Welcome to my Top 100 songs of the 1980s. I hope you enjoy listening to these songs and watching these videos as much as I do.
Rank. Artist. Song. Year. Billboard Hot 100 Chart Peak.
#100 Pat Benatar - Hit Me With Your Best Shot - 1980 #9
So many great songs failed to make it into my Top 100, since the 80s had so much great music. The Top 100 kicks off with this song from the first year of the decade.
#99 Run DMC - Walk This Way - 1986 #4
Rap music was still fairly new in the mid-80s. The only rap song in my Top 100 barely makes it in. It's a remake of an Aerosmith song from a decade earlier, and features Aerosmith members Steven Tyler and Joe Perry.
#98 Duran Duran - Hungry Like The Wolf - 1983 #3
Duran Duran were darlings of the early days of MTV, and they've got two songs in my Top 100. The first of those two is here.
#97 The B-52s - Love Shack - 1989 #3
This is the youngest song in my Top 100, as this song hit it peak on the charts in November of 1989. It's one of the few songs on this countdown that came out during my time at college.
#96 Lisa Lisa & Cult Jam - Lost In Emotion - 1987 #1 (1 wk)
I 've always been a fan of Motown songs from the '60s, and this tune is a great throwback to that sound. It's got a great retro feel, but it also fits in well with the freestyle sound that Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam were best known for. I always really liked the bass solo in the middle.
#95 Bobby Brown - Every Little Step - 1989 #3
Brown had six Top 10 hits in the last two years of the 80s. My favorite one is this one.
#94 Phil Collins - Sussudio - 1985 #1 (1 wk)
Including his songs with Genesis, Phil Collins sang on 8 #1 hits in the 1980s. The highest-ranked one on my countdown is here.
#93 Stray Cats - Rock This Town - 1982 #9
The Stray Cats had three Top 10 hits, the biggest of which was the #3 song "Stray Cat Strut", which is probably the song they are best known for. But I've always preferred this one.
#92 T'Pau - Heart And Soul - 1987 #4
Here's a British band named after a character from Star Trek. This was their only hit in the U.S. It's the first of two songs in my Top 100 with this title.
#91 Tom Petty - I Won't Back Down - 198 #12
Technically this is solo Tom Petty, although several Heartbreakers members and other musicians played on the track, as can be seen in the video. Since Petty's death in 2017, the song has been played at every University of Florida home football game, which is really damn cool.
#90 Lionel Richie - All Night Long (All Night) - 1983 #1 (4 wk)
Including a couple hits with the Commodores, Richie had 15 Top Ten hits in the 80s. My favorite is this one here at #90.
#89 Chaka Khan - I Feel For You - 1984 #3
This song was written by Prince, featured Stevie Wonder on harmonica, and the rap was performed by Grandmaster Melle Mel. Two of these guys are music legends; the third guy might not be a legend but he still did okay for himself. Khan had a number of hits with the band Rufus, and this was by far her biggest hit as a solo artist.
#88 Eddie Rabbitt - I Love A Rainy Night - 1981 #1 (2 wk)
Primarily a Country artist, Rabbitt had a decent amount of success on the pop charts as well, with 4 Top Ten hits, including this #1. There was no official video of this song, so this is the best I can do,
#87 J Geils Band - Centerfold - 1982 #1 (6 wk)
Here's the first of two consecutive songs in the countdown from legendary rock bands from Boston. This was the one and only #1 song for the J Geils Band.
#86 Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers - Don't Do Me Like That - 1980 #10
I went to the University of Florida for grad school, and Tom Petty was a native of Gainesville FL. It's hard to go a day without hearing a Tom Petty song there, even now. His first Top Ten song ranks highest on my chart. In the days before MTV, there was no official video for this song.
#85 The Go-Gos - Head Over Heels - 1984 #11
The Go-Gos of course were the first all-female band to hit the Billboard Top 40. They had five Top 40 hits, and two Top Tens. My favorite song of theirs just missed the Top Ten.
#84 Van Halen - Jump - 1984 #1 (5 wk)
Van Halen was well-renowned as a rock band, but wasn't a huge success on the pop charts until this song. This was their first Top Ten hit, and their only #1.
#83 The Thompson Twins - Hold Me Now - 1984 #3
The Thompson Twins had been around for a while and had a couple minor hits, but I don't recall them before this hit in 1984. They had a few more hits after it as well, but none rank as high as this one on my countdown.
#82 Randy Travis - Forever And Ever Amen - 1987 n/a
This song is the only entry in my Top 100 that did not chart at all on the Billboard Hot 100. But it was a #1 Country hit. I didn't listen to Country music in the 80s, so normally I wouldn't have been familiar with a song that wasn't a crossover hit. But I watched the 1987 Grammy awards on TV, and I saw Randy Travis perform this song, which won the Grammy for Best Country & Western song, and I immediately liked it. It still remains a favorite of mine.
#81 Debbie Gibson - Shake Your Love - 1987 #4
Gibson's first three hits were similar-sounding teeny-bop dance/pop songs that all reached the Top 5. While I think they sound similar, my favorite is the second one to be released.
#80 Toto - Rosanna - 1982 #2
Toto hit #1 in 1983 with "Africa", and perhaps that's the song that they are most known for these days. But my favorite song of theirs is this one from a year earlier.
#79 Katrina & The Waves - Walking On Sunshine - 1985 #9
This is one of those happy, peppy, silly songs from the 80s that I just enjoy listening to. They are not technically a one-hit wonder since they had a couple of other minor hits. But this is easily their most memorable song.
#78 Richard Marx - Satisfied #1989 #1 (1 wk)
Marx was the first solo artist to have his first 7 releases all reach the Top 5 of the Billboard charts. This song was the lead single from his second album, Repeat Offender, it was his second #1, and it's his second-highest song on my countdown.
#77 Bryan Adams - One Night Love Affair - 1985 #13
This is the highest-ranked song on my countdown that didn't reach the Top 10 of the Billboard chart. Three songs from the Reckless album did reach the Top 10 -- and they are all still to come on this countdown. But this song only peaked at #13.
#76 Kenny Rogers & Sheena Easton - We've Got Tonight - 1983 #6
This is the first of two duets featuring Kenny Rogers in my Top 100. This particular song was a remake of a 1979 song by Bob Seger. While I think his version was fine, I think it works better as a duet. Rogers' deep voice and Easton's high voice make this song very powerful. There was no official video of this song. This live version is what I found.
A friend of mine in elementary school had the Glass Houses album, and we used to listen to it over and over again. This is my favorite song from that album, and my highest-ranked Billy Joel song of the decade.
#74 Michael Jackson - The Way You Make Me Feel - 1988 #1 (1 wk)
The Bad album wasn't as successful as the Thriller album, but it did have 5 songs reach #1 on the charts, whereas only 2 from Thriller did so. The third of those 5 #1s is my favorite song from the album.
#73 Juice Newton - Queen Of Hearts - 1981 #2
Newton was primarily a country artist. I wasn't listening to country music in the early 80s, so I wasn't really even aware of that. She had a few big pop hits, the highest of which is here on my chart.
#72 Steve Miller Band - Abracadabra - 1982 #1 (2 wk)
Most of Steve Miller's success was in the 70s, but he had this one big hit in the 80s, and it lands in my countdown here.
#71 KC & The Sunshine Band - Please Don't Go - 1980 #1 (1 wk)
Were I ever to make a list of my top songs from the 1970s, there would be a bunch of KC & The Sunshine Band songs on it. This one barely qualifies for the 1980s, as it was the very first #1 song of the decade, spending its only week on top on Jan 5, 1980.
#70 The Bangles - Walk Like An Egyptian - 1987 #1 (4 wk)
The Bangles were the third all-girl group to reach the Billboard Top 40, after the Go-Gos and Klymaxx. But they were the first to hit #1, and this song became the biggest hit of the year 1987.
#69 Poison - Talk Dirty To Me - 1987 #9
From 1987, this is one of the first "Glam Rock" songs that I really liked. I always loved the guitar solo in the middle of this song. It was Poison's first chart hit, and it's the first of two songs of theirs in my Top 100.
#68 Dan Hartman - I Can Dream About You - 1984 #6
Hartman wasn't exactly a one-hit wonder. He had a couple other minor solo hits, and he was with the Edgar Winter Group in the 1970s. But this is easily his most well-known song.
#67 Bon Jovi - Bad Medecine - 1989 #1 (2 wk)
I saw Bon Jovi in concert twice during the tour for the New Jersey album, both times in Hartford CT during my Senior year of high school. The first single from that album is the second-highest-ranked Bon Jovi song on my countdown.
#66 Huey Lewis & The News - Heart And Soul - 1983 #8
This was the lead single from the Sports album. It reached a peak of #8, whereas the next three released all peaked at #6. Three of these four songs are in my Top 100 of the decade.
#65 John Cougar - Hurts So Good - 1982 #2
Before he went back to his given name of John Mellencamp, he went by John Cougar. This song spent 16 weeks in the Top Ten of the Billboard charts, which was longer than any other song in the 1980s. Yet it never reached #1.
#64 Whitney Houston - I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me) - 1987 #1 (2 wk)
It seems that most of Whitney Houston's biggest hits were slow ballads, but my favorite songs from her tend to be her more upbeat ones. This one is the highest-ranked song of hers on my countdown.
#63 Sade - Smooth Operator - 1985 #5
The highest-ranked song on my countdown that comes in the "Smooth Jazz" genre is here.
#62 Milli Vanilli - Baby Don't Forget My Number - 1989 #1 (1 wk)
Sure, Milli Vanilli became a joke as soon as it was discovered that the "lead singers" were only lip-syncing the songs. I never cared about that, since I thought their songs were fun an catchy. It didn't matter to me who sang them. They had five Top 5 hits from their debut album, the highest-ranking of which is here on my chart.
#61 ZZ Top - Legs - 1984 #8
Texas rock at its finest. ZZ Top has had the same lineup for nearly 50 years. Their biggest hit was this tune from 1984.
#60 Starship - We Built This City - 1985 #1 (2 wk)
This song has made a lot of "Worst of the 80s" lists. But I've always liked it. However, I did always find it weird that Grace Slick was back with the band for this. Jefferson Airplane sang pyschedelic hippie stuff in the 60s, but now the band was as mainstream pop as anybody.
#59 Air Supply - Making Love Out Of Nothing At All - 1983 #2
Air Supply sang a lot of sappy love songs, and I guess this one qualifies. But this one was written by Jim Steinman, who added his trademark operatic theatrics. This song was kept out of the top spot by "Total Eclipse Of The Heart", another Steinman tune.
#58 Dexy's Midnight Runners - Come On Eileen - 1983 #1 (1 wk)
This song's one week at #1 was between "Billie Jean" and "Beat It", preventing Michael Jackson from having back-to-back #1s. So it was nice timing for this one-hit wonder.
#57 Scandal featuring Patty Smyth - The Warrior - 1984 #7
Scandal had a couple of minor hits in 1982 and 1983, but nothing that made lead singer Patty Smyth a household name. Thus is seemed a little strange that by 1984, the band was "featuring" her. And here's a little-known fact: Jon Bon Jovi was briefly a member of this band. But he was gone by the time "The Warrior" was a hit.
#56 Queen - Crazy Little Thing Called Love - 1980 #1 (4 wk)
Queen's first #1 in the U.S. is their highest-ranked song on my countdown. This song was Freddie Mercury's tribute to Elvis Presley, and yeah, I think it sounds like it could have been an Elvis song.
#55 New Kids On The Block - You Got It (The Right Stuff) - 1989 #3
While "boy bands" have really been around forever, these guys ushered in a new era that extended through the 90s and beyond. My favorite song from them in the 80s is here.
#54 Billy Ocean - Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run) - 1984 #1 (2 wk)
There have been three "queen" songs in this section between #75 and #51: "Queen Of Hearts", the band "Queen", and now "Caribbean Queen". This was the first of Billy Ocean's three #1 songs in the 1980s.
#53 Prince - Let's Go Crazy - 1984 #1 (2 wk)
This wasn't the biggest commercial hit from the Purple Rain soundtrack -- that would be "When Doves Cry", which spent 5 weeks at #1. But this song did fairly well for itself also, and it's my highest-ranked song from Prince in the 1980s.
#52 Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton - Islands In The Stream - 1983 #1 (2 wk)
Rogers and Parton are of course considered Country artists, but this song was actually written by the Bee Gees. If I were to ever create a countdown of my favorite songs from the 1970s, songs written by the Bee Gees (performed by themselves or others) would be all over that list. They had much less success in the 1980s however, and this is their only appearance in my Top 100 for this decade. It's also the highest-ranking song that was a Country cross-over hit. There was no video for this song back in 1983, so all I have is this live version.
#51 Poison - Every Rose Has Its Thorn - 1988 #1 (3 wk)
Most of the Glam Rock bands from the 80s had at least one slow song, or "power ballad", among their catalog. For many of them, it was their biggest hit. That's true of Poison, whose only #1 song was this one. And it's my highest-ranking song from them in my 80s countdown.
#50 The Outfield - Your Love - 1986 #6
The Outfield had five songs reach the Top 40 of the Billboard charts, but this is only one that's even remotely memorable, as far as I'm concerned. I always found it interesting that a British band had a baseball-themed name.
#49 Thomas Dolby - She Blinded Me With Science - 1983 #5
This guy seemed awfully weird. But was good at the electronic New Wave sound that was popular in the early 80s. He had more success in his native England, and had only one big hit in the U.S. That one song clocks in for me here.
#48 Eddie Money - Take Me Home Tonight - 1986 #4
Here's another rock favorite of mine from the mid-80s. A comeback hit of sorts for Eddie Money, he teamed up on this song with Ronnie Spector, who had some hits in the 60s with the Ronettes.
#47 Chicago - You're The Inspiration - 1984 #3
By the early 80s, Chicago basically did nothing but slow songs. Well, they were pretty good at it. Like most slow songs from the 80s, this one was cheesy. But I liked it .
#46 Tommy Tutone - 867-5309/Jenny - 1982 #4
This song had everybody dialing the phone number back in 1982. From what I understand, people who had this number got zillions of calls every day. I could imagine that got rather annoying.
Here's something I find amazing.This is one of the most memorable songs of the entire decade. It peaked at #4 on the Billboard chart and spent three weeks there. For all three weeks, it was stuck behind a song that must be one of the most forgettable songs to reach the Top 3 in the entire decade: I've Never Been To Me by Charlene. Seriously, does anybody remember that song? Check out the chart from May 22, 1982.
#45 Ray Parker Jr. - Ghostbusters - 1984 #1 (3 wk)
This song was practically a novelty record. But it was a big hit, and I like the song. Ray Parker had already made a nice career himself, first singing with the band Raydio. He had this huge smash from the movie of the same name. Watch the video and try to identify all the 80s B-list celebrities that have cameos.
#44 Madonna - Like A Virgin - 1984 #1 (6 wk)
Madonna had a couple of hits from her first album, but the lead single from her second album turned her into a superstar, spending 6 weeks at #1. I really enjoyed most of her music in the 80s, but as time has gone on, there are a bunch of her songs that I don't like as much as I used to. This one, however, is still one that I like.
#43 Robert Palmer - Addicted To Love - 1986 #1 (1 wk)
This sophisticated British guy had been around for a while, but didn't reach the U.S. Top Ten until he sang with the Power Station. His first solo album after the Power Station's success landed him this #1, along with its memorable video of backup musicians who do a terrible job of playing their instruments along with the music. But I guess that wasn't the point.
#42 Dire Straits - Money For Nothing - 1985 #1 (3 wk)
This song was a huge hit, and the video was groundbreaking. These computer-generated graphics were amazing in 1985. Now a kid could design up better graphics on their cell phone. Well, technology changes, but good music lasts a long time.
#41 Joey Scarbury - Theme From The Greatest American Hero (Believe It Or Not) - 1981 #2
Okay, The Greatest American Hero wasn't a great TV show. But I remember enjoying it . I should go back and watch it again. It probably looks pretty terrible now. Well, the theme song is still a great song.
#40 Bon Jovi - Livin' On A Prayer - 1987 #1 (4 wk)
Bon Jovi had four #1 hits in the 80s, and has two songs in my Top 100, the highest of which is here.
#39 Journey - Don't Stop Believin' - 1981 #9
I've often said that no song is more prototypical of 1980s rock than this one. Everybody knows this song, whether you know anything about 80s music or not. Strangely enough, this song never had an official video. So included here is a "live" performance of the song.
#38 Corey Hart - Sunglasses At Night - 1984 #7
This wasn't the highest-charting hit of Corey Hart's career -- that would be Never Surrender, which reached #3 -- but I think this one is his best and most memorable.
#37 Cyndi Lauper - She Bop - 1984 #3
Probably her most-classic 80s song is her first single, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, but my favorite song from Cyndi Lauper is her third hit.
#36 A Flock Of Seagulls - I Ran - 1982 #9
The term "New Wave" often describes weird bands that made lots of synth-heavy music. This song was one of my favorites of that genre.
#35 Tears For Fears - Shout - 1985 #1 (3wk)
The first song from Tears For Fears was Everybody Wants To Rule The World, which I wasn't crazy about at first -- although I like it more now. This one, on the other hand, I liked right from the beginning.
#34 Daryl Hall & John Oates - Out Of Touch - 1984 #1 (2 wk)
Hall And Oates had six Number One songs in their career. This was their final one. And it ranks as their second-highest song on my chart.
#33 Wham! - Careless Whisper - 1985 #1 (3 wk)
I actually didn't like this song when it first came out. But I definitely appreciate it now. Sure, it's cheesy as heck. But maybe that's why I like it so much.
#32 Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine - 1988 #1 (2 wk)
At the time, Guns N' Roses was probably the heaviest of the "heavy metal" bands that I listened to. Nowadays, they're just another rock band that gets played on Classic Rock radio stations. Or even just a generic Oldies station.
#31 Bonnie Tyler - Total Eclipse Of The Heart - 1983 #1 (4 wk)
Jim Steinman wrote and produced a few overly-theatrical hits in the late 70s and early 80s. And I like many of them. At one point in 1983, songs of his held the top two spots on the Billboard chart at the same time: Making Love Out Of Nothing At All by Air Supply, and this song from Bonnie Tyler.
#30 Richard Marx - Right Here Waiting - 1989 #1 (3 wk)
This song is incredibly sappy. But it was still one of my favorites from 1989. It was #1 on the charts in late August of 1989 when I left home for college. Maybe that is what makes it especially memorable to me.
#29 Journey - Separate Ways (World Apart) - 1983 #8
This is Journey's second song in my Top 50. Most people would probably pick "Don't Stop Believin'" as their favorite, but this is the highest-ranked one for me. And while this countdown ranks songs, not videos, I have to say that I love this video. It is so wonderfully awful. Journey was one of the biggest bands in the world in1983, and yet it looks like this budget for this video was about 50 bucks. There's also a great shot-for-shot remake of this video on YouTube by a bunch of random guys. If a few guys can do a spot-on reshooting of a video at an abandoned warehouse, then you know you probably didn't make a top-notch video.
#28 Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - I Love Rock 'N Roll - 1982 #1 (7 wk)
Before the 80s, Rock music was mostly a "guy thing". Along with Pat Benatar, Joan Jett was among the first women to really kick some ass. And this song was a huge hit, spending 7 weeks at #1.
#27 Lipps Inc - Funkytown - 1980 #1 (4 wk)
Disco was mostly dead by the 80s, but this song still managed to hit the top of the charts in 1980. In the days before MTV, not every song had a video. I don't recall ever seeing a video for this song, so I'm really not sure if this is an "official" video or not.
#26 Bryan Adam - Run To You - 1984 #6
Six songs from the Reckless album reached the Top 40, and three of those hit the Top 10. Two of those are in my Top 25 of the decade. This one just missed.
The Outfield had five songs reach the Top 40 of the Billboard charts, but this is only one that's even remotely memorable, as far as I'm concerned. I always found it interesting that a British band had a baseball-themed name.
#49 Thomas Dolby - She Blinded Me With Science - 1983 #5
This guy seemed awfully weird. But was good at the electronic New Wave sound that was popular in the early 80s. He had more success in his native England, and had only one big hit in the U.S. That one song clocks in for me here.
#48 Eddie Money - Take Me Home Tonight - 1986 #4
Here's another rock favorite of mine from the mid-80s. A comeback hit of sorts for Eddie Money, he teamed up on this song with Ronnie Spector, who had some hits in the 60s with the Ronettes.
#47 Chicago - You're The Inspiration - 1984 #3
By the early 80s, Chicago basically did nothing but slow songs. Well, they were pretty good at it. Like most slow songs from the 80s, this one was cheesy. But I liked it .
#46 Tommy Tutone - 867-5309/Jenny - 1982 #4
This song had everybody dialing the phone number back in 1982. From what I understand, people who had this number got zillions of calls every day. I could imagine that got rather annoying.
Here's something I find amazing.This is one of the most memorable songs of the entire decade. It peaked at #4 on the Billboard chart and spent three weeks there. For all three weeks, it was stuck behind a song that must be one of the most forgettable songs to reach the Top 3 in the entire decade: I've Never Been To Me by Charlene. Seriously, does anybody remember that song? Check out the chart from May 22, 1982.
#45 Ray Parker Jr. - Ghostbusters - 1984 #1 (3 wk)
This song was practically a novelty record. But it was a big hit, and I like the song. Ray Parker had already made a nice career himself, first singing with the band Raydio. He had this huge smash from the movie of the same name. Watch the video and try to identify all the 80s B-list celebrities that have cameos.
#44 Madonna - Like A Virgin - 1984 #1 (6 wk)
Madonna had a couple of hits from her first album, but the lead single from her second album turned her into a superstar, spending 6 weeks at #1. I really enjoyed most of her music in the 80s, but as time has gone on, there are a bunch of her songs that I don't like as much as I used to. This one, however, is still one that I like.
#43 Robert Palmer - Addicted To Love - 1986 #1 (1 wk)
This sophisticated British guy had been around for a while, but didn't reach the U.S. Top Ten until he sang with the Power Station. His first solo album after the Power Station's success landed him this #1, along with its memorable video of backup musicians who do a terrible job of playing their instruments along with the music. But I guess that wasn't the point.
#42 Dire Straits - Money For Nothing - 1985 #1 (3 wk)
This song was a huge hit, and the video was groundbreaking. These computer-generated graphics were amazing in 1985. Now a kid could design up better graphics on their cell phone. Well, technology changes, but good music lasts a long time.
#41 Joey Scarbury - Theme From The Greatest American Hero (Believe It Or Not) - 1981 #2
Okay, The Greatest American Hero wasn't a great TV show. But I remember enjoying it . I should go back and watch it again. It probably looks pretty terrible now. Well, the theme song is still a great song.
#40 Bon Jovi - Livin' On A Prayer - 1987 #1 (4 wk)
Bon Jovi had four #1 hits in the 80s, and has two songs in my Top 100, the highest of which is here.
#39 Journey - Don't Stop Believin' - 1981 #9
I've often said that no song is more prototypical of 1980s rock than this one. Everybody knows this song, whether you know anything about 80s music or not. Strangely enough, this song never had an official video. So included here is a "live" performance of the song.
#38 Corey Hart - Sunglasses At Night - 1984 #7
This wasn't the highest-charting hit of Corey Hart's career -- that would be Never Surrender, which reached #3 -- but I think this one is his best and most memorable.
#37 Cyndi Lauper - She Bop - 1984 #3
Probably her most-classic 80s song is her first single, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, but my favorite song from Cyndi Lauper is her third hit.
#36 A Flock Of Seagulls - I Ran - 1982 #9
The term "New Wave" often describes weird bands that made lots of synth-heavy music. This song was one of my favorites of that genre.
#35 Tears For Fears - Shout - 1985 #1 (3wk)
The first song from Tears For Fears was Everybody Wants To Rule The World, which I wasn't crazy about at first -- although I like it more now. This one, on the other hand, I liked right from the beginning.
#34 Daryl Hall & John Oates - Out Of Touch - 1984 #1 (2 wk)
Hall And Oates had six Number One songs in their career. This was their final one. And it ranks as their second-highest song on my chart.
#33 Wham! - Careless Whisper - 1985 #1 (3 wk)
I actually didn't like this song when it first came out. But I definitely appreciate it now. Sure, it's cheesy as heck. But maybe that's why I like it so much.
#32 Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine - 1988 #1 (2 wk)
At the time, Guns N' Roses was probably the heaviest of the "heavy metal" bands that I listened to. Nowadays, they're just another rock band that gets played on Classic Rock radio stations. Or even just a generic Oldies station.
#31 Bonnie Tyler - Total Eclipse Of The Heart - 1983 #1 (4 wk)
Jim Steinman wrote and produced a few overly-theatrical hits in the late 70s and early 80s. And I like many of them. At one point in 1983, songs of his held the top two spots on the Billboard chart at the same time: Making Love Out Of Nothing At All by Air Supply, and this song from Bonnie Tyler.
#30 Richard Marx - Right Here Waiting - 1989 #1 (3 wk)
This song is incredibly sappy. But it was still one of my favorites from 1989. It was #1 on the charts in late August of 1989 when I left home for college. Maybe that is what makes it especially memorable to me.
#29 Journey - Separate Ways (World Apart) - 1983 #8
This is Journey's second song in my Top 50. Most people would probably pick "Don't Stop Believin'" as their favorite, but this is the highest-ranked one for me. And while this countdown ranks songs, not videos, I have to say that I love this video. It is so wonderfully awful. Journey was one of the biggest bands in the world in1983, and yet it looks like this budget for this video was about 50 bucks. There's also a great shot-for-shot remake of this video on YouTube by a bunch of random guys. If a few guys can do a spot-on reshooting of a video at an abandoned warehouse, then you know you probably didn't make a top-notch video.
#28 Joan Jett & The Blackhearts - I Love Rock 'N Roll - 1982 #1 (7 wk)
Before the 80s, Rock music was mostly a "guy thing". Along with Pat Benatar, Joan Jett was among the first women to really kick some ass. And this song was a huge hit, spending 7 weeks at #1.
#27 Lipps Inc - Funkytown - 1980 #1 (4 wk)
Disco was mostly dead by the 80s, but this song still managed to hit the top of the charts in 1980. In the days before MTV, not every song had a video. I don't recall ever seeing a video for this song, so I'm really not sure if this is an "official" video or not.
#26 Bryan Adam - Run To You - 1984 #6
Six songs from the Reckless album reached the Top 40, and three of those hit the Top 10. Two of those are in my Top 25 of the decade. This one just missed.
#25 Glass Tiger - Don't Forget Me (When I'm Gone) - 1986 #2
This Canadian group had a couple of hits, and this is easily the most memorable. Bryan Adams does a little bit of background vocals too. He just had the song at #26, so this is two appearances in a row for Bryan Adams.
#24 Duran Duran - The Reflex - 1985 #1 (1 wk)
Duran Duran was one of the first bands to really use MTV to promote their image, which in turn promoted their music. They made some of the best videos from the early days of MTV. I don't think this is their best video, but it's my favorite song from them.
#23 Nena - 99 Luftballoons - 1984 #2
Here's the highest-ranked non-English song on my countdown. Yes, there is also an English version to this song, but I don't think it's nearly as good. The whole song sounds different. I'll take Luftballoons over Red Balloons any day. This is also the highest-ranking song on my countdown from a "one-hit wonder" - an artist that had only one Top 40 hit on the U.S. charts.
#22 Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up - 1987 #1 (2 wk)
I remember being amazed that such a deep, rich voice could come out of such a wimpy-looking redhead.
#21 Bruce Springsteen - Glory Days - 1985 #5
This song mentions baseball and drinking, so I can relate. He laments about being old and reminiscing about the good ol' days. That makes it all the more depressing to me now, since Bruce was 35 when this song came out, and I am significantly older than that now.
#20 Whitesnake - Here I Go Again - 1987 #1 (1 wk)
This song hit #1 in the Summer of 1987, which is when I first got my driver's license. I remember driving around with this song blasting out the windows of my mom's 1982 Plymouth Reliant. I must have looked really cool doing that.
#19 Huey Lewis & The News - I Want A New Drug - 1984 #6
I remember my mom hearing the title to this song and initially thinking that I shouldn't be listening to it. I suppose I could see the confusion, since drugs have always been prevalent in rock & roll. But this song isn't about those kinds of drugs. And Huey Lewis & The News seem to be among the least-likely druggies among the 80s music scene.
#18 Roxette - The Look - 1989 #1 (1 wk)
The lyrics of this song make no sense. But nonetheless, I still think it's a catchy tune. Amazingly, this is the highest-ranked song by a band from Sweden in my 80s countdown.
#17 Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar On Me - 1988 #2
In the late 80s, I went through a phase where I listened to a lot of Glam Rock songs performed by Hair Bands. The highest-ranked Hair Band song on my chart is Def Leppard here.
#16 Wham! - Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - 1984 #1 (3 wk)
I always thought that if you look up something like "happy, silly, fun 80s song" in the dictionary, you'll find either "Walking On Sunshine" or this tune. For those too young to remember, we used to say "Look it up in the dictionary", while now we say "Google it". If you don't know what a dictionary is, just Google it.
#15 Culture Club - Karma Chameleon - 1984 #1 (3 wk)
I was just a kid in the 80s and Boy George kinda confused me. I didn't know why this guy was dressing in women's clothes and wearing makeup. Ah, I was so naive. All I knew is that I liked Culture Club's music and I thought this was an especially catchy song.
#14 Michael Jackson - Billie Jean - 1983 #1 (7 wk)
The biggest hit from the biggest album of the decade lands at #14 on my countdown. Michael Jackson had been a star since he was a little kid. But the Thriller album turned him into one of the biggest superstars we have ever seen. Too bad he had such a strange lifestyle and kept getting himself into trouble.
#13 Men At Work - Down Under - 1983 #1 (4 wk)
I really enjoyed this quirky Australian band. Their songs were fun and they looked like they were having a good time. I remember having the Business As Usual album on LP. I think most of us Americans consider this song to basically be the Australian National Anthem.
#12 Olivia Newton-John - Physical - 1981 #1 (10 wk)
I was a little young in 1981, but I remember Olivia Newton-John as my first celebrity crush. "Physical" spent 10 weeks at Number One, which was the longest run by any song of the decade. And according to Billboard magazine, this was the biggest hit of the 1980s, and is close to my top 10.
#11 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car - 1988 #1 (2 wk)
Billy Ocean had three Number Ones in his career; one each in 1984, 1986, and 1988. Alas, he did not carry the every-other-year streak into the 90s. However, his final Number One is the highest-ranked hit on my chart from the last couple years of the 80s and just missed my Top Ten.
#10 Rick Springfield - Jessie's Girl - 1981 #1 (2 wk)
When MTV premiered on Aug 1 1981, this song was #1 on the charts. But the video wasn't in the early rotation on MTV. Nonetheless, the song is an 80s classic, and it was Springfield's only Number One hit. Three of the last four songs have been from artists from Australia.
#9 The Power Station - Bang A Gong (Get It On) - 1985 #9
This is probably the most obscure song near the top of my chart. Since it hit the Top Ten, it wasn't exactly a minor hit. But it's not one of those songs that nowadays gets played very often on an 80s station. Nonetheless, I really liked this song from Robert Palmer, those two guys from Duran Duran, and the drummer from Chic.
#8 Daryl Hall & John Oates - Private Eyes - 1981 #1 (2 wk)
This is my highest-ranked song that's not from between the years 1983 and 1986. My entire countdown is somewhat skewed towards those years. Apparently I think that's when the best songs came out. Prior to 1983, perhaps I was a little young to have formed specific memories about the songs. And in the latter years of the 80s, I think the music got more fluffy and dance-y. I still like plenty of songs from those years, of course. But just not as many as from the middle of the decade. Anyway, here from 1981 is my highest-ranked song from the top duo in rock history.
#7 Mr. Mister - Kyrie - 1986 #1 (2 wk)
Mr Mister had three Top Ten hits from their album Welcome To The Real World, including two Number Ones. But that was just about it for the commercial success they had in their career. But one of their big hits is one of my favorite songs of the decade, and it lands here at Number 7.
#6 Bruce Springsteen - Dancing In The Dark - 1984 #2
Amazingly, Springsteen never had a #1 song. This was the closest he got. This song spent 4 weeks at #2, stuck behind "When Doves Cry" by Prince. Growing up in Connecticut in the 1980s, I was a big fan of this New Jersey rock legend. A few years after the 80s ended, I moved to New Jersey and have lived here ever since. I still haven't bumped into Bruce in the grocery store yet, however. Anyway, I always loved this fast, peppy tune. Back in the day, I guess I never really listened too hard to the lyrics. Like many of Springsteen's songs, this one is actually rather depressing. But I choose to remember it as a fun, happy song.
#5 Bryan Adams - Heaven - 1985 #1 (2 wk)
The first concert I attended was Bryan Adams at the New Haven Coliseum on June 28, 1985. The song "Heaven" hit #1 on the Billboard chart on June 22, 1985 and stayed there for two weeks. So I saw Bryan Adams in concert right when he hit #1 for the first time. I suppose that doesn't really mean anything, but it's an interesting tidbit. This is the highest-ranked slow song on my countdown.
#4 Huey Lewis & The News - The Heart Of Rock And Roll - 1984 #6
Here's the highest-ranking song on my chart from the Sports album, which is a cassette that I basically wore out from listening to so much. Not surprisingly then, a bunch of songs from this album make my list. For anyone too young to remember cassette tapes, this is what we listened to back in the 80s.
#3 Michael Jackson - Beat It - 1983 #1 (3 wk)
Here's my highest-ranked song from Thriller, the top-selling album of the 1980s. The song has Eddie Van Halen on guitar, and the video really helped launch MTV into a pop-culture phenomenon. Michael Jackson was a rather weird individual, but he made some great songs.
#2 Bryan Adams - Summer Of '69 - 1985 #5
Another song from the Reckless album, which is another cassette that I basically wore out from listening to so much. When I saw Bryan Adams in concert that Summer, he changed the lyrics to "Summer Of '85" for part of it. I like to change the lyrics to the "Summer of '89", which is the Summer after I graduated from high school, when my friends and I "were killin' time. We were young and restless. We needed to unwind. I guess nothin' can last forever."
#1 Huey Lewis & The News - The Power Of Love - 1985 #1 (2 wk)
Late Summer 1985 was a great time for music, as far as I'm concerned. My top two songs of the entire decade were in the Top 5 of the Billboard charts at the same time back then. This was the first song from Huey Lewis and the News to hit #1 on the charts, and it makes it to the top of my chart for the decade. It's from the movie Back To The Future, of course. I wouldn't quite list that movie among my favorites of the 80s, but it's certainly a classic. I'd bet there aren't many people out there would who list this song as their favorite of the 1980s. But apparently I do.
And that's it. My countdown of my favorite songs of the 1980s. I hope you've enjoyed watching the videos.
This Canadian group had a couple of hits, and this is easily the most memorable. Bryan Adams does a little bit of background vocals too. He just had the song at #26, so this is two appearances in a row for Bryan Adams.
#24 Duran Duran - The Reflex - 1985 #1 (1 wk)
Duran Duran was one of the first bands to really use MTV to promote their image, which in turn promoted their music. They made some of the best videos from the early days of MTV. I don't think this is their best video, but it's my favorite song from them.
#23 Nena - 99 Luftballoons - 1984 #2
Here's the highest-ranked non-English song on my countdown. Yes, there is also an English version to this song, but I don't think it's nearly as good. The whole song sounds different. I'll take Luftballoons over Red Balloons any day. This is also the highest-ranking song on my countdown from a "one-hit wonder" - an artist that had only one Top 40 hit on the U.S. charts.
#22 Rick Astley - Never Gonna Give You Up - 1987 #1 (2 wk)
I remember being amazed that such a deep, rich voice could come out of such a wimpy-looking redhead.
#21 Bruce Springsteen - Glory Days - 1985 #5
This song mentions baseball and drinking, so I can relate. He laments about being old and reminiscing about the good ol' days. That makes it all the more depressing to me now, since Bruce was 35 when this song came out, and I am significantly older than that now.
#20 Whitesnake - Here I Go Again - 1987 #1 (1 wk)
This song hit #1 in the Summer of 1987, which is when I first got my driver's license. I remember driving around with this song blasting out the windows of my mom's 1982 Plymouth Reliant. I must have looked really cool doing that.
#19 Huey Lewis & The News - I Want A New Drug - 1984 #6
I remember my mom hearing the title to this song and initially thinking that I shouldn't be listening to it. I suppose I could see the confusion, since drugs have always been prevalent in rock & roll. But this song isn't about those kinds of drugs. And Huey Lewis & The News seem to be among the least-likely druggies among the 80s music scene.
#18 Roxette - The Look - 1989 #1 (1 wk)
The lyrics of this song make no sense. But nonetheless, I still think it's a catchy tune. Amazingly, this is the highest-ranked song by a band from Sweden in my 80s countdown.
#17 Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar On Me - 1988 #2
In the late 80s, I went through a phase where I listened to a lot of Glam Rock songs performed by Hair Bands. The highest-ranked Hair Band song on my chart is Def Leppard here.
#16 Wham! - Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go - 1984 #1 (3 wk)
I always thought that if you look up something like "happy, silly, fun 80s song" in the dictionary, you'll find either "Walking On Sunshine" or this tune. For those too young to remember, we used to say "Look it up in the dictionary", while now we say "Google it". If you don't know what a dictionary is, just Google it.
#15 Culture Club - Karma Chameleon - 1984 #1 (3 wk)
I was just a kid in the 80s and Boy George kinda confused me. I didn't know why this guy was dressing in women's clothes and wearing makeup. Ah, I was so naive. All I knew is that I liked Culture Club's music and I thought this was an especially catchy song.
#14 Michael Jackson - Billie Jean - 1983 #1 (7 wk)
The biggest hit from the biggest album of the decade lands at #14 on my countdown. Michael Jackson had been a star since he was a little kid. But the Thriller album turned him into one of the biggest superstars we have ever seen. Too bad he had such a strange lifestyle and kept getting himself into trouble.
#13 Men At Work - Down Under - 1983 #1 (4 wk)
I really enjoyed this quirky Australian band. Their songs were fun and they looked like they were having a good time. I remember having the Business As Usual album on LP. I think most of us Americans consider this song to basically be the Australian National Anthem.
#12 Olivia Newton-John - Physical - 1981 #1 (10 wk)
I was a little young in 1981, but I remember Olivia Newton-John as my first celebrity crush. "Physical" spent 10 weeks at Number One, which was the longest run by any song of the decade. And according to Billboard magazine, this was the biggest hit of the 1980s, and is close to my top 10.
#11 Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car - 1988 #1 (2 wk)
Billy Ocean had three Number Ones in his career; one each in 1984, 1986, and 1988. Alas, he did not carry the every-other-year streak into the 90s. However, his final Number One is the highest-ranked hit on my chart from the last couple years of the 80s and just missed my Top Ten.
#10 Rick Springfield - Jessie's Girl - 1981 #1 (2 wk)
When MTV premiered on Aug 1 1981, this song was #1 on the charts. But the video wasn't in the early rotation on MTV. Nonetheless, the song is an 80s classic, and it was Springfield's only Number One hit. Three of the last four songs have been from artists from Australia.
#9 The Power Station - Bang A Gong (Get It On) - 1985 #9
This is probably the most obscure song near the top of my chart. Since it hit the Top Ten, it wasn't exactly a minor hit. But it's not one of those songs that nowadays gets played very often on an 80s station. Nonetheless, I really liked this song from Robert Palmer, those two guys from Duran Duran, and the drummer from Chic.
#8 Daryl Hall & John Oates - Private Eyes - 1981 #1 (2 wk)
This is my highest-ranked song that's not from between the years 1983 and 1986. My entire countdown is somewhat skewed towards those years. Apparently I think that's when the best songs came out. Prior to 1983, perhaps I was a little young to have formed specific memories about the songs. And in the latter years of the 80s, I think the music got more fluffy and dance-y. I still like plenty of songs from those years, of course. But just not as many as from the middle of the decade. Anyway, here from 1981 is my highest-ranked song from the top duo in rock history.
#7 Mr. Mister - Kyrie - 1986 #1 (2 wk)
Mr Mister had three Top Ten hits from their album Welcome To The Real World, including two Number Ones. But that was just about it for the commercial success they had in their career. But one of their big hits is one of my favorite songs of the decade, and it lands here at Number 7.
#6 Bruce Springsteen - Dancing In The Dark - 1984 #2
Amazingly, Springsteen never had a #1 song. This was the closest he got. This song spent 4 weeks at #2, stuck behind "When Doves Cry" by Prince. Growing up in Connecticut in the 1980s, I was a big fan of this New Jersey rock legend. A few years after the 80s ended, I moved to New Jersey and have lived here ever since. I still haven't bumped into Bruce in the grocery store yet, however. Anyway, I always loved this fast, peppy tune. Back in the day, I guess I never really listened too hard to the lyrics. Like many of Springsteen's songs, this one is actually rather depressing. But I choose to remember it as a fun, happy song.
#5 Bryan Adams - Heaven - 1985 #1 (2 wk)
The first concert I attended was Bryan Adams at the New Haven Coliseum on June 28, 1985. The song "Heaven" hit #1 on the Billboard chart on June 22, 1985 and stayed there for two weeks. So I saw Bryan Adams in concert right when he hit #1 for the first time. I suppose that doesn't really mean anything, but it's an interesting tidbit. This is the highest-ranked slow song on my countdown.
#4 Huey Lewis & The News - The Heart Of Rock And Roll - 1984 #6
Here's the highest-ranking song on my chart from the Sports album, which is a cassette that I basically wore out from listening to so much. Not surprisingly then, a bunch of songs from this album make my list. For anyone too young to remember cassette tapes, this is what we listened to back in the 80s.
#3 Michael Jackson - Beat It - 1983 #1 (3 wk)
Here's my highest-ranked song from Thriller, the top-selling album of the 1980s. The song has Eddie Van Halen on guitar, and the video really helped launch MTV into a pop-culture phenomenon. Michael Jackson was a rather weird individual, but he made some great songs.
#2 Bryan Adams - Summer Of '69 - 1985 #5
Another song from the Reckless album, which is another cassette that I basically wore out from listening to so much. When I saw Bryan Adams in concert that Summer, he changed the lyrics to "Summer Of '85" for part of it. I like to change the lyrics to the "Summer of '89", which is the Summer after I graduated from high school, when my friends and I "were killin' time. We were young and restless. We needed to unwind. I guess nothin' can last forever."
#1 Huey Lewis & The News - The Power Of Love - 1985 #1 (2 wk)
Late Summer 1985 was a great time for music, as far as I'm concerned. My top two songs of the entire decade were in the Top 5 of the Billboard charts at the same time back then. This was the first song from Huey Lewis and the News to hit #1 on the charts, and it makes it to the top of my chart for the decade. It's from the movie Back To The Future, of course. I wouldn't quite list that movie among my favorites of the 80s, but it's certainly a classic. I'd bet there aren't many people out there would who list this song as their favorite of the 1980s. But apparently I do.
And that's it. My countdown of my favorite songs of the 1980s. I hope you've enjoyed watching the videos.
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