Best Albums Of '80

Junkyard Barbarian · Post by **Junkyard Barbarian** » Sun Feb 11, 2007 2:48 am

Motörhead - Ace Of Spades

Noisenik · Post by **Noisenik** » Sat Oct 13, 2007 10:10 pm

I'm reviving this thread - I had to go into intestines of this board to get it back to the surface. I'd like to get some more insight into how releases followed back then. I got the data - hope it's correct - that Iron Maiden was released on April 14th, while British Steel followed on April 23rd. I wonder for example ... was Angel Witch released prior or after these two. The same goes for Paralex, Quartz, Race Against Time demo, Witchfynde, etc.. Ace Of Spades was released in November though.

Who was old enough to remember? Mr. tbieri perhaps. Mr. Batkin?

DMR · Post by **DMR** » Sun Oct 14, 2007 12:53 am

According to the NWOBHM Encyclopedia, the Angel Witch album came out towards the end of the year. It's my 2nd favorite album from 1980, right behind Iron Maiden.

Post by **DaN** » Sun Oct 14, 2007 1:17 am

Yeah, 1980 was an exciting year no doubt. This was around the time when kids influenced by 70's heavy rock starded rehearsing (and some even releasing) some of the most important Heavy Metal classics ever. SARCOFAGUS, ANGEL WITCH, BRATS.. and Priest, Maiden & Sabbath churned out some seminal works this year. This was also the year when the NWOBHM diy-7"-boom really exploded. TRIARCHY, NIGHTIME FLYER, BLEAK HOUSE, TRESPASS, the list goes on..

An the spriring Deathrash-scene kiddies of SODOM, VENOM, HELLLHAMMER, METALLICA and SLAYER were still on their paper-rounds to scrape together some cash for that amplifer that a few years later would churn out ze kvlt riffings we've learned to love and their parents to hate.

Myself, I was mostly concerned with smurf figureens and Superman comics at the time..

Abyss · Post by **Abyss** » Sun Oct 14, 2007 3:29 am

I wasn't in born at this time of course, but I like to show some of this stuff to my parents and tell them its from 1980 so they can say wow, I assume they would have only heard the classic rock albums from this year and not the heavy metal ones so its more of an experience for them and makes them think that it would be weird to hear this in 1980.

Keir · Post by **Keir** » Sun Oct 14, 2007 4:12 am

This is a great idea to start a series of threads, though personally I would have started a few years earlier. Here is my top 20 list of albums from 1980 (in alphabetical order only):

Accept - I'm a Rebel
Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
Cirith Ungol - Frost and Fire
Dawnwatcher - Spellbound
Def Leppard - On Through the Night
Diamond Head - Lightning to the Nations
Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden
Jameson Raid - The Hypnotist
Judas Priest - British Steel
Limelight - Limelight
Oxym - Music Power
Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz
Paralex - White Lightning
Scorpions - Animal Magnetism
Trespass - Jealousy
V/A - New Electric Warriors
V/A - Roksnax
White Spirit - White Spirit
Witchfynde - Give 'em Hell
Witchfynde - Stagefright

Not surprisingly, NWOBHM rules the list with only 6 albums not fitting that category (7 if you count Limelight).

Abyss · Post by **Abyss** » Sun Oct 14, 2007 6:13 am

Manilla Road - Invasion
Killer - Ready for Hell
Trust - Repression
Tygers of Pan Tang - Wild Cat
Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz
Denigh - No Way
Angel Witch - Angel Witch
Stormtrooper - Pride Before a Fall
Crucifixion - The Fox
Buffalo - Battle Torn Heroes
Quartz - Satan's serenade
Black Axe - Highway Rider
A-II-Z - The Witch of Berkeley(anybody else noticed how similar no fun after midnights main riff is similar to ZZ Tops tush could be considered a rip off).
AC/DC - Back in Black
Motorhead - Ace of Spades
Cirith Ungol - Frost and Fire
Diamond Head - Lightning To The Nations
Judas Priest - British Steel
Nightwing - Something In The Air
Ricochet - Midas Light

Noisenik · Post by **Noisenik** » Sun Oct 14, 2007 11:09 am

Keir wrote:This is a great idea to start a series of threads, though personally I would have started a few years earlier.

Well, I started with 1980 for I hinted it was the first year in which the quantity of releases was significant. MA confirmed that also. Of course, every year may be interesting by itself.

tbieri · Post by **tbieri** » Mon Oct 15, 2007 6:53 pm

Noisenik wrote:I'm reviving this thread - I had to go into intestines of this board to get it back to the surface. I'd like to get some more insight into how releases followed back then. I got the data - hope it's correct - that Iron Maiden was released on April 14th, while British Steel followed on April 23rd. I wonder for example ... was Angel Witch released prior or after these two. The same goes for Paralex, Quartz, Race Against Time demo, Witchfynde, etc.. Ace Of Spades was released in November though.

Who was old enough to remember? Mr. tbieri perhaps. Mr. Batkin?

I cannot say much about ! In the beginning of 1980 i was 15 years old, was still in school and had absolutely no money ! So without money there was no interrest to go to the record store. At this time i've buyed the records months after the release when i had some money (anniversary, christmas, holiday jobs). And the (german) Music-Press was not very up to date eighter !

But what i can say is that when we heard for the first time the first Maiden record at one of the Rock-Discos in my town everybody knewed that a new era has begun ! It was the beginning of Heavy Metal !!! Even if there where some Metal Records out before, but they where still considered as Hard Rock or Heavy Rock !

Noisenik · Post by **Noisenik** » Mon Oct 15, 2007 7:02 pm

tbieri wrote: I cannot say much about ! In the beginning of 1980 i was 15 years old, was still in school and had absolutely no money ! So without money there was no interrest to go to the record store. At this time i've buyed the records months after the release when i had some money (anniversary, christmas, holiday jobs). And the (german) Music-Press was not very up to date eighter !

But what i can say is that when we heard for the first time the first Maiden record at one of the Rock-Discos in my town everybody knewed that a new era has begun ! It was the beginning of Heavy Metal !!! Even if there where some Metal Records out before, but they where still considered as Hard Rock or Heavy Rock !

No Metal officially prior Iron Maiden? Yesss!!! That's what I almost craved to hear. Very very interesting. Funny, when you've written anniversary, I immediately thought of NWOBHM Anniversary from 1978. So when did you started buying rekuds? Huge thanks for reply btw.

tbieri · Post by **tbieri** » Mon Oct 15, 2007 7:44 pm

I've started in 1975 with things like Smokie, Queen, Manfred Mann's Earth Band, Alan Parsons Project, stuff like that.
Then followed things like Ian Hunter, Uriah Heep, Deep Purple and the Scorpions !
I've buyed this mostly used for a few bucks.
Then in the summer of 1976 came the record that brought me definitively to Hard Rock. It was BLUE OYSTER CULT's "On Your Feet or On Your Knees" !
And then came the first Iron Maiden and after that Heavy Metal was developping very quickly.

In my opinon there was Metal before Iron Maiden but it was considered as Hard Rock ! Motörhead as punky Heavy Rock, (early) Judas Priest as Hard Rock and AC/DC as bluesy Hard Rock. And i think this is still somehow correct ! And this NWoBHM 7inches where (as far as iknow) completely unknown at that time in Switzerland.

Anyway, the NWoBHM has that M in the name but 90% of the Bands where absolutely not metal !

Noisenik · Post by **Noisenik** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 10:05 pm

Wow, Mr. tbieri. You were actually active in 70's already. Amazing. I would also like to witness On Your Feet Or On Your Knees be released. Sob!

Anyway, another scientific question: Was Mithra's Death nd Destiny released in 1980 (as stated by VOD) or in 1979 (MA)? And was Cirith Ungol's debut released in 1980 or in 1981? What do your original vinyls say?

Black Axe · Post by **Black Axe** » Sun Nov 04, 2007 10:51 pm

Noisenik wrote:Wow, Mr. tbieri. You were actually active in 70's already. Amazing. I would also like to witness On Your Feet Or On Your Knees be released. Sob!

Anyway, another scientific question: Was Mithra's Death nd Destiny released in 1980 (as stated by VOD) or in 1979 (MA)? And was Cirith Ungol's debut released in 1980 or in 1981? What do your original vinyls say?

The band say DaD was released in 1979, so it must've been released in 1979.

I believe FaF was originally released in 1980 and released again by another label in 1981.

nightsblood · Post by **nightsblood** » Mon Nov 05, 2007 3:38 pm

Nice topic; i don't have time to post a full response right now though.
Does Metal Archives or some other site list albums by Year of Release?

Keir · Post by **Keir** » Mon Nov 05, 2007 3:54 pm

nightsblood wrote:Does Metal Archives or some other site list albums by Year of Release?

It's down now, but the advanced search at Metal-Archives lets you list all albums by year of release. However, even by 1980 it's going to return a lot of results.

Also, Black Axe is right about those 2 albums. Death and Destiny was released by Guardian in 1979 and reissued on Street Beat in 1980. Frost and Fire was released by Liquid Flame in 1980 and reissued by Enigma in 1981.