Top 10 Albums of 1983

1. Def Leppard - Pyromania

This was the album that launched this previously somewhat traditionalist hard rock band into the pop music stratosphere. In addition, it retained enough of Def Leppard's glam rock and '70s rock roots to help it hold up as a genuine hard rock album as well as an accessible pop record. The band had had some fine moments before and would have plenty more following the even bigger smash of 1987's Hysteria, but where that follow-up sounded mechanized and even neutered at times, this album rocks and snarls in spite of Mutt Lange's shimmering production. And though this record has been blamed for the often embarrassing pop metal explosion, those bands would have been much better off had they followed Pyromania's template more closely.

2. R.E.M. - Murmur

For many longtime fans of the legendary Athens, Georgia indie rock band, this full-length debut album may still stand as the group's finest moment. Although R.E.M. remained just as active and groundbreaking throughout the remainder of the first half of the '80s, the more the band became known in mainstream circles it seemed to lose some of its luster as a best-kept secret. That's why perhaps this album is the best place to get a true feel for just how organically unique R.E.M. was and just how much influence the group would exert on alternative rock thereafter. The band was a breath of fresh air during the heavily image-conscious '80s, and this famous, important debut thankfully cleared the air considerably for years to come.

3. Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes

Another debut album that did much to thrust college rock into the pop music consciousness, this fresh and wonderful record still stands as the crowning achievement of jittery post-punk outfit Violent Femmes. The angst-ridden teenage immediacy of this album continued to strike a chord with young music fans through the rest of the '80s and into the next decade, although I must admit I relate more strongly to the material now than when I was a teenager (yeah, I'm a slow learner). Dotted with alternative rock classics like the highly familiar "Add It Up" and "Kiss Off," this release also boasts some fantastic, lesser-known album tracks like "Good Feeling" and "Please Do Not Go" that cover lots of musical ground.

4. Prince - 1999

Though it was released and quickly became a hit toward the end of 1982, this sprawling smash hit album from the wonderfully eclectic Prince made 1983 the first year utterly dominated by the pop mastery of this artist. This is one of those select few albums that showed up in many households (including mine) that otherwise did not house innovative funk-rock dance-pop of any kind. Of course, Prince's frank treatment of sexuality also seemed rebelliously attractive to kids like me who listened to a carnally direct tune like "Let's Pretend We're Married" in the same house with my parents, wondering when the record would be taken away from me. Beyond the familiar hits, 1999 was most definitely an endlessly challenging early-'80s listen.

5. ZZ Top - Eliminator

One of many strong comeback albums of the '80s that represented a major '70s band reinvention, this album unleashed some of 1983's most ubiquitous hits in a fresh blend of blues-rock and synth pop influences. Old-time fans of the Texas boogie band had to be shocked by the new, glossy sound, but it was difficult to argue with the tuneful appeal of "Legs" and the crossover pop/rock appeal of "Gimme All Your Lovin'" and "Sharp Dressed Man." Some of the album tracks seemed far less urgent than the hits, perhaps because of the distance created through overproduction, but luckily Billy Gibbons' blazing blues guitar seared through those layers anyway. Iconic visually, ZZ Top also put its distinctive stamp on the '80s with memorable music.

6. Genesis - Genesis

1983 was a banner year for Phil Collins, as both this album from the band he now fully led and his own solo Hello, I Must Be Going became substantial hits that year, bestowing some solid if straightforward music on the rock and pop world. This probably upset many fans of the obscure, progressive rock past of Genesis, but a significant pop fan base quickly filled any void left by fans who felt betrayed by Collins' increasing influence. And while "That's All" and "Taking It All Too Hard" most certainly pushed the boundaries of pop music in the band's work, album tracks like "Mama" and "Just a Job to Do" revealed a persistent level of quirk and expansiveness in the group's evolving sound.

7. Motley Crue - Shout at the Devil

I don't really want to talk about Motley Crue very much in this space or any other on this site, but I know I have to at some point. That being said, this 1983 album probably represents the band's harshest, most threatening musical moment that also epitomizes its singular blend of old-school heavy metal and the emerging sounds of pop metal. The title track, "Too Young to Fall in Love," and especially the snarling "Looks That Kill" really separated this band from the coming ethos of pop metal and even from Motley Crue's own turn toward balladry and mainstream rock on later releases. Though they were the least visible members, bassist and frequent songwriter Nikki Sixx and the tough guitar of Mick Mars were vital to the Crue sound.

8. Madonna - Madonna

This debut release from the Queen of Pop belongs on this list not so much because every track is a keeper but primarily because the advent of Madonna's reign announced itself with authority quickly and thoroughly upon its 1983 emergence. This same year's Thriller, of course, belongs in an entirely different class of supreme '80s albums (along with a few others), but this one is more than good enough to rise to the top of a single year's heap. The fact of the matter is that songs like "Lucky Star," "Borderline" and "Holiday" became so immensely popular for a reason beyond Madonna's intense sex appeal. She had an ear for great songs immediately, a fact this album makes utterly clear.

9. Tears for Fears - The Hurting

One of the most atmospheric album releases of the new wave era and probably the entire decade of the '80s, the debut album from the duo of Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith packs a seriously powerful emotional punch. It probably also represents the group's finest moment even if 1985's Songs from the Big Chair was a massive hit in the States and contained some pretty solid music as well. What elevates this album, however, is the extreme personal nature of the material, from the utterly haunting "Mad World" to the mesmerizing and sophisticated synthesizer orchestration of "Change." Orzabal had some serious issues to work out through his songwriting, which resulted in a refreshingly sobering '80s record.

10. The Plimsouls - Everywhere at Once

OK, now we're at the point in the list where it's time to spotlight one of the '80s most overlooked albums, a record that represented some of the best pop/rock of the entire decade. Though lumped in with the rest of the Los Angeles-area new wave acts in vogue at the time, the Plimsouls actually represented a much wider aesthetic, implementing influences from punk rock to roots rock to power pop. Though known most for the great single "A Million Miles Away," this major label debut for the group also featured some absolute treasures of the era in "Oldest Story in the World" and "How Long Will It Take?". Frontman Peter Case was already supremely talented, and would go on to become a solid roots singer-songwriter in his own right.