Top 100 Songs Of The 80s

Oliva Newton-John Physical #1 Song of the 1980's
Oliva Newton-John Physical #1 Song of the 1980’s

How interested are you in knowing which song of this decade was the most popular? We hope you are. The purpose of the top 100 songs from 1980-1989 is to inform you of this information. We have compiled the top 100 songs of this era. A lot of new artists came on the scene and did very well like Whitney Houston, Paula Abdul, and Madonna to name a few.

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National Headlines

  • Ronald Reagan is elected president in a landslide over Jimmy Carter in 1980, and is reelected by a larger landside in 1984.
  • The unemployment rate and interest rates fall dramatically during this decade and many new jobs are created.
  • Princess Grace of Monaco dies in a car accident in 1982.
  • Mount St. Helens blows up in 1980.
  • In 1981, John Hinckley, Jr. shoots President Reagan and he survives.
  • Sally Ride becomes America’s first female astronaut on the shuttle Challenger in 1983. Also, in 1983, Ronald Reagan sends 6,000 troops to Grenada to evacuate U.S. Medical students and is successful.
  • The AIDS epidemic is made public in 1985.
  • The shuttle Challenger explodes after liftoff in 1986.

Interesting Facts About The Songs of This Decade

  • There are a total of 231 songs that peaked at the #1 position in this decade.
  • The artist with the most charted singes is Daryl Hall & John Oates with four.
  • To make the top 100 chart, all the songs had to peak at #1.
  • To make the top 10, the song had to be at #1 for 6 weeks.
  • To make the top 40, the song had to be at #1 for 3 weeks.
  • The number one song for the decade was Physical by Olivia Newton-John at ten weeks.
  • The year of 1984 had the most charted singles with 18.
  • The song with the most longevity on the chart is “Tainted Love” by Scott Cell in 1982 with 43 weeks on the chart.
  • The artist with the most #1 songs of the decade was Michael Jackson with eight.
  • The year of 1987 does not have a top 30 single on the chart. It’s highest number is 32.
Whitney Houston Greatest Love Of All
Whitney Houston Greatest Love Of All

Criteria Used For Ranking The Songs

The following criteria were used for determining the rankings of the top 100 songs of the 80’s:

  • The title’s peak position.
  • If a title is tied for peak position, ties are broken in the following order:
  1. Total weeks title held peak position
  2. Total weeks charted in Top 10
  3. Total weeks charted in Top 40
  4. Total weeks charted

If there are still ties among the titles, a computerized system is used to break the tie by calculating a point total for each based on its weekly chart positions. Each title is given a point value for its weekly position. For example: #1 = 100 points, #2 = 99 points, etc. These points are added together to create a raw point total.

The source used for compiling the top 100 songs was “Pop Annual 1955-2011” by Joel Whitburn.

The Top 100 Songs 1980-1989

Kenny Rogers Lady Album Cover
Kenny Rogers Lady Album Cover

Rank      Title / Artist / Peak Weeks () / Year of Release

  1. Physical / Olivia Newton-John (10) 1981
  2. Bettie Davis Eyes / Kim Carnes (9) 1981
  3. Endless Love / Diana Ross & Lionel Richie (9) 1981
  4. Every Breath You Take / Police (8) 1983
  5. I Love Rock N Roll / Joan Jett (7) 1982
  6. Ebony And Ivory / Paul McCartney & Wings (7) 1982
  7. Billie Jean / Michael Jackson (7) 1983
  8. Eye Of The Tiger / Survivor (6) 1982
  9. Flashdance…What A Feeling (6) 1983
  10. Lady / Kenny Rogers (6) 1980
  11. Say Say Say / Paul McCartney & Michael Jackson (6) 1983
  12. Centerfold / J. Gelis Band (6) 1982
  13. Call Me / Blondie (6) 1980
  14. Like A Virgin / Madonna (6) 1984
  15. (Just Like) Starting Over / John Lennon (5) 1980
  16. When Doves Cry / Prince (5) 1984
  17. Jump / Van Halen (5) 1984
  18. Upside Down / Diana Ross (4) 1980
  19. All Night Long / Lionel Richie (4) 1983
  20. Maneater / Daryl Hall & John Oates (4) 1982
  21. Another Brick In The Wall Part II / Pink Floyd (4) 1980
  22. Crazy Little Thing Called Love / Queen (4) 1980
  23. Total Eclipse Of The Heart / Bonnie Tyler (4) 1983
  24. Down Under / Men At Work (4) 1983
  25. That’s What Friends Are For / Dionne & Friends (4) 1986
  26. Jack & Diane / John Cougar (4) 1982
  27. Another Day In Paradise / Phil Collins (4) 1989
  28. Rock With You / Michael Jackson (4) 1980
  29. Magic / Olivia Newton-John (4) 1980
  30. Say You, Say Me / Lionel Richie (4) 1985
  31. Funkytown / Lipps, Inc. (4) 1980
  32. Faith / George Michael (4) 1987
  33. Walk Like An Egyptian  / Ban gles (4) 1986
  34. Miss You Much / Janet Jackson (4) 1989
  35. We Are The World / USA For Africa (4) 1985
  36. Roll With It / Steve Winwood (4) 1988
  37. Livin’ On A Prayer / Bon Jovi (4) 1987
  38. Another One Bites The Dust / Queen (3) 1980
  39. Don’t You Want Me / Human League (3) 1982
  40. Arthur’s Theme / Christopher Cross (3) 1981
  41. Woman In Love / Barbara Streisand (3) 1980
  42. Footlose / Kenny Loggins / (3) 1984
  43. Coming Up (Live At Glasgow) / Paul McCartney & Wings (3) 1980
  44. What’s Love Got To Do With It / Tine Turner (3) 1984
  45. Against All Odds / Phil Collins (3) 1984
  46. I Just Called To Say I Love You / Stevie Wonder (3) 1984
  47. Ghostbusters / Ray Parker Jr. (3) 1984
  48. Careless Whisper / Wham! (3) 1985
  49. Karma Chameleon / Culture Club (3) 1984
  50. Kiss On My List / Daryl Hall & John Oates (3) 1981
  51. Alone / Heart (3) 1987
  52. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go Wham! / (3) 1984
  53. Every Rose Has Its Thorn / Poison (3) 1988
  54. Can’t Fight This Feeling / REO Speedwagon (3) 1985
  55. Money For Nothing / Dire Straits (3) 1985
  56. With Or Without You / U2 (3) 1987
  57. Straight Up / Paula Abdul (3) 1989
  58. Up Where You Belong / Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes (3) 1982
  59. On My Own / Patti LaBelle & Michael McDonald (3) 1986
  60. La Bamba / Los Lobos (3) 1987
  61. Greatest Love Of All / Whitney Houston (3) 1986
  62. One More Try / George Michael (3) 1988
  63. Right Here Waiting / Richard Marx (3) 1989
  64. Shout / Tears For Fears (3) 1975
  65. Stuck With You / Huey Lewis & The News (3) 1986
  66. Rock Me Armadeus / Falco (3) 1986
  67. Lost In Your Eyes / Debbie Gibson (3) 1989
  68. Like A Prayer / Madonna (3) 1989
  69. Abracadabra / Steve Miller Band (2) 1982
  70. Jessie’s Girl / Rick Springfield (2) 1981
  71. Islands In The Stream / Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton (2) 1983
  72. Hard To Say I’m Sorry / Chicago (2) 1982
  73. It’s Still Rock And Roll To Me / Billy Joe (2) 1980
  74. Hello / Lionel Richie (2) 1984
  75. Owner Of A Lonely Heart / Yes (2) 1984
  76. Truly / Lionel Richie (2) 1982
  77. Baby, Come To Me / Patti Austin With James Ingram (2) 1983
  78. I Love A Rainy Night / Eddie Rabbit (2) 1981
  79. 9 To 5 / Dolly Parton (2) 1981
  80. Private Eyes / Daryl Hall & John Oates (2) 1981
  81. Out Of Touch / Daryl Hall & John Oates (2) 1984
  82. Manic / Michael Sembello (2) 1983
  83. Broken Wings / Mr. Mister (2) 1985
  84. Time After Time / Cyndi Lauper (2) 1984
  85. Let’s Hear It For The Boy / Deniece Williams (2) 1984
  86. Let’s Go Crazy / Prince (2) 1984
  87. I Wanna Dance With Somebody / Whitney Houston (2) 1987
  88. Look Away / Chicago (2) 1988
  89. I Want To Know What Love Is / Foreigner (2) 1985
  90. Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now / Starship (2) 1987
  91. The Reflex / Duran Duran (2) 1984
  92. The Power Of Love / Huey Lewis & The News (2) 1985
  93. We Didn’t Start The Fire / Billy Joel (2) 1989
  94. Everybody Wants To Rule The World / Tears For Fears (2) 1985
  95. Rapture / Blondie (2) 1981
  96. Celebration / Kool & The Gang (2) 1981
  97. Caribbean Queen / Billy Ocean (2) 1984
  98. We Built This City / Starship (2) 1985
  99. Never Gonna Give You Up / Rick Astley (2) 1988
  100. Sweet Child O’ Mine / Guns N Roses (2) 1988

Shop Greatest Hits of the 1980’s

You can shop the greatest hits of the 1980’s by clicking on the link. You will be taken to Amazon Try Prime Digital Music section where you have over 3,200 selections to choose from. Listen to the brief recording before purchasing. Some of the selections may not be the original recordings. You can enter the artist’s name in the search box and the system will return a list of all there selections in the database.

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