Tag: 1980sPage 1 of 19

Willie Dixon, Mighty Earthquake And Hurricane, 1984 on PA USA

Though one doesn’t normally think of Dixon as an eighties artist (he started putting out recordings in the late 50s) he was still making great music into the…

The Time, The Time (Self-Titled), 1981 on Warner Bros.

This was the debut LP from Morris Day and co, though they started playing together in the early seventies under different names. The band here still includes Jimmy…

Rush, Exit . . . Stage Left, 1981 on Mercury

Like many, I found Rush as teen (or maybe pre-teen?) and was immediately hooked by the aggressive musicality and complexity and the allusive nature of Peart’s lyrics. Even…

Ry Cooder, Borderline, 1980 on Warner Bros.

Cooder’s 9th studio solo LP, with John Hiatt, Jim Keltner, Jesse Harms, George Pierre, Bobby King, Willie Green Jr., Reggie McBride, and Tim Drummond. Produced by Cooder with…

Various Artists, A Very Special Christmas, 1987 on A&M

Long before Maria’s “All I Want For Christmas” came this wonderful compilation to benefit Special Olympics International with a whos-who of mid-late 80s artists covering holiday songs: This…

Sly & Robbie; The Sixties, Seventies + Eighties = Taxi; 1981 on Mango

Great collection of songs produced by Sly Dunbar & Robbie Shakespeare, whose production company and label were both called Taxi, released on Mango which was an Island Records…

Ry Cooder, The Slide Area, 1982 on Warner Bros.

Ry Cooder is a long time favorite who still has a tendency to fly a bit under the popular radar (though musicians do tend to love him). This…

Dire Straits, Alchemy – Dire Straits Live, 1984 on Warner Brothers

Wonderful 2xLP live album of early 80s Dire Straits. Recorded in London at the Hammersmith Odeon over two nights in July 1983. Great versions of “Romeo and Juliet”…

Simon & Garfunkel, The Concert In Central Park, 1982 on Warner Bros

One of the best live albums from one of my favorite duos. Good variety of tempos and tunes, enough stage banter to feel live but no so much…

Violent Femmes, Violent Femmes (box set), 2024 on Craft Recordings

This was one of my favorite albums of the 1980s (it came out on Slash Records in 1983), and I’ve been looking forever for a decent copy on…

Sinéad O’Connor, The Lion and the Cobra, 1987 on Chrysalis / Ensign

This was Sinéad’s debut album and is still just astonishingly great. The spoken word intro in gaelic by Enya before “Never Get Old” is Psalm 91: For He…

Michelle Shocked, The Texas Campfire Tapes, 1986 on Mercury / Cooking Vinyl

This was the debut album for Michelle Shocked, purportedly recorded by Cooking Vinyl founder Pete Lawrence on a Sony Walkman at an unplanned performance at the Kerrville Folk…

Depeche Mode, Some Great Reward, 1984 on Sire

I’ve not shared many Depeche Mode records here, mostly because I’m sharing new additions to my collection and I don’t find many DM records I don’t already have,…

Commodores, All the Great Hits, 1982 on Motown

Wonderful collection of Commodores songs – their second compilation of hits, with many more to follow. “Lady.” “Sail On,” “Brick House,” “Easy,” and “Three Times a Lady” are…

Screaming Blue Messiahs, Bikini Red, 1987 on Elektra

Bill Carter and the Screaming Blue Messiahs put out four major label studio albums in the 80s – this was the third, in 1987. Some great and funny…

Safety Last, Safety Last, 1982 on Twin/Tone

Safety Last only put out two records – this self-titled “mini-album” and Struck By Love, both on Twin/Tone and produced by Paul Stark. On this EP, recorded at…

The Getz/Gilberto Collection: 20 Golden Greats, 1985 on Deja Vu

Italian release of tunes recorded between 1958 and 1964 by Stan Getz with Joao and Astrud Gilberto – varying recording quality from track to track. Classic bargain bin…

Howard Jones, One to One, 1986 on Elektra

Howard Jones was one of my first concerts I saved up for and bought tickets to myself. I don’t think he was the first, but he was certainly…

The Communards, Red, 1987 on London / MCA

The Communards were a duo of Jimmy Somerville (formerly of Bronski Beat) and Richard Coles, a classically trained musician. They put out only two albums: a self-titled debut…

Talking Heads, Slippery People / Making Flippy Floppy (Remixes), 1983 on Sire

Great 12″ single with remixes by David Byrne and John “Jellybean” Benetiz of two songs from the Speaking in Tongues album. May be technically a double-A-sided single (labeled…