Worst '80s songs?

Anything by Poison.

Although Starship is definitely up there.

"Cherish" by Kool and the Gang. anything by the DeBarges, with special thumbs down to El DeBarge. ***edit: furthermore, "i just died in your arms tonight" by Cutting Crew. *shudder* "party all the time" - eddie murphy (who apparently was surrounded by sycophants) "maniac" - michael sembello "ride like the wind" - christopher cross ("arthur" was bad too) "we are the world" - a bunch of pop stars "we didn't start the fire" - billy joel ghostbusters theme song etc... and here's a good list which includes numerous other bad songs from various decades, with a respectable chunk representing the '80's: http://www.popculturemadness.com/Mus...T-Blender.html

Stan Bush - The Touch

From the Transformers movie, also brilliantly interpreted by Mark Wahlberg in Boogie Nights.

Good list, faustian, Party All the Time might have to go in the theme song thread - though I think it's about getting cheated on. Written by Rick James.

Overall, I pretty much agree with the Blender list. I don't think built this city is #1. Achy Breaky is worse. And, I don't think ## 7, 24, 26, 35, 41, 42 or 48 belong there.

Wow, I totally disagree with the Blender list. That's a list of least cool pop songs, but I wouldn't say worst.

"We Built This City" - Starship

No contest.

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LOL. Featuring that immortal lyric rich with social significance:

"Knee-deep in the hoopla."

Dakota: Well, I still say the 80s didn't have a greater share of duds than any other decade. Â REM, U2, Dire Straits, Tears for Fears, John Hiatt, Tom Waits (put out some good stuff then), Sting, Thriller (MJ's best), Bonnie Raitt, UB40, Ziggy Marley, et al.

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I don't think of either REM or U2 as 80s bands, even though both were obviously in action then. And I don't think Dire Straits (or more accurately Mark Knopfler) was insignificant. I am ambivalent toward Sting. I listen to UB40 when I'm in a summertime get-drunk party kind of mood. And Bonnie Raitt has put out two very, very good albums. Other than as a soundtrack for a trip down memory (be that as it may) lane, I still find the typical 80s acts (Tears for Fears, Level 42, Starship et al) as entirely disposable. Sorry, we'll just have to disagree on that point. (edit) I am not averse to pretentious, disposable music. I am listening to the "best" of Emerson, Lake and Palmer as I write this.

Dakota: After reading your posts, I think there is more we argree on in music than what we disagree on. And, I never was a big fan of E, L & P. Liked ELO more. In fact, many have forgotten they did some good stuff pre-75.

As for REM and U2, they are certainly more 80s than Starship. And I liked Level 42.

Now, here are my examples of some REALLY pretentious bands - -Styx and Poison. And, I am positive that if you look up the word "pretentious" in Webster's, you will see a picture of this band as the ultimate example - Rush. Absolutely horrible. I hear two notes and switch the radio channel.

Dakota: After reading your posts, I think there is more we argree on in music than what we disagree on.  And, I never was a big fan of E, L & P.  Liked ELO more.  In fact, many have forgotten they did some good stuff pre-75.

As for REM and U2, they are certainly more 80s than Starship.  And I liked Level 42.

Now, here are my examples of some REALLY pretentious bands - -Styx and Poison.  And, I am positive that if you look up the word "pretentious" in Webster's, you will see a picture of this band as the ultimate example - Rush.  Absolutely horrible.  I hear two notes and switch the radio channel.

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Bachbeet:  I have to disagree with you on Starship. Starship is to me the personifaction of an '80s band -- the airbrushed, big hair version of what once upon a time was a pretty important Bay area '60s band. Comparing Starship to Airplane makes the former look all the more '80s.


As for ELO, I appreciate them a lot more now than I did 30 years ago.  I thought they were OK at the time, but was never a huge fan of that big sound. My appreciation for Jeff Lynne (sp?) though soared after the Willburys. I figured if Orbison, Petty, Dylan and Harrison jammed with him, he must be held in pretty high regard by his peers.

You are absolutely right in that Styx & Poison = dreck and Rush = pretentiousness.

Anything by Phil Collins would surely qualify as among the worst.

Stu: I guess my comment re: Starship had more to do with Dakota's classifying them as more of an 80s band than REM or U2. And, I only go by the chronology factor. That is, when was a band formed. REM and U2 both were formed right near the beginning of the 80s and had some of their best stuff during that decade (Document and Joshua Tree, for example). While the Starship were formed around 74 or so. They actually had their best stuff in the 70s. They were on the decline in the 80s. As for ELO/Lynne, he gained the respect of many when he was with the Wilburys. He already had mine though.

Etruscan: I think you paint with too broad a brush in your Phil Collins comment. Although I think he never did anything better than Face Value and his stuff with Genesis in the 70s, I don't think he's nearly as bad as you do.

Hey, you guys are making fun of the music I grew up with. Â Â Â Yes, a lot of it is mindless drivel but they do have a darn catchy beat. Music that I disliked back then... U2, Most of Talking Heads.... Really inane - "I Eat Cannibal" by Toto Coelo "Brother Louie" - Modern Talking Inane but fun: "Da Da Da" - Trio

Nothing worst than:

"Da Da Da"

"Electrica salsa"

You can't beat it.

So *** on feel the noize
Girls rock your boys
We get wild, wild, wild,
We get wild, wild, wild.

DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHH..........

So *** on feel the noize Girls rock your boys We get wild, wild, wild, We get wild, wild, wild. DUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUHHHHHH..........

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ANTHEMATIC... Especially when you got a few bottles of beer in you. Is there any songs of U2 (supposedly the self proclaimed "greatest rock band in the world") that you could really rock to?