List of top 40 singles for 1980–1989 in Australia

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The following lists the top 100 (end of decade) charting singles on the Australian Singles Charts, for the 1980s. These were the best charting singles in Australia for the 1980s. The source for this decade is the Kent Music Report, known from 1987 onwards as the Australian Music Report.

#TitleArtistHighest pos. reachedFirst Week at that position
1."Never Gonna Give You Up" Rick Astley 1November 1987
2."Dancing in the Dark" Bruce Springsteen 5September 1984
3."Australiana" Austen Tayshus 1August 1983
4."Like A Prayer" Madonna 1April 1989
5."I Just Called to Say I Love You" Stevie Wonder 1October 1984
6."Ghostbusters" Ray Parker Jr. 2September 1984
7."Islands in the Stream" Kenny Rogers with Dolly Parton 1December 1983
8."La Bamba" Los Lobos 1September 1987
9."Locomotion" Kylie Minogue 1August 1987
10."Down Under" Men at Work 1December 1981
11."Run to Paradise" The Choirboys 3November 1987
12."Flashdance... What a Feeling" Irene Cara 1July 1983
13."Old Time Rock and Roll" Bob Seger 3August 1987
14."You're the Voice" John Farnham 1November 1985
15."(I've Had) The Time of My Life" Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes 1February 1988
16."We Are the World" USA for Africa 1April 1985
17."Kokomo" The Beach Boys 1December 1988
18."Shaddap You Face" Joe Dolce Music Theatre 1November 1980
19."Gloria" Laura Branigan 1February 1983
20."The Only Way Is Up" Yazz and the Plastic Population 2October 1988
21."Walk Like an Egyptian" The Bangles 1February 1987
22."Electric Blue" Icehouse 1November 1987
23."Venus" Bananarama 1September 1986
24."Simply Irresistible" Robert Palmer 1September 1988
25."Faith" George Michael 1December 1987
26."I Got You" Split Enz 1April 1980
27."You Keep Me Hangin' On" Kim Wilde 1February 1987
28."The Power of Love" Jennifer Rush 1November 1985
29."Start Me Up" The Rolling Stones 1November 1981
30."Eternal Flame" The Bangles 1June 1989
31."Angel"/"Into the Groove" Madonna 1June 1985
32."Time Warp"Original Cast, The Rocky Horror Picture Show 3December 1980
33."It's Just Not Cricket" The Twelfth Man 1June 1984
34."Eye of the Tiger" Survivor 1September 1982
35."(Just Like) Starting Over" John Lennon 1January 1981
36."Funkytown" Pseudo Echo 1December 1986
37."Wired for Sound" Cliff Richard 2December 1981
38."Come On Eileen" Dexys Midnight Runners 1November 1982
39."I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" The Proclaimers 1February 1989
40."If I Could" 1927 2December 1988
41."Careless Whisper" George Michael 1September 1984
42."Lady in Red" Chris De Burgh 2December 1986
43."Chain Reaction" Diana Ross 1April 1986
44."Like a Virgin" Madonna 1December 1984
45."Karma Chameleon" Culture Club 1October 1983
46."When the Going Gets Tough, The Tough Get Going" Billy Ocean 1March 1986
47."A Groovy Kind of Love" Phil Collins 1November 1988
48."Teardrops" Womack & Womack 1February 1989
49."The Look" Roxette 1July 1989
50."Touch Me (I Want Your Body)" Samantha Fox 1July 1986
51."Slice of Heaven" Dave Dobbyn with Herbs 1May 1987
52."Reckless" Australian Crawl 1November 1983
53."Tainted Love" Soft Cell 1February 1982
54."Turning Japanese" The Vapors 1June 1980
55."She Drives Me Crazy" Fine Young Cannibals 1March 1989
56."Don't Worry Be Happy" Bobby McFerrin 1November 1988
57."The Flame" Cheap Trick 1May 1988
58."Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car" Billy Ocean 1April 1988
59."Physical" Olivia Newton-John 1November 1981
60."All Night Long (All Night)" Lionel Richie 1December 1981
61."Respectable" Mel and Kim 1July 1987
62."Wind Beneath My Wings" Bette Midler 1June 1989
63."Billie Jean" Michael Jackson 1April 1983
64."If I Could Turn Back Time" Cher 1November 1989
65."Up Where We Belong" Joe Cocker & Jennifer Warnes 1March 1983
66."We Built This City" Starship 1January 1986
67."Crazy Little Thing Called Love" Queen 1February 1980
68."Counting the Beat" The Swingers 1March 1981
69."Woman in Love" Barbra Streisand 1November 1980
70."Another Brick in the Wall, Part II" Pink Floyd 2April 1980
71."Got My Mind Set on You" George Harrison 1January 1988
72."Brass in Pocket" The Pretenders 2May 1980
73."Total Eclipse of the Heart" Bonnie Tyler 1May 1983
74."What About Me" Moving Pictures 1March 1982
75."Stars on 45" Stars on 45 1July 1981
76."Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go" Wham! 1July 1984
77."A Good Heart" Feargal Sharkey 1February 1986
78."Antmusic" Adam and the Ants 1March 1981
79."Crazy for You" Madonna 1July 1985
80."You Can Call Me Al" Paul Simon 2November 1986
81."Boom Boom (Let's Go Back to My Room)" Paul Lekakis 1April 1987
82."Bedroom Eyes" Kate Ceberano 2June 1989
83."Pass the Dutchie" Musical Youth 1December 1982
84."Endless Love" Diana Ross & Lionel Richie 1October 1981
85."I Wanna Wake Up with You" Boris Gardiner 1March 1987
86."Jealous Guy" Roxy Music 1May 1981
87."More Than I Can Say" Leo Sayer 1October 1980
88."The Living Years" Mike and the Mechanics 1May 1989
89."Hold Me Now" Johnny Logan 4December 1987
90."You Got It (The Right Stuff)" New Kids on the Block 1August 1989
91."To Be a Lover" Billy Idol 3December 1986
92."Take My Breath Away" Berlin 2September 1986
93."Can't Stop the Music" Village People 1July 1980
94."Perfect" Fairground Attraction 1August 1988
95."Money For Nothing" Dire Straits 4September 1985
96."I Should Be So Lucky" Kylie Minogue 1March 1988
97."The Final Countdown" Europe 2April 1987
98."Devo Live (EP)" Devo 1August 1981
99."I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me)" Whitney Houston 1June 1987
100."Live it Up" Mental As Anything 2July 1985

[1] These charts were calculated by David Kent of the Kent Music Report / Australian Music Report and they are based on the number of weeks and position the records reached within the top 100 singles for each week.

See also

References

  1. Australian Music Report, No 805, 1 Jan 1990, David Kent, Turramurra, NSW, Australia