Back in the early 80s, when the new wave movement eschewed blues and rock ‘n’ roll and brought about new genres like pop and rock music. Punk rock music and new wave were mostly interchangeable. At least they were, until punk rock (which would later go on to be called ‘post-punk’) became too ‘artsy’, so to speak, and parted ways from new wave.
It was these two movements, new wave and post-punk, which paved way for the 80’s popular music in the UK. Heavy metal – born with the debut album of Black Sabbath, soared to new heights as the new wave of British grew stronger than ever. Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, and Saxon climbed the charts.
These groups laid the groundwork for American glam metal and spawned death, thrash, black, and power metal subgenres.
British Hip-hop – inspired by the American hip-hop, was also pioneered in the early 80s when Newtrament released London Bridge. Ruthless Rap Assassins, Demon Boyz, and Hardnoise were some of the early hip-hop groups.
As you can probably tell by now. The music scene in this decade was diverse in every sense of the word. New genres were popping up. Rock had never been more popular. Hip-hop was spreading its wings. Heavy Metal was in full swing. And synthpop was emerging.
Now with the history out of the way, here are some of the top British Bands of the 80s.
Let’s dive in…
Saxon
Started in 1977, Saxon spearheaded the new wave of British heavy metal along with other leading bands like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. They’re widely regarded as one of the leading classical metal acts from the 80s. They’d later influence bands like Metallica, Megadeth, and Slayer which popped up as the new wave of British heavy metal faded.
The dawn of the 80s set in motion their success with the release of Wheels of Steel, which made its way to the top of the charts. Not only did this album secure a position in the top five, but it also sparked an eponymous single hit.
After they released their third album – a fan favorite, Strong Arm of the Law, their popularity sky-rocketed. Fans consider this album their best work.
Fast forward a year…
Saxon releases Denim and Leather, which becomes an instant hit with the fans, so much so, that the title is seen as a metal anthem.
As the NWOBHM trailed off, the band released Power and Glory in ’83. An album which sold over 1.5 million copies and would later go on to become their highest selling album.
Towards the end of the decade, the band struggled to gain a foothold in the US. Their fanbase in the UK took a hit too because their tours were on the decline and they couldn’t land a record deal.
Genesis
Genesis greatly influenced the 80’s progressive rock scene. They’ve sold over 150 million album copies worldwide, making them some of the best-selling artists of all time.
Between 1980 and 1985, they released three albums: Abacab, Genesis, and Invisible Touch.
Abacab reached #1 in the UK in 1981, and it was received just as well in the US. Genesis also made it to the top of the charts in the UK and to #9 in the US. Invisible Touch, which sold over 6 million copies was the band’s most commercially successful albums. I say commercially because it received mixed reviews from both critics and the fans.
The band went on their largest world tour from 1986 to 1987. The concert tour was called Invisible Touch Tour after the album of the same name.
After they released their last album titled, We Can’t Dance, they disbanded. Although the band did a world tour in 2006, they split up again in 2011.
The Police
The Police have a one-of-a-kind style – a fusion of reggae, punk, and jazz. Their lyrics have dark and gritty undertones. Many fans consider them one of the greatest bands of the 80s, trailing only Queen.
Their career might not have been too prolific, but it was certainly influential. Think of it this way. Of their five albums, four earned a spot in Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Albums of all time. They also made it to their Top 100 Artists of All Times list. With over 75 million records sold, they’re also one of the best-selling groups of all time.
Their Zenyatta Mondatta featured two single hits which made topped the charts in the UK. Synchronicity – their last studio album, gave them a few more single hits. The album reached the #1 spot in both the US and the UK, where it stayed for several weeks.
With this string of #1 albums, The Police became one of the most commercially successful bands. And not just in the UK but internationally as well.
Queen
One of the world’s best-selling music bands, Queen, was formed in 1970. They debuted with a self-titled album back in ’73. It had elements of progressive rock and heavy metal and was well-received. A year later, they recorded their second (albeit lesser known) album, Queen II, in the UK.
But it wasn’t until the release of A Night at the Opera and Sheer Heart Attack, that they garnered international praise. These albums featured “Bohemian Rhapsody”, which claimed the top position in the charts in the UK for weeks.
By then the band had absorbed arena rock and pop rock styles, along with hard rock, progressive rock, and heavy metal.
In 1980, they released their bestselling single, “Another One Bites the Dust”. This was followed by their album Greatest Hits, a year later. True to its name, Greatest Hits, is the best-selling album of all times in the UK, with 6.3 million copies sold. This also made them one of the biggest stadium rock bands in the world.
In 1982, they released an album titled, Hot Space, which departed from their traditional 70s era style. It favored a blend of rock, pop rock, R&B, dance, and funk.
The very next year though, they opted out of performing live for a while. But their highlight of this decade was their Live Aid performance, in 1985. Queen performed some of their best hits and it was watched by almost 2 billion people.
Owing to their timeless classics, sports anthems, and mind-blowing live performances, Queen is widely regarded as the greatest band of all time.
The Smiths
This no-nonsense band was known for their witty lyrics and music which could stir emotions. The lyrics were poetic, moving, heartbreaking, infused with metaphor and euphemism. But when they wanted to, they could put a smile on your face. Make you laugh, even. So it comes as no surprise that they have a cult-like fan following.
Though their career was short-lived, critics widely regarded as the most influential group of the decade. During their 4-year long career, they released four albums. And every single one of them made it to the top five in the UK charts. Meat is Murder climbed to the very top. And it was the only album (save for compilations) to ever top the charts in the UK.
Their style was a union of rock and post-punk of the 60s.
Before they had released their final album Strangeways, Here We Come, The Smiths disbanded.
Duran Duran
In 1978, a band named Duran Duran changed the way music was styled and marketed. One of the leading bands of MTV in the 1980s, this band consisted of lead singer Simon Le Bon, Guitarist Andy Taylor, Keyboard Nick Rhodes, John Taylor the bassist and drummer Roger Taylor. Famous as inseparable, the group remained intact until Andy and Roger got separated, having then included Warren Cuccurullo and Sterling Campbel as the new guitarist and drummer.
With more than 100 million records sold around the world, this band gave its viewers 14 singles that was part of the top 10 UK Singles Chart. In the beginning, the band was positioned as part of the New Romantic movement but soon they changed their genre and came up with several hits including Rio, Like the Wolf, Union of the Snake and Hungry.
The original band reunited in the beginning of the year 2000 and since then except for their Guitarist Dom Brown all are still together. Duran Duran has been on the receiving end with Hollywood Walk of Fame, two Grammy Awards, two Brit Awards, Video Visionary Award from the MTV Europe Music Awards and MTV Video Music Award for Lifetime Achievement.
Spandau Ballet
One of the most famous bands of the New Romantic Era, Spandau Bullet was formed in 1979 in London. This post-punk inspired band has so far given 23 hit singles and sold more than 25 million albums across the world. In the 80s, if there was any band that gave competition to Duran Duran, it was Spandau Bullet.
The band hit the charts from their debut single “To Cut a Long Story Short” and received the BMI award for the most played song in the history on the US with four million airplays. The band involved od guitarist Gary Kemp, on bass Martin Kemp, drummer John Keeble, saxophonist Steve Norman, and vocalist Tony Hadley.
The band took off from the floor for 19 years in 1990 and reformed in 2009 for The Reformation Tour. The featured a documentary biopic, Soul Boys of the Western World in 2014 which was premiered at SXSW Film Festival and screened at many other film festivals including Rome and NYC Doc film festivals. In the year 2017, Hadley, the lead vocalist left the band and a year after, famous actor and singer Ross William Wild joined them. In the recent tweets by Wild, he has also announced his disassociation with the band which was later confirmed by Martin Kemp.
Ultravox
Ultravox started performing at Tiger Lily in 1972 and renamed their band as Ultravox in the year 1973. The band with John Foxx as the lead singer was the main man behind all the success and hard work. with Vienna as the most successful hit of 1981, Ultravox also produced seven albums, all ranking in top ten and 17 singles that stayed in the top 40 singles.
In 1979, Foxx quit the band to pursue a solo career in music, with Midge Ure, taking the lead as the frontman, singer and guitarist. The band was in full swing until 1988 when it got separated.
The band with Currie, Ure and Warren Cann came together in 2008 to perform reunion shows and later in 2010 released a studio album by the name Brilliant. In 2013, the band went on a four-day UK arena tour with Currie and Ure’s announcement that this tour was their last performance.
Wham!
One of the most famous and successful band Wham! had none other than the heartthrob George Michael and Andrew Ridgley. With more than 30 million albums sold, Wham! produced music that was funky yet touched the soul. They also addressed several social issues via music and their album Fantastic was based on UK’S unemployment and adulthood.
In 1984, Wham! gave another blockbuster hit ‘ Make It Big’ and later ‘Everything She Wants’, Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go and Careless Whisper were singles that topped the charts and are still part of the playlists. In 1985, Wham! took a 10-day tour to China, helping both China and West establish friendly relations.
Michael soon realized that his aspirations in music were beyond what he was producing and hence, both Michael and Ridgley announced a formal breakup in 1986. The duo gave their final goodbye in the Wimbledon stadium on 28th June 1986 in an 8-hour concert with 72,000 people.
George Michael died on 25th December 2016 from heart and liver disease.
Tears for Fears
Formed in 1981, Tears for Fears consisted of Roland Orzabal and curt Smith. The band’s basic genre was rock and pop. Their debut album the Hurting was ranked number one of UK Album Charts followed by Songs from the Big Chair, their second album which scored top ranking on the US Billboard 200. Tears for Fears after their third, platinum-selling album The Seeds of Love decided to part ways. This was the year 1991, however, Orzabal later continued the band name as a solo project and produced Elemental and Raoul and the Kings of Spain. Orzabal brought back Smith in 2004 and together they released Everybody Loves a Happy Ending.
Since 2010 till date, Tears for Fears has collaborated with Spandau Ballet for around the world tours and has given a number of smashing hits to their lovers.