#41: "We're Not Gonna Take It" - Twisted Sister
So far on this countdown, we’ve seen a number of heavy metal legends show up – Quiet Riot, Ratt, Iron Maiden – and we’ve discussed the impact MTV had on their success.
Written Work
Articles and essays.
#42: "I Can Dream About You" - Dan Hartman
Dan Hartman had been bouncing around the music business for two decades when he finally got his one big smash hit single as a solo artist.
#43: "Here Comes The Rain Again" - Eurythmics
One of the most powerful and soulful voices of the 80s spent the first part of her career with those pipes juxtaposed against cold electronic beats and synthesizers courtesy of her musical partner, and the stark contrast gave them a sound like no one else.
#44: "Go Insane" - Lindsey Buckingham
Lindsey Buckingham came to prominence when he and his then-girlfriend/musical partner Stevie Nicks both joined the British blues rock band Fleetwood Mac and reinvigorated it into an absolute pop music force.
#45: "So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry)" - R.E.M.
Formed in 1980 in the burgeoning and vibrant music scene of Athens, GA, R.E.M.
#46: "2 Minutes To Midnight" - Iron Maiden
In 1947, the nonprofit Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists first published the Doomsday Clock.
#47: "Authority Song" - John Cougar Mellencamp
Sometimes life can feel like an endless slog.
#48: "99 Luftballons" - Nena
As someone who lived through the Cold War era of the 80s, albeit as a kid, it’s hard (or at least it used to be hard) to describe the underlying sense of dread that permeated society, and that feeling informed a lot of the art of the time.
#49: "Karma Chameleon" - Culture Club
Formed in 1981, it only took two years for the British group Culture Club to conquer the music world and thrust their androgynous lead singer Boy George into the global spotlight.
#50: "Hammer To Fall" - Queen
1984 was the year that the British quartet led by Freddie Mercury inexplicably fell out of favor with American audiences.
#51: "Jam On It" - Newcleus
By the middle of the 1980s, the breakdancing fad was reaching critical mass.
#52: "Yah Mo B There" - James Ingram and Michael McDonald
Plucked from midwestern obscurity by 80s super-producer Quincy Jones, Akron, Ohio, native James Ingram exploded onto the R&B scene thanks to key featured vocal spots on Jones’s 1981 album The Dude.
#53: "Missing You" - John Waite
He first came to prominence as frontman for The Babys, a British group that generated a pair of top 20 hits in the late 70s, but as the new decade dawned, their fortunes waned and the group broke up.
#54: "Middle Of The Road" - Pretenders
If you’re looking for the most rocking song about muddling through the grind of life and dealing with juggling everyday hypocrisies and simple daily survival, look no further than the gem Chrissie Hynde gifted us with as the third single from her band’s third album.
#55: "Send Me An Angel" - Real Life
Yes, the American public’s fascination with New Wave was waning, but as evidenced by Talk Talk one position ago, there was still juice to be squeezed out of the genre when the right band came along with the right song.
#56: "It's My Life" - Talk Talk
Though they would eventually evolve past their synth-pop beginnings, London-based quartet Talk Talk were very much enthralled with electronic soundscapes on their first two outings.
#57: "Borderline" - Madonna
Hard to believe we were nearly halfway through the 80s before the woman who arguably owned the decade from a pop stardom standpoint even began her rise.
#58: "Jump (For My Love)" - Pointer Sisters
The R&B sibling trio known as the Pointer Sisters had sent three songs into the very upper reaches of the pop chart from 1978 to 1981, but their 1982 album So Excited had failed to generate a hit that big – at least initially – and the Pointers appeared to be cooling…
#59: "Caribbean Queen (No More Love On The Run)" - Billy Ocean
A number of singers became newly-minted stars in 1984, launching careers that would span the rest of the decade and beyond in some cases.
#60: "Boys Do Fall In Love" - Robin Gibb
By the mid-80s, disco was well-and-truly dead.