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.
Minutemen Def Leppard The Cure Michael Jackson Red Hot Chili Peppers Salt N Pepa Paul Simon Barbra Streisand Violent Femmes Talking Heads Bobby Brown Dire Straits Lionel Richie Lou Reed Hüsker Dü Dinosaur Jr. Don Henley Joan Jett and the Blackhearts Madonna Living Colour Yes Heart Bad Brains X Gang of Four Suzanne Vega Diana Ross Luther Vandross Aerosmith ABBA Elton John AC/DC Kenny Rogers Boogie Down Productions Patti LaBelle Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five Run DMC Ozzy Osbourne Public Enemy "Weird Al" Yankovic Amy Grant Fugazi Billy Joel Genesis Scorpions The Go-Go's Grace Jones Boz Scaggs Smokey Robinson Meat Puppets Ultravox George Harrison Faith No More They Might Be Giants Iron Maiden Sparks Depeche Mode Bob Marley Neil Diamond Queen Whitney Houston The Commodores Afrika Bambaataa Cyndi Lauper Bon Jovi Fleetwood Mac Cher Tina Turner Prince George Benson Foreigner Joe Jackson The Rolling Stones Cocteau Twins The Kinks Al Jarreau Bonnie Raitt Kate Bush Kool & the Gang Metallica The Replacements Black Flag The Moody Blues Billy Idol Sting Beastie Boys King Crimson Tracy Chapman The Jam Ministry Tom Waits Minor Threat The Bangles Sonic Youth Los Lobos Echo and the Bunnymen The Alan Parsons Project Steve Winwood Eurythmics Stevie Wonder ZZ Top Dexys Midnight Runners Emmylou Harris Carly Simon Culture Club Hall & Oates Stevie Nicks Leonard Cohen Bryan Adams Peter Gabriel The Misfits Elvis Costello & the Attractions Steve Earle Siouxsie & the Banshees Stray Cats LL Cool J Gloria Estefan N.W.A De La Soul Sade Anthrax Eric B. & Rakim Cheap Trick Toto Ice-T Pet Shop Boys Bauhaus Donna Summer Journey Stone Roses Pixies Eric Clapton New Edition Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Phil Collins Ramones George Michael Janet Jackson The Human League Frankie Goes to Hollywood Skinny Puppy Mötley Crüe Eddie Money Billy Bragg Tears for Fears Bob Seger The Pretenders Einstürzende Neubauten Talk Talk XTC The Fall Slayer The Grateful Dead Men at Work John Williams Tom Petty (solo) The Judds The Dead Kennedys Squeeze Deep Purple Chaka Khan Paul McCartney R.E.M. Warren Zevon John Mellencamp Twisted Sister The Jesus and Mary Chain Quincy Jones Roxy Music The Clash Bruce Springsteen The Pogues Kenny Loggins English Beat Olivia Newton-John Guns N' Roses Motörhead The Cars Devo Duran Duran Midnight Oil Rod Stewart The Police Pat Benatar The Smiths Public Image Ltd. Nine Inch Nails The J. Geils Band Dio Willie Nelson The B-52's Aretha Franklin David Bowie Madness Miami Sound Machine Joy Division/New Order Crowded House Joe Cocker Kraftwerk The Psychedelic Furs Anita Baker John Lennon Robert Palmer Electric Light Orchestra Alice Cooper Judas Priest Blondie Stevie Ray Vaughan Van Halen George Strait The Cult The Tragically Hip Dolly Parton Linda Ronstadt U2 Rick James Sinead O'Connor Adam and the Ants Jackson Browne Styx ABC Huey Lewis and The News Jane's Addiction The Pointer Sisters Simple Minds Brian Eno Megadeth Black Sabbath INXS Neil Young Nick Cave Rush
Of the 233 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)
The Replacements - Let It Be (1984)
Run-D.M.C. - Run-D.M.C. (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)
Tom Waits - Rain Dogs (1985)
New Order - Low-Life (1985)
Tears For Fears - Songs From The Big Chair (1985)
The Replacements - Tim (1985)
LL Cool J - Radio (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)
Bonnie Raitt - Nick of Time (1989)
De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising (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)
Rush - The Spirit Of Radio (1980)
X - Los Angeles (1980)
Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train (1980)
Dead Kennedys - Holiday in Cambodia (1980)
Talking Heads - Once In A Lifetime (1980)
Peter Gabriel - Biko (1980)
Joan Jett - Bad Reputation (1980)
George Jones - He Stopped Loving Her Today (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)
The Police - Every Breath You Take (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)
U.T.F.O. - Roxanne, Roxanne (1984)
Prince - When Doves Cry (1984)
Tina Turner - What's Love Got to Do With It (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)
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)
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