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.
New Edition George Benson Bauhaus They Might Be Giants The Clash Roxy Music Sparks Dio Phil Collins Deep Purple Guns N' Roses John Williams Rod Stewart Stevie Wonder The J. Geils Band Los Lobos The Pretenders Mötley Crüe Aerosmith Culture Club The Smiths ABC Meat Puppets Ice-T The Go-Go's Bruce Springsteen Ozzy Osbourne The Police Neil Diamond Red Hot Chili Peppers Peter Gabriel Squeeze Kool & the Gang The Moody Blues LL Cool J Joe Jackson The Replacements Dolly Parton Sonic Youth Tears for Fears Joy Division/New Order U2 Men at Work The Cure The Jesus and Mary Chain Quincy Jones Frankie Goes to Hollywood Talking Heads Fugazi Boogie Down Productions The Fall Pixies Willie Nelson Kenny Rogers Cocteau Twins Gang of Four Tina Turner Chaka Khan Pat Benatar Twisted Sister Bobby Brown Smokey Robinson Jackson Browne Heart Violent Femmes The Human League Steve Winwood Ultravox The Dead Kennedys Paul Simon Lionel Richie Ramones King Crimson ABBA Slayer David Bowie Hall & Oates The Cult Sinead O'Connor Diana Ross George Harrison Steve Earle Sting Electric Light Orchestra Crowded House Siouxsie & the Banshees Cheap Trick Madonna Ministry Public Enemy Echo and the Bunnymen Prince Bryan Adams The Commodores Queen Tom Petty (solo) Gloria Estefan Suzanne Vega Robert Palmer Blondie Whitney Houston Cyndi Lauper Eddie Money Iron Maiden Stevie Ray Vaughan Eric Clapton Public Image Ltd. Bonnie Raitt John Lennon Beastie Boys Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers INXS Eurythmics Neil Young XTC Motörhead The Misfits De La Soul Carly Simon The Pogues Living Colour Nine Inch Nails Stevie Nicks Rush Dinosaur Jr. R.E.M. Minutemen John Mellencamp Black Sabbath The Psychedelic Furs Grace Jones Hüsker Dü Amy Grant Black Flag Billy Joel The B-52's George Michael Al Jarreau X Bob Seger Elton John Anita Baker Nick Cave Huey Lewis and The News Joan Jett and the Blackhearts The Grateful Dead Dire Straits Barbra Streisand Salt N Pepa Leonard Cohen Stray Cats Billy Idol Duran Duran Afrika Bambaataa The Pointer Sisters Journey Luther Vandross Jane's Addiction Lou Reed Miami Sound Machine Janet Jackson Donna Summer Brian Eno The Jam Cher Stone Roses Faith No More Paul McCartney The Bangles Sade Olivia Newton-John Tracy Chapman Simple Minds Anthrax Emmylou Harris Eric B. & Rakim Devo Warren Zevon Talk Talk Toto Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five AC/DC The Cars Genesis Bon Jovi Pet Shop Boys Midnight Oil "Weird Al" Yankovic N.W.A The Judds Metallica Dexys Midnight Runners Billy Bragg Einstürzende Neubauten Boz Scaggs Elvis Costello & the Attractions The Tragically Hip Alice Cooper Rick James Adam and the Ants Megadeth Aretha Franklin Michael Jackson English Beat Madness Linda Ronstadt Styx Kate Bush Def Leppard Foreigner Depeche Mode Kenny Loggins Kraftwerk ZZ Top George Strait Tom Waits Joe Cocker Bob Marley Skinny Puppy The Kinks Don Henley Fleetwood Mac Judas Priest Van Halen Yes Run DMC The Rolling Stones Minor Threat Patti LaBelle Bad Brains Scorpions The Alan Parsons Project
Of the 232 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)
Chuck Berry - The Great Twenty-Eight (1982)
Roxy Music - Avalon (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)
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)
Sam Cooke - Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963 (1985)
Whitney Houston - Whitney Houston (1985)
The Smiths - Meat Is Murder (1985)
Various artists - The Indestructible Beat of Soweto (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)
Bo Diddley - Bo Diddley/Go Bo Diddley (1986)
Steve Earle - Guitar Town (1986)
Peter Gabriel - So (1986)
Anita Baker - Rapture (1986)
Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Minded (1987)
Michael Jackson - Bad (1987)
George Michael - Faith (1987)
The Smiths - Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
Prince - Sign O' The Times (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)
Janet Jackson - Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)
Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique (1989)
Aerosmith - Pump (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)
Kurtis Blow - The Breaks (1980)
English Beat - Mirror In The Bathroom (1980)
AC/DC - You Shook Me All Night Long (1980)
X - Los Angeles (1980)
Rush - The Spirit Of Radio (1980)
Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train (1980)
Dead Kennedys - Holiday in Cambodia (1980)
Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime (1980)
Peter Gabriel - Biko (1980)
Go-Go's - We Got the Beat (1980)
Joan Jett - Bad Reputation (1980)
George Jones - He Stopped Loving Her Today (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)
The Police - Every Breath You Take (1983)
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)
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)
Prince - When Doves Cry (1984)
Tina Turner - What's Love Got to Do With It (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)
INXS - Never Tear Us Apart (1987)
The Cure - Just Like Heaven (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)
Guns 'N' Roses - Welcome To The Jungle (1987)
Tom Waits - Hang on St. Christopher (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 ⇨ |