Most Influential Bands of the 80’s

There were a lot of bands that emerged in the 80’s that had a great impact on the entire decade of music. This list is based on artists that survived that decade and went on to produce great music beyond those years, even if some members did it solo.

Here is my list of my Top 10 bands that emerged in the 80’s, why I chose them, and some recommendations of what to buy should you not own any of their music. With the exception of the number 1 and 2 picks, the remainder of the list are in no particular order.

1. U2 – Bono and the boys top the list for me for several reasons. I have such a deep profound love for Bono that I shamelessly carry a picture of him in my wallet. To me, it’s clear why they would be at the top of the list. U2 has impacted music unlike any other band (okay, except for Springsteen, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, and Bob Dylan, and others you can argue with me about). My brother sent me my first U2 cassette tape (yes, a cassette) when I was in high school while he was away at college. The quality wasn’t good, but he knew that I’d like it. And I did. Early U2 days left Bono’s voice with a lot to be desired, but with the release of The Joshua Tree he had clearly improved. What made U2 so special back in the 80’s was Bono as their charismatic front man and their unique sound produced by Edge’s guitar. They were unlike any other band we had heard. U2 tells a story with every song and people have become believers. The evolution of U2 over the past 20 years has had its ups and downs, but they’ve held their audience well even through the Pop and Zooropa days. I think all U2 albums are must haves, but if you’re on a limited budget, spring for Boy, The Joshua Tree, and All That You Can’t Leave Behind. If you have U2 on vinyl still, keep them. They’re worth something.

2. R.E.M. – When I first heard REM, I immediately liked Michael Stipe’s sharp and distinctive singing voice. They lost Bill Berry as their drummer who, from what I read, pleaded with the band not to break up if he left after a traumatizing brain aneurysm and an admission that he wasn’t as enthusiastic about the band as he used to be. R.E.M.’s early days produced great songs like South Central Rain, Radio Free Europe and Fall on Me. Later on Document, the band released The One I Love, which had perpetual air time on the radio. Admittedly, I could listen to that song repeatedly and it never seems to wear on me. In addition, I listened to Out of Time to the point of exhaustion as well as Automatic for the People. I feel R.E.M. is an underrated band and warrants as much radio air time as U2 gets. Listen to any R.E.M. album and you find some great recordings that don’t get any airtime. Those will become your favorites. I recommend getting, at least, the first 8 R.E.M. recordings, but if you’re limited, grab Murmur, Fables of the Reconstruction, Document, and, it’s a toss up between Out of Time and Automatic for the People.

3. Duran Duran – Okay, don’t jump all over me for this one, but Duran Duran did a great job in the 80’s of showing signs of being a sustainable band. Girls on Film is a hip pop dance song along with others such as The Reflex, Union of the Snake, and Notorious. The band seemed to have lost air play, but continued to produce and record albums that only devout fans have their hands on. They reemerged back on the pop scene with hits like Ordinary World and Come Undone and proved that they could keep up with other legendary rockers (or pop stars) with continued hard work. Duran Duran continues to tour and has been said to be one of late Princess Diana’s favorite bands. I recommend downloading Ordinary World and Come Undone, but buy their debut Duran Duran and Rio.

4. Bon Jovi – What Jersey girl doesn’t like Bon Jovi? The boys in Bon Jovi are working class and proud of it. Their early days as a hair band with spandex made them likeable to women, but their hard rocker style appealed to all the hard rocking men out there. They’ve since changed their look in that time (as many hair bands did) and have also proven that they can go the distance as a band. She Don’t Know Me is a forgotten favorite as many focus on the Slippery When Wet album, which is great on its own. Runaway was their breakout hit, but who doesn’t love to hear Livin’ on a Prayer, You Give Love a Bad Name, and Wanted Dead or Alive. What is interesting about Bon Jovi is its evolution into the country music arena with their hit Who Says You Can’t Go Home in which they included Jennifer Nettles of Sugarland on the vocal track. You have to own their first recording Bon Jovi, along with Slippery When Wet. Bounce is also a great CD. Go ahead and download the hits from Have a Nice Day and Lost Highway.

5. The Clash – So, I stretched this one a bit. The Clash really formed in the late 70’s, but didn’t really become popular in the U.S. until the 80’s. They released three records before the 80’s hit including London Calling, which was released in 1979 in England and in 1980 in the U.S., was probably their most well-know recording. But Sandinista! and Combat Rock, which were released afterward, did just as well commercially. A great punk band, The Clash, with Joe Strummer as its manic front man, saw great success in the 80’s and Strummer held on while other band members changed for various reasons. He died in December 2002 just before they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Get yourself London Calling, Sandinista! and Combat Rock.

6. Def Leppard – These English rockers sprung on the scene with Bringin’ on the Heartbreak from Hi and Dry released in 1981, and Photograph from Pyromania in 1983. They followed that with some great songs off Hysteria like Pour Some Sugar on Me, Animal, Love Bites, Hysteria and Armageddon It. They’ve not really taken a break, other than maybe to outfit their drummer Rick Allen with a sophisticated new drum machine after the loss of his arm in a motorcycle accident. They have a 2008 release called Songs from the Sparkle Lounge. I loved them in high school and still love them now. If you don’t already own Pyromania, Hi and Dry and Hysteria, treat yourself.

7. Madonna – While she’s not exactly a band and obviously the most oddball member of this list, Madonna has carved a niche for herself that no one seems to be able to compete with. She has the uncanny ability to reinvent herself as years pass. Her start as a raggedy dressed vixen had later transformed into a sophisticated singer and to her current pop icon status. Borderline was her breakout hit, but people forget about the songs Everybody, Burning Up, and Holiday all from her debut album. This was not soon to be outdone by the release of Lucky Star. She followed her debut with another string of hits on Like a Virgin and next with True Blue, in which she toned down her vamp-like dress with something more subdued for the song Live to Tell. Like a Prayer followed along with seven other albums. The key to Madonna is that she knows how to market herself and her image is ever changing. I’m a closet Madonna fan and admittedly do not own anything but her greatest hits, but that’s all you need, right?

8. The Cure – The Head on the Door, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me, and Disintegration are what puts The Cure on this list for me. They had other recordings released prior to these three albums, but in reality not too many of those songs got any airtime on the radio. In Between Days is a phenomenal song and it’s another one on my list that I never tire of. In addition to that, Pictures of You, Fascination Street, Disintegration and Just Like Heaven are all worthy of us taking a moment to enjoy Robert Smith’s ominous presence and dark black eyeliner. This is another group that has enjoyed continued success and is looking to release their thirteenth album in the near future. I suggest getting the three albums I mentioned and adding them to your CD library as there are many other truly great songs that deserve your attention.

9. The Smiths – Morrissey is so depressing, but that’s all the more reason to enjoy anything from The Smiths. Morrissey broke out on his own with nine other solo releases, after The Smith’s last release as a group in 1987. There were only four released albums, all of which you should own. They are, The Smiths, Meat is Murder, The Queen is Dead, and Strangeways, Here We Come. Great tracks that you’ll hear are This Charming Man, How Soon is Now?, Big Mouth Strikes Again, and Girlfriend in a Coma. How Soon is Now? is a personal favorite and you can hear part of that song in Adam Sandler’s The Wedding Singer, a movie in which a lot of great 80’s songs have been incorporated. Also, rent any John Hughes movie and you’ll be inundated with great 80’s music.

10. INXS – The untimely death of Michael Hutchence brought this band to an abrupt halt in1997, however, their contributions to music prior to that had this band on the rise. Two albums were produced and were popular in their native Australia, but 1982’s Shabooh Shoobah release put them on the American charts. Songs like Don’t Change and The One Thing became popular hits and women loved Michael Hutchence’s good looks. Listen Like Thieves, Kick and X are my recommendations, but stay tuned for more of INXS as the show Rock Star INXS produced a new lead singer for the band who could reproduce some of Hutchence’s unique style.

Just like the amp for Nigel Tufnel’s guitar in Spinal Tap, the honorable mention goes to….

The Police – I’d be remiss if I left The Police off this list. While I debated about booting Duran Duran, they really did contribute to the dance/techno-like scene of the 80’s and are still producing music today. Along the lines of The Clash, The Police were incredibly popular in the 80’s, and even though their first two releases were in the late 70’s, they were not as well-liked then as they were in the 80’s. Outlandos D’Amour and Regatta de Blanc are must haves. Roxanne never gets old and neither does Don’t Stand So Close to Me. Walking on the Moon, So Lonely, Message in a Bottle, The Bed’s too Big Without You, are timeless tracks with their rock ‘n reggae style. Go ahead and spring for Zenyatta Mondatta, Synchronicity, and Ghost in the Machine, too. Sting went on to do other great things as did Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers. They recently reunited for a tour, but tensions among the band, especially toward Sting, won’t keep them back together for long.