More 80s Songs than You Can Shake a Stick At! Quiz

Answer: Thompson Twins

Thompson Twins formed in 1977 and had many different personnel changes. From 1982 to 1986 Thompson Twins consisted of Joe Leeway, Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie and it was this version of the band that released one of their biggest hits, "Hold Me Now.". This song was released in 1984 in the U.S. and reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100.

Answer: Taco

The Taco version of "Puttin' On The Ritz" was a global hit, reaching number four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart and was the only U.S. hit for the singer. The video featured characters in blackface and has been banned from many networks. There is a re-worked version that has removed many of the blackface characters.

Answer: Iron Maiden

The "Number Of The Beast" was released in 1982 and remains one of Iron Maiden's most popular songs despite being quite controversial because of its association with the Beast of Revelation from The Bible. There is a spoken word portion to the song that is recorded by English actor Barry Clayton.

The band asked Vincent Price to do the spoken word part but he allegedly asked for too much money so they went with Clayton instead.

Answer: Adam And The Ants

"Dog Eat Dog" was released in 1980 and was the first top ten hit for the band. Adam Ant, the lead singer, has said that the idea for the song came from a Margaret Thatcher quote he'd seen in a newspaper.

The band lasted from 1977 to 1982 and were known for their campiness and overly sexualized stage performances.

Answer: The Go-Go's

"Our Lips Are Sealed" was co-written by Jane Wiedlin of The Go-Go's and Fun Boy Three singer Terry Hall. Although in North America this song was made famous by The Go-Go's, in the U.K. the song was released first by Fun Boy Three and made it to the top ten there. The Go-Go's released it later and only made it to number forty-seven on the U.K. charts.

Answer: Alexei Sayle

You might only know Alexei Sayle for the comedic song "Didn't You Kill My Brother?" which was released in 1985, or you might know that he is a comedian, actor and author who's been on TV, radio and in film. As well as releasing five comedy singles, he's also acted in "Carry On Columbus", "Gorky Park" and "Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade."

Answer: Taylor Dayne

Taylor Dayne was born in 1962 and released the song "Tell It To My Heart" in 1987. It was her first single and a big hit for her, becoming a top ten track in the U.S. and achieving Gold record status there. Dayne has also acted in a number of independent films and performed on Broadway in 2001 in Elton John's "Aida."

Answer: Prince

"Little Red Corvette" was released in 1983 and is on the "1999" album. It was Prince's first to reach top ten in the U.S. and was a huge hit for the star. Prince got the idea for the song when he fell asleep in a band member's car after an all night recording session. When Prince died in 2016, the song once again found its way on the Billboard Hot 100, climbing to number twenty.

Answer: Madonna

Madonna released "Borderline" in 1983 when she was 24 years old. The video helped make the song a huge success and bring attention to Madonna. Always attacking taboo subjects, the video for "Borderline" was praised for portraying an interracial relationship, between Madonna and a Latin-American man.

The video was directed by her boyfriend at the time, John "Jellybean" Benitez who has also worked with Michael Jackson and Whitney Houston.

Answer: Ramones

American punk rockers Ramones recorded "Pet Sematary" for the Stephen King film of the same name. This song became the Ramones' biggest radio hit but was not entirely well received by their loyal fan base who preferred songs such as "The KKK Took My Baby Away" and "Beat The Brat".

The Ramones released albums from the 1970s through to the 1990s and had a variety of band members join and leave through the decades. They've had a huge influence on rock and punk bands including Dead Kennedys, Teenage Head and Green Day.

Answer: Hall and Oates

Hall and Oates never liked being referred to as "Hall and Oates" and preferred to be called by their full names, Daryl Hall and John Oates. This is because of their approach to songwriting and the fact that they are two separate people with creative differences who bring their own unique perspective to the band.

They state that their albums always lay out their full names but fans and media have never paid attention to that and have always simply called them "Hall and Oates."

Answer: Michael Jackson

"Billie Jean" was one of seven singles released from the album "Thriller" by Michael Jackson. Every one of those singles made it to the top ten on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and the album spent 122 weeks (that's more than two years!) on the Billboard 200.

The album won eight Grammy Awards and catapulted Michael Jackson into absolute superstardom. "Billie Jean" was the first video by a black singer to make it into heavy rotation on MTV.

Answer: Baltimora

Baltimora formed when an Italian musician named Maurizio Bassi met an Irish actor and dancer named Jimmy McShane and they decided to form a music project together. Their first single called "Tarzan Boy" was released in 1985 and had pretty decent success - it went to number three on the U.K. charts, number five on Canadian charts and spent six months on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually reaching number thirteen.

The group did not have any more success in the U.S.

Answer: Opus

Opus released "Live is Life" in 1985 and it became a pretty big hit for the band, reaching top ten in several countries including Canada, the U.K., the U.S. and several European countries. The song had a rousing effect on people and was not only used as the goal scoring song for the New York Islanders, but also at rallies for the Canadian political party The Reform Party of Canada, and as the Napoli Football Club warmup song.

Answer: LL Cool J

LL Cool J (Ladies Love Cool James) released "Going Back To Cali" in 1988 and the song was included on the movie soundtrack for "Less Than Zero" as well as LL Cool J's third studio album "Walking With A Panther." The song has been parodied and referenced several times, including the parody video "Going Back To Brooklyn" by comedian Colin Quinn (directed by Ben Stiller) and a reference in Sonic Youth's song "Kool Thing" which was a response to LL Cool J's perceived misogyny.

Answer: R.E.M.

"The One I Love" was released in 1987 and was R.E.M's first hit, reaching number nine on the Billboard Hot 100. Radio stations often get requests to dedicate this song from people who don't realize that there are some pretty dark lyrics on the subject of love.

Although the song contains the line "This one goes out to the one I love", it also contains the line "A simple prop to occupy my time", suggesting it isn't the simple love song you might think it is.

Answer: The Police

The Police formed in 1977 with members Sting, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers. While they were together they won several awards including Grammy Awards, Junos and Brit Awards. While they were making award winning music, they were constantly fighting and disagreeing as a band. Unable to continue to work together, the band eventually broke up and each member had a solo career. Sting had a very successful solo career, Summers released a number of albums and Copeland became a music producer.

Answer: Pat Benatar

"Love Is A Battlefield" was released in 1983 and sold over a million records. The song was a departure from Pat Benatar's rock style and featured an electronic dance element, which was not typical for her. The video is about a rebellious teenager who runs away from home to New York City and helps to take down a sleazy bar owner. It is the first video to include dialogue.

Answer: Whitney Houston

"How Will I Know" was the third single from Whitney Houston's debut album. Houston went on to become one of the most successful female artists of all time, winning numerous awards and selling over 200 million records worldwide. She had seven consecutive number one hits on the Billboard Top 100 from 1985 to 1988 and appeared in the 1992 film "The Bodyguard" with Kevin Costner, contributing six songs to the soundtrack, including a cover of Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You." Sadly, Houston passed away at the age of 48, when she accidentally drowned in a bathtub due to heart problems and cocaine use.

Answer: Luba

Despite never having a hit in the U.S., Luba (born Luba Kowalchyk) is among the most successful Canadian female artists of all time. She won three consecutive Juno awards for Female Singer of the Year, with only Anne Murray and Celine Dion winning more.

She has released several studio albums, including two in Ukrainian and contributes musically to the kids show "The Raccoons." The song "Let It Go" reached top 40 status in Canada and was used in the movie "9​1/2 Weeks" starring Kim Basinger and Mickey Rourke.

Answer: Twisted Sister

Twisted Sister formed in 1972 and achieved commercial and international success in the 80s with the release of the album "Stay Hungry" which included the hits "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock." The video for "We're Not Gonna Take It" was a big success for the band and shows a young boy who wants to listen to rock and roll sticking up to his strict father. Dee Snider, who wrote the song, initially gave Donald Trump permission to use the song in his 2016 presidential campaign because the two were friends but later changed his mind and asked Trump to stop using it.

Answer: Musical Youth

The song "Pass The Dutchie" was based on a song called "Pass The Koutchie" by the Mighty Diamonds, about passing around a pipe to smoke cannabis. It was re-worked to passing a pot used for cooking and was one of the fastest selling singles of the year.

The song sold over four million copies and was nominated for a Grammy award. The band released two studio albums in the time they were together from 1979 to 1985 and "Pass The Dutchie" was their greatest success around the world.

Answer: Siouxsie and the Banshees

Siouxsie and the Banshees formed in 1976 after singer Siouxsie Sioux met bass guitarist Steven Severin at a Roxy Music concert. The two of them started following an unsigned band around, named the Sex Pistols, and were inspired by their attitude. Two other members joined Sioux and Severin and the band known as Siouxsie and the Banshees went on to record 11 studio albums and have a huge influence on many bands including Joy Division, Depeche Mode and Radiohead. "Dear Prudence" was their biggest hit, reaching number three on the U.K. charts.

Answer: New Edition

New Edition was discovered at a 1982 talent show in Boston where they placed second but were noticed by producer Maurice Starr who envisioned them as the 80s answer to the Jackson 5. The group recorded their debut album "Candy Girl", went on tour to promote the album and much to their disappointment, were each given $1.87 at the end of that tour! The group parted ways with Starr who then went on to form New Kids on the Block. New Edition continued making music, released their last studio album in 2004 and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2017.

Answer: The Cult

The Cult are a British rock band formed in 1983 whose second studio album "Love" features the hits "She Sells Sanctuary" and "Rain". The band have had several different members with two who have never left the band, singer and songwriter Ian Astbury and guitarist and songwriter Billy Duffy.

The band's musical direction has changed from rock and post-punk to more psychedelic and the band also changed locations from the U.K. to Los Angeles, California. At the end of 2019 the band was continuing to work on new music.