Book description
The '80s were a decade of musical change. As the '70s disco
stranglehold was broken, rock, gay, dance and pop music competed with
funk and soul, romantic ballads and political protest, computerised
music and controversy.
The glamour of costume, greasepaint and cross-dressing was put to
good use by New Romantic groups like Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran, Soft
Cell, Culture Club and the Human League, while the world also looked
to Britain for the most exciting pop acts such as the
multi-million-selling Wham!, Frankie Goes To Hollywood, Eurythmics and
the Pet Shop Boys. Mainstream dance music was at its peak, spearheaded
by Stock, Aitken and Waterman, and their stable of artists, including
Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan and Rick Astley, were all chart-topping names.
From the USA came the artist of the decade, Michael Jackson, while
Madonna and Whitney Houston provided the 'Girl Power' of the '80s. The
decade also saw the philanthropic side of the music industry as the
stars responded to famine in Ethiopia with the charity records 'Do
They Know It's Christmas?' and 'We Are The World'.
The'80s catered for all musical tastes, no matter how bizarre, and
was far more eclectic than any other decade. From bubble-gum pop with
Bucks Fizz to the stadium rock of Simple Minds,'80s
Chart-Toppers brings a comprehensive year-by-year, month-by-month
guide to the hottest sounds of the decade.
