Mr. Plow's Top 100 Songs of the 80's

Great job, Mr. Plow!

Now i finally get to publish my list (albeit very seldom with the sort of notes and videos MP provided)

Well, looking back over MP's list, there are About 50 songs I REALLY like, there are only 13 (if I counted correctly) songs that overlap - albeit there are another 10 that I really am unhappy about leaving off.

As I mentioned before, I started with 400 pretty obvious choices, narrowed that to 150, and ranked until i got 100.

I ranked purely on personal preference, with the exception of a few songs that are elevated just because of sheer greatness even if they might not be precisely that high on my personal "gotta hear it" list - but eve nthen they have to be songs i like.

I paid no heed to what's considered to be "important" - just what I like to hear.

Obviously the list reflects some of my personal biases -
Both U2 and Bob Seger appear 9 times, 1988 and 1989 are light compared to other years ('86 was too for some reason)
- and for the most part it's very mainstream stuff (the great majority you can still hear pretty often on "classic rock" stations)


there might be a song or two on here that didn't meet MP's cut off - I know there's at least one which, frankly, I cannot discuss 80's music without it, whether it reached the top 40 or not. but if I did include such a song, it's one that's gotten much more popular since - not an obscure cult favorite.

Honorable mention to several songs from the Eddie and the Crusiers 2 Album which are excellent, but not remotely chart songs, or hold any status which would get them on the list.



I'll list them 10 at a time, at least until I get to the top 40, and will try to limit the videos to one or two in each group, and i may or may not say anything about any or all of them.

100. She Blinded Me With Science - Thomas Dolby (just too much fun to leave off)
99. Shakedown - Bob Seger (incredible to believe that this was his only #1)
98. Sweet Child o' Mine - G&R (has continued to grow on me over the years)
97. China Girl - David Bowie (liked this album better than the 70's stuff in general)
96. Pink Houses - John Cougar Mellancamp (hard to like any of his songs more or less than others)
95. Crazy for You - Madonna (soundtrack song)
94. Tender Years - John Cafferty (tragically underrated talent)
93. Roll Me Away - Bob Seger (underrated Album)

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92. Candle In the Wind - Elton John (take your pick of versions)
91. Moonlighting (theme) - Al Jarreau (excellent quite apart from loving the show)

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Bonus video since Moonlighting is on your mind now:

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DETAILS!


90. Jungle Love - The Time / 1985 - (this is a place where MP and I are in complete agreement. There are few, if any more appealing funk songs ever, let alone in the 80's)

89. Oh No - The Commodores / 1981 - (Soul music was one of the places I surprised myself at how many songs I ranked, and how many others i really wanted to)

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88. In the Air Tonight - Phil Collins / 1981

87. You'll Accompany Me - Bob Seger / 1980 - (at his peak)

86. Little Red Corvette - Prince / 1983

85. Big Time - Peter Gabriel / 1987 - (this and one other song in the 80's were, for me, the high point of his work)

84. Rain on the Scarecrow - John Cougar Mellencamp / 1986 - (JCM made his name and his fortune on upbeat, singalong ditties with only a little bit of depth, this is one major venture into the Neil Young sort of anger, but I really think it works)

83. Midnight Blue - Lou Graham / 1987 - (when you are dealing with an iconic voice, it's always difficult for me to see the difference in their solo work and the work with their group. For people who are much more a student of the instruments than me maybe it's easy to know, without ever having been told, that this isn't Foreigner, but i just don't pick up on it that easy)

82. Everything She Wants - Wham / 1985 - (Might as well just go ahead and say "George Michael" here, right?)

81. Oh Sherrie - Steve Perry / 1984 - (everything about Graham above applies here as well)

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I have to say, "Uncle Bob" in relation to Bob Seger. A friend of mine from years ago used to call him that and I caught myself repeating it to my kids. They wanted to know why. He's definitely the really cool uncle everyone wishes they had.

Looking forward to the rest of the list here, too, Nova!

SCIENCE! Iconic New Wave song

Least Favorite Seger 'hit'

You know my feelings on this song

Good Bowie song, better than "Let's Dance", but not as good as "Modern Love"

The whole "Uh Huh" album is stellar

Generally, I like slow Madonna songs (like this, "Live To Tell", and "Take abow") better than fast ones.

Knew some Cafferty was coming

"Even Now" is a better Distance song

The raw quality of his voice in the live version (he needed throat surgery at the time) makes this one great

A great song (& show - I have the series on my hard drive).

The original version, from 1973's Goodbye Yellow Brick Road was never released as a single. This version hit #6 in 1 early 1988. The re-worked Lady Di version spent 14 weeks at #1 in 1997.

Hell yeah!

IMHO, the best Commodores ballad (better than Three Times A Lady & Still). Maybe I'm just fondly remembering it from Last American Virgin.

Gated Reverb Drums make the song

Best Seger 80's album (against The Wind), but I like Stranger In Town & Night Moves better overall

1983 was too strong a year for me to include this gem in the Top 10.

For a guy that makes a lot of serious, depressing music, this one is a lot of fun.

Meh

Love this song. As good as anything Foreigner did in the 80's.

One of the few (maybe 2) Wham songs I like

Another winner

I find I have erred in not having operated from the final draft of the list (albeit no draft is ever really final with me - if i look at it a month from now the list would have to have half a dozen changes.

But the last changes i made as you were nearing #1 were saved on a different tab...

Anyway, "Shakedown" is out (weird not to drop the last song i know) and "Little Red Corvette" should be in it's place. And song which creates this confusion - Prince's "1999" was to have been #86.

Essentially, I discovered that I'd failed to list 1999 and subbed it for Shakedown and then it occurred to me that i like it considerably better of the two Prince songs. Rather than moving everything in between, I just flipped them.

This is all very unseemly and if I discover such errors in the future I'll keep them to myself.

80. Power of Love - Huey Lewis and the News / 1985 - there's a tedious and self-referential backstory on why this made the list. I liked all their stuff but this (admittedly very commercial) single stands out for me.

79. Xanadu - Olivia Newton-John/ELO / 1980 - (if you think I'm going to return to THIS album multiple times in this list, you know me well!)

78. Our House - Madness / 1983 - (yes, I'm a sucker for the one-hit wonders of the 80's - now watch someone point out that Madness had another minor hit I'd forgotten)

77. Shame on the Moon - Bob Seger / 1983 - another song from "The Distance, written BTW by country singer/songwriter -and one time Mr. Rosanne Cash- Rodney Crowell)

76. Keep Your Hands to Yourself - Georgia Satellites / 1987 - (see above re One Hit Wonders)

75. At This Moment - Billy Vera and the Beaters / 1987 - (originally released to little fanfare earlier in the decade, I presume all of you of a certain age know why it eventually hit the charts in '87)

74. Gypsy - Fleetwood Mac / 1982 - (I find that most of my favorite FM songs were actually released in the 70's, but I loved this one)

73. Cool Change - Little River Band / 1980 - (mostly forgotten by "classic rock" stations, these guys didn't stay at their peak a long time but it was a very lovely peak)

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72. I Miss You - Klymaxx / 1985 - (this is the sort of song i had in mind up-thread when I complain about how much of the really good music of the 80's is forgotten by so many. The all girl band you didn't remember)

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71. Key Largo - Bertie Higgins / 1982 - (just on originality and creativity alone this stands out to me)

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"It Must Be Love" (#33 in 1983)

Here is a complete list of


Mr. Plow's Top 100 Songs of the 80's


Here are the artists that had multiple songs on the list:

Prince ...................... 4

Bruce Springsteen ...... 3

U2 ........................... 2
The Police ................. 2
Michael Jackson ......... 2
The Motels ................ 2
Phil Collins ................. 2
Tears for Fears .......... 2
Kool and the Gang ...... 2
Billy Ocean ................ 2
Simply Red ................ 2
Bon Jovi .................... 2
Def Leppard ............... 2
Living Color ................ 2


It's remarkable that Mr. Plow was able to include so many different artists.

mine sure ain't like that! I'm REAL heavy on my favorite acts in a few cases.

Thanks for doing that recap list. My original list changed over the course of the month or 2 it took me to post them all - starting somewhere in the 70's. My original list was as follows:

100) Cinderella - Nobody's Fool
99) Bobby McFerrin - Don't Worry, Be Happy
98) Starship - Sara
97) The Honeydrippers - Sea of Love
96) Living Colour - Cult Of Personality
95) Tears for Fears - Sowing The Seeds Of Love
94) Bonnie Tyler - Total Eclipse of the Heart
93) The Clash - Train in Vain
92) Rick James - Super Freak
91) Madonna - Borderline
90) A Flock Of Seagulls - I Ran
89) Madness - Our House
88) The Time - Jungle Love
87) Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar On Me
86) Elton John - I Guess That's Why They Call It The Blues
85) AC/DC - You Shook Me All Night Long
84) Prince - Kiss
83) Phil Collins - Easy Lover (W/ Phillip Bailey)
82) Robert Palmer - I Didn't Mean To Turn You On
81) The Cure - Love Song
80) Bon Jovi - Livin' On A Prayer
79) Billy Idol - Eyes Without A Face
78) Pat Benatar - invincible (Theme From The
77) Chicago - Hard To Say I'm Sorry
76) Hall & Oates - You Make My Dreams
75) Terence Trent d'Arby - Wishing Well
74) Grateful Dead - Touch Of Grey
73) Olivia Newton-John - Magic
72) Steve Miller Band - Abracadabra
71) Eddie Money - Take Me Home Tonight-Be My Baby
70) Love And Rockets - So Alive
69) Bobby Brown - Every Little Step
68) Dexy's Midnight Runners - Come on Eileen
67) George Michael - Father Figure
66) Prince - U Got the Look
65) Asia - Heat Of The Moment
64) Def Leppard - Photograph
63) Bruce Springsteen - Tunnel Of Love
62) Living Colour - Glamour Boys
61) Dan Hartman - I Can Dream About You
60) Bill Withers - Just The Two Of Us
59) Whitesnake - Here I Go Again
58) Men At Work - Overkill
57) Toto - Rosanna
56) Tina Turner - What's Love Got To Do With It
55) Queen - Another One Bites the Dust
54) Simple Minds - Don't You (Forget About Me)
53) Gary Numan - Cars
52) Paul Carrack - Don't Shed A Tear
51) Sting - Fortress Around Your Heart
50) Tommy Tutone - 867-5309 (Jenny)
49) Marvin Gaye - Sexual Healing
48) Chaka Khan - I Feel For You
47) The Go Go's - Our Lips Are Sealed
46) Janet Jackson - Let's Wait Awhile
45) Simply Red - If You Don't Know Me By Now
44) Christopher Cross - Arthur's Theme (Best That You Ca
43) Simply Red - Holding Back The Years
42) Bruce Hornsby & The Range - The Way It Is
41) Phil Collins - A Groovy Kind Of Love
40) Huey Lewis & The News - The Power of Love
39) Joe Jackson - Steppin' Out
38) Guns 'N' Roses - Patience
37) Hall & Oates - Private Eyes
36) Michael Jackson - Rock With You
35) Bruce Springsteen - Dancing In The Dark
34) Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This)
33) Bruce Springsteen - Hungry Heart
32) Ambrosia - Biggest part of me
31) The Police - Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
30) Kool & The Gang - Celebration
29) Fleetwood Mac - Hold Me
28) Tracy Chapman - Fast Car
27) U2 - I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For
26) Genesis - Throwing It All Away
25) Prince and the Revolution - Raspberry beret
24) Level 42 - Something About You
23) The Bangles - Eternal Flame
22) Mr. Mister - Kyrie
21) Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain
20) Phil Collins - Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now)
19) Duran Duran - Hungry Like The Wolf
18) Paul Young - Everytime You Go Away
17) Mike + The Mechanics - The Living Years
16) Journey - Don't Stop Believin'
15) Bon Jovi - Wanted Dead Or Alive
14) Queen - Crazy Little Thing Called Love
13) John Mellencamp - Jack & Diane
12) Tears For Fears - Everybody Wants To Rule The Wo
11) Guns 'N' Roses - sweet child o mine
10) Billy Ocean - Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car
9) Steve Winwood - Higher Love
8) The Alan Parsons Project - Eye In The Sky
7) John Lennon - (Just Like) Starting Over
6) Lionel Richie - Endless Love (With Diana Ross)
5) Michael Jackson - Billie Jean
4) Crowded House - Don't Dream It's Over
3) Cyndi Lauper - Time after Time
2) The Police - Every Breath You Take
1) U2 - With Or Without You



I think 1986 changed the most; the top 2 were removed completely. The Top 1989 song was a last minute change as well.

70. Head over Heels - Tears for Fears / 1985 - (I find I like these guys now much more than i did then, and i didn't hate them then)

69. In a Big Country - Big Country / 1983 - (I'm always a sucker for a rock song with the 'pipes in it - and i love the "big" sound of eighties music and this is a great example)

68. Freeze Frame - J. Geils Band / 1982 (JGB doesn't have a huge string of hits, but this album was a very good peak)

67. Old Time Rock and Roll - Bob Seger / 1983 (presumably bumped onto the charts after "Risky Business" - at least i'm thinking that the album it was on was released in the 70's)

66. Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears for Fears / 1985 (another prolific album)

65. Careless Whisper - Wham / 1095 (what can I say? I like it)

64 Working My Way Back To You/Forgive Me Girl - The Spinners / 1980 (this sort of thing is just infectious to me, hard to sit stil listening to it)

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63. Hungry Heart - Bruce Springsteen / 1980 (you know it's weird, the whole storyline of the song is "I'm an asshole who abandoned my family" but even so, it's impossible to not like this song)

62. New Year's Day - U2 / 1983 (this is one of two songs, at least, on this list that I know didn't me MP's criteria for eligibility, but i simply can't do an 80s list without them, so I cheated)

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61. On the Dark Side - John Cafferty / 1984 (more from the man who sounded too much like Springsteen for his own good)

Anecdote time.

i was raised on pre-Beatles rock and country music until I got old enough to start buying my own, which was the late 70's, and I because aware of the best of rock music little by little - foreigner, REO Speedwagon, Seger, etc. ELO became a big favorite and the Xanadu soundtrack blew my mind. but there were a lot of blind spots in terms of what were then newer acts (or in some cases newer to the US)

in February 1983 I left for boot camp for the U.S. Navy and at that point i'd never heard of U2. Via irrelevant circumstances ended up with a medical separation (a discharge but not officially a discharge) and I had to spend almost a month in a "holding company" while the paperwork was processed. One thing this company had that the other one didn't was an activity room with a TV - a TV that spent a LOT of time on MTV (there was no MTV on the cable at home - I'd never seen it)

The second night there, this song (New Year's Day) came up in the rotation while i was in the room, and it was literally like i'd discovered a $100 bill in my pocket. My reaction was "WHO are THESE guys and where can I get MORE?!"

Frankly, I love the soundtrack for 1, but i think the music in 2 was even better and I'm mystified that it didn't do better commercially.

These songs, too me, are just fine fine work:

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[yt=Just a Matter of Time]ED_fdLv9paE&feature=related[/yt]

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I thought the film itself didn't have the magic of the first one but it was certainly not as bad as it was claimed to be. The main difference is that pare is a B actor no matter how you look at it and there was no one else in the cast to elevate him. I could certainly tolerate the movie as a vehicle to get me from one song to the next.

Didn't Eddy & The Cruisrers sound just like Bruce Springsteen?

60. Another One bites the Dust - Queen / 1980 (i think this was the song that introduced me to Queen and, as with a lot of other groups, I had to go back and catch up on what i'd missed)

59. Suddenly - ONJ & Cliff Richard / 1981 (there's a long note to be written about CR being, at one time, the "English Elvis" before the Beatles came along and stole his thunder. He and Olivia have a life-long, non-romantic, history)

58. Fire Lake - Bob Seger / 1980 (particularly the live version on Nine Tonight)

57. Goodnight Saigon - Billy Joel / 1983 (I didn't appreciate this enough in '83 but years later i fell in love with it)

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56. I'm Alive - ELO / 1980 (I might have every single off the Xanadu album on this list...)

55. Who's Crying Now - Journey / 1981 (this is one of those "soundtrack of your life" songs for me, as not a few from 1981 are)

54. Twilight - ELO / 1981 (The song that touches of their "Time" album, which was one of my most treasured possessions in the 1980's and certainly spent more hours on my turntable than any other album)

One of my all time favorite mash-ups (which includes the song which followed Twilight on the album):

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53. Shining Star - The Manhattans / 1980 (more excellent soul music, how did something so good fade away while hip-hop emerged? That alone ought to be worth a death sentence on the whole planet)

52. Land of Confusion - Genesis / 1987 (one of the best videos ever made)

51. Do They Know It's Christmas / Band-Aid (the remake of this was a horrendous piece of shit, by the way)

Err, you never looked. Madness was well established by '83 after "One step beyond" in '79. For ska fans, they're old guard legends.

Not on the US charts. "Our House" was the first thing I'd ever heard from them, and "It Must Be Love" was the last.

50. All I want Is You - U2 / 1989 (the second of three cases - as far as I can remember - in which I toss aside the "Top 40" requirement for a song I love, and the I can least wiggle on. Because the other two at least enjoy "classic rock" status and this one is largely overlooked on radio and so forth. whatever. Sue me)

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49. We Didn't Start the Fire - Billy Joel / 1989 (I can't help but be impressed by the rapid-fire style)

48. I Won't Back Down - Tom Petty / 1989 (just the definition of a good rock song)

47. Thriller - Michael Jackson / 1984 (impossible to separate the actual song from the video)

46. Don't Stop Believin' - Journey / 1981 (has reached iconic status)

45. It's Still Rock and Roll to Me - Billy Joel / 1980 (the song which really introduced me to Joel - i'd no doubt heard "The Piano Man" and some others at some point but this was the 'time and place' song that registered on me and made me figure out who this guy was)

44. Leather and Lace - Stevie Nicks and Don Henley / 1982 (a very good song off an excellent album which produced other songs on this list)

43. The One I Love - R.E.M. / 1987 (i didn't fully appreciate this song or this group nearly enough at the time, looking back I have to say I didn't know what I was missing)

42. Juke Box Hero - Foreigner / 1982 - (honestly, pure rock cheese, but it's still one I really like)

41.Silent Running - Mike & the Mechanics / 1986 (I love the kid of paranoid sci-fi vibe going on in this one)

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40. Sunday Bloody Sunday - U2 / 1983 - the last (I think) of my uncharted exceptions. I simply cannot rationally discuss the best music of the 80's without mentioning this song.

39. Allentown - Billy Joel / 1983 - this year was the most prolific one of the decade on my list, placing a total of 16 songs.

38. Who Can it Be Now? - Men at Work / 1982 - I love the off-beat sense of humor these guys had

37. Will the Wolf Survive? - Los Lobos / 1985 - from time to time a band comes along and i think "there were probably be a dozen songs by these guys that i love" and it turns out not to be the case. it ends up being just the one that i really really like, some others that are pretty okay and then they just fade away from my attention. but I loved this one.
I wasn't sure if I'd fine the [yt=original video]lJVsUMKftMo[/yt]

36. (Pride) In The Name Of Love - U2 / 1984 - By now i guess everyone has heard the anecdote about the mistake in the lyrics but I'll repeat it. The song goes "...early morning, April 4..." when, in fact, King was shot at dusk. when it was pointed out to Bono he said something to the effect of "too bad, i'm not changing it"

35. Sledgehammer - Peter Gabriel / 1986 - Another of Gabriel's "non-depressing" songs.

34. Dirty Laundry - Don Henley / 1983 - I liked Henley's ability to "say something" and do it in a very listenable way.

33. True - Spandau Ballet / 1983 - apparently a much bigger deal internationally than they ever were here, but this song is a classic for anyone with taste (IMNSHO)

32. Desert Moon - Dennis DeYoung / 1984 - both the song and the video work perfectly for me. I've observed from time to time that the best songs for me are the ones where I can write a story based on the lyrics, and the "feel" of a song - and [yt=this]2cFOLFtw2Ic&ob=av2e[/yt] is one of those songs.


31. Angel of Harlem - U2 / 1989 - This was from Rattle and Hum which for some reason not everyone liked but which i wore completely out. This was my favorite from the album but i loved almost every one.

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the 80's featured a lot of acts that were, or were perceived as, one-hit wonders. i have six of them in my top 30

30. A Kind of Magic - Queen / 1986 - yet another that I overlooked at the time - Queen's peak period in the U.S. wasn't as long as it was elsewhere but we missed out on a lot because of that.

29. Like a Rock - Bob Seger / 1986 - I'm mentioned before visualizing a "back-story" for many of my favorite songs - for this one, the voice, to me, was of a guy who'd been to Vietnam and came home disabled. I can see him sitting in a wheelchair in front of a fireplace remembering the years before his injury.

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28. The Way You Make Me Feel - Michael Jackson / 1988 - overlooked gem, IMO.

27. Desire - U2 / 1988 - I may have previously noted, there are nine U2 songs on this list. I'm kind of a fan...

26. Magic - Olivia Newton-John / 1980 - Five songs on the list from the Xanadu soundtrack

25. Back in Black - AC/DC / 1981 - pretty much the theme song of 1981 in my part of the world, seemed to be in constant rotation at every party or get together of any size.

24. Don't You Forget About Me - Simple Minds / 1985 - Still love that movie.

23. Take it On the Run - REO Speedwagon / 1981 - I loved everything on "Hi Infidelity" and if this list went to 300 there would probably be 6 or 7 songs off it on the list.

22. One Night in Bangkok - Murray Head / 1985 - the snark in this song is glorious to behold.

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21. Southern Cross - CS&N / 1982 - for someone who's never spent any time at sea, it's amazing how much I "feel" the songs about being on the ocean (This, and "Sailing" and "Cool Change" leap immediately to mind)

WTF? I never really listened to the lyrics. I just figured Southern Cross meant:

While we wait for Nova's Top 20, I'll continue my Glaring Omission posts with one from 89 and one from 87.

From 1989:

89 was a pretty crappy year. It took a lot of work to find 10 songs that I thought were even really good. Somehow I left this one off. The song is a kinda throwback to early 80's Kool & the Gang party songs. Unfortunately, the rest of their album is not like this song & they faded into quick obscurity after this single.

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From 87:

By contrast, 87 was a strong year, at least at the top. I'm not sure what I'd remove to accommodate this one, but I feel bad about omitting it anyway. Another 1-hit wonder.

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Has it really been six days again? I hadn't figured on taking that long between posts...

20. When Doves Cry - Prince / 1984 (to me this song distilled the very best of Prince's quirky style into a compelling song that caught you up in the passion of the lyrics)

19. Heart and Soul - T'Pau / 1987 (So many of these groups I could never understand what happened to them. A while back I discovered that Carol Decker is experiencing a bit of a revival in the U.K. and can still belt it out)

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18. Another Brick in the Wall - Pink Floyd / 1980 (really no explanation needed here)

17. Don't Do Me Like That - Tom Petty / 1980 (Petty's music was, to me, more infections in those days than it was later. it was always pretty high quality but I liked the early 80's stuff better)

16. Cone On Eileen - Dexy's Midnight Runners / 1983 (one of the quintessential songs of the 80's - if you hate this song then you and i simply share no common frame of reference)

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15. Where the Streets Have No Name - U2 / 1987 (not only an astonishing song, but one of the best videos ever made. You know you have made a helluva album when something THIS good is only the third best song on the album)

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14. Tryin' To Live My Life Without You - Bob Seger / 1981 (The perfect song to kick off a live album. One of the things I hate about Seger is the way they handle his work and how stingy they are with his recordings of the songs that don't make the albums)

13. A Fine Fine Day - Tony Carey / 1984 (One thing i loved a lot about this song is that the video director obviously shared my "vision" of how to listen to music - in the sense of often "seeing a story" in the music)

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12. Life in a Northern Town - Dream Academy / 1986 (my second favorite "one hit wonder" song of the 80's...almost magical in capturing a perfect tone)

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11. Man in the Mirror - Michael Jackson / 1988 (in one sense is over the top obvious in shoving a message in your face and often that would turn me completely off. it's a tribute to how well this is done that I not only enjoy it but praise it so highly)