Black Sabbath The Sabbath Collection (1985

Live Aid was one of the biggest global television events of all time. An estimated 1.9 billion people across the world tuned in for the concert broadcast, and it was estimated that the TV telecast reached more than 500 million of the world's approximate 600 million TV sets, including in the Soviet Union (now Russia) and China (which was unprecedented at the time in the 1980s). Live Aid was a benefit concert held on Saturday 13 July 1985, as well as a music-based fundraising initiative. The original event was organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to raise funds for relief of the 1983–1985 famine in Ethiopia. Billed as the "global jukebox", the event was held simultaneously at Wembley Stadium in London, UK, attended by about 72,000 people and John F. Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, US, attended by 89,484 people.

An integral part of the early 1980s thrash metal movement, New Jersey quartet Overkill were formed in 1980 by vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and guitarist Bobby Gustafson, and also included bassist D.D. Verni and drummer Rat Skates (later replaced by Sid Falck). The band garnered a reputation for brutal, pounding speed and technique, but lacked the musical diversity to compete with heavy hitters like Metallica; still, Overkill built up a strong following in the metal underground with albums like 1985's Taking Over and 1988's Under the Influence. Gustafson quit in 1989 following the Years of Decay album, and was replaced by Rob Cannavino and Merritt Gant…

Together with their countrymen Kreator and Sodom, Germany's Destruction constituted the dominating triumvirate of Teutonic thrash metal during the 1980s. And even though they ultimately failed to match these peers in terms of commercial success and longevity, at least two of their albums still qualify among the crème de la crème of the decade's speed metal. Heavy metal underwent a worldwide revolution in the early '80s, when the lingering lessons from '70s giants like Black Sabbath and Judas Priest crashed head-on with the D.I.Y. ethos of punk rock and the sheer velocity of Motörhead to spawn the much ballyhooed New Wave of British Heavy Metal, which, in turn sparked a far more powerful and lasting bastard offspring: thrash metal. Of all the nations contaminated by this musical virus as it proliferated unchecked, Germany was second only to the U.S. in terms of widespread infection…

Being "The World’s Most Notorious Rock Band" (according to the band itself) is not easy. One of the most notorious and successful bands of the glam metal era, Los Angeles rockers Mötley Crüe burned through the '80s in a blaze of drugs, debauchery, and platinum hits. Their glammed-out image, hard-partying reputation, and a knack for melding pop hooks to heavy metal theatrics took the band to the top of the charts repeatedly throughout the '80s. Albums like 1985's Theatre of Pain and 1989's Dr. Feelgood bringing them to sold-out arenas around the world. In The Many Faces of Mötley Crüe, we will explore the band's inner world, including collaborations, side projects, their hits-filled catalog and the rest of the "hair-metal" generation where they raised from.

Hanoi Rocks was a Finnish rock band formed in 1979. They were the first Finnish band to chart in the UK and they were also popular in Japan. The band broke up in June 1985 after the drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley had died in a car accident during their first US tour in December 1984. Original vocalist Michael Monroe and guitarist Andy McCoy reunited in 2001 with a new line-up of Hanoi Rocks until 2009. Although musically closer to traditional rock n' roll and punk, Hanoi Rocks have been cited as a major influence in the glam metal genre for bands such as Guns N' Roses, Skid Row and Poison…

Sacred Reich is an American thrash metal band based in Phoenix, Arizona, that was formed in 1985. Singer/songwriter Phil Rind's interest was in socially conscious and political speed metal. After several albums on Metal Blade Records, they signed to Hollywood Records for a short stint, but later returned to Metal Blade to continue their musical career…

An integral part of the early 1980s thrash metal movement, New Jersey quartet Overkill were formed in 1980 by vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth and guitarist Bobby Gustafson, and also included bassist D.D. Verni and drummer Rat Skates (later replaced by Sid Falck). The band garnered a reputation for brutal, pounding speed and technique, but lacked the musical diversity to compete with heavy hitters like Metallica; still, Overkill built up a strong following in the metal underground with albums like 1985's Taking Over and 1988's Under the Influence. Gustafson quit in 1989 following the Years of Decay album, and was replaced by Rob Cannavino and Merritt Gant…

"The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time" is a 2003 special issue of American magazine Rolling Stone, and a related book published in 2005. The lists presented were compiled based on votes from selected rock musicians, critics, and industry figures, and predominantly feature British and American music from the 1960s and 1970s. From 2007 onwards, the magazine published similarly titled lists in other countries around the world.

Judas Priest was one of the most influential heavy metal bands of the '70s, spearheading the New Wave of British Heavy Metal late in the decade. Decked out in leather and chains, the band fused the gothic doom of Black Sabbath with the riffs and speed of Led Zeppelin, as well as adding a vicious two-lead guitar attack; in doing so, they set the pace for much popular heavy metal from 1975 until 1985, as well as laying the groundwork for the speed and death metal of the '80s….