300 Best Dance Songs of the ‘80s
You can't talk about '80s dance music without mentioning Madonna.
Top Dance Hits of the 1980s
The glitzy ‘80s were a memorable decade in dance music. Some of the biggest dance hits emerged in the decade. As the disco craze of the ‘70s lost steam in the early ‘80s, a number of dance music artists started exploring new musical landscapes that paved the way for a hybrid dance scene. As the use of digital recording increased, the sounds of synthesizers became the defining sound across electronic genres. Indeed, the ‘80s were an amalgamation of diverse musical styles that gave dance songs new meaning.
The list below showcases a massive collection of ‘80s dance songs from different dance genres. If you are a dance music buff of this nostalgic era, you will want to speak your mind. Feel free with your views, opinions, and song suggestions in the comments section.
Top 10 Best Dance Songs of the ‘80s
1. “Like a Virgin”—Madonna
2. “Billie Jean”—Michael Jackson
3. “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”—Cyndi Lauper
4. “I Wanna Dance with Somebody”—Whitney Houston
5. “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go”—Wham!
6. “Pump Up the Jam”—Technotronic
7. “Take on Me”—A-ha
8. “Funkytown”—Lipps Inc.
9. “Part-Time Lover”—Stevie Wonder
10. “Tarzan Boy”—Baltimora
New Wave in the ‘80s
The sounds of new wave became epic in the ‘80s. While numerous bands associated with the genre adopted a pop-oriented style, certain artists infused a polished rock sound with punk influences. The pop-rock electronic embellishments brought to life with aesthetically employed synthesizer sounds give a distinctive identity to new wave in the realms of dance music. While the genre became prominent in the late ‘70s, it was the early ‘80s that gave new wave acts breakthrough success with their crossover dance hits. While numerous new wave artists did achieve commercial success with their dance songs, a large number of these artists were attributed to being one-hit wonders.
The start-stop structures featuring poppy guitar riffs, keyboards, and melodic high-pitched vocal delivery gave certain dance-rock artists associated with new wave aesthetics a unique identity. Certain new wave bands that experimented with diverse influences of power pop, synth-pop, funk, disco, electronic, bubblegum pop and glam punk brought to life a unique robotic dance sound that was synonymous with synth-pop bands and artists in the decade. The style and fashion exhibited by new wave artists in their music videos became a cultural lifestyle identity with urban youth.
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#11—20
11. “Self Control”—Laura Branigan
12. “Material Girl”—Madonna
13. “Never Gonna Give You Up”—Rick Astley
14. “Beat It”—Michael Jackson
15. “Let’s Hear it for the Boy”—Deniece Williams
16. “She Drives Me Crazy”—The Fine Young Cannibals
17. “Let’s Dance”—David Bowie
18. “Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)”—Eurythmics
19. “You Spin Me Round (Like a Record)”—Dead or Alive
20. “Super Trouper”—ABBA
Synth-Pop in the ‘80s
A subgenre of new wave music, Synth-pop came into prominence in the ‘70s, and had astounding mainstream success in the ‘80s. Synth-pop songs formed an integral part of the mainstream pop in the 80s. A number of synth-pop acts had tremendous chart-topping success on club dance charts. The textural instrumentation with aesthetically employed dance beats and emotive vocal delivery gave unique flavor to synthpop songs. Themes associated with anomie, isolation, and emotional feelings were exceeding popular in in synth-pop songs of the ‘80s.
With the development of digital audio, creating and employing electronic sounds in the realms of dance music became easier as different types of synthesizers were available at affordable prices. This indirectly influenced the do-it-yourself philosophy where musicians started making music individually primarily with the use of synthesizers, drum machines and sequencers. While music purists criticized synth-pop musicians severely for their limited musical skills and their sole-dependence on technology to reproduce music, the fact remains that synth-based productions of the ‘80s had some of the most popular dance songs in dance music history.
#21—40
21. “Flashdance…What a Feeling”—Irene Cara
22. “The Way You Make Me Feel”—Michael Jackson
23. “All Night Long (All Night)”—Lionel Richie
24. “Express Yourself”—Madonna
25. “Mickey”—Tony Basil
26. “Together Forever”—Rick Astley
27. “It’s Raining Men”—The Weather Girls
28. “Musique Non-Stop”—Kraftwerk
29. “The Safety Dance”—Men Without Hats
30. “Footloose”—Kenny Loggins
31. “Everybody Have Fun Tonight”—Wang Chung
32. “Bad”—Michael Jackson
33. “Whip It”—Devo
34. “Blue Monday”—New Order
35. “Super Freak”—Rick James
36. “Brother Louie”—Modern Talking
37. “Hungry Like the Wolf”—Duran Duran
38. “Rumors”—Timex Social Club
39. “Bust a Move”—Young MC
40. “Love Sensation”—Loleatta Holloway
Dance-Pop in the ‘80s
The catchy musical structure of dance-pop made it exceedingly popular with contemporary radio stations and nightclubs. While the origins of the genre are rooted in the ‘70s, the development of the genre took shape after the disco craze diminished in the early ‘80s. Combining diverse elements of pop music and dance music with disco, synth-pop, and post-disco influences, dance-pop came into its own in the ‘80s. This mainstream style of music characterized by its strong uptempo beats and club-ready production ruled the music charts in the decade.
Aesthetically aligned with genres such as, contemporary R&B, house, techno, trance, new jack swing, electropop, funk, and Hi-NRG, dance-pop showcased a broad spectrum of aesthetics that made it highly popular with youth. The freeform uncomplicated musical structure of dance-pop songs became hugely popular with teens and young adults globally. The young brigade of pop musicians, women in particular, took dance-pop to new heights in the ‘80s. A great number of female artists associated with the genre had phenomenal success with their singles and albums.
#41—60
41. “High Energy”—Evelyn Thomas
42. “Fame”—Irene Cara
43. “Tell It to My Heart”—Taylor Dayne
44. “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin’”—Michael Jackson
45. “Genius of Love”—Tom Tom Club
46. “I Like Chopin”—Gazebo
47. “What’s On Your Mind (Pure Energy)”—Information Society
48. “(I’ve Had) The Time of My Life”—Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes
49. “Only in my Dreams”—Debbie Gibson
50. “Celebration”—Kool & the Gang
51. “Into the Groove”—Madonna
52. “When I Think of You”—Janet Jackson
53. “Axel F”—Harold Faltermeyer
54. “Word Up!”—Cameo
55. “Kiss”—Prince
56. “Walking on Sunshine”—Katrina and the Waves
57. “Cheri, Cheri Lady”—Modern Talking
58. “Like a Prayer”—Madonna
59. “Thriller”—Michael Jackson
60. “Let’s Groove”—Earth, Wind & Fire
Italo Disco in the ‘80s
Italo disco a music genre which developed in Italy in the late ‘70s had a great deal of success in European countries. Italo disco dance songs are characterized by catchy pop melodies, electronic sounds, drum machines, synthesizers, vocoders and heavily accented lyrics in English. Popular themes associated with love, space and robots are brought to life with these songs. Although the genre had a cult following in the underground music movement of the ‘70s it never managed to attain mainstream status. However, fortunes changed in the ‘80s, as the Italo disco movement spread from Italy to the regional dance music scene across Europe and US.
The efforts of German record label ZYX Music GmbH & Co. KG who began licensing and marketing Italo disco outside Italy played a pivotal role in shaping the Italo disco blueprint in UK and US. The astatically laid out smooth disco-pop sounds of the genre hit hard with the dance music aficionados globally. Along with Euro disco, Italo disco had significant success on the dance music charts. While artists associated with the genre did not have success with albums, numerous Italo acts scored big with their dance singles.
#61—80
61. “This Time I Know It’s for Real”—Donna Summer
62. “Sledgehammer”—Peter Gabriel
63. “Mercedes Boy”—Pebbles
64. “Papa Don’t Preach”—Madonna
65. “You’re My Heart, You’re My Soul”—Modern Talking
66. “Last Night A DJ Saved My Life”—Indeep
67. “Round and Round”—New Order
68. “P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing)”—Michael Jackson
69. “Let the Music Play”—Shannon
70. “Stomp!”—The Brothers Johnson
71. “Lay All Your Love On Me”—ABBA
72. “Control”—Janet Jackson
73. “Tainted Love”—Soft Cell
74. “Love Shack”—B-52s
75. “That’s the Way Love Is”—Ten City