The Best Rock Songs of the 80s

What are the best rock songs from the 80s?

The 1980s saw New Wave entering the year as the single biggest mainstream market, with heavy metal, punk rock and hardcore punk, and hip hop achieving increased crossover success. New Wave was a music genre that existed during the late 1970s and the early-to-mid 1980s. It emerged from punk rock as a reaction against the popular music of the 1970s. New Wave incorporated various influences such as the rock 'n' roll styles of the pre-hippie era, ska, reggae, power pop, the mod subculture, electronic music, disco, funk, etc.

With the demise of punk rock, a new generation of punk-influenced genres arose, including Gothic rock, post-punk, alternative rock, emo and thrash metal. Other rock subgenres that emerged in the 1980s included synthpop, hardcore punk and alternative rock.

By 1984, hair metal, long a dormant part of the Los Angeles music scene, started its reign on the charts. Led by hypermasculine bands like Quiet Riot (Metal Health), Van Halen (Van Halen) and Mötley Crüe (Shout at the Devil), hair metal reached its popular peak in the late 1980s with Def Leppard's Hysteria and Bon Jovi's New Jersey. Guns N' Roses' Appetite for Destruction burst onto the scene late in the decade, and launched a new, short-lived era of more machoistic posturing and harsh, critical lyrics, mixed with the occasional ballad and virtuosic riff.

Located below you will find a list of some of the best rock songs of the 1980s. For your convenience, we have included links to the sheet music on Sheetmusicplus.com as well as the CD on Amazon.com whenever available. If you are looking to purchase the mp3 or would like to listen to a sample, then click on either the Amazon, Rhapsody, or iTunes links.

Rhapsody provides both music subscriptions as well as individual mp3s for sale in WMA format and iTunes only provides MPEG-4 audio files for sale. However, Amazon does offer mp3s that are compatible with both Windows Media Player and iTunes. For more information about where to purchase music online, we provide it on our Music Downloads page or our Music Subscriptions page.

These singles are considered among the best rock songs to hit the charts in the 1980s.

1. "Arthur's Theme" performed by Christopher Cross
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
2. "Abracadabra" performed by The Steve Miller Band
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
3. "Amanda" performed by Boston
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
4. "Addicted To Love" performed by Robert Palmer
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
5. "Another One Bites The Dust" performed by Queen
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
6. "Born In The U.S.A." performed by Bruce Springsteen
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
7. "Burning Down The House" performed by Talking Heads
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
8. "Can't Fight This Feeling" performed by REO Speedwagon
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
9. "Carrie" performed by Europe
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
10. "Centerfold" performed by J. Geils Band
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
11. "Cum On Feel The Noize" performed by Quiet Riot
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
12. "Dancing In The Dark" performed by Bruce Springsteen
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
13. "Dr. Feelgood" performed by Motley Crue
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
14. "Every Breath You Take" performed by the Police
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
15. "Every Rose Has It's Thorn" performed by Poison
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
16. "Eye of the Tiger" by Survivor
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
17. "Here I Go Again" performed by Whitesnake
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
18. "Hit Me with Your Best Shot" performed by Pat Benatar
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
19. "Hungry Like The Wolf" performed by Duran Duran
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
20. "I Hate Myself For Loving You" performed by Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
21. "(I Just) Died in Your Arms Tonight" performed by Cutting Crew
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
22. "I Love Rock 'N Roll" performed by Joan Jett & The Blackhearts
     Find it on:       
23. "I Melt With You" performed by Modern English
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
24. "I Want Candy" performed by Bow Wow Wow
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
25. "I Want to Know What Love Is" performed by Foreigner
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
26. "In a Big Country" performed by Big Country
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
27. "It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine)" performed by R.E.M.
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
28. "Jack & Diane" performed by John Cougar Mellencamp
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
29. "Janie's Got A Gun" performed by Aerosmith
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
30. "Jessie's Girl" performed by Rick Springfield
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
31. "Jump" performed by Van Halen
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
32. "Legs" performed by ZZ Top
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
33. "Livin' on a Prayer" performed by Bon Jovi
     Find it on:        Sheetmusicplus
34. "Love Hurts" performed by Nazareth
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
35. "Love in an Elevator" performed by Aerosmith
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
36. "Love is a Battlefield" performed by Pat Benatar
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
37. "Money For Nothing" performed by Dire Straits
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
38. "Need You Tonight" performed by INXS
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
39. "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" performed by Great White
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
40. "Pour Some Sugar On Me" performed by Def Leppard
     Find it on:    Sheetmusicplus
41. "R.O.C.K. In The U.S.A." performed by John Cougar Mellencamp
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
42. "Round and Round" performed by Ratt
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
43. "Sister Christian" performed by Night Ranger
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
44. "Start Me Up" performed by Rolling Stones
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
45. "Sweet Child O' Mine" performed by Guns N' Roses
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
46. "Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)" performed by Eurythmics
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
47. "Talk Dirty to Me" performed by Poison
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
48. "The Final Countdown" performed by Europe
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
49. "The Warrior" performed by Scandal
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
50. "Under Pressure" performed by Queen & David Bowie
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
51. "Wasted on the Way" performed by Crosby, Stills, and Nash
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
52. "We Built This City" performed by Starship
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
53. "Welcome to the Jungle" performed by Guns N' Roses
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
54. "We're Not Gonna Take It" performed by Twisted Sister
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
55. "What I Like About You" performed by Romantics
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
56. "Working For The Weekend" performed by Loverboy
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
57. "You Give Love a Bad Name" performed by Bon Jovi
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus

Where to Find:

• Music Downloads
• Music Subscriptions
• CD's to Buy
• Sheet Music
• MP3 & CD Players

Find the Best:

• Love Songs
• Wedding Songs
• Intimate Moment Songs
• Funeral Songs
• Sad Songs
• Breakup Songs
• Seasonal Songs
• Party Songs
• Exercise Songs
• Funny Songs
• Songs by Decade
• Songs by Genre
• Songs in the Media
• Home