For those of you who tuned in last week, you may recall I was going through my twelve favorite albums of the decade to come up with the eight or nine albums which would get bestowed the honor of being purchased on vinyl, framed, and hung on my wall. It kicked off with 1980, and from that year, two contenders were selected, Queen's The Game, and Rush's Permanent Waves.
Moving on, we come to 1981. Much like 1980, there are some honorable mentions to touch on before getting to the top twelve. This starts with the Superman II soundtrack from Ken Thorne, based on music originally composed by John Williams. Where this one shines for me is its Preface and Main Title March. These are superb when played back to back, and I often do just that.
The was followed by Billy Squier's Don't Say No. I didn't know much about this artist until tracking down various 80's hits which I wanted to add to my collection. From my first introduction, I immediately garnered an appreciation for his raspy voice, hard rock style, and even later collaborations with Queen. Don't Say No was a late entry to my '81 list, and frankly, I don't think it was ever going to make the final cut.
Kicking things off at number 12 is Oingo Boingo with their debut album, Only A Lad. This wasn't my introduction to the band, that honor goes to Dead Man's Party, but it certainly holds a place in my heart for not only the songs included on it, but for the many hours it helped keep me entertained while driving for work. The only song which I don't particularly care for from this one is their cover of You Really Got Me, which is just awful.
Harkening back to my teenage years, Ozzy Osborne was in frequent rotation. While I'd skip around his albums Bark At The Moon, and No Rest For The Wicked, his debut, Blizzard Of Oz, and follow up, Diary Of A Madman were often blared through my stereo speakers. It's not perfect, there are duds, which will keep it from ultimately becoming a wall piece.
Kim Wilde's self titled release takes me back to that familiar moment in time that I've talked about a lot. Her song, Kids In America, is one my sister would play the 45 of frequently while we kids sat around playing, or in general just doing what kids do. Fun fact, I still have my sisters vinyl from back in the day. From there, I discovered the full album, albeit decades later, and she became an artist who's 80's era collection I've obtained in full. As for the record itself, it's not perfect, but the ones that are I consider to be fantastic.
With Controversy, Prince moved closer and closer to the sound which would solidify his popularity in the 80's. As far as Prince goes, it's not my favorite album he ever made, but it does have some bangers worth picking it up for. These include the title track, Private Joy, and Let's Work.
The Police seemed unstoppable in the 80's, and they continued their long standing status of making hits with Spirits In The Material World, Demolition Man, and Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic, all of which are included on Ghost In The Machine. With the songs so to came the continued rotation of music videos which would air frequently on MTV.
Some call Moving Pictures the best 80's album from Rush. While I would personally give Permanent Waves that honor, I won't deny this album brings a lot to the table. If it weren't for the final track, Witch Hunt, I'd call this one a perfect album. I'd potentially consider this one for a spot on the wall.
Who Can It Be Now, and Land Down Under are legendary songs from the era. I'll even give a pass to Be Good Johnny, though it's not among their most memorable. Business As Usual really scratches that 80's itch. Men At Work are a band I really don't think got the credit they deserved. I mean, sure, they're not perfect, and they don't have a lot of hits. However, each of their three studio albums from the era deserve a fair shake.
Their self titled debut wasn't the first introduction most Americans got to Duran Duran. However, when it was reissued and re-released on the skirt tails of Rio, it too went platinum status. It's also one of those releases that depending on if you bought the UK pressing or USA pressing you'd get a different album. Taking advantage of the re-issue, Capitol went ahead and removed the song, To The Shore, and in its place added the popular single, Is There Something I Should Know?
Raise your eyebrows, call me names. Whatever you gotta do. I loved The Smurfs All Star Show as a kid, and even to this day I like to give it a play every now and then. Don't judge me, I'm not ashamed. This was one of the first albums I ever personally owned as a kid.
When you're down to four members, and it's your fourth studio album, you naturally name your album, 4. Its Foreigner's highest selling album of all time, and for good reason. While it features the Billboard Hits, Waiting For A Girl Like You, Jukebox Hero, Break It Up, Luanne, and Urgent, it also has a lot of tracks that equally entertain.
The childhood memories associated with the track Rio, from Maywood's Different Worlds would turn out to only be the tip of the iceberg for me. Because of it, I was led to a duo who's pop rock hits were on the level of ABBA. Frankly, I don't know why they never cracked the US shores. Its chalk full of solid song writing, and amazing vocals.
And speaking of ABBA, they take the number one spot with their final entry until 2021's Voyage. Though the group may have no longer been enjoying the ride of being one of the greatest bands of all time, there's no denying they went out on top with The Visitors. You get the title track, Head Over Heels, When All Is Said And Done, I Let The Music Speak, One Of Us, and Two For The Price Of One, and if these songs were to encompass the entire album, I'd call it perfect. Unfortunately, there are a handful of duds, which deter this.
Here's where things get a bit weird. I wouldn't pick number three for my wall. I wouldn't even pick number two. Shocking as it may seem, I also wouldn't pick number one. Instead, if I were going to include an album on my wall from 1981, it would be The Smurf's All-Star Show. Despite the lack of hits, or even what we'll call, "good" songs, what it does have is an important nostalgic relevance to me. One that trumps all above and below it on this list. Of course, I'm not buying anything until I've gone through the entire decade, and then reevaluated everything. From there, I'll come up with my eight or nine all time favorites for the wall.
Click "HERE" to go back to the home page. For more posts related to this one, please click the labels below.
No comments:
Post a Comment