Posted on 04/29/2020 12:04:00 PM PDT by PROCON
The 80's were an absolute haven for great music from all different genres. Whether it was pop, rock, or even new wave, music was progressing by leaps and bounds in terms of new sounds and general hookiness. Though many musicians would need a Casio synthesizer to get their songs on the air, these bands stuck to their guns with letter-perfect rock and roll.
Though many of these songs fall under the domain of rock in name, none of them seem to fit neatly in a single category. While many artists were still following in the bluesy tradition of bands like Led Zeppelin, other artists were making bold new innovations for the genre whose presence can still be felt to this day. Even if you weren't sure how to feel about them on first listen, these songs have aged into modern marvels of the rock pantheon that deserve to be celebrated as such.
From hair metal to progressive rock to regular rock and roll, nothing is off the table when it comes to picking the cream of the rock scene. There may have been a technicolor haze sprinkled across the decade, but these songs don't need any trend in order to warp your brain.
(Excerpt) Read more at whatculture.com ...
Good list.
I’d put in Twilight Zone by Golden Earring (1982)
If we were talking videos, “Addicted to Love” by Robert Palmer would be on the list.
Thanks for posting the link for Hematdamish, Conny Kreitmeier kicks ass.
“NEVER ANYTHING BY THE Jersey jerk.”
I agree.
Old Granite Jaw is/was way over hyped. Never saw the appeal myself.
Agree!
Cult of Personality - Living Colour
I say it’s just someone’s “personal playlist”...
no Journey?
- Separate Ways
- Don’t Stop Believin
Def Leppard?
- Hysteria
- Photograph
Roger that. The great divide between "IRS REM" and "Warner Brothers REM". They were already getting a little uppity on Document, even. But the run they had with Reckoning, Fables, and Pageant (with Dead Letter Office thrown in for good measure) was about as perfect a run as a band could have. IIRC, they actually wrote all those songs in one long creative session over some days/weeks and then released them over a span of several albums. Which allowed them to build up a rabid following of people who would be utterly depressed at what happened once they hit the big time on Warner Brothers.
Not ONE Van Halen song? That’s the stupidest list ever.
I stand corrected. I thought it was ‘81.
“I loved REM, until their lyrics actually became intelligible.”
So...I’m guessing you’re no fan of “What’s The Frequency, Kenneth?”
Smithereens - Blood and Roses
Ping.
Deep Purple - "Perfect Strangers" and "Knockin' at Your Back Door"
Yes - "Owner of a Lonely Heart"
LOL, I remember Dennis Leary’s rant...
And I also don’t go for this other thing now, with MTV being so big where you get a band that gets a hit video, and all of the sudden they think that they’re like icons and they can tell us how to feel about environmental issues and how to vote and stuff. You know what I’m talking about?
Like R.E.M.? “Shiny happy people—” Hey Hey Hey Hey Hey! Pull that bus over to the side of the pretentiousness turnpike, all right? I want everybody off the bus. I want the shiny people over here, and the happy people over here, okay? I represent angry gun-toting meat-eating f....ing people, all right? Sit down and shut the f... up, Michael!
"Allison" ~ Elvis Costello
"Watching The Detectives" ~ Elvis Costello
"Hallelujah" ~ Leonard Cohen
"Is She Really Going Out With Him" ~ Joe Jackson "Another Brick In the Wall" ~ Pink Floyd (yes, technically late 1979, but an 80's anthem nevertheless
"What's She Got That I Ain't Got" ~ The Producers
"Once In a Lifetime" ~ Talking Heads
"White Wedding" ~ Billy Idol
"Shadows In The Rain" ~ Sting
"Should I Stay Or Should I Go" ~ The Clash
"Amadeus Soundtrack" ~ Sir Neville Marriner, Mozart assisting
"Rock Me Amadeus" ~ Falco
Get the hell of my lawn! ~ me
Somebody else recognizes the greatness of The Producers. I loved their first album, every single song on it.
Didn't those guys start playing together in the late 1950s?
Heard a "Hey Joe" intro where they credited Jimi Hendrix for giving them their first real boost.
Mick Jones on vocals.
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