If you can read this, either the style sheet didn't load or you have an older browser that doesn't support style sheets. Try clearing your browser cache and refreshing the page.

(New Musical Express)   The 100 best songs of the 1980s. Amazingly, they pull off the #1 choice   (nme.com) divider line 269
    More: Cool, human beings, Frank Black, Rick Astley, Lindsey Buckingham, Grace Slick, soft rock, Omd, Joe Strummer  
•       •       •

18339 clicks; posted to Entertainment » on 28 Apr 2012 at 12:04 PM   |  Favorite    |   share:  Share on Twitter share via Email Share on Facebook   more»



269 Comments   (+0 »)
   
View Voting Results: Smartest and Funniest

Archived thread

First | « | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | » | Last | Show all
 
2012-04-28 07:57:20 PM
i104.photobucket.com
 
2012-04-28 07:58:04 PM
British list is British.

I only recognized about 2/3 of the songs, and I grew up in the 80's.
 
2012-04-28 07:58:16 PM
tnpir: sponkster: Wow I grew up in the 80's and dont recognize a single song in the top 10. To much metal i guess

Not even "When Doves Cry"? That's the only one in the Top 10 that I recognized and I too grew up in the 80s.


I find that hard to believe, did any of you listen to the songs? Maybe you just don't know the names but the top 10 was pretty much right and almost every musician states a few of those songs as influences when writing/performing.

What Buffalo Stance is doing up there that high is a mystery though, its an ok song but top 10 of the 80s? It may not be top 20 or 50.
 
2012-04-28 07:58:26 PM
I guess I don't understand what the criteria was or what genre of music they were picking or who was doing the picking.

Cause the top ten sure was absolute garbage.
 
2012-04-28 07:59:39 PM
verbaltoxin: FeedTheCollapse: judging from this thread, quite a bit of you had no idea what NME was before posting here. There is also a significant overlap of that crowd with those who think this list is the be-all-end-all authority on personal opinion and that these lists don't list solely to spark debate.

Fark sure is whiny about stuff it dislikes...


[i39.tinypic.com image 477x346]


verbaltoxinsure is whiny about stuff it dislikes...
 
2012-04-28 08:01:00 PM
bluesbox: That's one of the defining songs of the 80s. top 20, easily.

That's why these lists are so pointless: it has less to do with the (subjective) merits of the music and more about the cultural gestalt. When I think of "signature" 80's tunes, it's the usual cultural detritus everyone else remembers: Michael Jackson's "Thriller", Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun", The Go Go's "Vacation", Huey Lewis and the News "I Want A New Drug", and so on. It was the soundtrack to my teenage years whether I wanted it to be or not. But the music on the whole aged very badly, much worse than other period sounds in my opinion. I can still listen to pop tracks from almost any decade except the 1982-1991 period and find a lot to like, but that period in American (and British) music was just frigging awful.

I blame the drought on three major forces. One, technology. Too many bands were seduced by the synthesizer (even Neil Young fell prey in Trans). Two, the corporatization of the record labels. Music became big business, and the drive was on for the widest-possible audience...which translated into the most generic sound. Three, creative exhaustion. Doesn't matter the genre: rock, country, jazz. The ending of the 1970's had left them all burnt out and purposeless. Punk had fizzled, New Age was soulless, and metal seemed locked in a pattern established in 1978 by the likes of Motorhead and Black Sabbath.

I've long mainained that the 1980's were the worst decade for popular music this country has ever had (as long as we've had a national "popular music", anyhow). It was just a shiatty, shiatty decade for music.


For jazz the early 80's were full of instrumental pop and disco-porn smooth jazz. Kind of lame and definitely campy, though there were a few good ones snuck through - mostly from the ECM label (like Metheny, Billy Cobham, Keith Jarrett). The late 80's were awesome, though - Mike Stern, Bob Berg, John Scofield, Michael Brecker, Yellowjackets, Joey DeFrancesco, and basically the return of post-bop and an explosion of young artists.

Too bad smooth jazz went massively commercial and shunted all that to the back burner in the 90's.
 
2012-04-28 08:07:39 PM
sirrerun: And, no one listened to The Smiths in the USA...no one

Speak for yourself. I grew up in redstate flyover suburbia and even around here, we know who the Smiths are. Mind you, listening to them was liable to get you beat up by headbangers (I still have the scars) but it's not like no one knew who they were.
 
2012-04-28 08:12:55 PM
Forgot this one:

www.metal-archives.com
 
2012-04-28 08:13:10 PM
The Cars? They were the farking 80's. ONE Prince song? Psychadelic Furrs?

List is a big bag full of suck.
 
2012-04-28 08:21:39 PM
cetacei: [i104.photobucket.com image 500x500]

have you hear the new Yes recording "fly from here" i love that?
/"the ladder" is great as well
 
2012-04-28 08:32:06 PM
991.com
 
2012-04-28 08:41:20 PM
The other day I was thinking about what one song defines decades for me...Tainted Love is the song that screams 80s to me the most.
 
2012-04-28 08:47:25 PM
SPna15: kab: SPna15: I'm not the one who thinks Reign in Blood is Slayer's best album.

It isn't?

Not even close.


Funny almost every metal writer would disagree with you and it also is on top as one of the most influential metal albums.
 
2012-04-28 08:56:16 PM
Nmissi: sirrerun: And, no one listened to The Smiths in the USA...no one

Speak for yourself. I grew up in redstate flyover suburbia and even around here, we know who the Smiths are. Mind you, listening to them was liable to get you beat up by headbangers (I still have the scars) but it's not like no one knew who they were.


Everyone knows who the smiths were or knew their songs, I grew up in the mountains and Florida backwoods and they even knew the songs. Maybe not who sang it but knew the music.
 
2012-04-28 09:02:35 PM
steamingpile: SPna15: kab: SPna15: I'm not the one who thinks Reign in Blood is Slayer's best album.

It isn't?

Not even close.

Funny almost every metal writer would disagree with you and it also is on top as one of the most influential metal albums.


Every person I know would put Show No Mercy or Hell Awaits above Reign, and I put more stock in the opinion of my friends than I do paid shills. Also, good and influential are two completely different things. The Black Album is influential despite being a total piece of shiat.
 
2012-04-28 09:09:43 PM
JasonOfOrillia: She comes in colors everywhere: But is Rush on the list?

'Cuz if Rush isn't on the list, the list sucks.

/trolling myself
//what's up with #36? "Various Artists?"

I know, I'm disappointed too. No Tom Sawyer? No Subdivisions? No Enemy Within?


No one likes rush. You love it, hate it, or are indifferent.

Ymmv, but that's my experience.
 
2012-04-28 09:12:27 PM
cretinbob: Wow...not an entirely horrible list

Stopped reading on the first page when I saw a Starship song. That alone invalidates any "best of" list.
 
2012-04-28 09:17:00 PM
upload.wikimedia.org

Should have been at least half of the list.
 
2012-04-28 09:20:18 PM
UCFRoadWarrior: HS and college in the 80s....and most of the top 10 is Brit Shiat that few in America listened to. I'll give this credit for recognizing Prince (not his best song), Neneh Cherry, and Talking Heads (OIAL would be a OK #1)

And, no one listened to The Smiths in the USA...no one

Problem when music critics, not music buyers, rank music



Music buyers are idiots. Case in point: Justin Bieber. Nickelback. etc.
 
2012-04-28 09:26:03 PM
As much as this list sucks, i love me some '80s music. It was the coolest decade ever to be a kid. Some teenager asked me "what was so big about it?" and i said... well, it's hard to explain. First, everything seemed futuristic. What with all these synthesizers and video games and people in spandex pants, it felt like some cartoonish version of Hill Valley, 2025. It's in the past now but it still feels more futuristic than today. Second, everyone i knew just assumed that total nuclear war with the Soviet Union was extremely likely, so it was like we were living through the last days. Not in a biblical sense but in a twisted sci-fi sense. It was exciting.

Also, we had Transformers. And Rocky. And Trapper Keepers. Farking great decade to be a kid.
 
2012-04-28 09:28:04 PM
NME = British, therefore pissing off many Americans.

I'm a kid of the 80s so except for a couple I knew all these bands. Not the songs, but I'd heard of the bands.

That being said, where the fark are the Police, Level 42, T'Pau, Kylie Minogue, etc., etc., etc.?
 
2012-04-28 09:28:25 PM
Turbo Cojones: The Cars? They were the farking 80's. ONE Prince song? Psychadelic Furrs?

List is a big bag full of suck.


To be fair, there were two Prince songs--"Sign O' the Times" was on there, too.
 
2012-04-28 09:35:02 PM
ELF Radio: As much as this list sucks, i love me some '80s music. It was the coolest decade ever to be a kid. Some teenager asked me "what was so big about it?" and i said... well, it's hard to explain. First, everything seemed futuristic. What with all these synthesizers and video games and people in spandex pants, it felt like some cartoonish version of Hill Valley, 2025. It's in the past now but it still feels more futuristic than today. Second, everyone i knew just assumed that total nuclear war with the Soviet Union was extremely likely, so it was like we were living through the last days. Not in a biblical sense but in a twisted sci-fi sense. It was exciting.

Also, we had Transformers. And Rocky. And Trapper Keepers. Farking great decade to be a kid.


my brother loved the 80's but the 90's formed his music tastes
 
2012-04-28 09:48:50 PM
shiatty list is complete shiat!!!
 
2012-04-28 10:06:35 PM
The English Major: vegaswench: I love these types of threads. The 80s to me were not Michael Jackson or Madonna, they were New Order and Depeche Mode and the Pet Shop Boys (though as someone stated in the thread, where's Oingo Boingo and Adam Ant??). Guess I listened to too much KROQ as a kid.

Here's your Oingo Boingo

And your Adam Ant

I'd toss Tears for Fears into your list too.


You know, that Oingo Boingo video shows they could have hired Danny Elfman to play the Joker, and he wouldn't have needed any makeup. The dude's got a seriously creepy smile.
 
2012-04-28 10:09:30 PM
SPna15: steamingpile: SPna15: kab: SPna15: I'm not the one who thinks Reign in Blood is Slayer's best album.

It isn't?

Not even close.

Funny almost every metal writer would disagree with you and it also is on top as one of the most influential metal albums.

Every person I know would put Show No Mercy or Hell Awaits above Reign, and I put more stock in the opinion of my friends than I do paid shills. Also, good and influential are two completely different things. The Black Album is influential despite being a total piece of shiat.


Rein in Blood was an album that proved metal can be not only entertaining but well written and played.

And the paid shills you speak of were not well paid at the time or part of some established marketing campaign. So in the end the album is still used as their benchmark.

Also I don't know anyone who says that the black album is influential but I do know everyone says that is the point metallica went mainstream. Some people would call that their sell out period.
 
2012-04-28 10:16:57 PM
steamingpile: Rein in Blood was an album that proved metal can be not only entertaining but well written and played.

So you have no idea what you're talking about. Nice to know. (Hint: There were 16 years of albums that did exactly that prior to Reign in Blood)
 
2012-04-28 10:18:57 PM
There's a lot of good music on that list. Brits have much better collective taste in music than Americans.

/my opinion, man
 
2012-04-28 10:22:13 PM
The top three are the smiths, joy division and new order? I swear I went to college with half the farking proto-emo parent-hating gothy coonts at NME lol
 
2012-04-28 10:32:49 PM
Even taken into account that the list is British, it still sucks. Not enough U2, no early UB40 (food for thought etc.), not enough Depeche mode, no Art of Noise, Proclaimers, the Cult, Peter Gabriel, Eurythmics, Talk Talk, Style Council, Queen, Japan, Propaganda, Housemartins etc..
 
2012-04-28 10:45:31 PM
Mugato: [upload.wikimedia.org image 220x220]

Should have been at least half of the list.


Well said, fark that emo-synth crap right in the fart-box.

Between Prince and GnR, there was no other memorable 80s music.
 
2012-04-28 10:45:57 PM
I didn't check the full list, but I Control+F'd and didn't see this one:
Young MC: Bust a Move
 
2012-04-28 10:58:03 PM
mr lawson: No "Thriller"?
Really?
I mean REALLY?


Came to say this.
 
2012-04-28 11:16:25 PM
I don't even recognize most of the top 20, so I'm not sure what 80's they grew up in.
 
2012-04-28 11:31:08 PM
pixies awful.

sorry. its true.
 
2012-04-28 11:36:28 PM
Just_a_Bear: I don't even recognize most of the top 20, so I'm not sure what 80's they grew up in.

The one in the UK, where charts and music are/were quite different than the US.
 
2012-04-28 11:43:12 PM
I liked most of those songs, but the author was to biased towards progressive/alternative. Looking over the top 50, I don't see any Metallica, Genesis, INXS, U2, Def Leopard, Van Halen, The Cars, Billy Idol, The Bangles, Tears for Fears, Billy Joel, Thompson Twins, etc.

Also, no Milli Vanilli? wtf lol
 
2012-04-28 11:51:46 PM
Gimmick: I liked most of those songs, but the author was to biased towards progressive/alternative. Looking over the top 50, I don't see any Metallica, Genesis, INXS, U2, Def Leopard, Van Halen, The Cars, Billy Idol, The Bangles, Tears for Fears, Billy Joel, Thompson Twins, etc.

Also, no Milli Vanilli? wtf lol


INXS' "Need You Tonight" was on there. As was U2 and Van Halen. The list is indeed lacking, though.
 
2012-04-28 11:59:00 PM
Fark NME and their shiatty site that takes minutes to open per page.

Seriously, no matter what computer I use and no matter what state I happen to be in NME's site takes TOO FARKING LONG to load.

Hat's off for listing 'Nothings Gonna Stop Us' - nice single.
 
2012-04-29 12:05:14 AM
BroVinny: Gimmick: I liked most of those songs, but the author was to biased towards progressive/alternative. Looking over the top 50, I don't see any Metallica, Genesis, INXS, U2, Def Leopard, Van Halen, The Cars, Billy Idol, The Bangles, Tears for Fears, Billy Joel, Thompson Twins, etc.

Also, no Milli Vanilli? wtf lol

INXS' "Need You Tonight" was on there. As was U2 and Van Halen. The list is indeed lacking, though.


Ya, I didn't read past the top 50.
 
kab
2012-04-29 12:20:23 AM
Mugato: [upload.wikimedia.org image 220x220]

Should have been at least half of the list.


You must have the limited edition 50 track version of that disc.
 
2012-04-29 01:08:49 AM
Love the album covers, keep going
 
2012-04-29 02:28:21 AM
Rename the list "The Top 100 Songs of the 80's skewed towards British Techno Pop." and we'd be a lot closer to the truth.

I hate best of the 80's lists that are full of the Top 40 hits too though so maybe it's a little better in that sense.

My favorite Lost Hits of the 80's are

Link

Link

Link
 
2012-04-29 05:12:00 AM
upload.wikimedia.org
 
2012-04-29 08:05:52 AM
tkgeisha: "The Top 100 Songs of the 80's skewed towards British Techno Pop."

If it was skewed that way you'd think Howard Jones or Erasure would be on there once.

Also, not that I expected anything remotely country on an NME chart, but...

www.vinylvendors.com
 
2012-04-29 08:37:55 AM
 
2012-04-29 09:00:29 AM
Pat Benatar released 7 albums in the 80s. Bullshiat is the list that doesn't include ONE SONG!

Idiots.
 
2012-04-29 11:54:59 AM
jmr61: Pat Benatar released 7 albums in the 80s. Bullshiat is the list that doesn't include ONE SONG!

Idiots.


and won the first 4 rock female recording artist grammies from 1980 to 1983
 
2012-04-29 11:59:34 AM
zvoidx:

Thank you for that. It's awfully convoluted to put that schnit together on mobile.

+1
 
2012-04-29 12:08:15 PM
maelstrom0370: JasonOfOrillia:
I know, I'm disappointed too. No Tom Sawyer? No Subdivisions? No Enemy Within?

Always thought that was the quintessential "Teenager in the 80's" song. Seemed to capture the mood/feeling almost perfectly.

/Born in 1970
/Definite "80's Child"


And a big THIS to THAT

/ b-day is 1-9-1969
//get it? 1-9-69!
///css- I made my parents leave the mall (grody!) early so we could get home to see the Mtv video premire of Subdivisions. We had a mall night thing- kids get to go eat alone & hit the arcade (totally rad), mom&dad have a nice quiet dinner alone.
I bought my cassette tape of Signals, got home to see the video, and my love of Rush was further cemented.
Tempest. Motherfarker. That's my game. People watch ME play that game.

//ah, youth
/you couldn't pay me enough to go back.
 
Displayed 50 of 269 comments

First | « | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | » | Last | Show all

View Voting Results: Smartest and Funniest


This thread is closed to new comments.

Continue Farking
Submit a Link »





Report