Uncovering the Next Generation's Hall of Fame
| ⇦ 1970s | 1990s ⇨ |
The Defining Artists of the 1980s
The following artists released some of the best music of the 1980s. Hall of Famers are highlighted in orange.
The Cure INXS Robert Palmer Aerosmith Tears for Fears Dolly Parton Journey XTC Stone Roses Def Leppard Aretha Franklin Iron Maiden Gloria Estefan Faith No More The Judds Quincy Jones Ministry They Might Be Giants Frankie Goes to Hollywood The Psychedelic Furs Bauhaus Sinead O'Connor Kool & the Gang Suzanne Vega Lou Reed George Harrison The Clash Men at Work Bryan Adams Fleetwood Mac Donna Summer Eric Clapton The Moody Blues Nick Cave Neil Young Huey Lewis and The News Lionel Richie De La Soul AC/DC Living Colour Fugazi Paul Simon Foreigner Minutemen Queen Bon Jovi Stevie Ray Vaughan Janet Jackson Hüsker Dü Emmylou Harris Brian Eno Joy Division/New Order Warren Zevon John Lennon Eddie Money Rush Nine Inch Nails Twisted Sister Diana Ross Depeche Mode Neil Diamond LL Cool J Linda Ronstadt Simple Minds Cher Willie Nelson George Michael Barbra Streisand X Elton John Anita Baker Pet Shop Boys The B-52's Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Toto Eric B. & Rakim ABBA Sting ABC The Cult Bobby Brown Kenny Rogers Bad Brains Afrika Bambaataa U2 The J. Geils Band Tina Turner Minor Threat Mötley Crüe Cheap Trick Bob Marley Echo and the Bunnymen Leonard Cohen Sonic Youth Paul McCartney Cocteau Twins Stray Cats Billy Joel Public Enemy The Human League Public Image Ltd. Black Sabbath The Jam Meat Puppets George Benson Guns N' Roses Motörhead Dire Straits The Dead Kennedys Tom Waits Midnight Oil New Edition Van Halen Miami Sound Machine Whitney Houston Megadeth Skinny Puppy ZZ Top Slayer Scorpions Stevie Nicks Olivia Newton-John Joe Jackson Michael Jackson Styx King Crimson Prince Sparks Chaka Khan Cyndi Lauper Steve Earle The Kinks Duran Duran Ice-T Violent Femmes Electric Light Orchestra "Weird Al" Yankovic Pixies The Alan Parsons Project English Beat The Replacements Blondie Pat Benatar Genesis Smokey Robinson Salt N Pepa Squeeze Stevie Wonder Talk Talk The Go-Go's The Smiths Grace Jones Dio Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five Tracy Chapman Ozzy Osbourne Alice Cooper The Fall The Rolling Stones Black Flag Einstürzende Neubauten Culture Club Madness The Pretenders Run DMC Ramones The Bangles Madonna Yes Patti LaBelle The Police George Strait John Williams Kraftwerk Rick James Dinosaur Jr. Joe Cocker Heart Luther Vandross Al Jarreau Judas Priest Jackson Browne Eurythmics Metallica Ultravox Beastie Boys N.W.A Hall & Oates The Pointer Sisters The Cars Crowded House Talking Heads Red Hot Chili Peppers Jane's Addiction The Misfits Boz Scaggs John Mellencamp The Jesus and Mary Chain Gang of Four Rod Stewart Kenny Loggins Carly Simon David Bowie Tom Petty (solo) Anthrax Kate Bush Dexys Midnight Runners Los Lobos Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Amy Grant Devo Bonnie Raitt Siouxsie & the Banshees Bob Seger Phil Collins Peter Gabriel Adam and the Ants Elvis Costello & the Attractions Sade The Pogues Bruce Springsteen Steve Winwood Boogie Down Productions R.E.M. Billy Idol Don Henley Roxy Music
Of the 227 artists listed above, 48% have been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
| ⇦ 1970s | 1990s ⇨ |
The Defining Albums of the 1980s
Diana Ross - Diana (1980)
David Bowie - Scary Monsters (and Super Creeps) (1980)
Prince - Dirty Mind (1980)
AC/DC - Back In Black (1980)
The Cure - Boys Don't Cry (1980)
The Pretenders - Pretenders (1980)
Joy Division - Closer (1980)
The Clash - Sandinista! (1980)
Motörhead - Ace Of Spades (1980)
U2 - Boy (1980)
Bruce Springsteen - The River (1980)
Talking Heads - Remain In Light (1980)
X - Los Angeles (1980)
The Rolling Stones - Tattoo You (1981)
Luther Vandross - Never Too Much (1981)
Rush - Moving Pictures (1981)
Black Flag - Damaged (1981)
Echo & The Bunnymen - Heaven Up Here (1981)
The Police - Ghost in the Machine (1981)
X - Wild Gift (1981)
Prince - 1999 (1982)
Richard and Linda Thompson - Shoot Out the Lights (1982)
Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska (1982)
The Go-Go's - Beauty And The Beat (1982)
Roxy Music - Avalon (1982)
Chuck Berry - The Great Twenty-Eight (1982)
Elvis Costello & The Attractions - Imperial Bedroom (1982)
Michael Jackson - Thriller (1982)
U2 - War (1983)
ZZ Top - Eliminator (1983)
Cyndi Lauper - She's So Unusual (1983)
New Order - Power, Corruption & Lies (1983)
The Police - Synchronicity (1983)
Eurythmics - Touch (1983)
R.E.M. - Murmur (1983)
Talking Heads - Stop Making Sense (1984)
Bruce Springsteen - Born In The U.S.A. (1984)
Bob Marley & the Wailers - Legend (1984)
Prince & the Revolution - Purple Rain (1984)
Los Lobos - How Will the Wolf Survive? (1984)
Minutemen - Double Nickels on the Dime (1984)
Run-D.M.C. - Run-D.M.C. (1984)
The Replacements - Let It Be (1984)
The Smiths - The Smiths (1984)
Sade - Diamond Life (1984)
Various artists - The Indestructible Beat of Soweto (1985)
Hüsker Dü - New Day Rising (1985)
The Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy (1985)
Kate Bush - Hounds of Love (1985)
The Pogues - Rum Sodomy & the Lash (1985)
New Order - Low-Life (1985)
Tom Waits - Rain Dogs (1985)
Tears For Fears - Songs From The Big Chair (1985)
LL Cool J - Radio (1985)
The Replacements - Tim (1985)
Whitney Houston - Whitney Houston (1985)
Sam Cooke - Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 (1985)
The Smiths - Meat Is Murder (1985)
Dire Straits - Brothers in Arms (1985)
Metallica - Master of Puppets (1986)
Run-D.M.C. - Raising Hell (1986)
New Order - Brotherhood (1986)
The Smiths - The Queen is Dead (1986)
Paul Simon - Graceland (1986)
Slayer - Reign In Blood (1986)
Janet Jackson - Control (1986)
Beastie Boys - Licensed To Ill (1986)
Steve Earle - Guitar Town (1986)
Peter Gabriel - So (1986)
Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley/Go Bo Diddley (1986)
Anita Baker - Rapture (1986)
Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded (1987)
Michael Jackson - Bad (1987)
George Michael - Faith (1987)
Prince - Sign O' The Times (1987)
The Smiths - Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
R.E.M. - Document (1987)
The Replacements - Pleased to Meet Me (1987)
U2 - The Joshua Tree (1987)
Pet Shop Boys - Actually (1987)
Eric B. & Rakim - Paid In Full (1987)
Def Leppard - Hysteria (1987)
Bruce Springsteen - Tunnel Of Love (1987)
Guns N' Roses - Appetite For Destruction (1987)
Sonic Youth - Sister (1987)
Dinosaur Jr. - You're Living All Over Me (1987)
N.W.A - Straight Outta Compton (1988)
Pixies - Surfer Rosa (1988)
Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (1988)
Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation (1988)
Lucinda Williams - Lucinda Williams (1988)
EPMD - Strictly Business (1988)
Jane's Addiction - Nothing's Shocking (1988)
Tracy Chapman - Tracy Chapman (1988)
Don Henley - The End Of The Innocence (1989)
Madonna - Like A Prayer (1989)
Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine (1989)
Tom Petty - Full Moon Fever (1989)
The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses (1989)
Pixies - Doolittle (1989)
Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique (1989)
Aerosmith - Pump (1989)
Janet Jackson - Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)
The Cure - Disintegration (1989)
De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising (1989)
Bonnie Raitt - Nick of Time (1989)
| ⇦ 1970s | 1990s ⇨ |
The Defining Songs of the 1980s
Stevie Wonder - Master Blaster (Jammin') (1980)
Bob Marley - Could You Be Loved (1980)
AC/DC - Back In Black (1980)
English Beat - Mirror In The Bathroom (1980)
Kurtis Blow - The Breaks (1980)
AC/DC - You Shook Me All Night Long (1980)
X - Los Angeles (1980)
Rush - The Spirit Of Radio (1980)
Dead Kennedys - Holiday in Cambodia (1980)
Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train (1980)
Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime (1980)
Peter Gabriel - Biko (1980)
George Jones - He Stopped Loving Her Today (1980)
Joan Jett - Bad Reputation (1980)
Go-Go's - We Got the Beat (1980)
Motörhead - Ace Of Spades (1980)
Bob Marley - Redemption Song (1980)
Devo - Whip It (1980)
Judas Priest - Breaking The Law (1980)
Joy Division - Love Will Tear Us Apart (1980)
Luther Vandross - Never Too Much (1981)
Black Flag - TV Party (1981)
Phil Collins - In The Air Tonight (1981)
The Specials - Ghost Town (1981)
Rick James - Super Freak (1981)
The Go-Go's - Our Lips Are Sealed (1981)
Stevie Nicks - Edge Of Seventeen (1981)
Queen & David Bowie - Under Pressure (1981)
R.E.M. - Radio Free Europe (1981)
Rush - Limelight (1981)
Stray Cats - Rock This Town (1981)
Michael Jackson - Beat It (1982)
Michael Jackson - Billie Jean (1982)
Afrika Bambaataa - Planet Rock (1982)
Marvin Gaye - Sexual Healing (1982)
Culture Club - Time (Clock of the Heart) (1982)
Toto - Africa (1982)
George Clinton - Atomic Dog (1982)
Prince - 1999 (1982)
Duran Duran - Hungry Like The Wolf (1982)
Prince - Little Red Corvette (1982)
Grandmaster Flash - The Message (1982)
Bruce Springsteen - Atlantic City (1982)
U2 - Sunday Bloody Sunday (1983)
Cyndi Lauper - Girls Just Want To Have Fun (1983)
John Cougar Mellencamp - Authority Song (1983)
ZZ Top - Legs (1983)
Cyndi Lauper - Time After Time (1983)
Eurythmics - Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) (1983)
John Cougar Mellencamp - Pink Houses (1983)
New Order - Blue Monday (1983)
Stevie Ray Vaughan - Pride And Joy (1983)
Van Halen - Jump (1983)
The Police - Every Breath You Take (1983)
Hüsker Dü - Turn on the News (1984)
Prince - Purple Rain (1984)
Depeche Mode - People Are People (1984)
Bruce Springsteen - Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
Tina Turner - What's Love Got to Do With It (1984)
Prince - When Doves Cry (1984)
U.T.F.O. - Roxanne, Roxanne (1984)
Bruce Springsteen - Dancing in the Dark (1984)
The Smiths - How Soon is Now? (1984)
The Replacements - I Will Dare (1984)
U2 - Pride (In the Name of Love) (1984)
The Smiths - Heaven Knows I'm Miserable Now (1984)
Leonard Cohen - Hallelujah (1984)
Pet Shop Boys - West End Girls (1984)
Madonna - Like a Virgin (1984)
Tears for Fears - Everybody Wants to Rule the World (1985)
Miami Sound Machine - Conga (1985)
Siouxsie and the Banshees - Cities in Dust (1985)
Madonna - Into the Groove (1985)
The Replacements - Here Comes a Regular (1985)
The Replacements - Left Of The Dial (1985)
Peter Gabriel - In Your Eyes (1986)
Prince - Kiss (1986)
Janet Jackson - Control (1986)
The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out (1986)
Metallica - Master of Puppets (1986)
New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)
Paul Simon - Graceland (1986)
Beastie Boys - (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party) (1986)
Midnight Oil - Beds Are Burning (1987)
Public Enemy - Bring The Noise (1987)
The Cure - Just Like Heaven (1987)
INXS - Never Tear Us Apart (1987)
Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full (1987)
U2 - I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (1987)
U2 - With Or Without You (1987)
Tom Waits - Hang on St. Christopher (1987)
Guns 'N' Roses - Welcome To The Jungle (1987)
Lucinda Williams - Passionate Kisses (1988)
The La's - There She Goes (1988)
Rob Base & DJ EZ Rock - It Takes Two (1988)
Tracy Chapman - Fast Car (1988)
N.W.A - Fuck Tha Police (1988)
N.W.A - Straight Outta Compton (1988)
Pixies - Where Is My Mind? (1988)
Ministry - Stigmata (1988)
Sonic Youth - Teenage Riot (1988)
Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance (1988)
Madonna - Like a Prayer (1989)
Nine Inch Nails - Head Like a Hole (1989)
Beastie Boys - Hey Ladies (1989)
Janet Jackson - Rhythm Nation (1989)
The Cure - Pictures of You (1989)
Public Enemy - Fight the Power (1989)
Biz Markie - Just a Friend (1989)
| ⇦ 1970s | 1990s ⇨ |