Best Song of the Eighties?
 

Taking nominations and discussion for <b>Best Song of the Eighties</b>. Any artist, any song, so long as it was originally released in the United States in the 80's.

My nomination - <b>The Clash - Rock the Casbah</b>.

Now I just want to hear what you all think. :)

dissed
 

dissed, no 99 Luftballoons :(

that's okay, you know my vote goes for Rock the Casbah anyway :thumb:

That would be choice D) -- There was no good music in the 80s.

pbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbtttttttttttttt!

You didn't like a single song from the 80's?

Our Bloom County lawyer is going over the top but the eighties pop music scene really sucked. There were a few punk acts that were amusing but got zero air time unless you lived close enough to a good college station. The Clash was great but for a lot of us that lived through the decade we spent a great deal of time listening to stuff that wasn't really eighties music. I was listening to a lot of sixties stuff and seventies arena rock back then mixed with some blues because the pop airways were populated by the likes of Boy George, Culture Club, Madonna, Frankie Goes to Hollywood blah blah blah. As a generation of listeners [middleagedman]we weren't catered to like today.[/middleagedman] We were trapped at the tail of the baby boom left with whatever scraps they didn't devour.

Way too difficult to pick just one. If you didn't like the 80s you weren't listening, but that's de rigeur for a world that saw commercial radio go down the drain to be replaced by nothing. We didn't know where to turn, but if you were paying attention:

"How Soon Is Now" - The Smiths
"Once in a Lifetime" - Talking Heads
"Eighties" - Killing Joke
"I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" - U2
"Billie Jean" - Michael Jackson
"Blue Bell Knoll" - Cocteau Twins
"Cloudbusting" - Kate Bush
"The Downtown Lights" - The Blue Nile
"Waters Part" - Let's Active
"Writing the Book of Last Pages" - Let's Active
"Horizon" - Let's Active
"Pulling Mussels (From the Shell)" - Squeeze
"Tempted" - Squeeze
"Summer's Cauldron" - XTC
"29" - Lloyd Cole and the Commotions

I partially agree with Tony, in that it's difficult to pick just one. But I still put "Rock the Casbah" above anything that I'm familiar with (and I listen to a <b>lot</b> of 80's music)... I guess just because I like it the best. It's easy to listen to a million times, it's fun... it brings a smile. I'm not sure how anyone can't like it, and I guess that's why it gets my vote.

Tony also lists a lot of really good stuff. I wouldn't say any of it is better than "Rock the Casbah", but still really good stuff. As far as picking one Michael Jackson song, I would probably go with "Beat It" or "Thriller" over "Billie Jean", but taste plays a huge part in this. :)

Sting fans would also put one or two songs from the Police's Synchronicity into the list, usu. "Every Breath You Take" or "King of Pain".

Tony nailed it on the commercial radio front. We didn't/don't have much radio coverage here. We lacked access to quality music. Sifting through the eighties now you can dig up some fine music. Living through it then, I was unwilling to stand the bombardment of high rotation crap to hopefully catch a gem. Maybe the more urban areas were better served back then but all I can say is thank Gore for the net. ;)

insert anti FCC rant here

And how could I forget

"Avalon" - Roxy Music

That was too obvious - there must be a ton more I've forgotten.

Hmmmm... I'm being way to negative here but after scraping around in my mind for the tunes T listed it turns out that one mans high rotation crap.... :)

Anyway just cue up the Grosse Point Blank soundtrack if you want some good eighties music.

Well partly, and partly I'm just being a smartass as usual.

I'm mostly interested in classical music... I could say that "Nixon in China" by John Adams was my favorite piece of "classical" music to come out of the 80s.

The "pop" music I absorbed was mostly stuff that got played a lot and that I associate with fun times of high school. To the extent that they trigger a pleasant nostalgia trip, I'm there. I don't think I (or anybody else) would consider them fabulous music. Stuff like Video Killed the Radio Star, Material Girl, and Bohemian Rhapsody. And some Billy Joel stuff.

I also like any kind of comedy, so when some parody comes along that uses 80s or any other music I usually enjoy that, often more than the original. (Example: "Like a Surgeon," "Amish Paradise".)

Damn, that's a great movie. "Tapeheads" was also another witty Cusack movie, though it never got much publicity.

Can't say much about 80's music. Too much pop to be considered worthwhile, but Ratt and Cinderella and the likes were quite okay. Don't forget Twisted Sister.

what do you mean? ive been trying to forget twisted sister for years. :)

~james

The Brits, man.
Elvis Costello! He was my 80s. and others technically on the 70-80 cusp.
- Man Out of Time
- Human Hands
- Clubland
- Almost Blue
- Shipbuilding
- Everyday I write the Book
- Indoor Fireworks
- I'll Wear it Proudly
- Love Field
- Head to Toe
- Jack of All Parades....

Yea! Squeeze
- Black Coffee in Bed
- Another Nail for my Heart
And I played the hell out of Roxy Music
-Avalon
-More Than this
-India
And...Thomas Dolby. Who could forget Golden Age of Wireless and beyond.
- Europa
- I Scare Myself
The Police
I always liked - Canary in a Coal Mine
which kinda segways to
Ska stuff like
The Specials
Madness

Wow. I really need to figure this Mp3 stuff out so I can gather tunes up to improve my quality of life.
:)