1984 was the year when Wham! made it big! Recorded in the sunny South of France, Make it Big knew 4 major singles 3 of them were number 1 in both UK & US charts. Wake me up before you go go, Careless Whisper and Everything she wants. Freedom, went number 1 only in the UK. Wham! changed it all for this album, the image and the sound. Since Make it big, they begun to sound like the old Motown songs, in the pen of George Michael. Wake me up was fresh, young and healthy. A pure new wave pop song of the 80's. Then the classic Careless Whisper, that won an Ivor Novello award for George in 1985. Make it big was a new romantic pop excellence and it is a classic today. Was almost completely written, arranged and produced by George Michael and it took Wham! to a different level of popularity and sells... George and Andrew Ridgeley were on the top. Like a baby was the other ballad of the album, with an half instrumental was the title track of Wham's tour through China the year after: Foreign Skies. A very good memory of the 80's new wave pop, with excellent songs and an excelent songwriter and music visionary: George Michael.

This is my favorite album for the New Wave era, It is funny how virtually the entire decade relied on syth drum machines and keyboards, this band, one out of many helped explore what early digital equipment could do, transfer affection being the best track, They are highly underrated, they were original, wrote there own stuff (unlike todays music scene in which virually everybody and there brother and sister samples each others work, boring, i hate most of this stuff they have anymore,) AFOS did there own stuff, then the 90's came in and shelved keyboards for kurt cobain, the 80's helped define the digital era, and the music was one of the first to help that, AFOS were definately apart of that. not just them, but they were one of them. I am a true child of the 80's, music was actually music, not all this rap and hip hop stuff,

This is one of the very few 80's groups that were at least 20 years ahead of their time! The most colourful clothes and hair in the 80's(neon pink and orange) But more about the album now. from opening track love missile f1-11, through 21st century boy and sex bomb boogie all the lyrics are about non-stop excitement and adrenalin rushing at you at 1000 miles per second! After Sigue Sigue Sputnik no group ever atemted their style of music or fashion or attitude ever again. Flaunt it is a must have album for every 80's child

This is my favorite album of all time. The group was a trio but came out with their best yet in 1986. The title track was a #2 hit but all the songs were well produced and have "a matter of feeling" to them. My favorites were that song plus the soothing "Winter Marches On" and they save the best for last with "Proposition." The whole album has a much more mature sound and it just works. I never get tired of listening to this.

I wasn't a huge Springsteen fan when this album came out on October 10, 1980 (I was 15 at the time). I was familiar with him, especially "Born to Run". I think I really knew him as “the guy who wrote Blinded by the Light as sung by the Manfred Mann’s Earth Band”. Hungry Heart was the first single released from the album and it really hit me for two reasons. One, I had just gone through a breakup with some girl and two, it was such a great song. The music was so upbeat but the lyrics were kind of sad. Every time I heard that song on the radio, I had to stop what I was doing and listen. I finally decided to buy the album and what an album! It was a double set covered inside with pictures of the band and the lyrics were included in the album! No more replaying a song over and over to decipher the lyrics. It was the fun rock songs on the album that caught my attention first, Cadillac Ranch, Ramrod, You Can Look and of course my all time favorite, I’m a Rocker! But as I listened to the entire album, I discovered another Springsteen, the reflective one who spoke about America through the eyes of regular people. Fade Away, Stolen Car and of course The River all spoke of people who hadn’t found their dreams and or maybe had dreams snatched away by fate, bad luck or lost love. This album made me a Springsteen FANATIC. How great is this album. I can proudly say that not only did I buy the album, I have also bought the 8 Track, the Cassette, the Compact Disc AND I have the entire album downloaded to my IPOD! If you want to start an 80’s album collection, you can’t go wrong by starting it with this one and if you have an 80’s album collection but don’t have this album, well your album collection just ain’t complete!

His first album and I really thought it was great. "Ricky" (A parody of "Mickey" by Toni Basil) was the song that got me interested in him in the first place. I first saw the video on MTV when I was really little and noticed that it was a parody. I didn't realize intil a couple of months ago that he shaved his mustache off to play "Ricky". WOW! "I Love Rocky Road"(A parody of "I Love Rock 'n Roll" by Joan Jett & The Blackhearts) soon followed and it was great video. I think his #1 song from that album is "Another One Rides The Bus".(A parody of "Another One Bites The Dust" by Queen)

If you were a metal fan in the 80s and don't own a copy of 'Electric', then you must have spent all of '87 in bed with the sheets over your head sound asleep. From begining to end, this album ROCKS!! 'Love Removal Machine', 'Peace Dog', 'Electric Ocean' and 'King Contrary Man' are just a few of the songs that will leave you convulsing long after you stop listening. 11 out of 10.

By the time this album was released, Billy Joel had turned 40. The album has an even more mature, adult contemporary sound to it, in comparison to his last two, but there is much to like about the "Storm Front" album From the pure rock opener "That's Not Her Style" through to the beautiful "And So It Goes" Joel shows us, once again, his incredible songwriting and general musicality. Highlights include the wonderful folk like "Downeaster 'Alexa'" where he cleverly captures the "feel of the boat" in a song dedicated to the hardworking fishermen, in his home land of Long Island, who don't know if they'll have a job, tomorrow. There's the typical Joel Rockers "I Go To Extremes" and the title song. There's the true story ballad "Leningrad" and of course the big hit "We Didn't Start the Fire," where Joel gives us a history lessons of events during his life time. Joel has some new musicians on this album, only retaining his long time drummer Liberty Divitto and guitarist David Brown (although Sax player Mark Revera would join them on tour) which again gives the album a real , up to date sound . The album is co- produced by Mick Jones of Foreigner who brings some fresh ideas to the Joel sound. Obviously, this is a much more serious set of songs, not a fun album like "Innocent Man" or "52nd Street" but I don't think it's intended to be and that's what I like most about Billy Joel, his ability to come up with different concepts on each album.

Even though, Joel ended the 70's in triumph with two of his best albums , the 80's was where he grabbed his best success. When 1980 arrived, Rock had changed style to a more matured sound. The early 80's were known for rock guitar and synthersizer and this was certainly the case on Joel's first 80's offering contained that. More guitar than piano in fact and lots of synthersizer. One of Joel's hardest rock songs 'You May Be Right' opens the album, which immediately gives the impression of a totally different style to that found on the last album. Joel continues the hard rock theme with the next song 'Sometimes a Fantasy' and the first of the synthersizer songs, this song is reminicsant of the Cars. There is , of course, the big seller, 'It's Still Rock and Roll to Me', which Joel gives us his impression of "music labels" and "the critics," people he never made friends. Other songs of note here include 'All for Leyna', 'Sleeping With the Television On', both showing that Joel can easily stay in fashion without losing any of his hall marks. 'Don't Ask Me Why' is the odd one out, a piano driven piece a la 'Piano Man', however, it demonstrates Joel's musicianship has vastly improved since then, it is a very well crafted song , including a wonderful piano driven bridge. This song is another one of my personal favourites. The closer 'Through the Long Night' is a nice love ballad with harmonies in a minor key. This is not my favourate Billy Joel album, but it does demonstrates that at the time , the Piano Man/entertainer/Stranger had grown up.

Okay, you take the horn arrangements of the Blues Brothers + the R&B sound of the Spencer Davis Group + Steve Winwood's well known pop and you get 'Roll With It', an album worth purchasing. The title track will get you singing. You will dance to the great beat of 'Holding On', Put On Your Dancing Shoes', 'Hearts on Fire' and 'Shining Song'. There are also songs with the slower beat fans know in 'The Morning Side and 'One More Morning'. 'Don't You Know What the Night Can Do?' is one of the greatest songs on the album.