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When it comes to music, there’s one decade I ab-so-lute-ly adore: the Eighties!
It was a time when an explosion of genres emerged—creative, diverse, experimental—yet unmistakably wrapped in that iconic '80s sound.
That’s why (and also just for the fun of it), I decided to put together an Eighties Top 80. Honestly, 80 songs is far too short—I had to leave out so many incredible tracks and artists that absolutely deserved a place.
Still, every song you’ll find below is, in my view, a true Eighties gem—each one capable of catapulting you straight back to that unforgettable decade.
The list leans mostly toward pop, though there are a few outliers here and there. But there’s a twist: rather than focusing on the biggest hits, I often chose tracks that are slightly lesser known. In fact, you might even stumble across a few unexpected surprises.
- 80: Jeff Lynne – Let It Run (1984)
- 79: Ollie & Jerry – Breakin'... There's No Stopping Us (1984)
- 78: Harold Faltermeyer – Prophecy (1988)
- 77: Revenge – They're So Incredible (1984)
- 76: Neil Young – We R In Control (1982)
- 75: The Bluesbusters – You're the One (1980)
- 74: Jermaine Stewart – Get Lucky (1988)
- 73: Suzanne Vega Feat. Joe Jackson – Left Of Center (1986)
- 72: Goon Squad – Eight Arms To Hold You (1985)
- 71: F.R. David – Pick Up The Phone (1982)
- 70: Zappacosta – Overload (1987)
- 69: Eurythmics – Never Gonna Cry Again (1981)
- 68: Icehouse – Great Southern Land (1982)
- 67: Survivor – The Moment Of Truth (1984)
- 66: Boytronic – You (1983)
- 65: Albert Collins Feat. Elizabeth Shue, Keith Coogan, Anthony Rapp & Maia Brewton – Babysittin' Blues (1987)
- 64: Blue Vision – Visions (1984)
- 63: The Maisonettes – Heartache Avenue (1982)
- 62: a-ha – The Living Daylights (1987)
- 61: Re-Flex – The Politics Of Dancing (1983)
- 60: J. Geils Band – Fright Night (1985)
- 59: Milli Vanilli – Baby Don't Forget My Number (1988)
- 58: Fiction Factory – Ghost Of Love (1983)
- 57: Belinda Carlisle – Leave A Light On (1989)
- 56: Time Bandits – Endless Road (1985)
- 55: Mick Smiley – Magic (1984)
- 54: 38 Special – Back To Paradise (1987)
- 53: Godley & Creme – Cry (1985)
- 52: Michael Cretu – Samurai (1985)
- 51: Alf – Stuck On Earth (1987)
- 50: The Triffids – Estuary Bed (1986)
- 49: Wendy & Lisa – Waterfall (1987)
- 48: Alphaville – Sounds Like A Melody (1984)
- 47: Neneh Cherry – Buffalo Stance (1989)
- 46: Nik Kershaw – The Riddle (1984)
- 45: Red Box – For America (1985)
- 44: Black – Wonderful Life (1987)
- 43: The Christians – Ideal World (1987)
- 42: Nena – Nur Geträumt (1982)
- 41: Sideway Look – Unlock The Capital (1988)
- 40: Tina Turner – One Of The Living (1985)
- 39: Sandra – (I'll Never Be) Maria Magdalena (1985)
- 38: Mel & Kim – That’s The Way It Is (1988)
- 37: Gloria Estefan – Oye Mi Canto (1989)
- 36: The Beach Boys – Kokomo (1988)
- 35: The Everly Brothers – On The Wings Of A Nightingale (1984)
- 34: Mummy Calls – Beauty Has Her Way (1987)
- 33: Toto Coelo – Dracula’s Tango (1982)
- 32: Rick Astley – Together Forever (1987)
- 31: The Fun Boy Three Feat. Bananarama – It Ain't What You Do... (1982)
- 30: The Bangles – Manic Monday (1986)
- 29: Billy Joel – Leningrad (1989)
- 28: John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band – Voices Of America’s Sons (1985)
- 27: UB40 – Sing Our Own Song (1986)
- 26: Cocteau Twins – Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops (1984)
- 25: A Flock Of Seagulls – The Fall (1982)
- 24: Roxy Music – Oh Yeah (1980)
- 23: The Power Station – Someday, Somehow, Someone's Gotta Pay (1985)
- 22: Patrick Swayze – Raising Heaven (1989)
- 21: Mental As Anything – Live It Up (1985)
- 20: Karel Fialka – Hey Matthew (1987)
- 19: Mike Oldfield Feat. Maggie Reilly – Foreign Affair (1983)
- 18: Susan Fassbender – Twilight Cafe (1980)
- 17: Fra Lippo Lippi – Shouldn’t Have To Be Like That (1985)
- 16: The Art Of Noise Feat. Max Headroom – Paranoimia (1986)
- 15: Kenny Loggins – Danger Zone (1986)
- 14: The Flowerpot Men – Beat City (1986)
- 13: Wang Chung – Fire In The Twilight (1985)
- 12: Aretha Franklin & George Michael – I Knew You Were Waiting (1987)
- 11: Midnight Oil – Beds Are Burning (1987)
- 10: The Lover Speaks – No More "I Love You's" (1986)
- 9: Tears For Fears – Everybody Wants To Rule The World (1985)
- 8: OMD – (Forever) Live & Die (1986)
- 7: Kim Wilde – Never Trust A Stranger (1988)
- 6: Pet Shop Boys – A Man Could Get Arrested (1985)
- 5: U2 – Where The Streets Have No Name (1987)
- 4: Simple Minds – Big Sleep (1982)
- 3: Michael Jackson – Leave Me Alone (1987)
- 2: Madonna – Borderline (1983)
- 1: Prince And The Revolution – Purple Rain (1984)
Comments
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meepy63
thank you for the song recs !!
As long as you enjoy them
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Anisa Mazaki
Tears For Fears – "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" is one of my favorites!
That and "Who can it be now" by Men at Work.
Both fantastic songs
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chloeisafraid
bruce springsteen erasure!! and erasure erasure
good list tho good job shout out man hell yeah
Thank you. Yeah, The Boss and Erasure definitely deserved to be in the list too (for the next edition
).
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The Light Dreams
A fascinating list; very few of the expected/stereotypical hits in there. Probably my favourite decade too, though my list would look quite different. Lots of titles I don't even know in there! I have to confess though, I absolutely detest Purple Rain with a vengeance!!!
Curious which songs you don't know.
Though for the most part I chose slightly lesser known songs, the number one I wanted to be a very famous/iconic song. Out of several, my choice fell on Prince. A next edition will be totally different
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Nimthiriel
made a youtube playlist for those who use youtube and not spotify.
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL8WKQ8e3RHr0a_w_Ozl1-YJ24O0xUCFcl&si=uHcTOfwTGHCEjre1
Kudos Nimthiriel. Can you please link to (credit) the blog in the playlist describtion
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okey, i changed it
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