Featuring the best 80s music videos, TV shows, 80s celebrities and more!
Cinderella were so under-rated! They put out some great songs, but never really enjoyed the commercial success like so many of their ’80s rock brethren. Don’t Know What You Got (Till It’s Gone) was their highest charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 charts, peaking at number 12 in 1988.
Enjoy this look back at the music video for Don’t Know What You Got (Till It’s Gone) as well as a live performance from back in the day!
Eddie and the Cruisers was a 1983 film based on a novel by P.F. Kluge. The movie follows the life of Eddie Wilson, the lead singer of Eddie and the Cruisers, played by actor Michael Pare. The movie was a flop at the box office, but the soundtrack was a hit due to the song On The Dark Side, which was a number one hit on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks charts as well as number seven on the Hot 100 charts. John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band are actually the band singing the song, but actor Michael Pare did a fantastic job as the fictional lead singer!
Enjoy this look back at Eddie and the Cruisers performing On the Dark Side as well as a look at John Cafferty & The Beaver Brown Band’s music video for the song!
The late Eddie Money recorded some of the most remembered classic rock songs of the last forty years in the late ’70s and early ’80s. One of those songs was Shakin’ from his 1982 album No Control. Shakin’ became his second top ten hit on the Mainstream Rock charts when it peaked at number nine in ’82.
Enjoy Eddie Money’s music video for Shakin’ from 1982!
In 1985, Ratt released their second album Invasion of Your Privacy. The album cover caught every teenage boy’s eye because the cover featured Playboy model Marianne Gravatte, who also made an appearance in their video for Lay It Down. You’re in Love was track number one on the cassette (yes, cassette boys and girls as albums were on the out at this time, and CD’s weren’t mainstream yet)!
You’re in Love wasn’t commercially successful as it barely made it into the top 40 on the Rock charts, peaking at #34, but the song was a fan favorite at concerts, and the music video received heavy rotation on MTV. Enjoy this look back at Ratt’s music video for one of their best songs, You’re In Love!
In the early ’80s, Dokken released some of their best work, and their third studio album, Under Lock and Key is one of our personal favorites from any rock band from the ’80s. Mainstream radio didn’t give them the time of day, but rock fans definitely knew who Dokken were. The album featured some of their greatest hits like It’s Not Love, Unchain the Night, and this one, In My Dreams, their sixth top 40 rock hit in a row when it peaked at number 24 on the Mainstream Rock charts.
Enjoy this look back at this ’80s rock classic from Dokken!
In 1981, Stevie Nicks released her first solo studio album called Bella Donna, which went 4x Platinum and is considered one of the greatest albums of the decade. The album spent nearly three years on the Billboard 200 from July 1981 to June 1984. Nicks released four singles from the album, and all four songs are considered great classic rock songs: Leather and Lace, Edge of Seventeen, After the Glitter Fades, and the debut single Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around, which was a top five hit on both the Hot 100 (#3) and the Mainstream Rock (#2) charts.
Enjoy this live video of Stevie Nicks performing Stop Draggin’ My Heart Around in 1983!
Guns N’ Roses started performing Bob Dylan’s Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door live in concerts beginning in 1987. They even released a live version of the song on the 12″ single of Welcome to the Jungle. Here they are performing the song live at the Ritz in New York City back in 1988!
Hall & Oates have been making music and entertaining fans since 1972 when they released their debut album Whole Oats. Their first top five hit on the Hot 100 charts was Sara Smile from 1976. In 1980, they released their album Voices, which featured two of their greatest hits, Kiss On My List and this song You Make My Dreams, which peaked at #1 and #5 respectively on the Hot 100 charts.
Enjoy this look back at Hall & Oates‘ music video for You Make My Dreams from 1981!
Air Supply scored a number of top ten hits on the Hot 100 charts in the early ’80s, but none were as big as The One That You Love, which topped the Billboard Hot 100 charts in 1981 becoming their first and only number one single! They also scored number one songs on the AC charts in the ’80s for Lost in Love, Here I Am, and Even the Nights Are Better. The One That You Love peaked at number two on the AC charts.
Enjoy a look back at Air Supply’s music video for The One That You Love from 1981!
Robert Palmer had a lot of hits both with The Power Station and solo. His biggest solo hit came in 1986 when he scored a number one hit for Addicted To Love. It hit number one on the Hot 100 and the Mainstream Rock charts! And, in the music video for ‘Addicted To Love, his band is about as hot as it can get!
Enjoy this look back at Robert Palmer’s famous music video for Addicted to Love!
Rush’s Tom Sawyer is a song for the ages! You can still hear it today on rock stations, classic rock stations, pop stations and oldie stations worldwide. It was the second single released from Rush’s 1981 Moving Pictures album, which is one of the best progressive rock albums of all time.
In 1980, country music legend Don Williams scored his highest charting single on the Billboard Hot 100 charts when his number one country song ‘I Believe In You’ peaked at number 24 on the Hot 100 charts. It was also a top ten hit on the AC charts. Don Williams passed away on September 8, 2017. RIP Don Williams… country music has lost a legend.
Like a fine wine, Rick Springfield has aged very nicely! In the 80’s, Springfield was a fixture on both daytime TV and MTV! From 1981 – 1983, he portrayed Dr. Noah Drake on the soap opera General Hospital (he returned to the show from 2005 – 2008 and then again in 2012 & in 2013 for the 50th anniversary).
And, on MTV, his video for his hit singles Jessie’s Girl, ‘I’ve Done Everything For You’, ‘Don’t Talk To Strangers’, ‘Affair of the Heart’ and ‘Love Somebody’ were on constant rotation during the early 80’s! Here’s a look at Rick Springfield then and now!
Rick Springfield’s official music video for ‘Jessie’s Girl’:
Rick Springfield performing ‘Jessie’s Girl’ live and (Shirtless!) in 2014:
Rick Springfield performing ‘Jessie’s Girl’ live in 2020:
Rick Springfield performing and talking about ‘Jessie’s Girl’ on Good Morning America in 2021:
Any time the topic of ’80s hair bands comes up, the first bands that everyone thinks of are Poison, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, Cinderella, Bon Jovi and a host of other mainstream hair bands that charted a number of songs on the Billboard charts in the ’80s. However, there were a number of hair bands that released some great songs right at the end of the 80’s and the beginning of the ’90s. The problem was that when Nirvana and Pearl Jam led the Seattle grunge scene into the mainstream in the early ’90s, hair bands were left high and dry by the record labels. Unfortunately, this was right at the moment when many of them were releasing some of their best music. Here’s a look at five songs from hair bands who were a little too late to the ’80s hair band party:
Giant – ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams’ – Giant formed in 1987, and in 1990, they scored a hit with ‘I’ll See You In My Dreams’, which peaked at number 20 on the Hot 100 charts and number 7 on the Rock charts. Unfortunately, that was their last song that charted on the Hot 100, and by 1992, the band had disbanded.
Every Mother’s Nightmare – ‘Love Can Make You Blind’ – Every Mother’s Nightmare formed in the early ’90s, and one of their biggest hits was this song, ‘Love Can Make You Blind’. Had this song been released in the late ’80s, it would have probably been a top ten hit.
Steelheart – ‘I’ll Never Let You Go’ – If you’ve seen Mark Wahlberg’s movie ‘Rock Star’, you’re familiar with Steelheart’s music. Their song ‘We All Die Young’ was featured in the movie. While that song was included in their 1996 ‘Wait’ album, their biggest hit was ‘I’ll Never Let You Go’ from their self-titled 1990 album, which peaked at #23 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts.
Firehouse – ‘Love Of A Lifetime’ – Firehouse were one of the most successful “hair bands” of the ’90s. In 1991, they scored a top five hit with ‘Love Of A Lifetime’, and in 1992, they scored a top ten hit with ‘When I Look Into Your Eyes’.
Nelson – ‘(Can’t Live Without Your) Love And Affection’ – In 1990, Nelson scored a number one hit with ‘(Can’t Live Without Your) Love And Affection’. They followed it up with a number six hit with ‘After The Rain’, a number 14 hit with ‘More Than Ever’ and with a number 28 hit with ‘Only Time Will Tell’. Then… They’ve recorded more albums over the years, but that was it for success on the charts. But, it’s safe to say that their debut album was one of the most successful albums of all time for a ’90s hair band!
The Police released Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic in 1981, and it peaked at number three on the Hot 100 charts here in the U.S. It was a number one hit in the UK. Two years later in 1983, they scored their first and only number one hit on the Hot 100 charts with Every Breath You Take.
Enjoy this look back at The Police’s first top three hit on the charts in the US, Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic! And, just for fun, we’ve got their music video for Every Breath You Take as well!
In 1985, Mr. Mister released their second studio album titled Welcome to the Real World. The first single released was Broken Wings, and it became their first number one song on the Hot 100 charts. They followed it up with another number one song for Kyrie!
Enjoy this look back at Mr. Mister’s music video for their number one single Broken Wings from 1985!
In 1982, ABBA singer Anni-Frid Lyngstad (Frida) released a solo album called Something’s Going On, and the lead single was ‘I Know There’s Something Going On’. She wanted to record an album that was different from the “ABBA-sound”, and this song was a huge success. It was produced by Phil Collins and featured Collins on drums and backing vocals. It was also ranked by Billboard as the 20th most popular song of 1983. Enjoy Frida’s ‘I Know There’s Something Going On’!
In 1980, Donnie Iris and the Cruisers released their debut album Back on the Streets, and the first single Ah! Leah! became a top 40 hit on the pop charts and a top 20 hit on the rock charts peaking at #19. It has since become known as Iris’ signature hit and is probably more popular today than it was in the early 80’s. Enjoy!
Poison’s ‘Something To Believe In’ was the second single from their 1990 ‘Flesh and Blood’ album. It was also their last top ten hit on the Hot 100 charts when it peaked at number four. Enjoy the music video!
The Gap Band’s ‘You Dropped A Bomb On Me’ is still one of our all time favorite songs from the early ’80s. It wasn’t their highest charting single, but it’s arguably their most memorable hit!
Enjoy this look back at The Gap Band’s music video for You Dropped a Bomb on Me from 1982!
The Fine Young Cannibals seemed to come out of nowhere in 1988 when they scored a number one hit on the Hot 100 charts in April, 1989 with She Drives Me Crazy. But, this was actually their fourth top 10 hit in the UK, and their fourth top 30 hit in the US on the Dance charts. But, the song’s quirky music video below along with lead singer Roland Gift’s unique voice propelled the song and band to the top of the music world for a few years. They followed up this song with another number one on the Hot 100 charts with Good Thing.
Enjoy this look back at the official music video for She Drives Me Crazy from the Fine Young Cannibals!
