Best of the Rest of the Top 40: 1984

Cafe Society
1

The year is now 1984. For this list of 25 songs (which features a few songs that people were very upset didn’t make it to #1) I went to #42 on the chart.

What’s your favorite?

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2

Had a hard time not voting for the Boss, but Here Comes the Rain Again got my vote.

3

Not as good as '83, but a few I considered here. I didn’t vote for the song I objectively thought was the “best,” but rather that one that is my favorite of the bunch here. The fun, upbeat 80s Cold War tune, 99 Luftballon. Others in the running were the Cars, the Eurhythmics, either of the Cyndi Lauper songs, and Bruce. Growing up, I guess I must have been about 9 at the time, I just loved Oh Sherrie for some reason. It must have been the video. Even my pre-pubescent self was in love with the actress playing “Sherrie” in the video.

4

A surprisingly hard choice this year, but went for Nena as it’s just ridiculously bouncy and infectious. Oddly, in the UK it was the English-language version that was released - I wonder what the record company thinking was there.

5

Lightweight Springsteen is still Springsteen.

BRUUUUUUUUUUUCE!

6

I hate the German version so no voting for Nena. Considered Thompson Twins, Dan Hartman, Madonna, Matthew Wilder, Bruce Springsteen and Eurythmics.

I gave it to Thompson Twins.

I like some of these artists but not the songs featured.

7

Was the US version back in '84 typically the German one? I seem to recall hearing both, but can’t remember back to the time what was being played on the radio. (Although the German version being released at the same time makes sense, as the parody 99 Dead Baboons seems to reference both the English and German versions in, presumable, the US, given the singer.)

8

Sherrie Swafford appeared as herself in the video. And while we are on the topic, Sharona Alperin appeared on the cover of the single “My Sharona” by The Knack.

I voted for “She Bop”. Yes, I know what the lyrics are about. I just think it’s a catchy, innovative tune and video.

9

The German version reached #2 in the US and Europe and the English version didn’t chart. Inversely, the English version reached #1 in the UK, Ireland, and Canada, and the German version didn’t chart.

10

1984 was a good year for me, so I’m fond of most of these songs. I’ll go with The Eurythmics just because of Annie Lennox’s powerhouse of a voice.

11

Lent my vote to the Pointers. “Jump (For My Love)” was one of the first ever songs I remember digging as a very, VERY wee one (was born in '83). And I still dig it…“Jump” is far and away the best ‘electro-pop’ Pointers song, at least IMO.

(BTW, I have to take the golden opportunity to say that if you’ve never listened to the Pointers’ eponymous debut album, do yourself a favor and get around to it. You’ll never believe that they are the same outfit who gave us “Fire”, “Jump”, and “The Neutron Dance”…such a wondrous blend of blues rock (“Wang Dang Doodle”), funk (“Yes We Can Can”), and believe it or not, predominantly jazz/old-timey (“Cloudburst” and “Sugar”, to rattle off a couple of examples). Easily, EASILY one of my personal top 70’s albums.)

12

Elton John, although it was a tough vote for me.

13

Cyndi beat out Annie, but just barely.

14

This list has a lot of songs I like, but only one I love: “Jump” by the Pointer Sisters. “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” is dead-ass last.

15

It came down to “Girls Just Want to Have Fun”, “Borderline”, “The Glamorous Life”, “Here Comes the Rain Again”, and “Drive” for me. And I decided to go with the second best song of Madonna’s career.

16

So was Steve Perry. At least at the time.

17

Tough choice - this has been the best year in awhile for the Best of the Rest.

I’m torn between Bruce, both Billys, both Cyndi Lauper songs, and Nightranger. But there isn’t a single song on this list that would cause me to instantly punch up a new station if it was playing on the radio, and that’s saying a lot.

18

Agreed except for Olivia Neutron Bomb’s *Twist of Fate *. The song’s first few notes has me punching the radio button instantly.

19

Interesting I didn’t know any of that. One, that Oh Sherrie and My Sharona were about actual, real people named Sherrie and Sharona. Two, that real-life Sherrie was in the video and her and Steve Perry were involved romantically. And, three, the Sharona cover tidbit. (ETA: And after watching the video again and reading the lyrics, apparently I just realized I’ve had the chorus wrong all these years. I always heard it as “Oh Sherrie/We’re all alone/Hold on, hold on” when it’s “Oh Sherrie/Our love/Holds on, holds on.”)

20

I, too, heard “We’re all alone…”.

This is a tough year. Voted for “Sunglasses at Night” because all the other songs I would’ve voted for had already been repped, so wanted to give a shout-out to a guilty pleasure (then and now).