Songs of the Year
Songs of the Year: 1981
We’ve got nothing to say about 1981! It was kind of a blah year!
It’s 1981 and the synth revolution is in full swing. Thanks to advances in technology and a reduction in price, artists really got into the Fairlight CMI Series II, which lead to a bevy of new sounds and samples. No longer was the technology only available to the big name artists (like Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush, who were big fans of the initial Fairlight).
While the Listographers didn’t think 1981 was great as far as albums go, songs were a much different story (at least for Kramzer and Joe), who had tons to choose from, with a great many of them charting on the Billboard Hot 100.
The Police, Rush, The Stones, Elvis Costello, Pretenders, Ozzy Osbourne, Journey, Black Sabbath, Squeeze, Phil Collins, Genesis, U2 and Prince all released well regarded albums and up and comers like Duran Duran, The Human League, the Go-Go’s, and Men at Work put out their debuts.
The song of the year on the US Billboard Hot 100 was Bette Davis Eyes by Kim Carnes.
The year is 1981 and we’re picking our favorite songs of the year!
It’s a simple concept. We pick five of our favorite songs that made the Billboard Top 100 (established in 1958) during any time that year. We also select five “wildcards” that can be any songs released as a single or on an album or EP that year. Finally, we also pick our “worst” song of the year, just for fun.
We started in 1958 and we’re going until we run out of years.
Standings So Far …
Jason and Kramzer teamed up with Talking Heads’ Once in a Lifetime to take down ABBA’s The Winner Takes it All (it didn’t). Jason now sits a mere half point behind Joe. Kramzer is still in the conversation as well thanks to another split win (his 4th total).
Joe: 11
Jason: 10.5
Kramzer: 7.5
Vote
Which Was the Best Song of 1981?
- Every Little Thing She Does is Magic by The Police (44%, 95 Votes)
- The Waiting by Tom Petty (36%, 78 Votes)
- Since You're Gone by the Cars (21%, 45 Votes)
Total Voters: 218
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