Dec 5, 2008

The Best Albums Of 1980

Top 50


  1. Remain in light - TALKING HEADS
  2. Closer - JOY DIVISION
  3. Sound affects - THE JAM
  4. Crocodiles - ECHO & THE BUNNYMEN
  5. Grotesque (after the gramme) - THE FALL
  6. Fresh fruit for rotting vegetables - DEAD KENNEDYS
  7. Is this real? - WIPERS
  8. Los Angeles - X
  9. Crazy rhythms - THE FEELIES
  10. Kilimanjaro - THE TEARDROP EXPLODES
  11. Killing Joke - KILLING JOKE
  12. Kaleidoscope - SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES
  13. 17 seconds - THE CURE
  14. The Psychedelic Furs - THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS
  15. The Pretenders - THE PRETENDERS
  16. Get happy - ELVIS COSTELLO & THE ATTRACTIONS
  17. Underwater moonlight - THE SOFT BOYS
  18. Black sea - XTC
  19. In the flat field - BAUHAUS
  20. Songs the lord taught us - THE CRAMPS
  21. Jane from occupied Europe - SWELL MAPS
  22. The Birthday Party - THE BIRTHDAY PARTY
  23. No questions asked - THE FLESH EATERS
  24. Freedom of choice - DEVO
  25. The correct use of soap - MAGAZINE
  26. Boy - U2
  27. Empires and dance - SIMPLE MINDS
  28. Travelogue - HUMAN LEAGUE
  29. Wild planet - THE B-52’s
  30. End of the century - RAMONES
  31. Rude intrusions - STEVE MIRO & THE EYES
  32. Further ellipses - SPHERICAL OBJECTS
  33. Searching for the young soul rebels - DEXYS MIDNIGHT RUNNERS
  34. Scary monsters (and super creeps) - DAVID BOWIE
  35. Peter Gabriel III - PETER GABRIEL
  36. The river - BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN
  37. Absolutely - MADNESS
  38. Autoamerican - BLONDIE
  39. Gentlemen take polaroids - JAPAN
  40. Queen of Siam - LYDIA LUNCH
  41. Do animals believe in God? - PINK MILITARY
  42. For how much longer do we tolerate mass murder? - THE POP GROUP
  43. Group sex - CIRCLE JERKS
  44. Alan Vega - ALAN VEGA
  45. Jeopardy - THE SOUND
  46. Sinsemilla - BLACK UHURU
  47. Signing off - UB 40
  48. More Specials - THE SPECIALS
  49. I just can’t stop it - THE BEAT
  50. Kings of the wild frontier - ADAM AND THE ANTS
Also recommended:

The art of walking - PERE UBU, Gyrate - PYLON, Something better change - D.O.A., The black album - THE DAMNED, Nobody’s heroes - STIFF LITTLE FINGERS, Baby's got a gun - THE ONLY ONES, Strange boutique / Love zombies - THE MONOCHROME SET, Lubricate your living room - FIRE ENGINES, A-Z - COLIN NEWMAN, Half-Mute - TUXEDOMOON, Voice of America - CABARET VOLTAIRE, The return of The Durutti Column - THE DURUTTI COLUMN, Organisation / Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - ORCHESTRAL MANOEUVRES IN THE DARK, Die kleinen und die bosen - D.A.F., Solid pleasure - YELLO, Waiting for a miracle - COMSAT ANGELS, A black box - PETER HAMILL, Never forever - KATE BUSH, Zennyata mondatta - THE POLICE, Flesh and blood - ROXY MUSIC, Argybargy - SQUEEZE, Hypnotized - UNDERTONES, Big smash - WRECKLESS ERIC, The absolute game - SKIDS, Vienna - ULTRAVOX, Commercial album - THE RESIDENTS, Heartattack and vine - TOM WAITS, Double fantasy - JOHN LENNON & YOKO ONO, Uprising - BOB MARLEY & THE WAILERS, Bass culture - LINTON KWESI JOHNSON, Hotter than July - STEVIE WONDER, Warm leatherette - GRACE JONES, Dirty mind - PRINCE, Kurtis Blow - KURTIS BLOW, Too much pressure - SELECTER, Laughter - IAN DURY & THE BLOCKHEADS, Snap crackle & bop - JOHN COOPER CLARKE, Heathen earth - THROBBING GRISTLE, Half machine lip moves - CHROME, Half gentlemen/not beasts - HALF JAPANESE, Devils, rats and piggies: A special message from Godzilla - MEKONS, Soldier - IGGY POP, Disconnected - STIV BATORS, Metro music - MARTHA & THE MUFFINS, Making movies - DIRE STRAITS, Ace of spades - MOTORHEAD, Back in black - AC/DC, New clear days - THE VAPORS, The age of plastic - BUGGLES, The affectionate punch - THE ASSOCIATES, The Nuns - THE NUNS, American music - THE BLASTERS, Out of the tunnel - MX-80 SOUND, We buy a hammer for daddy - LEMON KITTENS, New Age Steppers - THE NEW AGE STEPPERS, Negativland - NEGATIVLAND, Black market - THE CLASH