[1980s Western Music] Nostalgic 80’s Best Hit Songs
The 1980s brought changes to music history and had a huge influence on later musicians.
Cyndi Lauper, Culture Club, Madonna, Earth, Wind & Fire…
Even those who didn’t live through the era can sink into a sense of nostalgia that feels familiar somehow.
Compared to modern songs, the classics of the ’80s often boast purer song quality and stronger musical structure—or, seen another way, the larger market meant bigger budgets, letting you enjoy luxuriously produced sounds.
Find a favorite track and really dive into it!
- Nothing but classics! A nostalgic collection of ’80s Western ballads
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- Legendary Western rock masterpieces and hit songs of the 80s
- Ranking of Popular Western Music Artists of the 1980s [2026]
- Nostalgic or fresh? Great Western pop masterpieces and hit songs from the 1980s
- Love songs in Western music that were hits in the 1980s. World-famous classics and popular tracks.
- Club Hits: Dance music from Western artists that energized the dance floors in the 1980s
- 80s Western pop hits featured in commercials. A roundup of nostalgic CM songs.
- The 1970s were the golden age of Western rock! Recommended classics and hit songs
- [80s Western Music] A roundup of debut songs by girl bands
- Classic and hit Japanese pop songs from the nostalgic 80s
- Golden age of Western music! Recommended summer songs that were hits in the 80s
- Dance music in Japanese (J-pop) that people in their 50s used to listen to. Nostalgic classic hits.
[1980s Western Music] Nostalgic 80’s Best Hit Songs (151–160)
SledgehammerPeter Gabriel
It hit No.
1 in the U.S.
in 1986.
He left Genesis in 1975 due to family reasons, despite having established a solid position in the British prog scene.
Genesis, having lost their leader, went on to great success thanks to the contributions of the later-joining Phil Collins.
Meanwhile, he continued to release high-quality works that appealed to connoisseurs.
Just when it seemed he had nothing to do with the charts, this song became a big hit.
The clay-animation music video was mind-blowing.
Now It’s My TurnBerlin
The hard, cool vocals—unimaginable from Terri Nunn’s delicate, doll-like looks—are seriously badass.
This track is from their third album, Masquerade.
The monochrome music video features dramatic direction brimming with Terri’s enigmatic allure.
Mutha (Don’t want to go to school today)Extreme
Formed in 1985, Extreme became a popular band with their distinctive sound that blends hard rock with elements of funk.
While their ballad “More Than Words” is particularly famous, their true appeal lies in the fusion of bouncy rhythms and hard rock.
This song from their debut album, “Extreme,” is packed with everything that makes them so compelling.
One More TryGeorge Michael
It hit No.
1 in the U.S.
in 1988.
Following Wham!’s breakup and the No.
1 duet “I Knew You Were Waiting” with Aretha Franklin, his solo album was released and went on to become the No.
1 album on the year-end chart.
After reaching No.
2 with the first single “I Want Your Sex,” he achieved the remarkable feat of four consecutive No.
1 hits with “Faith,” “Father Figure,” this song, and “Monkey.”
Material GirlMadonna
If Michael Jackson was the defining male artist of the ’80s, then wouldn’t Madonna be the defining diva of the ’80s? Even more than 30 years after her debut, her continued success truly makes her the “Queen of Pop.”
The Tide Is HighBlondie
Speaking of Blondie, the explosively popular hit Call Me at the end of the ’70s is well known, but this song is actually a cover of one performed in ’67 by the Jamaican vocal group The Paragons.
With its irresistibly pleasing blend of reggae rhythms and a Latin flavor, it became one of her hits in 1980.
It’s a song that evokes a southern island, with a repeating phrase that listeners found comfortably lovable.
[1980s Western Music] Nostalgic 80’s Best Hit Songs (161–170)
SearchingChange
Change, heavily influenced by the legendary disco band Chic.
Change was an Italian-American post-disco group formed in Bologna, Italy, in 1979 by executive producers Jacques Fred Petrus and Mauro Malavasi.