1985
This week, I mostly be considering rap.
“Nineteen-Eighty-Five Flow”
Yo—
Step back to ’85, rewind the tape alive,
Cold War skies where the tensions thrive.
Thatcher in Britain with an iron stride,
Miners’ strike fading but the scars still wide.
Reagan in the States talkin’ star-wars dreams,
Superpower chess on the TV screens.
Gorbachev rising with a brand-new aim,
Glasnost, perestroika—reset the game.
But the streets kept moving, culture never froze,
’85 lit up when the music rose.
Live Aid thundered like a world-wide plea,
Bowie, Queen, and U2 on the global feed.
Prince dropped
Around the World, a technicolor vibe,
Kate Bush soared high with that art-pop glide.
Springsteen was roaring, Madonna held sway,
And Whitney’s first album blew the roof away.
Pop charts vibed with a neon glow,
Sade stayed smooth with a midnight flow.
Eurythmics hit number one with an angel in flight,
While Dire Straits rocked the MTV night.
Hip-hop was building in the Bronx and Queens—
Run-D.M.C. sharpening the future scene.
And the personalities? A wild parade:
Back to the Future, the year it was made.
Becker at Wimbledon, just seventeen,
Hagler and Hearns in a three-round scream.
Cosby ruled TV before the fall came later,
And Gorbachev turned from foe to negotiator.
That’s ’85—world on a wire,
Cold War smoke and a pop-chart fire.
Politics grinding, but the culture thrived,
A loud, bright stamp on the archive of time.
Thats enough of that.
Everton dominated English football, winning the First Division and lifting the Cup Winners’ Cup, while Manchester United claimed the FA Cup. City were back in the first division under Billy McNeil. Yet the year was also shadowed by the Heysel Stadium disaster, prompting the ban on English clubs in European competitions.
Cricket brought national pride as England won the home Ashes series, and Barry McGuigan’s world-title victory made him a British boxing hero.
1985 was a pivotal year in modern music, marking both creative innovation and the growing global reach of popular culture. It was a year when technology, celebrity, and political consciousness began to merge in new ways. The most significant event was Live Aid, held on 13 July 1985 in London and Philadelphia. Organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure, the concert raised funds for famine relief in Ethiopia and was broadcast worldwide to an estimated audience of nearly two billion people. Featuring artists such as Queen, U2, David Bowie, and Madonna, it demonstrated the power of music as a global social force/that Geldof could swear on live TV. Queen’s performance, in particular, became legendary, re-energising their career. I remember the day vividly because I missed a great deal of it as it clashed with the annual agricultural show that I represented the Bank at. This was a pretty good gig featuring as it did a free bar for the local farmers and guess who got to keep any bottle that had been opened and not finished? So it was armed with an array of spirits and good wine Mrs S and I sat down to enjoy the second half for our very own Live Aid party. I missed Queen I think and was disappointed with Zeppelins performance and after that I don’t remember too much at all. I have included a couple of my highlights from the concert, a Sade track ( when I watched the performance again recently it still stood out musically) , the Jagger/Bowie charity single and Dire Straits Money for Nothing (despite the dodgy lyrics it was music that did represent the year). Brothers in Arms became one of the first albums recorded fully in digital format, helping to popularise the compact disc One of the first I bought). Tears for Fears’ Songs from the Big Chair and a-ha’s “Take On Me” reflected the growing dominance of synth-pop and the power of the music video in the MTV era. In the United States, Prince continued his creative peak with Around the World in a Day, blending psychedelia with funk and pop, and Madonna consolidated her status as a global superstar with Like a Virgin and extensive touring. Meanwhile, the emergence of hip-hop as a recorded and commercial force gained momentum with artists such as Run-D.M.C. crossing over into mainstream rock audiences.
Here is a mix of music I loved from 85 and some others that represent the year well.
The Hounds of Love - Kate Bush
Amidst the political turmoil and synth pop, one album bestrides the year like a colossus. It is the Dark Side of the Moon, the Sargeant Pepper, the Pet Sounds of 1985. As groundbreaking and as experimental and as beautiful as those three albums. I had liked Kate Bush music since she released The Kick Inside but 1985 was the year that it became very serious. She released an album that was for me damn near perfect and stands alongside my most loved pieces of music. It is perfection and the sole reason I wanted to write this piece for 1985.
If I had to nominate a single album to take to a desert island, this would be it.
Hounds Of Love remains the most critically and commercially successful album of her career to date. It was released by EMI on 16 September 1985 and was the second album she had self-produced, the first recorded in her own studio. In the run up to the production she had been experimenting with the Fairlight and since her initial experiences on the album The Dreaming had become one of the foremost experts in its use. She used it extensively on Hounds of Love integrating it into both the composition and production of the album. Many tracks were built from Fairlight sequences, with the sampler serving as her primary writing tool. She programmed rhythmic patterns, harmonic beds, and structural frameworks on the before adding live instrumentation.
A defining feature of the album is Bush’s use of sampled found sounds. She incorporated non-musical recordings—such as chopped vocal syllables, breath noises, percussive hits created from objects, and environmental fragments—to form rhythmic and textural layers. These sounds appear throughout the “Hounds of Love” side and more prominently in the conceptual suite The Ninth Wave, where they contribute to the album’s atmospheric sound. Bush also used the Fairlight to reshape vocal material, triggering short vocal samples from the keyboard and altering their pitch or timing to create backing textures or rhythmic accents. The Fairlight was combined with live instruments—including strings, Uilleann pipes, and piano—as well as drum machines. Rather than dominating the arrangements, it acted as a central organising element, allowing her to blend digital sampling with acoustic performance in a cohesive, highly detailed production style that at the time was pretty unique.
The album is conceived as a work of profound contrast, its two sides functioning as ‘day’ and ‘night.’ The first half is bright, accessible and immediate, yielding four immaculate singles—“Running Up That Hill (A Deal with God),” “Cloudbusting,” “Hounds of Love,” and “The Big Sky.” These songs, among the most enduring in Bush’s catalogue, showcased her command of melody, emotional clarity, and innovative production, blending Fairlight-driven textures with live instrumentation to create pop music of unusual depth and originality.
The second half, The Ninth Wave, moves into darker waters both literally and figuratively. This seven-part suite follows a woman who has fallen overboard from a dingy at night and drifts alone, suspended between life and death. The songs chart her physical battle to stay afloat and her psychological descent into fear, delirium, memory and fleeting hope. She encounters visions—some tender, some menacing—as hypothermia loosens her grip on reality. Bush mirrors these shifts with extraordinary musical variety: choral passages, folk inflections, spoken-word interludes, dense electronic soundscapes and fragments built from samples, all woven into a cinematic narrative arc. The title refers to an image from Irish and Scottish folklore in which the “ninth wave” represents a threshold or final ordeal. For Bush, it becomes the symbol of her protagonist’s struggle to survive the night. At dawn, when rescue finally seems to arrive, the relief feels tentative, hard-won.
The Ninth Wave is widely regarded as one of Bush’s greatest artistic achievements—a demonstration of how popular music can function as narrative drama, using sound and perspective to place the listener inside a character’s consciousness. I saw her perform this live during her Eventim Apollo residency, it worked as both a visual and musical masterpiece and came pretty close to the euphoria created by Sergio’s moment.
For the playlist, I chose “Hello Earth,” the suite’s haunting penultimate track, built around a sampled Gregorian chant she first encountered in the film ‘Nosferatu’.
Today, Hounds Of Love is universally considered as a classic album, one of the defining high watermarks of the 1980s. When it came out, she was only twenty-seven years old. As years pass, the album continues to accrue cultural value. Music publications like Rolling Stone, Q, NME, Uncut and Mojo have voted Hounds Of Love among the greatest albums of all time. In their 2016 retrospective review, Pitchfork gave the album a perfect ten out of ten, with critic Barry Walters lauding it as ‘the Sgt. Pepper of the digital age’s dawn. In a 1985 interview with Musician, Bush said her newest album was ‘the one I’m most happy with’. Twenty years later, speaking to Tom Doyle for Mojo, she admitted that she still felt proud of how Hounds Of Love turned out, calling it, ‘probably my best album as a whole’.
As decades pass, its influence is increasingly visible: musicians from Tori Amos and Björk to St. Vincent, Florence Welch and Big Thief have cited it as formative, while producers point to its inventive use of sampling and studio craft as ahead of its time.
Hello Earth- Kate Bush
Sade’s performance at Live Aid in 1985, though brief like most sets that day, left a lasting impression with its elegance and understated power. Amid a lineup dominated by rock acts, Sade’s smooth, soulful presence offered a striking contrast. The band, consisting of Sade Adu (vocals), Stuart Matthewman (saxophone and guitar), Andrew Hale (keyboards), and Paul S. Denman (bass), delivered a setlist of three carefully chosen songs: “Your Love Is King,” “Is It a Crime,” and a cover of Timmy Thomas’s “Why Can’t We Live Together.””
“Is It a Crime,” the opening track of their second album Promise (1985), exemplified the group’s meticulous craftsmanship. Written by Sade, Matthewman, and Hale, it features clean, spacious instrumentation and precise dynamics, emphasizing emotional depth over contemporary trends. Though never released as a major single, it became one of Sade’s most admired songs, celebrated for its restraint, atmospheric layering, and lyrical honesty.
The band’s sophisticated approach to soul, blending jazz, pop, and R&B influences, was already defining a new British sound, one that combined smooth minimalism with timeless emotional resonance. Their Live Aid performance not only showcased their artistry to a global audience but also cemented Sade’s reputation as a pioneering figure whose influence can be traced through neo-soul and later hip-hop artists who drew from their nuanced, atmospheric style.
Is It a Crime – Sade
Suzanne Vega emerged as one of the most distinctive new voices in American singer-songwriting, introducing a literate, quietly radical style. Although she had been performing in New York’s folk scene for several years—particularly at the famed Greenwich Village club Folk City—her breakthrough came with the release of her self-titled debut album, Suzanne Vega, in May 1985. The record showcased her precise, almost conversational vocal delivery, her nylon-string guitar patterns, and her highly crafted, literary lyricism. Critics immediately recognised her as a major new talent, drawing comparisons to Joni Mitchell and Leonard Cohen, yet she arrived with a sensibility entirely her own: urban, observational and quietly theatrical.
A central track from the album, “Marlene on the Wall,” became Vega’s first significant international single and established her as an artist capable of blending folk purity with subtle pop touches. The song is an introspective reflection on loneliness and romantic uncertainty, framed through the image of a poster of Marlene Dietrich watching over the narrator’s emotional misadventures. Vega’s lyrics balance wit and melancholy, giving the listener a portrait of a young woman negotiating desire, disappointment, and independence.
Musically, “Marlene on the Wall” features Vega’s characteristic acoustic guitar, supported by understated percussion and tasteful production from Lenny Kaye and Steve Addabbo. Its spareness allowed the clarity of the lyrics to stand at the forefront, a quality that became one of Vega’s signatures. The single charted modestly in the United States but found strong success in the UK, where it reached the Top 40 in 1986 after a reissue, helping the album achieve wider European acclaim.
Vega’s work in 1985 laid the foundations for her commercial breakthrough with Solitude Standing (1987), and it positioned her as a key figure in the revival of thoughtful singer-songwriting during a decade often dominated by highly produced pop.
Marlene on the Wall – Suzanne Vega
“There Must Be an Angel (Playing with My Heart)” occupies a unique place in 1980s pop history, both for Eurythmics’ career and the broader landscape. It marked the duo’s first and only UK number-one single, cementing Annie Lennox and Dave Stewart as international stars beyond their earlier synth-pop hits. The collaboration with Stevie Wonder symbolised a high-profile bridging of British new wave and American soul, reflecting the era’s growing cross-pollination between pop, R&B, and electronic music. Historically, the song also exemplifies the mid-80s shift toward richly produced, genre-blending pop whilst further showcasing Annie Lennox’s vocal dexterity. While Eurythmics had built their reputation on darker, more minimalistic synth tracks like Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This), this single demonstrated how electronic artists could incorporate live instrumentation—harmonica, gospel-inspired backing vocals, and traditional arrangements—without losing contemporary appeal. The track’s success helped pave the way for more adventurous pop productions in the later 1980s, where collaboration across genres became increasingly common.
There must be an Angel (Playing with my heart) - The Eurythmics
I am a self confessed sucker for Prefab Sprout. And Steve McQueen is my second favourite Sprout album ( Jordan the Comeback is my favourite by a mile). Produced by Thomas Dolby, it was the band’s second album and cemented their reputation for literate, emotionally nuanced songwriting combined with polished, inventive production. The album reached number 21 on the UK charts, while in the United States it was released under the title Two Wheels Good due to legal concerns over the actor’s name.
Musically, Steve McQueen was sophisticated with lush, precise arrangements, clean synth textures, and understated rhythms that supported Paddy McAloon’s poetic and often ironic lyrics. Tracks like “When Love Breaks Down,” “Faron Young,” and “When the Angels” balanced melodic elegance with emotional depth, exploring themes of love, heartbreak, longing, and memory. The production added subtle electronic flourishes that enhanced the album’s cinematic and atmospheric quality without overshadowing McAloon’s songwriting. The album’s critical legacy has only grown. It is frequently cited as one of the most accomplished British albums. For the playlist I have chosen “When Love Breaks Down” which melodically is gorgeous and I love Paddy and Wendy Smiths vocals.
When Love Breaks Down – Prefab Sprout
I’m allowed a guilty pleasure, and it had been nearly a decade since Lamb Lies Down on Broadway—I was seriously missing a prog rock fix. I’d read about Marillion in the NME and was intrigued, partly because Derek Dick, better known as Fish, was a local resident. When I finally got hold of Misplaced Childhood, I tried to resist liking it, aware of its obvious debt to Genesis, but the arrangements, performances, and sheer theatricality eventually won me over.
“Heart of Lothian” is a key piece of the album’s narrative. Fish delivers a bombastic, emotionally charged vocal performance that fuses confession with poetic imagery—a hallmark of the band’s storytelling approach. Musically, the track combines intricate guitar work, layered keyboards, and shifting time signatures, and yes, it could almost have come straight off The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Misplaced Childhood was both a critical and commercial triumph. It reached number one on the UK Albums Chart in 1985, producing hit singles like “Kayleigh” and “Lavender.” The album’s success established Marillion as a leading force in progressive rock demonstrating that prog could still find an audience in the mid-1980s.
Heart of Lothian (Misplaced Childhood) – Marillion
Released in 1985 on Little Creatures, “Road to Nowhere”, David Byrne conceived “Road to Nowhere” as a deliberately cheerful song about the inevitability of death. He described it as a “resigned, even joyful look at doom,” combining upbeat, marching-band optimism with lyrics that acknowledge life’s futility.
A striking detail is the song’s opening a cappella introduction, sung in gospel style. Byrne added it late in the recording process after feeling the track needed a sense of communal uplift before launching into its propulsive rhythm. This brief section gives the song a hymn-like quality.
The music video, directed by the avant-garde artist and filmmaker Stephen R. Johnson, is also noteworthy. Johnson used surreal, stop-motion techniques that would later define his groundbreaking videos for Peter Gabriel (“Sledgehammer,” “Big Time”). “Road to Nowhere” became one of Talking Heads’ biggest UK hits, reaching the Top 10, and remains an example of how the band combined pop accessibility with philosophical depth.
Road to Nowhere – Talking Heads
Released in 1985 on Dire Straits’ album Brothers in Arms, “Money for Nothing” became one of the decade’s biggest rock hits and was also featured in the Bands set at Live Aid. Brothers in Arms was one of the first major albums to be recorded digitally, and “Money for Nothing” showcased this clean, polished sound. The song’s accompanying video, featuring early computer animation, also became iconic and helped cement MTV’s influence on popular music. The song remains historically significant for its commentary on fame and technology, as well as for its technical innovation in recording and video production.
The track is considered controversial mainly because of its use of a homophobic slur in one of the verses. The line—spoken by a fictional, working-class appliance-store worker who is grumbling about rock stars on MTV—was written as satire, intended to expose the character’s prejudice rather than endorse it. Mark Knopfler based the lyrics on comments he overheard from real shop workers watching MTV, aiming for authenticity in voice and attitude. However, the satire wasn’t always recognised. Many listeners took the words at face value, and LGBTQ+ groups criticised the song for giving prominence to offensive language in a mainstream hit. This led some radio stations to play edited versions, and in later years certain broadcasters temporarily restricted the uncut track. The lyric became increasingly contentious, ensuring that Money for Nothing remains both a landmark of 1980s pop and a recurring subject of discussion about satire, representation, and shifting social attitudes.
Money for Nothing – Dire Straits
Tears for Fears’ 1985 album Songs from the Big Chair represents a defining moment in the duo’s career. Released on 25 February 1985, it marked a departure from the dark, introspective synth-pop of their debut The Hurting, embracing a more expansive, guitar-based rock sound, live drums, saxophones and a more sophisticated production.
The album’s most enduring song, “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” was a late addition to the sessions, written by Roland Orzabal, Ian Stanley and producer Chris Hughes, and recorded in just two weeks. The track topped the US Billboard Hot 100 and became one of their biggest hits, helping Big Chair achieve multi-platinum status worldwide (five times platinum in the U.S., triple platinum in the U.K.).
1985 was also the year Tears for Fears first encountered Oleta Adams, who would later become a significant collaborator. While on tour that year supporting Big Chair, Orzabal and Curt Smith heard Adams performing in a Kansas City hotel bar and were struck by her soulful voice. Although she did not appear on Big Chair, they invited her to feature on their next album, The Seeds of Love. Thought I’d mention her as she is a favourite and I’ll return in a future year to her album “Circle of One”.
Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears for Fears
“Dancing in the Street,” released in 1985 as a duet between David Bowie and Mick Jagger, was recorded for the Live Aid charity effort to raise funds for famine relief in Ethiopia. The song is a cover of the 1964 Motown hit by Martha and the Vandellas and was recorded and released in a matter of days. Its accompanying video, filmed quickly in London, became instantly famous for its exuberant and spontaneous energy. Musically, the version stays close to the original rhythm-and-blues structure but adds 1980s production gloss and the distinctive personalities of its two performers. While some critics saw it as over-the-top, the collaboration was emblematic of the spirit of Live Aid—bringing together major artists for a humanitarian cause. The single topped the UK charts and raised significant funds for charity. Its cultural significance lies less in musical innovation than in its context: two of Britain’s biggest rock icons uniting at a moment when pop music was being used for global activism.
Dancing in the Street – David Bowie and Mick Jagger
1985 will always be remembered for Live Aid. A day that almost everyone remembers where they were and what they were doing. There was some fine music made as well. I hope that you enjoy these ten tracks and if you haven’t ever sat down and listened to Hounds of Love that this maybe encourage you to do it.
