Music from 1980 Trivia

1. Number ten: This song is from the Clash's legendary "London Calling" album. Sample lyrics: "Say you stand by your man, tell me something I don't understand, you said you love me and that's a fact". What is the name of this song?

From Quiz 1980 KROQ Top 10 List

Answer: Train in Vain

This song was not listed as a song track on the album cover. It was a "last-minute" add to the album, and since the album artwork was being completed, there was no time to add it to the track listings on the album cover. By the way, "London Calling" was ranked number seven on Rolling Stones 500 Greatest Albums of All-Time.

From Quiz Pop Music Hits of 1980

Answer: Flower

Paul McCartney sang, "It's coming up like a flower... coming up." In the USA, the live version of this song performed by Wings in 1979 reached the number one spot on the Billboard charts in June 1980. In the UK, McCartney's studio version of "Coming Up" reached the number two position on the singles charts.

From Quiz 1980 Rock Album Mania

Answer: Back In Black

"Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap" was released in 1976, "Highway to Hell" in 1979 and "Flick Of The Switch" was released in 1983.

From Quiz Music from the 80s - 1980

Answer: The Beat

The Beat hailed from Birmingham, England and were known in North America as The English Beat. "Mirror In The Bathroom" was released in May 1980 and achieved a highest UK chart placing of number four during a nine week stay on the chart.

From Quiz Billboard Number One Songs of 1980

Answer: K C & The Sunshine Band

Harry Wayne Casey, aka K C, composed the song with Richard Finch and had the distinction of having the first number one song of the eighties. The tune deviated from their disco sound. In a 1979 interview with "Billboard Magazine" Casey told Paul Grein that he didn't intend to veer from his disco sound when he began recording the "Do You Wanna Go Party" album in 1979. The title song only made it to number 50. In an effort to regain his top ten success "Please Don't Go" was released as a single from the LP. It took 19 weeks to steadily make the climb from number 86 to number one. It was the last charted single for K C and the boys. In 1982 Casey was struck head-on in his car and spent over a year recuperating from severe injuries caused by a pinched nerve and a concussion. In 1984 he reached number 18 with "Give it Up" on his own independent label, Meca Records. The Commodores were number one in November, 1979, with "Still". Led Zeppelin sang the "Please Don't Go" line in D'yer Mak'er from their 1973 album "Houses of the Holy" and The Spinners were "Working My Way Back To You" in the top five in March, 1980.

From Quiz Hits of 1980

Answer: Michael Jackson

"Rock with You" is from Michael Jackson's 1979 album "Off the Wall". It reached number one in the US, four in Australia and seven in the UK.

From Quiz UK Number 40 Hits of 1980

Answer: Billy Joel

Billy's biggest hit in the UK was his 1983 number one "Uptown Girl".

From Quiz Lyric Quest : Year 1980

Answer: Hit Me With Your Best Shot

"Hit Me With Your Best Shot" became Pat Benatar's first top ten hit when it peaked at number nine of the Billboard Hot 100 on December 20th, 1980.

From Quiz 1980 Song Titles In Other Words

Answer: Queen

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" was Queen's first number one song in the United States. It began its four week run at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on February 23rd, 1980.

From Quiz 1980s Lyrics

Answer: In Your Eyes

'In Your Eyes' - Peter Gabriel This song was used on the soundtrack for "Say Anything..." starring John Cusack.

From Quiz Song Lyrics From 1980

Answer: Pretenders

from 'Brass in Pocket'

From Quiz Who Sang What In 1980

Answer: ABBA

From Quiz 1980 KROQ Top 10 List

Answer: Talking Heads

The video for "Once In a Lifetime" is as eccentric as the song. Wikipedia mentions that Toni Basil showed David Byrne videos of epilepsy sufferers, which led to all the marionette-like movements by Byrne in the video. The song was produced by Brian Eno. The song was written by the entire group plus Eno, and was named one of the 100 most important American musical works of the 20th century by National Public Radio(NPR).

From Quiz Pop Music Hits of 1980

Answer: American Gigolo

"Call Me" was featured in the 1980 film "American Gigolo." This movie starred Richard Gere as a male hustler and co-starred Lauren Hutton. The single "Call Me" was recorded by Blondie; this tune climbed to the top of the U.S. Billboard singles charts and remained at number one for six weeks during the spring of 1980.

From Quiz 1980 Rock Album Mania

Answer: The River

"The River" was one of the best albums of 1980 and Bruce today still performs many of the tracks from the album including "Out In The Street", "Ramrod" and of course "Hungry Heart". "Born In The USA" was released in 1984, "Nebraska" in 1982 and "The Rising" in 2002.

From Quiz Music from the 80s - 1980

Answer: Squeeze

The line-up of Squeeze has fluctuated over the years, but singer/songwriters Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford have been the mainstays. 1980 was not a particularly successful year for them chart-wise; "Another Nail In My Heart" peaked at number 17 during its nine weeks on the chart while "Pulling Muscles (From The Shell)" only managed number 44 during its six week run.

From Quiz Billboard Number One Songs of 1980

Answer: Michael Jackson

Quincy Jones produced Michael's first solo album since he had left Motown. Quincy had been impressed with Rod Temperton's "Boogie Nights" so he located the British Heat Wave keyboardist and solicited songs that might be right for Jackson to record. Temperton was in the middle of recording Heat Wave's third LP, but eventually consented to fly to LA. He ended up contributing his compositions "Rock With You", "Burn This Disco" and the LP title cut "Off The Wall". In an interview with "Soul Teen" Michael related that he had enjoyed working with Quincy in "The Wiz" and although he initially wanted to produce the album himself, he believed working with Quincy would be a winning combination. Jackson's goal was to produce an album that would separate him from the sound of the Jackson Five. Stevie Wonder was number five behind Micheal that week with "Send One Your Love". Smokey had "Cruisin'" in the top five in February, 1980, and the Rolling Stones took "Emotional Rescue" to the top five in August, 1980.

From Quiz Hits of 1980

Answer: The Police

"Don't Stand So Close to Me" is from The Police's 1980 album "Zenyatta Mondatta". The song is about a schoolgirl's crush on her teacher. It reached number one in the UK and number ten in the US.

From Quiz UK Number 40 Hits of 1980

Answer: Wonderland

"Three Times a Lady" was the band's mega smash, but for me, their earlier, funkier work like the sublime "Machine Gun", was their finest hour.

From Quiz Lyric Quest : Year 1980

Answer: Funkytown

"Funkytown" by Lipps Inc. was a monster hit back in the spring of 1980. It ended the six week reign of Blondie's "Call Me" when it began its own four week run at number one on May 31st, 1980.

From Quiz 1980 Song Titles In Other Words

Answer: Diana Ross

"Upside Down" was Diana Ross' record-setting fifth number one song, the most for a solo female artist at that time. It shot to number one on September 6th, 1980, stayed there for four weeks, and remained on the Billboard Hot 100 long enough to become one of the 80s biggest songs.

From Quiz #1 Albums of 1980

Answer: Against the Wind

This Bob Seger classic featured a virtual Who's Who of accompanying musicians including Dr. John, Timothy B. Schmit, Glenn Frey and Don Henley. The album entered the charts on May 3.

From Quiz 1980s Lyrics

Answer: Forever Young

'Forever Young' - Alphaville

From Quiz Song Lyrics From 1980

Answer: Rod Stewart

from 'Passion'

From Quiz Who Sang What In 1980

Answer: Goombay Dance Band

From Quiz 1980 KROQ Top 10 List

Answer: The Police

This song is from the album "Zenyatta Mondatta". While "De Do Do Do ,De Da Da Da" was a top ten hit in the UK (UK Singles Chart) and the USA (Billboard Hot 100), but the song that won a Grammy from the album was the instrumental "Behind My Camel". An interesting aside: "Zenyatta Mondatta" was the only Police album not to make Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.

From Quiz Pop Music Hits of 1980

Answer: Off The Wall

The song "Rock With You" was part of the highly successful "Off the Wall" by Michael Jackson. This album, produced by Quincy Jones, was released in the USA in November 1979. The single "Rock With You" reached the number one position in the Billboard charts in January 1980 and proved to be one of the most popular songs of the year.

From Quiz 1980 Rock Album Mania

Answer: Get Happy!

"Get Happy!" featured his lively remake of the Motown classic "I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down". "My Aim Is True" was from 1977. "Armed Forces" from 1979 and "Imperial Bedroom" from 1982.

From Quiz Music from the 80s - 1980

Answer: Gary Numan

I used to love Gary Numan! "We Are Glass" was released in May 1980 and spent seven weeks on the chart, peaking at number five. "I Die You Die" came out in August, also spent seven weeks on the chart and made it to number six. It appears to have been a case of lucky seven for Gary in 1980 as "This Wreckage", which was released in December, also enjoyed a seven week run on the UK singles chart, peaking at number two.

From Quiz Billboard Number One Songs of 1980

Answer: Captain and Tennille

Toni Tennille composed this number one hit for her and the captain. The duo had recently left A&M Records after a string of pop hits and signed with Neil Bogart's Casablanca Records. Casablanca was looking to sign a middle-of-the-road artist to shake their disco image and Captain and Tennille fit the bill perfectly. When a Casablanca VP was going over potential material with the duo Toni tried several pop style tunes and ended the session reluctantly playing "Do That to Me One More Time", believing it may make a good album cut at best. VP Bruce Bird immediately told them that it would be a smash hit. It marked a change in direction for the pair who had been doing more bouncy material. They left Casablanca after Neil Bogart passed away and in 1986 Toni released an album of standards titled "More Than You Know" which followed up with a tour backed by big bands. Peaches and Herb had a number one in 1979 with "Reunited". Teri De Sario with K.C. recorded the top five "Yes, I'm Ready" and Billy Preston and Syreeta took "With You I'm Born Again" to the top five in April, 1980.

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