Uncovering the Next Generation's Hall of Fame

| ⇦ 1983 | 1985 ⇨ |
The Best Music of 1984
Here is a selection of the best albums and songs from 1984. Hall of Famers are highlighted in orange.
For a list of the top artists who made their debut recording in 1984, check out this list.
| Albums (?) | Wikipedia | |
| Amy Grant | Straight Ahead | ☆ |
| Ashford & Simpson | Solid | ☆ |
| Bananarama | Bananarama | ☆ |
| Billy Ocean | Suddenly | ☆ |
| Black Flag | My War | ☆ |
| Bon Jovi | Bon Jovi | ☆ |
| Bronski Beat | The Age of Consent | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | Born In The U.S.A. | ☆ |
| Bryan Adams | Reckless | ☆ |
| Celtic Frost | Morbid Tales | ☆ |
| Chaka Khan | I Feel for You | ☆ |
| Christine McVie | Christine McVie | ☆ |
| Cocteau Twins | Treasure | ☆ |
| Deep Purple | Perfect Strangers | ☆ |
| Depeche Mode | Some Great Reward | ☆ |
| Dio | The Last in Line | ☆ |
| Don Henley | Building the Perfect Beast | ☆ |
| Echo & The Bunnymen | Ocean Rain | ☆ |
| Ennio Morricone | Once Upon a Time in America (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) | ☆ |
| Foreigner | Agent Provocateur | ☆ |
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood | Welcome to the Pleasuredome | ☆ |
| George Strait | Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind | ☆ |
| Hüsker Dü | Zen Arcade | ☆ |
| Hall & Oates | Big Bam Boom | ☆ |
| Howard Jones | Human's Lib | ☆ |
| Iron Maiden | Powerslave | ☆ |
| John Lennon and Yoko Ono | Milk and Honey | ☆ |
| Judas Priest | Defenders of the Faith | ☆ |
| King Crimson | Three of a Perfect Pair | ☆ |
| Kool & the Gang | Emergency | ☆ |
| Leonard Cohen | Various Positions | ☆ |
| Los Lobos | How Will the Wolf Survive? | ☆ |
| Madonna | Like A Virgin | ☆ |
| Mariya Takeuchi | Variety | ☆ |
| Meat Puppets | Meat Puppets II | ☆ |
| Mercyful Fate | Don't Break the Oath | ☆ |
| Metallica | Ride the Lightning | ☆ |
| Midnight Oil | Red Sails in the Sunset | ☆ |
| Minutemen | Double Nickels on the Dime | ☆ |
| Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds | From Her to Eternity | ☆ |
| Pat Benatar | Tropico | ☆ |
| Prince & the Revolution | Purple Rain | ☆ |
| Queen | The Works | ☆ |
| R.E.M. | Reckoning | ☆ |
| Rick Springfield | Hard to Hold | ☆ |
| Run-D.M.C. | Run-D.M.C. | ☆ |
| Rush | Grace Under Pressure | ☆ |
| Sade | Diamond Life | ☆ |
| Scorpions | Love at First Sting | ☆ |
| Simple Minds | Sparkle In the Rain | ☆ |
| Siouxsie & the Banshees | Hyæna | ☆ |
| Skinny Puppy | Remission | ☆ |
| Spandau Ballet | Parade | ☆ |
| Spinal Tap | This Is Spinal Tap | ☆ |
| Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble | Couldn't Stand the Weather | ☆ |
| Talking Heads | Stop Making Sense | ☆ |
| The Art Of Noise | Who's Afraid Of The Art Of Noise | ☆ |
| The Cars | Heartbeat City | ☆ |
| The Fall | The Wonderful and Weird World of The Fall | ☆ |
| The Fixx | Phantoms | ☆ |
| The Human League | Hysteria | ☆ |
| The Judds | Why Not Me | ☆ |
| The Pretenders | Learning to Crawl | ☆ |
| The Psychedelic Furs | Mirror Moves | ☆ |
| The Replacements | Let It Be | ☆ |
| The Smiths | The Smiths | ☆ |
| The Style Council | Café Bleu | ☆ |
| The Waterboys | A Pagan Love | ☆ |
| Tina Turner | Private Dancer | ☆ |
| Toshiki Kadomatsu | After 5 Clash | ☆ |
| Twisted Sister | Stay Hungry | ☆ |
| U2 | The Unforgettable Fire | ☆ |
| Ultravox | Lament | ☆ |
| Van Halen | 1984 | ☆ |
| Various Artists | Footloose: Original Soundtrack of the Paramount Motion Picture | ☆ |
| Venom | At War with Satan | ☆ |
| Violent Femmes | Hallowed Ground | ☆ |
| Weird Al Yankovic | Weird Al Yankovic in 3-D | ☆ |
| Wham! | Make It Big | ☆ |
| Songs (?) | Wikipedia | |
| "Weird Al" Yankovic | Eat It | ☆ |
| A-Ha | Take on Me | ☆ |
| Accept | Balls to the Wall | ☆ |
| Alabama | If You're Gonna Play in Texas (You Gotta Have a Fiddle in the Band) | ☆ |
| Alphaville | Big In Japan | ☆ |
| Alphaville | Forever Young | ☆ |
| Animotion | Obsession | ☆ |
| Ashford & Simpson | Solid | ☆ |
| Autograph | Turn Up the Radio | ☆ |
| Bananarama | Robert De Niro's Waiting... | ☆ |
| Band Aid | Do They Know It's Christmas? | ☆ |
| Berlin | No More Words | ☆ |
| Billy Ocean | Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run) | ☆ |
| Billy Ocean | Suddenly | ☆ |
| Billy Squier | Rock Me Tonite | ☆ |
| Black Flag | My War | ☆ |
| Bon Jovi | Runaway | ☆ |
| Bonnie Tyler | Holding Out for a Hero | ☆ |
| Bronski Beat | Smalltown Boy | ☆ |
| Bruce Cockburn | Lovers in a Dangerous Time | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | Born in the U.S.A. | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | Dancing in the Dark | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | Glory Days | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | I'm On Fire | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | Cover Me | ☆ |
| Bruce Springsteen | My Hometown | ☆ |
| Bryan Adams | Run To You | ☆ |
| Bryan Adams | Summer Of '69 | ☆ |
| Bryan Adams | Heaven | ☆ |
| Bryan Adams & Tina Turner | It's Only Love | ☆ |
| Chaka Khan | I Feel For You | ☆ |
| Chaka Khan | Through the Fire | ☆ |
| Chicago | You're The Inspiration | ☆ |
| Christine McVie | Got a Hold on Me | ☆ |
| Cocteau Twins | Lorelei | ☆ |
| Cocteau Twins | Pandora | ☆ |
| Cocteau Twins | Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops | ☆ |
| Dan Hartman | I Can Dream About You | ☆ |
| Daryl Hall & John Oates | Out of Touch | ☆ |
| David Bowie | Blue Jean | ☆ |
| Dead or Alive | You Spin Me Round (Like A Record) | ☆ |
| Deep Purple | Perfect Strangers | ☆ |
| Deniece Williams | Let's Hear it for the Boy | ☆ |
| Depeche Mode | People Are People | ☆ |
| Depeche Mode | Blasphemous Rumours | ☆ |
| Depeche Mode | Master and Servant | ☆ |
| Dio | The Last in Line | ☆ |
| Dio | Mystery | ☆ |
| Dio | We Rock | ☆ |
| Don Henley | The Boys of Summer | ☆ |
| Don Henley | All She Wants to Do Is Dance | ☆ |
| Duran Duran | The Wild Boys | ☆ |
| Echo & the Bunnymen | The Killing Moon | ☆ |
| Echo & The Bunnymen | Nocturnal Me | ☆ |
| Eddy Grant | Romancing the Stone | ☆ |
| Elton John | Sad Songs (Say So Much) | ☆ |
| Foreigner | I Want to Know What Love Is | ☆ |
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood | Relax | ☆ |
| Frankie Goes to Hollywood | Two Tribes | ☆ |
| George Michael | Careless Whisper | ☆ |
| George Strait | Does Fort Worth Ever Cross Your Mind | ☆ |
| Glenn Frey | The Heat Is On | ☆ |
| Hüsker Dü | Pink Turns to Blue | ☆ |
| Hank Williams Jr. | All My Rowdy Friends Are Coming Over Tonight | ☆ |
| Harold Faltermeyer | Axel F | ☆ |
| Hoodoo Gurus | I Was a Kamikaze Pilot | ☆ |
| Husker Du | Something I Learned Today | ☆ |
| Husker Du | Turn on the News | ☆ |
| Iron Maiden | 2 Minutes to Midnight | ☆ |
| Iron Maiden | Aces High | ☆ |
| Iron Maiden | Rime of the Ancient Mariner | ☆ |
| Jack Wagner | All I Need | ☆ |
| Joe Jackson | You Can't Get What You Want | ☆ |
| John Lennon | Nobody Told Me | ☆ |
| John Waite | Missing You | ☆ |
| Julian Lennon | Too Late for Goodbyes | ☆ |
| Julio Iglesias & Willie Nelson | To All the Girls I've Loved Before | ☆ |
| Kenny Loggins | Footloose | ☆ |
| Killing Joke | Eighties | ☆ |
| Kim Mitchell | Go for a Soda | ☆ |
| Kool & The Gang | Fresh | ☆ |
| Kool & the Gang | Cherish | ☆ |
| Laura Branigan | Self Control | ☆ |
| Leonard Cohen | Hallelujah | ☆ |
| Leonard Cohen | Dance Me to the End of Love | ☆ |
| Limahl | The NeverEnding Story | ☆ |
| LL Cool J | I Need a Beat | ☆ |
| Los Lobos | Will the Wolf Survive? | ☆ |
| Madonna | Like a Virgin | ☆ |
| Madonna | Material Girl | ☆ |
| Madonna | Dress You Up | ☆ |
| Mannheim Steamroller | Deck the Halls | ☆ |
| Mary Jane Girls | In My House | ☆ |
| Meat Puppets | Plateau | ☆ |
| Meat Puppets | Lake of Fire | ☆ |
| Metallica | Fade to Black | ☆ |
| Metallica | For Whom the Bell Tolls | ☆ |
| Metallica | Ride The Lightning | ☆ |
| Metallica | Creeping Death | ☆ |
| Miami Sound Machine | Dr. Beat | ☆ |
| Mike Reno and Ann Wilson | Almost Paradise... Love Theme from Footloose | ☆ |
| Minutemen | Corona | ☆ |
| Minutemen | This Ain't No Picnic | ☆ |
| Motörhead | Killed by Death | ☆ |
| Murray Head | One Night in Bangkok | ☆ |
| Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds | From Her to Eternity | ☆ |
| Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | Locomotion | ☆ |
| Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark | So in Love | ☆ |
| Pat Benatar | We Belong | ☆ |
| Patti Labelle | New Attitude | ☆ |
| Patti LaBelle | Stir It Up | ☆ |
| Pet Shop Boys | West End Girls | ☆ |
| Phil Collins | Against All Odds (Take a Look at Me Now) | ☆ |
| Philip Bailey and Phil Collins | Easy Lover | ☆ |
| Prince & the Revolution | Let's Go Crazy | ☆ |
| Prince & the Revolution | Purple Rain | ☆ |
| Prince & the Revolution | When Doves Cry | ☆ |
| Prince & The Revolution | Erotic City | ☆ |
| Prince and the Revolution | Darling Nikki | ☆ |
| Prince and the Revolution | I Would Die 4 U | ☆ |
| Queen | Radio Ga Ga | ☆ |
| Queen | I Want to Break Free | ☆ |
| Queen | It's a Hard Life | ☆ |
| Queensryche | Take Hold of the Flame | ☆ |
| R.E.M. | So. Central Rain | ☆ |
| Ratt | Round and Round | ☆ |
| Ray Charles & Willie Nelson | Seven Spanish Angels | ☆ |
| Ray Parker, Jr. | Ghostbusters | ☆ |
| REO Speedwagon | Can't Fight This Feeling | ☆ |
| REO Speedwagon | One Lonely Night | ☆ |
| Rick Springfield | Love Somebody | ☆ |
| Rockwell | Somebody's Watching Me | ☆ |
| Rod Stewart | Some Guys Have All the Luck | ☆ |
| Rod Stewart | Infatuation | ☆ |
| Run-D.M.C. | Rock Box | ☆ |
| Rush | Distant Early Warning | ☆ |
| Ry Cooder | Paris, Texas | ☆ |
| Sade | Smooth Operator | ☆ |
| Sade | Your Love is King | ☆ |
| Sade | Hang On to Your Love | ☆ |
| Sammy Hagar | I Can't Drive 55 | ☆ |
| Scandal featuring Patty Smyth | The Warrior | ☆ |
| Scorpions | Rock You Like A Hurricane | ☆ |
| Scorpions | Big City Nights | ☆ |
| Scorpions | Still Loving You | ☆ |
| Sheena Easton | Sugar Walls | ☆ |
| Sheila E. | The Glamorous Life | ☆ |
| Steve Perry | Oh, Sherrie | ☆ |
| Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble | Cold Shot | ☆ |
| Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble | Couldn't Stand the Weather | ☆ |
| Stevie Wonder | I Just Called To Say I Love You | ☆ |
| Survivor | High on You | ☆ |
| Talk Talk | It's My Life | ☆ |
| Tears for Fears | Shout | ☆ |
| Tears for Fears | Mothers Talk | ☆ |
| Teena Marie | Lovergirl | ☆ |
| The Alan Parsons Project | Don't Answer Me | ☆ |
| The Alarm | The Stand | ☆ |
| The Art of Noise | Close (To the Edit) | ☆ |
| The Bangles | Going Down to Liverpool | ☆ |
| The Cars | Drive | ☆ |
| The Cars | Magic | ☆ |
| The Cars | You Might Think | ☆ |
| The Cars | Hello Again | ☆ |
| The Chills | Pink Frost | ☆ |
| The Fixx | Are We Ourselves? | ☆ |
| The Go-Go's | Head Over Heels | ☆ |
| The Judds | Mama He's Crazy | ☆ |
| The Judds | Why Not Me | ☆ |
| The Pretenders | My City Was Gone | ☆ |
| The Psychedelic Furs | The Ghost in You | ☆ |
| The Replacements | I Will Dare | ☆ |
| The Replacements | Unsatisfied | ☆ |
| The Smiths | How Soon is Now? | ☆ |
| The Smiths | Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now | ☆ |
| The Smiths | What Difference Does It Make? | ☆ |
| The Smiths | William, It Was Really Nothing | ☆ |
| The Smiths | Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want | ☆ |
| The Style Council | My Ever Changing Moods | ☆ |
| The Style Council | Shout To The Top! | ☆ |
| The Time | Jungle Love | ☆ |
| Thompson Twins | Doctor! Doctor! | ☆ |
| Tina Turner | What's Love Got to Do With It | ☆ |
| Tina Turner | Private Dancer | ☆ |
| Tina Turner | Better Be Good to Me | ☆ |
| Tina Turner | I Can't Stand the Rain | ☆ |
| Triumph | Midsummer's Daydream | ☆ |
| Twisted Sister | We're Not Gonna Take It | ☆ |
| Twisted Sister | I Wanna Rock | ☆ |
| U.T.F.O. | Roxanne, Roxanne | ☆ |
| U2 | Pride (In the Name of Love) | ☆ |
| U2 | The Unforgettable Fire | ☆ |
| Ultravox | Dancing With Tears in My Eyes | ☆ |
| Van Halen | Jump | ☆ |
| Van Halen | Panama | ☆ |
| Van Halen | Hot For Teacher | ☆ |
| Wang Chung | Dance Hall Days | ☆ |
| Weird Al Yankovic | I Lost on Jeopardy | ☆ |
| Wham! | Last Christmas | ☆ |
| Wham! | Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go | ☆ |
| Wham! | Freedom | ☆ |
| Wham! | Everything She Wants | ☆ |
| Whodini | Freaks Come Out At Night | ☆ |
| ⇦ 1983 | 1985 ⇨ |