Rock Crusade

The Top 100 '80s Rock Albums span a series of genres as startling and varied as the era's neon-flecked fashions.No one was immune to the early-decade emergence of new wave, from up-and-coming acts to legacy groups – many of whom began incorporating the then-new sound into their bedrock approach.Meanwhile, classic rock and subsequently metal began a transformation into mass acceptance when the edges were smoothed out to form arena rock and hair metal, respectively. The arrival of roots, thrash, and world music influences kept things interesting, along the way. All of it made selecting the period's best releases both intriguing and deeply challenging.Check out the list below, as Ultimate Classic Rock takes a chronological look at the Top 100 '80s Rock Albums.

John Mayall, OBE (born 29 November 1933) is an English blues singer, guitarist, organist and songwriter, whose musical career spans over sixty years. In the 1960s, he was the founder of John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, a band which has counted among its members some of the most famous blues and blues rock musicians…

Paris-based Soror Dolorosa creates raw and hungry gothic rock inspired by post-punk, death rock and cold wave. French for ‘Sister Pain’, Soror Dolorosa was formed in 2001 by vocalist Andy Julia. Taking its name from the novel “Bruges-la-morte” by Flemish symbolist writer Georges Rodenbach, Soror Dolorosa channels its inspiration’s strong undercurrents of passion, nostalgia and mourning, transferring those powerful emotional states into its music and live performances. These signature elements of the group’s sonic formula are heard in its muscular songs, jangling guitars, overdriven bass lines, driving rhythms and Julia’s distinctive, dramatic vocal style.

Formed in 1971 by old schoolmates Dane Stevens and Cedric Sharpley, along with local bass player Neil Brewer, Druid spent years playing clubs as a trio before winning a competition by Melody Maker for the best unsigned band. At this point they added Andrew McCrorie-Shand, a recent London College of Music graduate. The Melody Maker prize included new instruments and a recording contract, and their debut album appeared in July 1975 among envious whispers by rival bands and music publications. The band had a difficult time shaking the charge of hype, and they were also charged in some quarters as being Yes soundalikes – Starcastle in the U.S. was later to be tarred with the same brush.

The Cowboy Junkies' 2012 collection The Nomad Series combines all of the releases the band recorded over an 18-month cycle and conceptualized around common but separate narratives. Included is 2010's Renmin Park, which featured songs built around loops, conversations, street performances, and found sounds recorded during guitarist/songwriter Michael Timmins' time adopting two children from China…

TRIVIUM blasts back onto the scene with a third effort that is one of the best metal releases of 2006 and quite possibly the heavy music album of the year.