Re: What Are Your 80s Favorites?
I've always considered 80s pop and rock to be pretty seriously underrated. There were a lot of great songs. As newdawnfades has pointed out, it was a very song-driven scene, and for me that makes the 80s very like the 60s...sort of "the 60s with a lot of synths and electronic drums".
The 80s music is my wife's favorite music scene, so we listen to a lot of things from that time. I loved the Police's early 80s stuff, R.E.M., and of course don't get me started on U2 which is one of my 3 all time favorite bands. The Genesis and Phil Collins stuff from the 80s was just stellar, in my opinion.
A lot of 70s talent did some of their best work in that decade. Springsteen has already been mentioned. I also think of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers as being of the 80s, even though they started out in the mid-70s. Steve Winwood (who goes all the way back to the mid 60s) did several great records, including his blockbuster Back in the High Life album in the 80s (and that's one really great album).
Yes did 90125 and Big Generator in that decade. They scored their one and only #1 hit single with "Owner of a Lonely Heart". 90125 was actually a very influential album that contributed in a crucial way to what ended up being the "80s sound".
Tears For Fears did two monumental albums in the 80s, Songs from the Big Chair and Seeds of Love. And like was said earlier, lots of really great one-hit-wonders.
