Top 10 Billboard Chart Topping Rock Songs of the 80s
The New Wave of Classic Rock and Roll. Join http://www.WatchMojo.com as we count down our picks for the Top 10 Billboard Chart Topping Rock Songs of the 80s. For this list, we focused on rock songs that reached #1 on the Billboard charts while making a definitive mark on pop culture.
Special thanks to our user Godslayer79 for submitting the idea using our interactive suggestion tool at http://www.WatchMojo.comsuggest
#10: “Here I Go Again” (1987) Whitesnake
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Brace yourself for a little rock and roll trivia, Mojoholics. When this hard rock anthem was originally released in 1982, it didn’t quite have that “manly” vibe for mainstream audiences. In other words, lead singer David Coverdale, of Deep Purple fame, wanted to change the line “hobo” so it that it didn’t quite sound like “homo”, and well, the version most people know today was re-released nearly five years later in 1987. In all honesty, the musical arrangement was significantly revised as a whole, and a young Tawny Kitaen was propelled to fame in the utterly amazing music video.
#9: “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” (1982) Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
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Ok, some of you out there may equate this song with Britney Spears, and for that, you should be ashamed of yourself. All joking aside, it was Joan Jett who put her own stamp on this '80s gem a good seven years after Arrows released the original version in 1975. And as fate would have it, MTV was quickly gaining momentum as an alternative to boring network television, so Joan Jett took full advantage with her unforgettable black and white music video. America needed Joan Jett, and she needed some exposure upon leaving The Runaways. It all worked out in the end.
#8: “I Want to Know What Love Is” (1984) Foreigner
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Nothing like a classic 80s power ballad, and who better to deliver than Foreigner. Written by Mick Jones, not to be confused with Mick Jones of The Clash, this heart-wrenching ballad was released in the heyday of big hair and big choruses. You know – it’s the song you rock out to in your car, but only when you hear that existential phrase: “I Want To Know What Love Is.” Oh, and it’s also the perfect cover song for any band that wants to pick up chicks, which means that Foreigner’s chart topper was quite popular on the Sunset Strip in the '80s.
#7: “Another One Bites the Dust” (1980) Queen
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Oh, how the times have changed. When this Chic-inspired single hit the airwaves in August of 1980, paranoid religious conservatives decided that Queen was secretly asking listeners to smoke marijuana. And why they were listening to Queen records backwards, well, I guess we’ll never know…maybe they were the ones that were high. Despite the “controversy,” this massive joint went on to win an American Music Award, and truth be told, the voracious beat actually led the British Heart Foundation to promote “Another One Bites the Dust” for medical training.
#6: “Money for Nothing” (1985) Dire Straits
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As evangelists were freaking out over marijuana references in our #7 entry, nothing could have prepared them for the mind-trip of a music video that would come five years later. And not only did this song featuring Sting performing the iconic MTV phrase “I Want My MTV,” it was also the first video to premiere on MTV Europe. Lyrically, “Money for Nothing” was inspired by frontman Mark Knopfler spending a day watching MTV in the back of an appliance store. It may sound funny today, but in the early days of MTV, it was a rock phenomenon.
#5: “Jump” (1984) Van Halen
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From stone cold guitar solos to…a synthesizer? After five studio albums, Van Halen shifted gears from a classic hard rock sound to more synthrock approach, and while “Jump” would become a pop culture anthem, it’s also partly responsible for David Lee Roth’s departure from the group. Even so, he gave one of the most ridiculously awesome performances in the music video, which he also directed, and along with reaching #1 on the Billboard charts, “Jump” became a classic example of “arena rock.”
#4: “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” (1987) U2
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Produced by Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois, this invigorating rock ballad was inspired by gospel music and the popular music of America. While U2 was recording the their Grammy-winning album The Joshua Tree, The Edge recalled a particular Bob Dylan lyric, and so, the framework for another rock classic was cemented. With an existential theme, “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For” inspired listeners to search deep into their soul and led the band straight to number one in the U.S. and in their home country of Ireland. Not a bad follow-up to another introspective #1 hit “With or Without You”.
#3: “Livin’ On a Prayer” (1986) Bon Jovi
After a successful yet artistically unsatisfying second album, Bon Jovi took a grittier approach for their next release, Slippery When Wet, while maintaining their glam rock personas. As a result, they created a workingman’s anthem with “Livin’ on a Prayer,” as the hard times of Tommy and Gina were detailed complete with a contagious hook. As their second consecutive #1 hit, Bon Jovi simultaneously cemented their status as legitimate rock stars and earned themselves a new following thanks to their blue-collar record.
#2: “Another Brick in the Wall (Part II)” (1980) Pink Floyd
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It opened up the minds of listeners around the world and ushered in a new decade. Of course, it offered an escape from the disco jams that were taking over the charts as well. With its three separate parts, “Another Brick in the Wall” was more of an experience than a typical rock single all while allowing the progressive artists to address the school systems of their native England. And it was "Part II" specifically that was actually released as a single - first in the UK in November of 1979 and then in the U.S. in January of 1980 - and it was that composition that would take over America and top the Billboard Hot 100 in less than 3 months' time. Decades later, “Another Brick in the Wall” remains an essential track for any classic rock playlist. Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions. “Shout” (1985) Tears for Fears “Alone” (1987) Heart “Jessie’s Girl” (1981) Rick Springfield “The Power of Love” Huey Lewis and The New (1985) “Mony Mony” (1987) Billy Idol “Eye of the Tiger” (1982) Survivor
#1: “Sweet Child O’ Mine” (1988) Guns N’ Roses
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Ok, Mojoholics, now this is how it’s done. Before the release of their first studio album, the members of Guns N’ Roses were fooling around at their Sunset Strip home when a musical joke inadvertently transformed into a future Billboard #1 hit. From the opening riff by Slash to the opening lyrics from Axl Rose, “Sweet Child O’ Mine” came together piece by piece for what would become one of the final head bangers of the hairband phenomenon of the '80s. Rolling Stone named “Sweet Child O’ Mine” as one of the 40 songs that changed the world, and while it was the band’s only Billboard chart topper, it’s our favorite #1 of the entire decade, and undoubtedly one of the most recognizable songs ever recorded. So, do you agree with our selections? What is your favorite Billboard chart topping rock song of the 80s? For more mind-blowing Top 10s published daily,
