Top 20 Albums Of 1989 (Nos. 1-5)

For this week's Ranked!, we completed our look back at the '80s with our our twenty favorite albums released in 1989. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 1-5:

5. Motley Crue, Dr. Feelgood

This album is just a fantastic album from start to finish. It was also the real end of the greatness of the Crue - Vince Neill left the band (or got fired, depending on who you talk to) after the album and the rise of grunge kind of killed metal. It's a shame because this is certainly the best album that Motley Crue ever put out. And now I have the title track firmly lodged in my head. Anyone else?--Archphoenix

Top 20 Albums Of 1989 (Nos. 6-10)

For this week's Ranked!, we completed our look back at the '80s with our our twenty favorite albums released in 1989. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 6-10:

10. Tom Petty, Full Moon Fever

Full Moon Fever has a special place in my heart. It was the first music I ever bought on CD, and I listened to it repeatedly just to enjoy the (probably imagined) clarity of this new and exciting medium. The CD even had a clever interlude where Petty, with what sounds like a lively farm in the background, offers a moment of silence for the people who have to stand up and flip their LPs and cassettes over. Of course that isn't what gets you on a list of the best of 1989... it's the music, and it's Tom Petty's finest album by far. Clearly energized by their year with the Traveling Wilburys, Petty and producer Jeff Lynne pulled together a batch of songs looser and more relaxed than anything Petty had done with the Heartbreakers to date. "I Won't Back Down" is simple but effective, vignettes like "The Apartment Song" and "Yer So Bad" conjure amusingly human stories that would make Dylan proud, and the propulsive "Runnin' Down a Dream" was so much fun that I actually had a 'routine' that I would act out with a buddy whenever it came on the radio. (It was college... you do what you can to stand out). The highlight for me is "Free Fallin'," which can make a legitimate case for being the best song of the last 25 years, with evocative lyrics and a chorus that both giveth and--with a well-timed pause--taketh away. I still have that original CD, it's jewel case warn and chipped, and you know what? It does sound a hell of a lot better than my cassettes.--CroutonBoy

Top 20 Albums Of 1989 (Nos. 11-15)

For this week's Ranked!, we completed our look back at the '80s with our our twenty favorite albums released in 1989. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 11-15:

15. Skid Row, Skid Row

Let's face it--bands like Skid Row simply aren't bands that are destined to leave an indelible mark on the musical world. Although there was a short window (about 1988-1992) during which bands like this didn't look utterly ridiculous on stage, looking back now it's hard to believe that anyone ever took them even remotely seriously.

That said, I used to hang out at strip clubs and at a mega-venue in Baltimore called Hammerjacks back in the late '80s and early '90s, and hair bands were high on the playlist at that time. Even then, Skid Row was somewhere in the middle of the pack at best as far as I was concerned, but I did love to rock out to several of the songs on the Skid Row album--especially "18 And Life," "Youth Gone Wild," and "I Remember You" (the last being the obligatory power ballad of the bunch). Skid Row was one of the first CDs I ever bought, along with albums by Poison, Mötley Crüe, and Guns N' Roses, all of whom are going to be better remembered than Skid Row.

I was surprised to see that Skid Row has released five albums, the most recent of which came out in 2006. Maybe their new stuff is good... I don't know. For me, Skid Row was the beginning and the end of my interest in the band. They were a product of their time--and, at the time, I thought they were pretty decent.--Dave

Top 20 Albums Of 1989 (Nos. 16-20)

For this week's Ranked!, we completed our look back at the '80s with our our twenty favorite albums released in 1989. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 16-20:

20. Camper Van Beethoven, Key Lime Pie

This was Camper's last album before they broke up (until they reformed a decade later). But Camper fans were not sad for long: David Lowery formed (the superior, IMHO) Cracker two years later. Key Lime Pie's best tracks: "When I Win the Lottery," "Jack Ruby," and the band's biggest hit, a cover of Status Quo's "Pictures Of Matchstick Men."--Chris

Top 20 Albums Of 1988 (Nos. 1-5)

For this week's Ranked!, we compiled our twenty favorite albums released in 1988. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 1-5:

5. Jane's Addiction, Nothing's Shocking

Jane says... this album rocks hard. Between Perry Farrell's trademark yowl and Dave Navarro's sinuous guitar, Nothing's Shocking never loses energy. That energy is the driving force behind songs like "Ocean Size" and "Had A Dad". In contrast is the almost childlike "Summertime Rolls," which sounds like a summer night spent stretched out on the hood of a car, staring up at the sky. But the quieter moments are never too quiet, and "Pigs In Zen" proves that the album holds together even when it's spinning out of control. This is how you make a statement.--Amanda

Top 20 Albums Of 1988 (Nos. 6-10)

For this week's Ranked!, we compiled our twenty favorite albums released in 1988. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 6-10:

10. Roxette, Look Sharp!

I didn't own a ton of cassettes in the '80s because I had a pretty small allowance and only made a $1/hour babysitting. (Yeah, $1 an hour for a 12 year old girl to watch your kids for hours. Seems like you're really getting what you paid for, doesn't it?) But Look Sharp! was one that I saved up my money to get. I loved that album! It came with me on our month long summer camping trips. It came with me to the fishing resort in Louisiana. Frankly, Roxette took me to my happy place. Only four good things have ever come from Sweden: ABBA, Absolut, Alexander Skarsgard, and Roxette. And only one of those doesn't start with the letter A so you know it's got to be good to make it on that list.--Archphoenix

Top 20 Albums Of 1988 (Nos. 11-15)

For this week's Ranked!, we compiled our twenty favorite albums released in 1988. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 11-15:

15. DJ Jazzy Jeff And The Fresh Prince, He's The DJ, I'm The Rapper

Let me just state this for the record: I love Will Smith. No matter what I hear, good or bad, he will always hold a special place in my heart, and about 90% of the reason for that is The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. (The remaining 10% is split amongst his album Big Willie Style, Independence Day, and MIB.)

All that being said, even though there was a 1987 debut, this is what I believe gave the true start to this duo. If "Parents Just Don't Understand" hadn't hit, life never would have worked out the way it has. This won the first ever Grammy for Best Rap Performance, and if you don't know every single word of at least the "Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air" theme song, get out. Seriously, these are two guys who had a lot of fun and brought the party every time.--J-Hawke

Top 20 Albums Of 1988 (Nos. 16-20)

For this week's Ranked!, we compiled our twenty favorite albums released in 1988. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 16-20:

20. Cinderella, Long Cold Winter

Cinderella weren't like the other hair bands. Don't get me wrong: they were as glam as everyone else. But Long Cold Winter had more of a bluesy feel than, say, a Look What The Cat Dragged In or a Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich. But it still rocked, due in large part to Tom Keifer's gravelly vocals. The album boasted tracks like "Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone)" and "Coming Home," both of which should've been featured in Rock Of Ages; near-hit "The Last Mile;" the upbeat "Gypsy Road;" and my favorite song on the album, "Bad Seamstress Blues/Fallin' Apart At The Seams."--Chris

Top 20 Albums Of 1986 (Nos. 1-5)

For this week's Ranked!, we compiled our twenty favorite albums released in 1986. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 1-5:

5. Genesis, Invisible Touch

If there was any doubt that Genesis had shed its progressive roots and become purely a hit machine, the proof was Invisible Touch. Phil Collins, playing the role of Phil Collins, took his old bandmates to the top of the charts with some of their best hooks and silliest lyrics. There's certainly some cheesiness to this album (just look up the lyrics to "In Too Deep" for a sample) but it's so sleek, with all its rough edges buffed off in the studio, that it exudes a certain crafted exuberance that makes Patrick Bateman's defense of it in American Psycho seem completely legit. It's very much of its era, but how can you not bounce back and forth to "Invisible Touch" or imagine yourself cruising down an open highway at night to "Tonight, Tonight, Tonight." Especially if Don Johnson in a pastel suit is sitting with you in the passenger seat.--CroutonBoy

Top 20 Albums Of 1986 (Nos. 6-10)

For this week's Ranked!, we compiled our twenty favorite albums released in 1986. Did we get it right? Let us know in the comments!

Here are numbers 6-10:

10. Various Artists, Top Gun Soundtrack

About a million years ago I used to work for Borders Books. I was the supervisor that came in at 5:00 AM with the inventory team and helped get the new books out onto the sales floor. We had total control of the store's overhead music system. We could open any CD in the store and play it; we could also bring in our own albums to listen to. One of my colleagues was in her 40s and was really into Rammstein. Now, I like Rammstein as much as the next girl, but "Du Hast" at 5:00 AM before you've had breakfast is incredibly painful and it kind of makes you want to torture kittens. I'm pretty sure they play Rammstein at Gitmo.

So we started trying to find good music to get us going, music that wouldn't want us to go all kinds of crazy. One morning someone decided it would be '80s Day and kicked the day off with the Top Gun soundtrack. This was a team full of music snobs, who bickered every morning about so-and-so's crappy taste in music. But this day? This day we all agreed that the Top Gun soundtrack is epic and awesome and a great way to start your day. When the rest of the team rolled in at 9:00 AM, we were all fist pumping and singing and happy campers. That's the power of the Top Gun soundtrack, friends.

Incidentally, I asked a friend of mine, who's a total Top Gun fanatic, for some reasons why this album rules. Here's what he had to say: "It's got his Logginness, Eddie Van Halen, Cheap Trick, the make out song of 1986, and oozes freedom and sexuality. If someone calls me up and the anthem is playing, I know it's time to flight suit up. We could end the war on terror by playing the soundtrack on loop and broadcasting it to our enemies. They can't defeat awesome. When the zeds come, their defeat will be to the sound of this soundtrack. It's probably been the winning soundtrack at the air guitar world championships. Waldo is hiding because he heard the soundtrack and he's a freedom-hating hippie. To get the iconic carrier shot that leads into danger zone, the director wrote a check to cover the cost of fuel to turn it. How many civilians have told the navy what to do with their carriers? One, for Top Gun's soundtrack. "Danger Zone' is practically cannon at every sporting event. And in America, sports are religion. Ergo, "Danger Zone" is our "Ave Maria." So there you have it: Top Gun, best soundtrack ever.--Archphoenix