The Best of 1984
Springsteen, Prince, Madonna, R.E.M....Veteran acts unleashed blockbusters while up-and-comers took over the world. 1984 set a new standard for pop music.
Talk about a pivotal year, 1984 is when the ‘80s became the ‘80s.
The years 1980 to 1983 were still shaking off the corduroy pants and orange countertops of the ‘70s. By 1984, most of the pieces were in place that would define the decade musically: the synths, the drum machines, the digital production, and - of course - the music videos.
It was also the year that revealed the biggest gap between blockbuster releases and what was considered “the underground.” Although groups like R.E.M. were on the way to world domination, in 1984 they were still a universe away from the Princes, Madonnas, and Springsteens that defined the zeitgeist. It was the year where pop music reigned, yes, but heartland rock was creeping across the dial (not only from Springsteen but also from Los Lobos and others), hip-hop was making its way toward the heartland, heavy metal/hard rock was on the verge of mainstream acceptance, and country was searching for a soft place to fall after the high of the Urban Cowboy phase.
Here’s the best of everything 1984 gave us. As always, YMMV, so feel free to hash it out in the comments.
Los Lobos - How Will the Wolf Survive?
Los Lobos should always be in the conversation when the topic of America’s Greatest Rock’n’Roll band comes up, and their major label debut should be Exhibit A. Mixing ‘60s garage rock and swamp pop with blues, country, and the music that pulled from their Mexican roots, How Will the Wolf Survive? was the first big step in a career that stands as one of the most unique - and most American - musical experiences of the rock era. Americana? Yeah, we got your Americana right here.
Don Henley - Building the Perfect Beast
This album is notable because it was the first one I ever bought on cassette. Throughout the rest of the decade, I’d amass a ridiculous collection of cassettes, both pre-recorded and homemade. Aside from that sentimental signpost, Building the Perfect Beast was one of the first big hits by a grown-ass man in the MTV era. It was one of the main releases of the mid-’80s that grappled with the consequences of anti-establishment hippies becoming adults with responsibilities. Deadhead stickers on Cadillacs, not drinking enough, driving with our eyes closed; for the Baby Boomers, and the perpetually humorless Henley, there just wasn’t enough love in the world.
Tina Turner - Private Dancer
Henley wasn’t the only adult in the room on Music Television in 1984. Tina Turner finally got the love she deserved, even if she did consider it a second-hand emotion. Private Dancer was hands-down the comeback of the year and with an intense title track written and produced by Mark Knopfler, Turner demanded the world be good to her, and we responded in kind. Ike who?
The Replacements - Let It Be
Naming your album Let It Be when another four-piece combo already cornered the market on that title takes some serious moxie. For the Replacements, it didn’t even register, because … well, of course, they’d name it that. Fans may argue over the best Mats album, and with the new version of Tim (yeah, called Let It Bleed) out in the world, that argument’s gotten just a little harder. Still, with the likes of “I Will Dare,” “Answering Machine,” and “Unsatisfied,” it’s hard to argue against Let It Be - and you don’t even have to worry about Phil Spector ruining this version.
Metallica - Ride the Lightning
My first exposure to thrash was the opening song on this cassette while riding with a friend down Broad Street in my hometown of Oxford, NC. After a few bars of some generic pseudo-classical acoustic guitar noodling, the aural assault of “Fight Fire With Fire” began. I’d never heard such speed and aggression before, and it may be partly to blame for my premature hair loss. I picked up Kill ‘em All soon after and bought Master of Puppets on its release date. Everyone from Iron Maiden and Judas Priest to Motorhead paved the way to Metallica, and Metallica led me to Megadeth and Mercyful Fate, then Danzig, and back to Black Flag and the Misfits. I’ve stayed a fan through the black album, Load and ReLoad, even St. Anger and, yes, Lulu. But, well, of course, the Cliff years were the best.
Run-D.M.C. - Run-D.M.C.
I admit, it took me a minute to warm up to hip-hop. Growing up loving Stax soul, funk, blues, and R&B, the rap thing didn’t appeal to me at first. I finally came around when I heard artists like De La Soul, A Tribe Called Quest, Arrested Development, and, naturally, The Chronic. So, I had to move forward to go back. Years later, Run-DMC finally clicked for me, and I got how “Rock Box” began to bridge the rock/rap divide at the time. Their debut is groundbreaking, raw, and still exciting to hear, a couple of years before Rick Rubin and the Toxic Twins entered the picture to share in the glory.
Madonna - Like A Virgin
Produced by Nile Rodgers and featuring his Chic bandmates Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson on half the tracks, Like A Virgin bested Madonna’s debut with deeper grooves, tighter arrangements, and even more memorable hooks. Sure, she courted controversy at every turn, but she could back up her bravado like no one else, and she was one of the biggest stars of the ‘80s because she earned it. There would be other great albums to come (True Blue, Ray of Light), but Like A Virgin set the standard.
R.E.M. - Reckoning
Here’s what I said about Reckoning on its 40th birthday earlier this year…
Dire Straits - Live: Alchemy
Before Brothers In Arms took over the world, I was a huge fan of Dire Straits. Like many, I’d heard “Sultans of Swing” on the radio quite a bit (and, later, “Twisting by the Pool”), and I remember seeing the video to “Skateaway” in the very early days of MTV. It was Live: Alchemy, however, that sealed the deal. A double live album of epic guitar workouts contrasted with deathly quiet passages added up to quite the listening experience for a young teen. After the journey taken with the live versions of “Tunnel of Love,” “Telegraph Road,” and “Romeo and Juliet,” how could BIA not disappoint?
The Judds - Why Not Me
Country radio was coming down off the high of the Urban Cowboy craze as the airwaves had become flooded with Kenny Rogers and Lee Greenwood pop ballads and Alabama’s watered-down southern rock. Even Waylon and Willie were putting out bland material compared to the wild and wooly ‘70s outlaw era. Leave it to a mother and daughter team from Ashland, Kentucky to inject some novel excitement into a waning format. The Judds came along right in that sweet spot before the New Traditionalist movement of the mid-to-late ‘80s. Their debut, Why Not Me, featured the easy-driving Harland Howard/Sonny Throckmorton-penned title track, the spry “Girls Night Out,” and the moving ballad, “Love Is Alive,” but it was “Mama He’s Crazy” that caught the attention of country radio and solidified their career for years to come.
Whitesnake - Slide It In
When their self-titled album was released in 1987, Whitesnake hit the big time on the strength of a trilogy of iconic videos featuring model and actress Tawnee Kitaen. Three years earlier, however, Slide It In laid the groundwork. Much has been written about the shifting guitarists during the sessions, but it’s always been Jon Lord’s inimitable keyboard work that gave this album its character. Of course, Coverdale’s soul-fueled and horny hard rock blues-drenched vocals didn’t hurt either. Slide it in and spit it out - slow and easy, please.
Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain
Although Prince’s best album was still a few years away (1987’s Sign o’ the Times), the soundtrack to Purple Rain was a landmark in ‘80s pop that remains an essential addition to anyone’s library. The title track finally caught the attention of the rock world, while “When Doves Cry,” “I Would Die 4 U,” “Let’s Go Crazy,” and Tipper Gore’s favorite, “Darling Nikki,” still echo through the memory of every Gen X’er.
Deep Purple - Perfect Strangers
Slide It In wasn’t the only album Jon Lord made an appearance on in 1984. Coverdale’s former band’s classic lineup reformed for Perfect Strangers, which ended up being better than anyone thought it would be. After Private Dancer, it was the comeback of the year.
Bruce Springsteen - Born In the U.S.A.
Here’s what I said about this one earlier this summer:
Van Halen - 1984
David Lee Roth’s swan song with Van Halen ended up being their biggest pop culture moment. Anchored by the number one hit, “Jump,” 1984 was released in the first month of the year and was the perfect way to kick off one of the biggest eras in pop music: celebratory, hilarious, cutting edge for its time, even a co-write with Michael McDonald. Who could ask for more?
Honorable Mentions:
The Pretenders - Learning to Crawl - Part elegy, part celebration of life.
King Crimson - Three of a Perfect Pair - Continuing their rebirth as they push prog forward into the ‘80s.
Rush - Grace Under Pressure - Leaning even further into the synth-heavy textures of Signals but still undeniably Rush.
Stevie Ray Vaughan and Double Trouble - Couldn’t Stand the Weather - SRV and DT’s most daringly progressive moment on record. Arguably their best.
Hüsker Dü - Zen Arcade - One of two double albums that spawned a generation of alternative bands. (The other being the Minutemen’s Double Nickles on the Dime, which was released on the same day.)
W.A.S.P. - W.A.S.P. - Loud, crude, obnoxious, hilarious, ridiculous…glorious.
Iron Maiden - Powerslave - Maiden were at the peak of their powers and in the middle of one helluva run of classic albums thanks in no small part to the addition of drummer Niko McBrain on the previous year’s Piece of Mind. Powerslave is peak NWOBHM.
U2 - The Unforgettable Fire - Looking to expand their sound, U2 called on the team of Brian Eno and Daniel Lanois and started a relationship that would soon make them the biggest band in the world.
The dBs - Like This - With the departure of Chris Stamey, Peter Holsapple took the reigns and delivered on the likes of the sublime “Spy in the House of Love.” Power Pop for New People.
Willie Nelson & Kris Kristofferson - Music from ‘Songwriter’ - A movie that still holds up (the great Rip Torn threatens to steal the movie every scene he’s in), the soundtrack features the classic “Write Your Own Songs” (the same version previously found on Waylon and Willie’s WWII) but sadly, for some reason, not “One for the Money”; Willie and Kris’s wonderful duet version got way too little screen time, too.
I was 19 in 1984 and spent all of my money that year from my first minimum wage newspaper job on music. It seemed like something great was coming out each week. Love that you put Los Lobos at the top of the list, and Songwriter is criminally underrated.
My first concert was REM and the dB’s at Page Auditorium (Duke) in fall of that year!