love Breaks Dow..." Reply
Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
3,658
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"The Pogues best album. Shane McGowan is on top form. It's not brilliant, and is a little inconsistent, but at it's best it's fantastic. Some great songs, especially, sick bed of Cuchulain, a pair of Brown eyes, and the utterly amazing, the old main drag, my favourite Pogues song. The Gallipoli in..." Reply
Year of Release:
1985
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Rank Score:
2,992
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Total albums: 1,000. Page 1 of 100
Best Albums of 1985 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
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| Various Artists | 20 | 2% | |
| The Residents | 4 | 0% | |
| 細野晴臣 [Haruomi Hosono] | 4 | 0% | |
| Black Flag | 3 | 0% | |
| Hawkwind | 3 | 0% | |
| Aretha Franklin | 3 | 0% | |
| Minutemen | 3 | 0% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
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| |
390 | 39% | |
 |
258 | 26% | |
 |
43 | 4% | |
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43 | 4% | |
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33 | 3% | |
 |
22 | 2% | |
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21 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Best Albums of 1985 chart changes
| Biggest climbers Biggest climbers in top 100 since last month |
|---|
Up 7 from 89th to 82nd |
Up 4 from 69th to 65th |
Up 3 from 79th to 76th |
| Biggest fallers Biggest fallers in top 100 since last month |
|---|
Down 3 from 28th to 31st |
Down 2 from 49th to 51st |
Down 2 from 65th to 67th |
