The Best Albums of 1984
By 1984, a majority of groups signed to independent record labels were mining from a variety of rock and particularly 1960s rock influences. This represented a sharp break from the futuristic, hyper-rational post-punk years. Liverpool band Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s initially controversial dance-pop gave them three consecutive UK number ones in 1984, until they faded away in the mid-1980s. Dead or Alive, also from Liverpool, was another popular dance-pop band in the mid-1980s. It was fronted by lead singer Pete Burns. Probably the most successful British pop band of the era were the duo Wham! with an unusual mix of disco, soul, ballads, and even rap, who had eleven top ten hits in the UK, six of them number ones, between 1982 and 1986. Here are all of the 1984 albums ranked.
Don’t miss out on the CLASSIC music of 1984 below! Click to experience great songs!
10. Stop Making Sense (Talking Heads)
“Plenty of Talking Heads awesomeness to get your teeth stuck in to. Girlfriend is Better is my favorite song on this album. Still, you don’t know Talking Heads until you experience the Remain In Light album. top Making Sense is a stone-cold classic and almost perfect from top to bottom, the live versions of these album track absolutely spring to life and pop with energy and vigor.”
9. Zen Arcade (Hüsker Dü)
“It’s flawed, slightly too long and the audio fidelity is scratchy and staticky, but it’s those flaws that give it the greater impact. It’s a dark brooding masterpiece of existential angst the best ever put to music, its grunge before grunge became a book of clichés. The styles are diverse and varied, which individually don’t work in isolation, but when you add it all up create a sonic kaleidoscope that varies in texture and color. It’s cerebral with jagged hooks, its Rage to last a lifetime.”
8. Legend (Bob Marley & The Wailers)
“Reggae for the rock crowd. Mixed for the rock n pop audience. And it certainly worked, didn’t it? Full of brilliant songs. When I bought this back in the day it sounded fuck all like the Dub n reggae I’d hear Mr. Peel play and I expected something a bit more authentic. So what. I found all that shit out eventually. This is just classic shit for the masses. Gateway reggae or just an essential best to sit next to the other pop icons that Joe Bloggs loves that are still actually nice.”
See more: Bob Marley Albums Ranked
7. Double Nickels On The Dime (Minutemen)
“Double Nickels on the Dime is a series of well crafted frantic vignettes of punk, drawing influence from a wide variety of places. This band and album, along with Hüsker Dü and their album Zen Arcade, really helped to lay down the foundation for post-hardcore and Fugazi.”
6. Hatful Of Hollow (The Smiths)
“Hatful of Hollow, on the other hand, is a perfect alternative, containing the far superior 1983 John Peel recordings and the band’s excellent single output in 1984. It feels like a fully coherent album, so I consider it to be one.”
5. Let It Be (The Replacements)
“Nothing ever beat the first song off their first record for me. I heard I Will Dare somewhere when I was 19 and I had to check this album out. I enjoyed it but not as much as I enjoy it now. The Replacements were staying true to a punk aesthetic while trying to branch out into something else. Arguably one of the biggest turning points for an early alternative. Their best effort in my opinion.”
4. Born In The U.S.A. (Bruce Springsteen)
“It beggars the imagination the people like Reagan and Bush who, granted, were not notable for their intellectual achievements, could still be so superficial as to try and envelope Springsteen and this album into their indefensibly conservative fold. While this is far from the angriest protest album that Bruce ever made (in fact, it is only at the beginning of that movement, viewed from a political perspective) the intent and direction of Springsteen’s protest is unmistakable to anyone with ears.”
See more: The Smiths Albums Ranked
3. Ride The Lightning (Metallica)
“Ride the lighting is their heaviest album, and while the production is a little muddy and distant, it has the best riffs and Kirk Hammett’s solos IMO. Nearly every song in here is a Metallica staple. This is a must have for any Metallica fan and is just as good, and could be argued to be better than, master of puppets.”
2. The Smiths (The Smiths)
“A great album through and through. The way the songs going from energetic to soft and solemn is seamless. The typical pop song structure is thrown out the window many times on the album making for more interesting listening and the lyrics are daring. I’m a big fan of the combination of the electric and acoustic guitars and, of course, Morrisey’s delivery.”
1. Purple Rain (Prince And The Revolution)
“This album marked the point he definitely went into pop territory. It was only after listening to Dirty Mind and Controversy and then going back to this one I could see the genius in this project too. But this one is in my opinion, not the one you should start with; it doesn’t present his legacy as good as his earlier albums.”
