Top recording artists of the 80’s: Micheal Jackson, Prince, Madonna, U2, Springsteen, Van Halen, Billy Joel, Police, Phil Collins, Def Leopard, George Michael, Janet Jackson, Whipme Houston, Dire Straights, Rush, Lionel Richie, Talking Heads, Genesis, REM, Duran Duran, Motley Crue, Cure, Journey, REO, Tina Turner, Queen, Bryan Adams, Pat Benetar, Peter Gabriel, INXS, Tom Petty, Eurythmics, Cars, Aerosmith, ZZTOP, Billy Idol, Heart, Bowie, Elton John, Rod Stewart, Foreigner, Toto, Bob Seger, Fleetwood Mac, Gogos, Pet Shop Boys, Cyndie Lauper, Depeche Mode, Culture Club, Thompson Twins, Robert Palmer, Billy Ocean, Steve Winwood,
And that is not even including a whole host of popular New Wave acts (not listed above) that were the sound track of people growing up in that era .... OMD, Blondie, Devo, Cure, B-52s, A-Ha, Psychedelic Furs, Men Without Hats, Spoons, Human League, Spandau Ballet, ABC, XTC, Crowded House, Split Enz, Men At Work, New Order, Berlin, Flock of Seagulls, Smiths, Pretenders, Simple Minds, Ultravox, Howard Jones, Go-Gos, Bananarama, Miami Sound Machine, Erasure, Bangles, Yazoo, Roxy Music, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, Soft Cell, Talk Talk, Alphaville, The Fixx, Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Fine Young Cannibals, Naked Eyes, Blue Peter ..... If you grew up in the 80’s, you probably know every one of these bands and they will get you on the dance floor way faster than anything from the 60’s or 70’s, and even the younger generations like it.
Crummy decade for music? Tell that to anyone who grew up in the 80’s. Unlike later generations, almost all will say the 80’s was the best decade for music ever. It had everything and anything from pop, to disco, to dance to hard rock and everything in between. It was probably the last decade to not be totally ruined by platform/genre radio.