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The 80s were a transformative period in the history ...
- Take On Me. 2,135 votes. "Take On Me," the iconic 1980s synth-pop anthem by Norwegian band A-ha, is a high-energy love song that captures the essence of youthful passion and adventure.
- Beat It. 1,801 votes. Michael Jackson's invigorating anthem, "Beat It," combines a driving beat, blistering guitar solo by Eddie Van Halen, and empowering lyrics to create an unstoppable force in 80s pop culture.
- Thriller. 1,718 votes. Michael Jackson's legendary opus, "Thriller," enthralls listeners with its ominous synth lines, infectious dance beats, and masterful storytelling.
- Africa. 1,386 votes. Toto's "Africa" envelops listeners in a lush, evocative soundscape, masterfully fusing ethereal harmonies and earthy rhythms. As an enigmatic tribute to a distant continent, the song quickly became an irresistible 80s favorite.
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A house rhythm played on a Roland TR-909 drum machine, featuring a four-on-the-floor bass drum plus cymbal, claps, hi-hats and rimshots. In its most typical form, the genre is characterized by repetitive 4/4 rhythms including bass drums, off-beat hi-hats, snare drums, claps, and/or snaps at a tempo of between 120 and 130 beats per minute (bpm); synthesizer riffs; deep basslines; and often, but ...
New wave is a music genre that encompasses pop -oriented styles from the 1970s through the 1980s. It is considered a lighter and more melodic "broadening of punk culture ". [4] It was originally used as a catch-all for the various styles of music that emerged after punk rock. [30] [31] Later, critical consensus favored "new wave" as an umbrella ...
- Mid-to late 1970s, United Kingdom and United States
- A "new wave" of popular music
- Rock
- Pop
- UK Soul
- Hip Hop
- Electronic Music
- Jazz Fusion
- 2 Tone and Reggae
- Indian Music in The UK
- Second British Invasion
New wave and New Romantics
New Romantic music emerged in London nightclubs including Billy's and the Blitz Club towards the end of the 1970s. Influenced by David Bowie and Roxy Music, it developed glam rock fashions, gaining its name from the frilly fop shirts of early Romanticism. New Romantic music often made extensive use of synthesisers. Pioneers included Visage and Ultravox and among the commercially most successful acts associated with the movement were Adam and the Ants, Culture Club, Spandau Ballet and Duran Du...
Post-punk
Some of the most successful post punk bands in the 1970s, such as Siouxsie and the Banshees, Echo & the Bunnymen and The Psychedelic Furs, also continued their success during the 1980s. Members of Bauhaus and Joy Division explored new stylistic territory as Love and Rockets and New Order respectively. The second generation of British post-punk bands that broke through in the early 1980s, in, tended to move away from dark sonic landscapes. Some, such as Gang of Four, shifted to a more commerci...
Gothic rock
Gothic rock, often shortened to goth, developed out of the post-punk scene in the early 1980s. It combines dark, often keyboard-heavy music with introspective and depressing lyrics. Notable early gothic rock bands include Bauhaus (whose "Bela Lugosi's Dead" is often cited as the first goth record), Siouxsie and the Banshees (who may have coined the term), The Cure, The Sisters of Mercy, and Fields of the Nephilim. Gothic rock gave rise to a broader goth subculture that included clubs, various...
The British charts at the opening of the 1980s contained the usual mix of imports, novelty acts, oddities (including rock 'n' roll revivalist Shakin' Stevens) and survivors like Queen and David Bowie, but were dominated by post punk, and then from about 1981 by new romantic acts. There were also more conventional pop acts, including Bucks Fizz, who...
In 1980s, UK soul musicians such as Junior, Princess, the Pasadenas, Mica Paris, Soul II Soul, and Central Line played soul music and had hit songs. Soul II Soul's breakthrough R&B hits "Keep on Movin'" and "Back to Life" in 1989 have been seen as opening the door to the mainstream for black British soul and R&B performers. Britain had produced som...
A British hip hop scene emerged in the early 1980s, largely based on American hip hop music at parties and club nights, In this period some pop records dabbled with rap – such as Adam and the Ants' "Ant Rap" (1981), Wham!'s "Wham Rap! (Enjoy What You Do)" (1982) and Malcolm McLaren's "Buffalo Gals" (1982). More serious British artists[clarification...
In the 1980s, dance music records made using only electronic instruments became increasingly popular, largely influenced from the electronic music of Kraftwerk and disco music. Such music was originally born of and popularised via regional nightclub scenes in the 1980s, and became the predominant type of music played in discothèques as well as the ...
After the lean years of the 1970s, there was something of a British jazz revival based in London's Soho in the 1980s. Initially this UK jazz dance scene was led by DJs like Paul Murphy, but it soon expanded to support live bands and to start its own record labels. The jazz revival was by the appearance of a new generation of British jazz and fusion...
Having emerged from the post-punk and reggae scenes in the West Midlands in the 1970s, the ska revival associated with 2 Tone records was a remarkable commercial success in the early years of the 1980s. Bands like The Specials, The Selecter, The Beat, Madness, Bad Manners and The Bodysnatchers all enjoyed chart success, with Madness and The Special...
By the mid-1970s, the demand among the relatively large Asian populations of many major British cities for familiar live music to entertain at weddings and other cultural occasions led to a flourishing Asian dance band scene, particularly bhangra from the Punjab which supported bands like Alaap, formed in Southhallin London and Bhujhungy Group from...
The Second British Invasion consisted of acts that came mainly out of the synthpop and new wave genres. These acts received exposure in the United States on the cable music channel MTV which launched in 1981. British artists, unlike many of their American counterparts, had learned how to use the music video early on.: 340, 342–3 Several British act...
Top 80s Artists, 80s Hits, and 80s Trends . ...
The rise of MTV and music videos was a true game-changer. Alongside a wide variety of musical genres, a wave of creativity and diversity emerged, making the ’80s truly unforgettable. Let’s go back in time and discover how the 1980s made an indelible impression on pop culture and the music world. Of course, not without music!
