| 1980s in music in the UK |
| Events |
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| By location |
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| By genre |
| By topic |
| List of years in British music |
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This is a summary of 1980 in music in the United Kingdom, including the official charts from that year.
The 1980s got off to an odd start with a very varied list of artists reaching No. 1 in the singles chart. Kenny Rogers, The Jam and Odyssey were among those vying for the top position. The Guinness Book of British Hit Singles & Albums stated that the year had a very dated appearance, because of a number of songs reaching No. 1 which had been recorded years previously, such as the "Theme from M*A*S*H*" and Don McLean's cover of Roy Orbison's "Crying". The Ska and Mod revivals reached their peak this year, with strong chart showings by The Jam, The Specials and Madness. 1970s favourites ABBA and Blondie both had their last years as chart heavyweights, clocking up 5 No.1 singles between them. David Bowie scored his second No.1 this year, while the death of John Lennon at the end of the year gave him his first chart topper (and would dominate the early months of 1981). Kate Bush became the first British female artist to have a No.1 album, and The Police finished the year as the top selling act. "Brass in Pocket" by The Pretenders became the first number 1 single of the 80s (not counting "Another Brick in the Wall" by Pink Floyd" which was a holdover from 1979).
| Chart date (week ending) | Album | Artist |
|---|---|---|
| 5 January | Greatest Hits, Vol. 1 | Rod Stewart |
| 12 January | Greatest Hits Vol. 2 | ABBA |
| 19 January | Pretenders | The Pretenders |
| 26 January | ||
| 2 February | ||
| 9 February | ||
| 16 February | Last Dance | Various artists |
| 23 February | ||
| 1 March | String of Hits | The Shadows |
| 8 March | ||
| 15 March | ||
| 22 March | Tears and Laughter | Johnny Mathis |
| 29 March | ||
| 5 April | Duke | Genesis |
| 12 April | ||
| 19 April | Greatest Hits | Rose Royce |
| 26 April | ||
| 3 May | Sky 2 | Sky |
| 10 May | ||
| 17 May | The Magic of Boney M. – 20 Golden Hits | Boney M. |
| 24 May | ||
| 31 May | McCartney II | Paul McCartney |
| 7 June | ||
| 14 June | Peter Gabriel | Peter Gabriel |
| 21 June | ||
| 28 June | Flesh and Blood | Roxy Music |
| 5 July | Emotional Rescue | The Rolling Stones |
| 12 July | ||
| 19 July | The Game | Queen |
| 26 July | ||
| 2 August | Deepest Purple | Deep Purple |
| 9 August | Back in Black | AC/DC |
| 16 August | ||
| 23 August | Flesh + Blood | Roxy Music |
| 30 August | ||
| 6 September | ||
| 13 September | Telekon | Gary Numan |
| 20 September | Never for Ever | Kate Bush |
| 27 September | Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) | David Bowie |
| 4 October | ||
| 11 October | Zenyatta Mondatta | The Police |
| 18 October | ||
| 25 October | ||
| 1 November | ||
| 8 November | Guilty | Barbra Streisand |
| 15 November | ||
| 22 November | Super Trouper | ABBA |
| 29 November | ||
| 6 December | ||
| 13 December | ||
| 20 December | ||
| 27 December |
The tables below include sales between 31 December 1979 and 31 December 1980: the year-end charts reproduced in the issue of Music Week dated 27 December 1980 and played on Radio 1 on 4 January 1981 only include sales figures up until 6 December 1980. [1]