32 replies to this topic

[Oldschooler81]

In a way I like these even more since you don't hear them on the radio or mentioned that often anymore. It's more like a treat than "Everybody Have Fun Tonight" or "Lucky Star" for the millionth time (as good as they are too).

Lots of these I personally loved as a kid but haven't heard on the radio since like 1997, maybe even years earlier if at all. What's cool is I probably listened to them on the same stations many of you did back in the day.

Perfect World - Huey Lewis
Breakout - swing out sister
Waiting for a star to fall - Boy Meets Girl
Someday - Glass Tiger
Born to be My Baby - Bon Jovi
Possession Obsession - Hall & Oates
Take Me to Heart - Quarterflash
We Dont Have to Take Our Clothes off - jermaine stewart
Every Little Kiss - bruce hornsby
You Are the Girl - the cars
Stone Love - kool and the gang
St Elmo's Fire - john parr
Rush Rush - paula abdul
Walk on Water - eddie money
You Should Be Mine, can you woo woo - Jeffrey Osbourne
Lawyers in Love - jackson browne
Don't Rush Me - taylor dayne
Only One Way to Rock - sammy hagar
High on You - survivor

[tgianco]

99 Luft Balloons- Nena
You're too shy- Kajagoogoo
Safety Dance - Men without Hats
Come on Eileen -0 Dexy's Midnight Runners
I want candy- Bow Wow Wow
Mickey - Toni Basil
Tainted Love- Soft Cell
Mexican Radio - Wall of Voodoo
Major Tom - Peter Schilling
In a Big Country- Big Country
Radioactive - The Firm
Perfect Way- Scritti Politti
Rumors - Timex Social Club
Under the Milky Way- The Church
The Promise - When in Rome
Whisper to a Scream- Icicle Works
Puttin on the Ritz - Taco


Ok, these are one-hit wonders (mostly).

[mattyx]

electric blue - ice house
queen of the broken hearts - loverboy
any colour - cutting crew
what should i see - frozen ghost


i could go on forever.....

[Steve Heard]

Somebody's Watching Me - Rockwell
Just Got Lucky - Joe Boxer
I Confess - The English Beat
Good Thing - Fine Young Cannibals
Everybody Everybody - Blackbox
The Humpty Dance - Digital Underground
Groove is in the Heart - Dee Lite
Roam - B52's
Girlfriend is Better - Talking Heads
Puttin' on the Ritz - Taco
Olivia - The Whispers

[Oldschooler81]

electric blue - ice house
queen of the broken hearts - loverboy
any colour - cutting crew
what should i see - frozen ghost


i could go on forever.....

Nice, I love the first two (only first heard them about 5-7 years ago too).

Good lists too, Tgianco and stevethedad. Lots of new wave.

[legofamily]

I also like Electric Blue by Ice House.

Here are a few:

Sister Christian-by Night Ranger
When I'm With You-by Sheriff
More Than Words Can Say-by Alias
Human-by The Human League
You Be Illing-Run DMC
Brass Monkey-Beastie Boys
Sarah-Starship
Self Control-Laura Brannigan

[Steve Heard]

[Chad Vander Veen]

Every song by Poison

[Bill Z]

Underappreciated 80s Songs?, can you think of any

Nope, can't think of a darn one.

Heck, I don't even recognize most of the artists listed above.


OK, wait, it's coming to me.

Here's a list:

the post war dream
your possible pasts
one of the few
the hero’s return
the gunners dream
paranoid eyes
get your filthy hands off my desert
the fletcher memorial home
southampton dock
the final cut
not now john
two suns in the sunset

Pink Floyd, The Final Cut, released in 1983

Those are definitely 1980's songs that are underappreciated.

[Bill Z]

Here are some more underappreciated songs of the 1980's

"Signs of Life"
"Learning to Fly"
"The Dogs of War"
"One Slip"
"On the Turning Away"
"Yet Another Movie / Round and Around"
"A New Machine (Part 1)"
"Terminal Frost"
"A New Machine (Part 2)"
"Sorrow"

A Momentary Lapse of Reason, Pink Floyd, Released 1987

[Oldschooler81]

^ That's true, Bill. I admit I've never even heard of any of those. It seems like Floyd is mostly just known for Dark Side of the Moon and a handful of other songs.

I love "Learning to Fly" too...that's a really chilled out atmospheric 80s pop/rock song. I can't think of anything else that sounds like it even.

[Bill Z]

It seems like Floyd is mostly just known for Dark Side of the Moon and a handful of other songs.

Let me guess, you never watched the movie "The Wall"? The album was released in 1979, so that puts it pre 80's, but the movie came out in 1982.

You should also try listening to the albums "Wish you were here" and "Animals"

Also, if you've got 23 minutes, listen to "Echoes", it is one of their best pre Dark Side songs.
It's mostly instrumental but it has a few lines of lyrics in it

Overhead the albatross hangs motionless upon the air
And deep beneath the rolling waves
In labyrinths of coral caves
The echo of a distant tide
Comes willowing across the sand
And everything is green and submarine.

And no-one called us to the land
And no-one knows the wheres or whys
But something stirs and something tries
And starts to climb towards the light

Strangers passing in the street
By chance two separate glances meet
And I am you and what I see is me
And do I take you by the hand
And lead you through the land
And help me understand the best I can

And no-one calls us to move on
And no-one forces down our eyes
And no-one speaks and no-one tries
And no-one flies around the sun

Cloudless everyday you fall upon my waking eyes
inviting and inciting me to rise
And through the window in the wall
Come streaming in on sunlight wings
A million bright ambassadors of morning

And no-one sings me lullabies
And no-one makes me close my eyes
And so I throw the windows wide
And call to you across the sky

[folsom500]

The Pink Floyd that Bill listed

[Bill Z]

The Pink Floyd that Bill listed

cool video

I did provide a link to just the audio in my post as the youtube links I had found were all part one or part two from the Live at Pompeii video

[giacomo]

Suspicious Minds: Fine Young Cannibals. Probably even better than the Elvis version.
Talk Talk: Talk Talk
Love Plus One: Haircut 100
Power and the Passion: Midnight Oil
Echo and the Bunnymen: Bring on the Dancing Horses
Violent Femmes: I Held Her in My Arms
Any song by The Jam: especially Beat Surrender, That's Entertainment, Absolute Beginners and Town Called Malice. The Jam, so underappreciated, truly a great band
Psychedelic Furs: Heartbreak Beat

Just to name a few....