Arguments can be made for the earlier, punkier stuff. The Police at the height of their powers. #29 ' Spirits in the Material World' (#11) – The Police - wiki I don't think I especially liked the song, but was fascinated by the idea of this kind of music and a B&W video invading my cable-box. Like Joe Jackson, this one always distinguished itself at the time. #28 ' Atlantic City' (#10) – Bruce Springsteen - wiki I'm still convinced Martha Quinn is in this video. This one is suprisingly fun to play on Guitar Hero. #26 ' I Ran' (#9) – Flock of Seagulls - wiki Getting close to hip-hop (for early-'80s hit music). #25 ' Let It Whip' (#5) – Dazz Band - wiki #24 ' White Wedding' (#36) – Billy Idol - wiki Some review I read talked about how the vocals were more machine-like than the synthesizers. #23 ' Don't You Want Me' (#1) – The Human League - wiki I'm glad this didn't catch on as a big trend. #22 ' Rock This Town' (#9) – The Stray Cats - wiki #21 ' Tainted Love/Where Did Our Love Go' (#8) – Soft Cell - wikiĬatchy, transgressive, British Invasion III. #20 ' We Got the Beat (live)' (#2) – The Go-Go's - wikiįrom Urgh! A Music War (1981). #19 ' Always on my Mind' (#5) – Willie Nelson - wiki #18 ' Someday, Someway' (#36) – Marshall Crenshaw - wiki I actually had listened to quite a bit of CSN/Y in the '70s, due to my mom having Greatest Hits, So Far on the original vinyl edition. #17 ' Southern Cross' (#18) – Crosby, Stills & Nash - wiki Similar story to The Who, I probably could have only identified 'Satisfaction' as another Stones song. #16 ' Hang Fire' (#20) – The Rolling Stones - wiki Listened to it a lot on cassette before I'd have known much beyond 'My Generation.' Oh yeah, it was a Columbia House 12-for-1¢ tape. #15 ' Eminence Front' (#68) – The Who - wikiįrom the first post-Keith album, It's Hard. This is a pretty quality album from what I remember, but I haven't heard the whole thing in many years. #11 ' Rock the Casbah' (#8) – The Clash - wiki #10 ' You Dropped a Bomb on Me' (#31) – The Gap Band - wiki I'm a Combat Rock supporter, including the hits. #9 ' Should I Stay or Should I Go?' (#45) – The Clash - wiki Seems like something that would have been mentioned a lot at the time. I liked this, I liked current Genesis, but I'm pretty sure I hadn't put them together. #8 ' Shock the Monkey' (#29) – Peter Gabriel - wiki I remember how distinctly this song stood out from the rest of Mtv, and it still stands out from most '80s pop. #7 ' Steppin' Out' (#6) – Joe Jackson - wiki Lots of great Pretenders songs, they should have had more US hits. #6 ' Back on the Chain Gang' (#5) – The Pretenders - wiki #5 ' I Love Rock 'n' Roll' (#1) – Joan Jett & the Blackhearts - wiki This was probably my favorite video of 1982. #4 ' You Got Lucky' (#20) – Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers - wiki The Cars became pretty bad not too much after they were really good. I wonder if Tommy Tutone has any other good songs. #1 ' Our Lips Are Sealed' (#20) – The Go-Go's - wikiĪ lot of the better stuff has its links to punk and post-punk, or new wave I guess.

(Here's an aggregated album list, for what it's worth.) So here they are: the Top 40 pop songs from 1982 that I think hold up reasonably well today. Peak chart position and artist are provided, and even a Wikipedia link to more info on the hitsong itself. Song names link to YouTube, preferably the original Mtv video. I tried to avoid absolute crap that was hot stuff at the time (Men At Work, Toto), and also better stuff that I wasn't even aware of (Iron Maiden, Violent Femmes). Michael Jackson hadn't begun gathering together all of pop music under a separate umbrella than rock. The '70s hadn't quite ended (both Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham are here), and that distinct '80s sound was just gaining traction (hey, Flock of Seagulls). Actually, I was listening to a lot of Genesis in 1982, having recently discovered Abacab (1981) and Three Sides Live (1982, no major US hits) but not having plunged into the Gabriel era. So, I listened to a lot of pop music at the time. Mtv was huge, and I wouldn't discover punk rock for another few years. Cycling through the decades in randomized order (1995, 1972, 1988), we're brought around to 1982. As promised here, we'll continue itemizing years back through the entire rock era.

Gap band let it whip wiki