The Y! Music Playlist Blog

Ultimate 80s Covers: Volume 1

By | The Y! Music Playlist Blog – Mon, May 19, 2008 3:11 PM EDT

I'm headed on vacation next month to beautiful Hilton Head island on the coast of South Carolina, but I'll continue to do playlists, because music is never work. 

As I was daydreaming about going on my vacation today I remembered this playlist. I put it together at a coffee house the last time I was in Hilton Head back in December of 2006. Since the place where we stay doesn't have an Internet connection I can sometimes be found in local cafes that offer free WiFi.

This list was inspired as I sat in a Sea Pines coffee shop that happened to be playing all 80s songs in the background. 

I was a teenager in the 80s, so I'm a sucker for anything from said decade. I've spent a lot of time collecting quality cover versions of popular 80s songs, so if you love the 80s as much as I do, you'll get a kick out of many of the remakes in this playlist.  

I'm sure this list can be improved and built upon, so I've labeled it "Volume 1". I'll do new volumes in the future, and when I get to #5 or #6, I'll pick only the very best songs from each to create the ultimate 80s covers playlist.

So please let me know which of these tracks you feel are worthy of the final cut.

Ultimate 80s Covers: Volume 1

1. Only You - Joshua Radin (80s version by Yaz)

2. I Melt With You - Nouvelle Vague (80s version by Modern English)

3. Gone Daddy Gone - Gnarls Barkley (80s version by The Violent Femmes)

4. In A Big Country - Moe. (80s version by Big Country)

5. I Just Died In Your Arms Tonight - Tony Moore (80s version by Cutting Crew)

6. So. Central Rain (I'm Sorry) - Grant Lee Phillips (80s version by R.E.M.)

7. True - Paul Anka (80s version by Spandau Ballet)

8. Watching The Detectives - Patrik Tanner (80s version by Elvis Costello) 

9. Tainted Love - Mojohands (80s version by Soft Cell)

10. When Doves Cry - The Be Good Tanyas (80s version by Prince) 

11. Love My Way - Jon Auer (80s version by The Psychedelic Furs)

12. Do You Really Want To Hurt Me - The Violent Femmes (80s version by Culture Club) 

13. I Ran - Ken (80s version by A Flock Of Seagulls)

14. Mexican Radio - Lee Press On & The Nails (80s version by Wall Of Voodoo) 

15. The Boys Of Summer - The Ataris (80s version by Don Henley)

16. Owner Of A Lonely Heart - Eclipse (80s version by Yes)

17. Dear God - Tricky (80s version by XTC) 

18. White Wedding - Rowland S Howard (80s version by Billy Idol)

19. Bette Davis Eyes - Handsome Devil (80s version by Kim Carnes)

20. Burning Down The House - Bonnie Raitt (80s version by Talking Heads)

21. Too Shy - Tammi (80s version by Kajagoogoo)

22. One Thing Leads To Another - Joseph Patrick Moore (80s version by The Fixx)

23. You Give Love A Bad Name - The Atomic Harvesters (80s version by Bon Jovi)

24. She Drives Me Crazy - Brian Evans (80s version by Fine Young Cannibals)

25. Cars - Dave Clarke (80s version by Gary Nueman)

26. Mad World - Ghosthouse (80s version by Tears For Fears) 

27. I Will Follow - Fear Factory (80s version by U2)

28. Beat It - Señor Coconut (80s version by Michael Jackson)

29. Hold Me Now - The General Store (80s version by The Thompson Twins) 

30. Walking On Sunshine - Keith Frank & The Soileau Zydeco Band (80s version by Katrina  & The Waves)

31. Freedom Of Choice - A Perfect Circle (80s version by Devo) 

32. Shock The Monkey - Coal Chamber (80s version by Peter Gabriel)

33. People Are People - Dope (80s version by Depeche Mode)

34. Brass In Pocket - Tokahits (80s version by The Pretenders) 

35. Please Please Please Let Me Get What I Want - Deftones (80s version by The Smiths) 

News for You

  • Woman on Trump: 'Somebody had to stand up to him'

    CHICAGO (AP) — An 87-year-old woman who alleges Donald Trump cheated her in a skyscraper-condo sale told jurors Monday she had qualms about suing the real estate mogul and TV celebrity. But, she quickly added, "Somebody had to stand up to him."

  • Germans blame euro zone crisis for Eurovision debacle

    BERLIN (Reuters) - Germans lamented their unexpectedly poor showing at the Eurovision Song Contest, blaming Chancellor Angela Merkel's tough stance in the euro zone crisis for their failure to win any points from 34 of the 39 countries voting. Denmark's Emmelie de Forest won the event, watched by around 125 million people across Europe, with 281 points while German act Cascada was 21st out of 26 countries, getting just 18 points from Austria, Israel, Spain, Albania and Switzerland. ...

  • OJ Simpson lawyers say he is closer to freedom

    LAS VEGAS (AP) — The latest high-stakes court hearing for O.J. Simpson in the glitzy capital of big gambles has come to a close with the former football star's defense team feeling confident that their client is closer to getting out of prison.

  • NY Cuomo letter warns Kardashian over T-shirt logo

    ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) — New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's sent a letter to Khloe Kardashian's (KLOH'-ee kar-DASH'-ee-uhnz) informing the reality star the logo on her T-shirt line may be violating copyright law.

  • Swift leads, Miguel hurts fans at Billboard Awards

    Taylor Swift is red hot.

  • Prince reigns over own music releases in new deal

    LONDON (Reuters) - Singer Prince has signed a new deal with Kobalt Music Group to market and distribute his future work without giving up control over his rights, the company said on Monday. The singer-songwriter, who is famed for changing his name to an unpronounceable symbol in a wrangle over musical rights, will release his own work as well as a slate of new music by other artists that he produces, Kobalt said. ...

Show More