Best Album on My Favourite Albums of......1981!!

no love for Costello's Trust?

― person industrial complex (voodoo chili)

Not really, apart from the singles

Blue cars, big beat
Dead on my feet
I get this heat
Run 'round lime street

Do this, be there
I just don't care
All day day wear
Go home she's there

I don't think that I can stand
I'm so run down
She is oh so out of hand
She's coming down

_________

Mr. Jones is beautiful.
Your eyes are made of glass.
Looking through the window,
You can see the world go past.
Here's another nine o'clock,
And here's another day.
Wonder how the weather is,
And what the people say?

So good, so far.
Slow down, ha ha.
Movie stars, and ads,
And radio define romance.
Don't turn it on,
I don't want to dance.

________

Caroline talks to you
Softly sometimes, she says,
"I love you" and "Too much"
She doesn't have anything
You want to steal
Well, nothing you can touch

She waves
She buttons your shirt
The traffic is waiting outside
She hands you this coat
She give you her clothes
These cars collide

_______

A phonebook full of accidents
A girl to drive your car
A suit to wear on mondays
And a coat a magazine
A heavy rain a holiday
A painting of the wall
A knife a fork and memories
A light to see it all...

Dominoes a pack of cards
A picture of the queen
A dress to wear on sundays
And a handle for the door
A letter that i sent for you
A note you left for me
A wave a pack of cigarettes
A pocket full of beads...

The sound of people getting drunk
A ceiling and a sky
A bank that's full of promises
A telephone that lies
A visit from your doctor
He crawls in through the door
A mirror you can look in
So that you know where you are...

You didn't leave me anything
That I can understand
Now I'm left with all of this
A room full of your trash

"Tough call for me between Talk Talk Talk and Pirates."

I think me as well.

I'd no idea people loved the Psychedelic Furs so much!

Mr. Jones rips.

an amazing year. i am torn in between my life in the bushof ghosts, movement, the pco, pirates, faith, the fire of love and youth of america, that's the one for me in the end. i love the dark powerful anger of that album to pieces.

I'd no idea people loved the Psychedelic Furs so much!

I'll probably get a lot of pushback from this, but I think they were a pretty uneven band beyond this album (I think I prefer the second Love Spit Love record to any other Furs release). There are great moments on some of the other albums ("All That Money Wants," "The Ghost in You"), but Talk Talk Talk is the one where everything clicks.

I agree

kraftwerk no question

I'll third the Psychedelic Furs vs. Rickie Lee conundrum. Talk Talk Talk is a way better representative of 1981. But I'm going to go with Pirates.

Albums that are missing that I would have considered:

Bauhaus - Mask
Duran Duran - Duran Duran
Fad Gadget - Incontinent
Gary Numan - Dance
John Foxx - The Garden
Pete Shelley - Homosapien
Simple Minds - Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call
Squeeze - East Side Story
The Associates - Fourth Drawer Down
The Rolling Stones - Tattoo You
The Stranglers - The Gospel According to the Meninblack
The Stranglers - La Folie
Ultravox - Rage in Eden
Van Halen - Fair Warning
Phil Collins - Face Value

Of the ones I listened to then, these are the 11 I love(d) most:

DAF - Alles Ist Gut
Grace Jones - Nightclubbing
Human League – Dare
New Order - Movement
Prince - Controversy
Siouxsie and The Banshees - Juju
Soft Cell - Non Stop Erotic Cabaret
The Beat - Wha'ppen?
The Birthday Party - Prayers on Fire
Various Artists – Mutant Disco: A Subtle Discolation of the Norm
Was (Not Was) - s/t

(Fela wasn’t on my radar back then)

From where I stand now, I feel most strongly about Alles Ist Gut, Nightclubbing, and Mutant Disco.
(Also, Wha’ppen sounded fantastic the other week when I played it in homage to Ranking Roger)

As for Mutant Disco: there are several (4?) different volumes on Spotify (all on ZE as well), but none of these feature the complete original ’81 6-track line-up.

Three more amazing albums coming out of the Neue Deutsche Welle that year, besides Alles Ist Gut:

Einstürzende Neubauten - Kollaps
Palais Schaumburg - s/t
Pyrolator - Ausland

A couple of great R&B albums missing on the list:

Chaka Khan - What Cha' Gonna Do for Me
Imagination - Body Talk
Luther Vandross - Never Too Much (duh!)

This is Pirates vs. Odyshape for me, and I may be the only one to give the latter some love, so that.

voted abba - "moving pictures" is an objectively great record, but i fucking hate it

per my standard practice here follows an "alternate canon" of 1981 records i enjoy

andy giorbino - lied an die freude
asia minor - between flesh and divine
atakora manu - disko hi-life
v/a - venus weltklang festival
v/a - wanna buy a bridge?
v/a - foam
v/a - south pacific: island music
boojwah kids - till skydd for minnet
cardiacs - toy world
ceramic hello - the absence of a canary
chakra - satekoso
colored music - s/t
daniel johnston - songs of pain
david rosenboom - future travel
diagram brothers - some marvels of modern science
dun - eros
dzeltenie pastnieki - bolderaajas dzelceljsh
eiichi ohtaki - a long vacation
emerald web - valley of the birds
ensemble havadia - s/t
fabio frizzi - the beyond
czukay/wobble/liebezeit - full circle
ideku dynasty - s/t
john cale - honi soit
keith hudson - playing it cool and playing it right
king tubby, prince jammy, & scientist - first, second, and third generation of dub
kit watkins - labyrinth
ludus - the seduction
manaam - s/t
marlin wallace - the corillions double album
martin briley - fear of the unknown
maureen tucker - playin' possum
michael rother - fernwaerme
nervous gender - music from hell
nick mason - nick mason's fictitious sports
patrick gauthier - bebe godzilla
phew - s/t
the red krayola - kangaroo?
roedelius - wenn der sudwind weht
saccharine trust - paganicons
the scientist - rids the world of the evil curse of the vampires
smak - zasto ne volim sneg
sonya spence - sings love
the stalin - trash
sven grunberg - hingus
sylvia striplin - give me your love
the time - s/t
todd rundgren - healing
tomislav simovic - visitors from the galaxy
von lmo - future language
akiko yano - tadaima.

kool and the gang - something special
earth wind and fire - raise!
slave - show time!

There is never enough R&B on these polls.

[Early days ILM user circa 2000]: Meh, 1981's pretty terrible

Just kidding:

https://musicophilia.files.wordpress.com/2017/04/1981_covers_sampler.jpg?w=1024

https://musicophilia.wordpress.com/2017/04/04/post-punk-1981-complete-collection-including-the-briefcase/

A full tracklist here would be just about impossible. We’re talking some 450+ artists, 523 tracks, and around 28 hours of music. The tracklists for the main mixes are still up at their old posts. Suffice to say, if you have any interest in post-punk, new wave, punk, art-rock, or the sounds that formed them or have mutated from them: this collection is worth your time, and I can almost guarantee that you’ll find at least a few new favorites.

And that's just post-punk. Amazing year.

pirates with zero thought

oh sure you can do 28 hours of great tunes from '81 but you have to include non-lp tracks :)

(this is also, by the way, why my lists at least perenially underrepresent r&b genres, because the tracks tend to outshine the albums as a whole, when there even are albums as a whole! sherman hunter isn't going to show up on any of my album lists because he doesn't have an album, even though "dance to freedom" is a great fucking song)

I'm sensing a distinct lack of X Wild Gift here.

great year for the YMO crowd - BGM (one of my favorite albums ever) and Technodelic, Left Handed Dream by Ryuichi Sakamoto, Tadaima by Akiko Yano, Neuromantic by Yukihiro Takahashi, and Logic by Logic System. Three of those I'd vote for if they were on here.

Really tough choices here.

Sleep No More is so gargantuan and important and fucking intensely good.

But Dick Gaughan released 'Both Sides the Tweed' and 'Craigie Hill' on the same goddamn record, so he wins.

X woudve been in my list but mikey no likey

I would also have included

Adolescents- Adolescents ,
Hanoi Rocks - Bangkok Shocks Saigon Shakes Hanoi Rocks ,

comsat angels or rickie lee jones

― lowercase (eric), Friday, April 19, 2019 10:17 AM (eight hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

eric!!! you're right!!!

while it is fashionable to pretend that The Teardrop Explodes never existed, this is Wilder, and it isn't particularly close

Almost voted Rickie Lee or Furs as well, but went with Grace Jones instead.

I have never thought of Rickie Lee Jones' or the Psychedelic Furs' output as all time fave material so may investigate but I have a strong suspicion l I will not find these to be preferable to Computer World. I mean, come the fuck on ;-)

Cope himself has bad things to say about Wilder IIRC, but there are some great songs on there for sure.

But Dick Gaughan released 'Both Sides the Tweed' and 'Craigie Hill' on the same goddamn record, so he wins.

Amen to that.

DAF, cos someone should.

Someone else might too (see above)

it was a good year, and being honest I've gotten the most joy out of the Bow Wow Wow album

I think for me this either Computer World, Street Songs, or Faith — strongly leaning towards the former

Lots of good stuff on here though. Japan are a great band that I'm practically never in the mood to listen to. tbrr Speak and Spell is the one I've listened to the most (mostly in high school)

I've never heard Rickie Lee Jones before to my knowledge but I am intrigued

"Pirates" is a fantastic record. My '81 pick too

Pirates is the single best album I’ve discovered through ILM.

abba Kraftwerk or this heat

Nobody saying new order so far is encouraging

Didn't have to look at the list, just scrolled directly to Moving Pictures

Voted for Au Pairs because that's another one of those albums that blew my mind when I first heard it. So many other amazing LPs on this list. Stuff that was left off:

Art Objects - Bagpipe Music
Buggles - Adventures In Modern Recording
David Byrne - Catherine Wheel soundtrack
John Cale - Honi Soit
The Church - Of Skins And Heart
Cleaners From Venus - Blow Away Your Troubles
Devo - New Traditionalists
Diagram Brothers - Some Marvels Of Modern Science
Durutti Column - LC
Fad Gadget - Incontinent
Girls At Our Best! - Pleasure
John Foxx - The Garden
Gordons - The Gordons
Robyn Hitchcock - Black Snake Diamond Role
Human Sexual Response - In A Roman Mood
Josef K - The Only Fun In Town
Killing Joke - What's THIS For...!
The Lines - Therapy
Modern English - Mesh & Lace
Modern Eon - Fiction Tales
Bill Nelson - Quit Dreaming And Get On The Beam (would've voted for this had it been an option)
The New Age Steppers - s/t
Opposition - Breaking The Silence
The Professionals - I Didn't See It Coming
Radio Birdman - Living Eyes
Roedelius - Wenn Der Südwind Weht
Scars - Author! Author!
Second Layer - World Of Rubber
Simple Minds - Sons And Fascination / Sister Feelings Call
The Sound - From The Lions Mouth
Stiff Little Fingers - Go For It
The Stranglers - The Gospel According To The Meninblack / La Folie
The Undertones - Positive Touch
Tom Verlaine - Dreamtime
TV21 - A Thin Red Line
Wah! - Nah=Poo - The Art Of Bluff
Wall Of Voodoo - Dark Continent
X - Wild Gift
YMO - BGM / Technodelic (only discovered these last year!)
V/A - The Fruit Of The Original Sin

If you asked my in 1981, I would've picked Bob & Doug McKenzie - Great White North

Soft Cell with the 12 inches bonus disc.

Or New Order

Excellent list Gerald.

Soft Cell might be my pick although it has competition from probably well over 100 others, might be my favourite year of music

the list needs more Luther Vandross

my top twenty:

Psychedelic Furs – Talk Talk Talk
Marvin Gaye – In Our Lifetime
The Human League – Dare!
The Go-Go’s – Beauty and the Beat
Prince – Controversy
Elvis Costello and the Attractions – Trust
Luther Vandross – Never Too Much
Merle Haggard – Big City
Soft Cell – Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret
Grace Jones – Nightclubbing
Funkadelic – The Electric Spanking of War Babies
Yoko Ono – Season of Glass
The English Beat – Wha’ppen?
X – Wild Gift
The Rolling Stones – Tattoo You
Rosanne Cash – Seven Year Ache
Earth, Wind & Fire – Raise!
Phil Collins – Face Value
The db’s – Stands For Decibels
The Clash – Sandinista!

1. X - Wild Gift
2. Shoes - Tongue Twister
3. R.E.M. - Chronic Town
4. Neil Young - Reactor
5. Ramones - Pleasant Dreams
6. Minor Threat - Minor Threat

Haven't listened to any of those start-to-finish in years, so that's a best guess from my media player.

Boy, are X popular on the other side of the Atlantic or what?

"Heartbeat" by Chris & Cosey is a favourite of mine from '81, not mentioned so far.

... listening to the title track right now, awesome.

That's on my list

I was going to say my #1 would be Mummy Your Not Watching Me by the Television Personalities but apparently that was released in January 1982.

some other faves unmentioned:

Adicts - Songs Of Praise
Exploited - Punk'S Not Dead
Fallout - Home Killed Meat
Flesh Eaters - A Minute To Pray, A Second To Die
Girlschool - Hit And Run
Husker Du - Land Speed Record
Marine Girls - Beach Party
S.I.B. - The Third World War
Subhumans (CA) - Incorrect Thoughts
Tom Tom Club - S/T
TSOL - Dance With Me

also some compilations e.g.

Keats Rides A Harley
Let Them Eat Jellybeans
Red Snerts - The Sound Of Gulcher
American Youth Report
Folk In Hell
Hell Comes To Your House #1
Some Bizzare Album
Where The Hell Is Leicester
Shots In The Dark
Ten From The Madhouse

lol I completely forgot about Penis Envy by Crass

A little bummed that Indoor Life didn't end up making the cut but you can't argue with a list that has both the Slits & Lizzy Mercier Descloux on it...

And on that note--even though I legit like the Japan and Raincoats albums more, I can't pass up prob my one and only opportunity to vote for Return of the Giant Slits in an ILX poll

comsat angels or rickie lee jones

― lowercase (eric), Friday, April 19, 2019 10:17 AM (eight hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

eric!!! you're right!!!

― american bradass (BradNelson), Saturday, 20 April 2019 02:11 (six days ago) Permalink

^^^^^^^^^^ 2 of the best records ever made.

This was generally the best year ever though. I'd say that even if these two records didn't exist and I was having to decide between Fela Kuti and Kraftwerk and Grace Jones (actually, group these 5 records together and that's a pretty decent summation of my taste in music).

surprised about the good performance of movement which is actually my fave new order album.

I'm not. ILM is full of new order bores.

the last.fm ilxor groups charts were topped by new order every week for a decade.

New Order ar the ilm house band.

They are better than Rush after all.

cant argue with that, but dont tell the Americans I said it!

????

we agree with you.

That Top 3 isn't embarrassing at all!

you were wrong about what would win

I'm pleasantly surprised that it didn't.

btw I think I ended up voting for The Gun Club

Got the distinct impression people were trying very hard not to vote for the obvious choices.

perhaps but there's always a bunch of albums you would love to vote for but only have one choice

except for new order fans who will always vote new order to annoy turrican or someone else

didnt billy dods or someone run an 80s poll once? pretty sure new order had a bunch in it

ahh it was tuomas who finished it off

Now this is how it started: THE ILX 1980s ALBUM POLL RESULTS!!

100. Robyn Hitchcock - I Often Dream of Trains [1984] (75 points, 5 votes)
98. (tie) Scraping Foetus off the Wheel - Hole [1984] (76 points, 5 votes)
98. (tie) Spacemen 3 - The Perfect Prescription [1987] (76 points, 5 votes)
97. Big Black - Atomizer [1986] (77 points, 8 votes)
96. Associates - Sulk [1982] (79 points, 6 votes)
95. Jane's Addiction - Nothing's Shocking [1988] (79 points, 7 votes)
94. Def Leppard - Pyromania [1983] (80 points, 6 votes, 1 first place vote)
93. Thomas Dolby - The Golden Age of Wireless [1982] (80 points, 7 votes, 1 first place vote)
92. Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark - Dazzle Ships [1983] (80 points, 9 votes)
91. Run-D.M.C. - Raising Hell [1986] (80 points, 10 votes)
90. Meat Puppets - Meat Puppets II [1984] (81 points, 9 votes)
89. Prince and the Revolution - Parade [1986] (83 points, 10 votes)
88. Bruce Springsteen - Tunnel of Love [1987] (86 points, 7 votes)
87. Pet Shop Boys - Actually [1987] (86 points, 8 votes)
86. Pet Shop Boys - Please [1986] (87 points, 8 votes)
84. (tie) Nine Inch Nails - Pretty Hate Machine [1989] (87 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote)
84. (tie) Talking Heads - Speaking in Tongues [1983] (87 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote)
83. David Bowie - Scary Monsters [1980] (89 points, 6 votes, 1 first place vote)
82. Scraping Foetus off the Wheel - Nail [1985] (91 points, 5 votes, 1 first place vote)
81. The Beat (aka The English Beat) - I Just Can't Stop It [1980] (91 points, 13 votes)
80. Various - The Indestructible Beat of Soweto [1985] (93 points, 6 votes, 1 first place vote)
79. The The - Soul Mining [1983] (93 points, 7 votes, 1 first place vote)
78. The Pogues - Rum, Sodomy & the Lash [1985] (93 points, 16 votes)
77. Meat Puppets - Up on the Sun [1985] (94 points, 8 votes)
76. U2 - The Joshua Tree [1987] (95 points, 7 votes, 1 first place vote)
75. Cyndi Lauper - She's So Unusual [1983] (95 points, 9 votes)
74. Galaxie 500 - On Fire [1989] (96 points, 10 votes)
73. X - Wild Gift [1981] (97 points, 9 votes)
72. The Chills - Kaleidoscope World [1986] (98 points, 7 votes, 1 first place vote)
71. Roxy Music - Avalon [1982] (99 points, 10 votes)
70. Laurie Anderson - Big Science [1982] (99 points, 11 votes)
69. Scritti Politti - Cupid & Psyche 85 [1985] (100 points, 7 votes)
68. New Order - Power, Corruption & Lies [1983] (100 points, 16 votes)
67. Violent Femmes - Violent Femmes [1983] (101 points, 12 votes)
66. Prefab Sprout - Steve McQueen [1985] (104 points, 10 votes, 1 first place vote)
65. Donald Fagen - The Nightfly [1982] (105 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote)
63. (tie) Tom Waits - Rain Dogs [1985] (106 points, 12 votes)
63. (tie) Cocteau Twins - Treasure [1984] (106 points, 12 votes)
62. Grace Jones - Nightclubbing [1981] (106 points, 12 votes, 1 first place vote)
61. Arthur Russell - World of Echo [1986] (108 points, 11 votes, 1 first place vote)
60. Eric B. & Rakim - Paid In Full [1987] (111 points, 8 votes, 1 first place vote)
59. Mekons - Fear and Whiskey [1985] (111 points, 8 votes, 2 first place votes)
58. The Cure - Kiss Me, Kiss Me, Kiss Me [1987] (112 points, 7 votes, 2 first place votes)
57. Arvo Pärt - Tabula Rasa [1984] (112 points, 9 votes, 1 first place vote)
56. R.E.M. - Lifes Rich Pageant [1986] (112 points, 12 votes)
55. Dinosaur Jr. - You're Living All Over Me [1987] (115 points, 13 votes)
54. Bruce Springsteen - Born in the U.S.A. [1984] (118 points, 14 votes)
53. Bruce Springsteen - Nebraska [1982] (120 points, 14 votes)
52. Brian Eno / David Byrne - My Life in the Bush of Ghosts [1981] (120 points, 17 votes)
51. Leonard Cohen - I'm Your Man [1988] (121 points, 11 votes)
50. The Feelies - Crazy Rhythms [1980] (123 points, 13 votes)
49. The Go-Betweens - 16 Lovers Lane [1988] (125 points, 9 votes, 1 first place vote)
48. XTC - Skylarking [1986] (127 points, 16 votes)
47. Steely Dan - Gaucho [1980] (128 points, 9 votes)
46. R.E.M. - Reckoning [1984] (131 points, 14 votes)
45. Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band - Doc at the Radar Station [1980] (133 points, 11 votes)
44. The Fall - This Nation's Saving Grace [1985] (136 points, 13 votes)
43. Sonic Youth - EVOL [1986] (143 points, 12 votes, 1 first place vote)
42. Hüsker Dü - New Day Rising [1985] (146 points, 14 votes)
41. The Cure - Pornography [1982] (148 points, 9 votes)
40. Dexy’s Midnight Runners - Searching for the Young Soul Rebels [1980] (148 points, 11 votes, 1 first place vote)
39. Manuel Göttsching - E2-E4 [1984] (154 points, 12 votes, 2 first place votes)
38. New Order - Substance [1987] (156 points, 16 votes)
37. De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising [1989] (164 points, 23 votes)
36. The Fall - Hex Enduction Hour [1982] (166 points, 14 votes, 1 first place vote)
35. ABC - The Lexicon of Love [1982] (173 points, 11 votes, 1 first place vote)
34. The Smiths - Hatful of Hollow [1984] (173 points, 16 votes)
33. The Smiths - Louder Than Bombs [1987] (174 points, 20 votes)
32. Prince - 1999 [1982] (191 points, 17 votes, 1 first place vote)
31. Sonic Youth - Sister [1987] (199 points, 21 votes, 1 first place vote)
30. Hüsker Dü - Zen Arcade [1984] (200 points, 13 votes)
29. Young Marble Giants - Colossal Youth [1980] (200 points, 17 votes, 1 first place vote)
28. The Stone Roses - The Stone Roses [1989] (201 points, 15 votes, 2 first place votes)
27. Guns N' Roses - Appetite for Destruction [1987] (201 points, 18 votes)
26. Prince - Dirty Mind [1980] (210 points, 14 votes, 1 first place vote)
25. The Clash - Sandinista! [1980] (211 points, 11 votes, 3 first place votes)
24. The Cure - Disintegration [1989] (218 points, 19 votes, 1 first place vote)
23. The Human League - Dare [1981] (219 points, 17 votes, 2 first place votes)
22. My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything [1988] (229 points, 19 votes, 2 first place votes)
21. Paul Simon - Graceland [1986] (237 points, 17 votes, 1 first place vote)
20. The Jesus and Mary Chain - Psychocandy [1985] (243 points, 23 votes, 1 first place vote)
19. The Replacements - Let It Be [1984] (252 points, 18 votes, 1 first place vote)
18. Joy Division - Closer [1980] (255 points, 24 votes)
17. Kate Bush - The Dreaming [1982] (269 points, 13 votes, 3 first place votes)
16. New Order - Technique [1989] (273 points, 15 votes, 2 first place votes)
15. Pixies - Surfer Rosa [1988] (273 points, 21 votes, 1 first place vote)
14. Talk Talk - Spirit of Eden [1988] (274 points, 18 votes, 2 first place votes)
13. Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique [1989] (291 points, 25 votes, 1 first place vote)
12. Minutemen - Double Nickels on the Dime [1984] (300 points, 15 votes, 3 first place votes)
11. The Smiths - The Queen is Dead [1986] (307 points, 26 votes, 1 first place vote)
10. Pixies – Doolittle [1989] (323 points, 31 votes)
9. Michael Jackson - Thriller [1982] (331 points, 35 votes)
8. Kraftwerk - Computer World [1981] (338 points, 29 votes)
7. Sonic Youth - Daydream Nation [1988] (356 points, 28 votes, 3 first place votes)
6. R.E.M. - Murmur [1983] (359 points, 30 votes, 2 first place votes)
5. Prince - Sign “O” the Times [1987] (381 points, 28 votes, 2 first place votes)
4. Kate Bush - Hounds of Love [1985] (422 points, 35 votes, 2 first place votes)
3. Prince and the Revolution - Purple Rain [1984] (423 points, 35 votes, 2 first place votes)
2. Public Enemy - It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back [1988] (478 points, 39 votes, 2 first place votes)
1. Talking Heads - Remain in Light [1980] (568 points, 37 votes, 4 first place votes)

except for new order fans who will always vote new order to annoy turrican or someone else

― Thus Spoke Darraghustra (Oor Neechy), Friday, April 26, 2019 6:23 PM (seven minutes ago) Bookmark Flag PostPermalink

Voting for New Order wouldn't have annoyed me, I like New Order!

check #52 on that list btw

Looking at #1 was bad enough.

Best Album on My Favourite Albums of......1982!!

Dang, my vote wasn't counted. I hate when that happens.

why do you think so? there were 2 votes for the au pairs.

Haha, I thought I voted Comsat Angels but that was 1980!

Cheers to the fellow Au Pairs lover.

My favorite album that gets absolutely zero love on ILM: Modern Romance’s Adventures in Clubland. A partyin’ disco-rock classic from start to finish.

wish Cabaret Voltaire - Red Mecca was more regarded in history. voted for Eno/Byrne

I'm surprised my choice placed as highly as it did here, but am dismayed no one voted for Heaven 17 or Comsat Angels and only one person voted for Solid Gold. Like, WTF?!

NME Albums of 1981
1. Nightclubbing - Grace Jones
2. Computer World - Kraftwerk
3. Red - Black Uhuru
4. Wha'ppen - The Beat
5. Penthouse And Pavement - Heaven 17
6. Dare - Human League
7. Trust - Elvis Costello
8. Alles Ist Gut - Daf
9. Red Mecca - Cabaret Voltaire
10. Fresh Fruit In Foreign Places - Kid Creole And The Coconuts
11. Gold Und Liebe - Daf
12. Mutant Disco - Various Artists
13. Slates - The Fall
14. Black President - Fela Kuti
15. Flowers Of Romance - Pil
16. Raise! - Earth Wind And Fire
17. Playing With A Different Sex - Au Pairs
18. Rock 'N' Groove - Bunny Wailer
19. East Side Story - Squeeze
20. Almost Blue - Elvis Costello
21. Being With You - Smokey Robinson
22. Heaven Up Here - Echo And The Bunnymen
23. See Jungle! Etc..... - Bow Wow Wow
24. The Electric Spanking ..... - Funkadelic
25. Odyshape - The Raincoats
26. Gang War - Prince Charles & The City Beat Band
27. Sings The Wailers - Bunny Wailer
28. Positive Touch - The Undertones
29. Get Down Attack - General Caine Ii
30. Blythe Spirit - Arther Blythe
31. Tin Drum - Japan
32. 7 - Madness
33. Defunkt - Defunkt
34. Tattoo You - The Rolling Stones
35. Alan Vega - Alan Vega
36. Intuition - Linx
37. Dreamtime - Tom Verlaine
38. In Our Lifetime - Marvin Gaye
39. New Chapter - Aswad
40. Greatest Hits - Throbbing Gristle
41. Something Special - Kool And The Gang
42. Dolmen Music - Meredith Monk
43. Miracles - Change
44. Wild Gift - X
45. The Man With The Horn - Miles Davis
46. Pleasant Dreams - The Ramones
47. Psychedelic Jungle - The Cramps
48. It Must Be Magic - Teena Marie
49. Sleep No More - The Comsat Angels
50. The Many Faces Of Roger - Roger