Dave's Music Hall of Fame: Album Inductees (May 2023)

The Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums Originally posted 5/22/2023. January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog. To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This month marks the eighteenth group of album inductees. These are taken from are taken from the DMDB’s top pop albums of all time list. The focus of this set inductees is only on those pop albums from the ‘60s through ‘80s. Previous inductees to fit this category are Bon Jovi’s Slippery When Wet, Def Leppard’s Hysteria, Fleetwood Mac’s Rumours, Guns N’ Roses’ Appetite for Destruction, Michael Jackson’s Thriller, Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road, Journey’s Escape, Carole King’s Tapestry, The Police’s Synchronicity, Prince’s Purple Rain, Simon & Garfunkel’s Bridge Over Troubled Water, Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the U.S.A., U2’s The Joshua Tree, Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life, the Dirty Dancing soundtrack, the Grease soundtrack, and the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. See the full list of album inductees here.

The Beatles A Hard Day’s Night (1964) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

The Beatles’ third album featured all original songs by John Lennon and Paul McCartney – and what a collection it was. In addition to the chart-topping title cut and “Can’t Buy Me Love,” the album featured “I Should Have Known Better,” “And I Love Her,” and “If I Fell.” The U.S. version topped the charts for 14 weeks but was vastly inferior with only 8 of the 14 cuts from the UK version and four unnecessary instrumentals. Read more.

The Beatles Help! (1965) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

As impressive as A Hard Day’s Night was, the Beatles outdid themselves with Help! Once again, the U.S. version was a truncated collection rounded out by unnecessary instrumentals. Both the U.S. and UK versions featured the #1’s “Help!” and “Ticket to Ride,” but the latter album also had “Yesterday,” another #1 in the U.S. The collection also included “You’ve Got to Hide Your Love Away” and “You’re Gonna Lose That Girl.” Read more.

Phil Collins No Jacket Required (1985) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

A Facebook post by Amanti Del Rock famously claimed that in the 1980s, one out of every four songs on the radio was by Phil Collins. While it was a humorously exaggerated claim, he did seem to be inescapable that decade, alternating between solo hits and success with his band Genesis. No Jacket Required was the album that established Collins as a superstar, giving him #1 hits with “One More Night” and “Sussudio” as well as top-10 hits “Don’t Lose My Number” and “Take Me Home.” The Grammy winner for Album of the Year would sell more than 25 million copies worldwide. Read more.

Whitney Houston Whitney (1987) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

Whitney Houston’s self-titled debut album sent three songs to #1, setting up an impossibly high bar for her sophomore effort. Whitney pulled off the unthinkable – another four chart-toppers, including the iconic “I Wanna Dance with Somebody.” It gave her a record seven consecutive #1 songs. The album spent eleven weeks atop the Billboard album chart and sold more than 20 million copies worldwide. Read more.

Janet Jackson Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

Jackson’s 1986 album Control gave her five top-ten hits, putting her in the top tier pop echelon alongside her famous brother Michael. His Thriller album spawned a record-setting seven top-tens. Janet outdid him with seven top-five hits from her Rhythm Nation 1814 album – four of them went all the way to #1. Read more.

Michael Jackson Bad (1987) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

Michael Jackson faced an impossible task in creating a follow-up to Thriller, the best-selling album of all time. Bad would still sell an impressive 35 million copies worldwide and it would outdo its predecessor on one front. It became the first album in history to generate five chart-topping hits. Read more.

Billy Joel The Stranger (1977) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

Billy Joel landed his first top-40 hit in 1973 with the iconic “Piano Man” but couldn’t match that accomplishment over his next couple of albums. 1977’s The Stranger, however, established Joel as a pop force to be reckoned with. He had a #3 hit with “Just the Way You Are” as well as top-40 hits “Movin’ Out,” “”Only the Good Die Young,” and “She’s Always a Woman.” The Grammy Hall of Fame inductee was his most successful album, selling 15 million copies worldwide. Read more.

Cyndi Lauper She’s So Unusual (1983) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

Lauper’s video for “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” was a perfect fit for MTV, showcasing her vibrant personality and equally colorful wardrobe. It became a fun party song that was also embraced as a message of female empowerment. It could have been a one-hit wonder, but she followed it with the chart-topping “Time After Time,” a ballad that showed she had some depth as well. She also landed top-five hits with “She Bop” and “All Through the Night.” She won the Grammy for Best New Artist and garnered nominations for Album, Record, and Song of the Year. Read more.

Madonna Like a Virgin (1984) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

It isn’t often one can pinpoint the exact moment someone became a star. With Madonna, it was when she sang “Like a Virgin” while she writhed on stage in a wedding dress at the MTV Video Music Awards. The song spent six weeks at #1 and propelled the album of the same name to the top as well. The album also generated the top-five hits “Material Girl,” “Angel,” and “Dress You Up.” As if that weren’t enough, in the middle of the album’s success, she also topped the charts with “Crazy for You” from the movie Vision Quest and, in the UK, with “Into the Groove” from Desperately Seeking Susan. Read more.

George Michael Faith (1987) Inducted May 2023 as “Top Classic Pop (‘60s to ‘80s) Albums.”

George Michael sailed to success with Wham! and the #1 hit “Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go.” He followed that with his own chart-topping “Careless Whisper,” making it clear that he was on the verge of becoming a breakout solo star. His 1987 album Faith more than accomplished that task. It generated four #1 songs, spent twelve weeks atop the Billboard album chart, and sold 25 million copies worldwide. It also won the Grammy for Album of the Year. Read more.

Janet Jackson hit #1 with Rhythm Nation

First posted 3/25/2008; updated 12/2/2020.

Rhythm Nation 1814 Janet Jackson

Released: September 19, 1989 Peak: 14 US, 13 RB, 4 UK, 5 CN, 14 AU Sales (in millions): 8.4 US, 0.3 UK, 15.3 world (includes US and UK) Genre: R&B/pop

Tracks: Song Title (date of single release, chart peaks) Click for codes to singles charts. Interlude: Pledge Rhythm Nation (11/11/89, 2 US, 1a RB, 23 UK, sales: ½ million) Interlude: T.V. State of the World (2/16/91, 5a US, 23a RB) Interlude: Race The Knowledge Interlude: Let’s Dance Miss You Much (9/2/89, 1 US, 1 RB, 22 UK, sales: 1 million) Interlude: Come Back Interlude Love Will Never Do without You (10/27/90, 1 US, 2 RB, 33 AC, 34 UK, sales: ½ million) Livin’ in a World They Didn’t Make Alright (4/7/90, 2a US, 2 RB, 20 UK, sales: ½ million) Interlude: Hey Baby Escapade (1/20/90, 1a US, 1 RB, 16 AC, 17 UK) Interlude: No Acid Black Cat (9/15/90, 1 US, 10 RB, 15 UK, sales: ½ million) Lonely Come Back to Me (1/27/90, 1a US, 2 RB, 1 AC, 20 UK) Someday Is Tonight Interlude: Livin’…in Complete Darkness Total Running Time: 64:34

Rating: 4.024 out of 5.00 (average of 24 ratings) Awards: (Click on award to learn more).

About the Album: “After shocking the R&B world with 1986’s Control – a gutsy, risk-taking triumph that was a radical departure from her first two albums – Michael and Jermaine Jackson’s younger sister reached an even higher artistic plateau with the conceptual Rhythm Nation 1814.” AMG The title was inspired by her idea “that it would be great if we could create our own nation…that would have a positive message and that everyone would be free to join.” WK “1814” represents the year the national anthem was written. WK Label executives wanted something like the hit-laden Control, but Jackson wanted to address social issues such as racism, poverty, and substance abuse. WK “In 1989, protest songs were common in rap but rare in R&B – Janet Jackson, following rap’s lead, dares to address social and political topics on The Knowledge, the disturbing State of the World, and the poignant ballad Living in a World (which decries the reality of children being exposed to violence).” AMG That isn’t to say she didn’t still create a commercially viable record. There were “nonpolitical pieces ranging from the Prince-influenced funk/pop of Miss You Much and Alright.” AMG She incorporated new jack swing, pop, dance, and rock such as “pop/rock smoker Black Cat” AMG in songs ranging “from mechanized dance rhythms to soft balladry, giving it appeal across multiple radio formats.” WK Rhythm Nation became the only album in history to land seven top-5 singles on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. It was also the only album to produce #1 hits in three separate calendar years. WK “Miss You Much” topped the charts in 1989; Escapade and “Black Cat” were #1 songs in 1990, and Love Will Never Do Without You accomplished the feat in 1991. She also turned again to ex-Time bandmates Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, “one of the more soulful production/songwriting teams of 1980s and ‘90s R&B.” AMG “Jackson’s voice is wafer-thin, and she doesn’t have much of a range – but she definitely has lots of soul and spirit and uses it to maximum advantage.” AMG Despite her vocal shortcomings, she turns out “caressing, silky ballads Someday Is Tonight, Alone, and Come Back to Me.” AMG “For those purchasing their first Janet Jackson release, Rhythm Nation would be an even wiser investment than Control – and that's saying a lot.” AMG

Resources and Related Links: DMDB encyclopedia entry for Janet Jackson AMG All Music Guide review by Alex Henderson WK Wikipedia