Best Albums of the 1980s

Listed below are the best albums of the 1980s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 54,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade
Decade:
Year:
1980s decade summary
YearAlbums The number of albums from each year featuring in the greatest album charts. Score Total rank score for each year (made up of the total rank score from all albums in that year) Top Ranked Album The top ranked album from each year and where it ranks in the overall chart.
19802,211192,968
19812,250120,560
19822,212147,504
19832,233134,921
Murmur (139th)by R.E.M.
19842,210169,367
19852,233143,372
19862,347168,498
19872,561160,368
19882,668151,496
19892,695195,915
Total23,6201,584,969

The best artists of the 1980s were The Smiths, Prince, Pixies, The Cure, Talking Heads, U2, Metallica, Kate Bush, R.E.M. and The Stone Roses.
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Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1985
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1985:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1981
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1981:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1987
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1987:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1989
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1989:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
189
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1986
Appears in:
Rank Score:
188
Rank in 1986:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
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  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1988
Appears in:
Rank Score:
188
Rank in 1988:
Rank in 1980s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 1,000. Page 100 of 100

Best Albums of the 1980s composition

Year Albums %


1980 118 12%
1981 122 12%
1982 110 11%
1983 97 10%
1984 104 10%
1985 79 8%
1986 95 10%
1987 88 9%
1988 96 10%
1989 97 10%
Artist Albums %


The Cure 10 1%
Iron Maiden 8 1%
Depeche Mode 8 1%
The Smiths 8 1%
Rush 8 1%
The Fall 7 1%
R.E.M. 7 1%
Show all
Country Albums %


United Kingdom 416 41%
United States 393 39%
Australia 39 4%
Mixed Nationality 28 3%
Canada 23 2%
Germany 22 2%
Argentina 12 1%
Show all
Compilation? Albums %
No 974 97%
Yes 32 3%
Live? Albums %
No 983 98%
Yes 23 2%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 995 99%
Yes 11 1%
Best Albums of 1962
1. Modern Sounds In Country And Western Music by Ray Charles
2. Howlin' Wolf by Howlin' Wolf
3. Waltz For Debby by Bill Evans Trio
4. Bob Dylan by Bob Dylan
5. Green Onions by Booker T. & The M.G.'s
6. Go by Dexter Gordon
7. Tous Les Garçons Et Les Filles by Françoise Hardy
8. Tijuana Moods by Charles Mingus
9. Jazz Samba by Stan Getz & Charlie Byrd
10. The Bridge by Sonny Rollins
11. Oh Yeah by Charles Mingus
12. Takin' Off by Herbie Hancock
13. Crying by Roy Orbison
14. Coltrane "Live" At The Village Vanguard by John Coltrane
15. Mosaic by Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers
16. Surfin' Safari by The Beach Boys
17. Peter, Paul And Mary by Peter, Paul And Mary
18. Coltrane by John Coltrane Quartet
19. Sentimentally Yours by Patsy Cline
20. The Original Telstar: The Sounds Of The Tornadoes by The Tornados
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