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