Don’t You Forget About Me by Simple Minds reached number one in 1985 as the closing theme of The Breakfast Club, a song the band initially refused to record that became the defining musical moment of 1980s teen cinema.
Simple Minds’ Don’t You Forget About Me: Breakfast Club Hit Read Post »
Higher Love by Steve Winwood reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1986 and won the Grammy for Record of the Year, the commercial peak of a career that stretched back to the Spencer Davis Group in the 1960s.
Higher Love by Steve Winwood (1986): A Grammy-Winning Classic Read Post »
You Can Call Me Al by Paul Simon became one of 1986’s most recognized singles, blending South African township music with pop songwriting and earning a Grammy for Album of the Year for the Graceland album.
You Can Call Me Al (1986): Paul Simon’s Iconic Pop Hit Read Post »
Love Shack by The B-52s reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1989, the Athens band’s biggest hit and a joyful comeback after the loss of guitarist Ricky Wilson, now one of the most enduring party songs in rock history.
Love Shack by The B-52s (1989): The Party Song That Endures Read Post »
The Lady in Red by Chris de Burgh reached number one in the UK and number three in the US in 1986, becoming the Irish singer-songwriter’s biggest hit and one of the most played romantic ballads of the decade.
The Lady in Red by Chris de Burgh (1986): A Global Romantic Hit Read Post »
Hip to Be Square by Huey Lewis and the News reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1986, a satirical rock anthem about embracing conformity that gained a second life through its prominent placement in American Psycho.
Hip to Be Square (1986): Huey Lewis and the News Hit Read Post »
Footloose by Kenny Loggins reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks in 1984, pairing one of the decade’s most energetic guitar hooks with the film that made Kenny Loggins a household name.
Footloose by Kenny Loggins (1984): The Song That Moved a Nation Read Post »
We Built This City by Starship reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985, becoming one of the decade’s best-selling singles and one of its most debated, later voted the worst song of the 1980s in a Rolling Stone poll.
Starship’s We Built This City: 1985’s Controversial Hit Read Post »
Addicted to Love by Robert Palmer reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1986 and produced one of the most iconic music videos of the MTV era, the commercial peak of a career built across two decades of stylistic range.
Addicted to Love (1986): Robert Palmer’s Iconic Rock Hit Read Post »
The Flame by Cheap Trick reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1988, giving the Rockford band their first chart-topping single and standing as one of the most emotionally effective power ballads of the decade.
The Flame by Cheap Trick (1988): A Number One Power Ballad Read Post »
Caught Up in You by 38 Special reached number ten on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1982, marking the Jacksonville band’s successful crossover from Southern rock roots into the mainstream hard rock radio sound of the early 80s.
Caught Up in You by 38 Special (1982): Southern Rock Radio Hit Read Post »
Jessie’s Girl by Rick Springfield reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1981 and won a Grammy, becoming one of the most recognizable rock singles of the decade and a permanent fixture of classic rock radio.
Jessie’s Girl: Rick Springfield’s 1981 Jealousy Anthem Read Post »
