The 1980s often get bad press, but they were full of great music. Admittedly many acts from earlier eras struggled to adapt to new technology and made weak albums. But many new acts thrived, and there was diversity; hip hop emerged, there was a fertile 1980s alternative rock scene, and exciting mainstream acts like Madonna and Prince.
Major 1980s acts that I would like to cover include Prince, Metallica, and Sonic Youth.
The Blue Nile Album Reviews
The three members of The Blue Nile all attended Glasgow University in the late 1970s. Vocalist Paul Buchanan studied medieval history and literature, Robert Bell studied mathematics, and Paul Joseph...
Lindsey Buckingham Album Reviews
Even if you don't know him by name, you've surely heard Lindsey Buckingham's work in the pop era of Fleetwood Mac. While Stevie Nicks was the public face of the...
Kate Bush
Kate Bush was discovered by Pink Floyd guitarist David Gilmour as a teenager, and placed into a training scheme by her record label EMI, where she was taken out of...
Marshall Crenshaw
Detroit's Marshall Crenshaw doesn't belong in a conversation of most important musicians of his generation, but he's a talented craftsman, whose deft guitar pop is likeable and accessible. He's often...
Dire Straits
Dire Straits were a talented band at the wrong time. They emerged in the punk era in Britain, but front-man Mark Knopfler's virtuoso finger-picking and Dylan-adjacent lyrics were distinctly un-punk....
Peter Gabriel Album Reviews
Leaving Genesis after six albums, at the age of 25, Peter Gabriel's solo career initially felt like an attempt to distance himself from his former band. It took him a...
Amy Grant
The Queen of Christian pop music, Amy Grant also enjoyed success as a crossover pop artist in the 1980s and 1990s. Born in Georgia, her family moved to Nashville when...
Marillion Album Reviews
Neo-prog band Marillion took their name from JRR Tolkien’s The Silmarillion. They played their first show in London in 1978 - an all-instrumental lineup from which only drummer Mick Pointer was...
New Order Album Reviews
Joy Division's lead vocalist Ian Curtis took his own life on the eve of the band's first US tour. The band rebranded as New Order - taking their name from...
Pixies
New Zealand is a lovely country, with lots of sheep and mountains, and it's a good idea to come and visit us if you ever have the chance. Charles Thompson,...
Prefab Sprout
Formed around the songwriting talents of Durham's Paddy McAloon, Prefab Sprout enjoyed some commercial success in the 1980s and early 1990s, but have been relegated to the status of cult...
R.E.M.
R.E.M. emerged in the wake of punk from Athens, Georgia, and started their career as an insular Indie band, with cryptic albums that enjoyed a cult following. But gradually they...
Run-DMC
Run-DMC emerged early in the development of recorded hip hop. They helped to transform the genre from an underground movement with a handful of important singles, like Grandmaster Flash and...
The Smiths
The unlikely pairing of socially awkward Steven Morrissey and guitarist Johnny Marr, extroverted and four years Morrissey's junior, formed the nucleus of The Smiths, whose witty and stripped down music was...
Sting
Conventional wisdom suggests that Gordon Sumner surrendered his credibility when he left The Police, letting his pretentiousness overcome him as he dabbled in jazz and saved the rain-forests. As a...
The Stone Roses
The Stone Roses were formed in Manchester in 1983, around singer Ian Brown and guitarist John Squire. Drummer and backing vocalist Reni (Alan Wren) signed up in 1984, while Mani...
Talk Talk
While there's a natural progression between each of Talk Talk’s five studio albums, the distance between their 1982 synth-pop debut The Party’s Over and 1991’s jazz and ambient influenced Laughing...
Suzanne Vega
Suzanne Vega was born in Santa Monica, California. At the age of 2 she moved to New York City when her mother married Puerto Rican writer Edgardo Vega Yunqué. She...
The Waterboys
Mike Scott was born in Edinburgh, the son of an English teacher. Scott's interest in literature is clearly visible in his catalogue, but his life was changed when he bought...
10,000 Maniacs Album Reviews
10,000 Maniacs have one of the most misleader monikers in popular music. From their name, you'd expect speed metal or punk, but instead, they're a folk-rock band with socially conscious...
1980s Miscellany
This page collects odds and ends from 1980s artists: Beastie Boys | Tracy Chapman | Rush | Toto Beastie Boys Paul’s Boutique 1989, 9/10Paul’s Boutique was initially a commercial disappointment for...
