Hits of Australia and NZ: Hits of the 80's Australia V

I know this feels a little reductive considering every entry on this list appeared on my biggest hits of 1980-1992 lists, however I love the 80's and I'm sure the 80's aficionados in my audience would want a list like this given how I've already done one for the 90's and 70's on this site. The same rules I applied to the 90's list apply here, I'll only add commentary to songs that didn't appear on one of my official year end lists and will be ranking them based on how long they lasted on our charts.

#58 for 1988

I guess we Aussies had enough room for the occasional novelty track back in the day given how this managed to stick around for quite some time on our charts even if it wasn't the inescapable hit here like it was in NZ or the UK. For what it's worth, there were far more novelty tracks in this vein throughout Europe than what managed to crossover to the southern hemisphere.

#33 for 1985

This is another song whose tardiness at finding success here in Australia ensured it a high placement on this list given how it easily could've made the cut on one of my lists had it found an audience with us Aussies upon its initial release. It remains the only hit from the SOS band down under, although most people these days are likely more familiar with the Fatboy slim cover he made seven years later.

Now looking at the title for this second hit that Ian Dury had here in Australia, you'd think it would be him wanting to be in a straight relationship. Don't worry, that's not what he means as "being straight" also refers to no longer taking drugs which is what the song is actually about, making this a PSA track against drugs and why it was a success but not a mainstream success down under.

Given how this would eventually be a track on Meat Loaf's second Bat out of hell album, it makes sense that this would be a success here in Australia for Jim Steinman even if many will agree that his rendition is far inferior to that of his partner in crime. Given this was around the time Meat Loaf released his own album Dead ringer, I think it's safe to say Jim won the battle in terms of artistic merit around this time.

It's hard to believe that we Aussies allowed for a genuine hip hop tracks to become a success (albeit a sleeper success) long before one ever did on Billboard, but that's exactly what happened when this became a success here upon its initial release despite it sounding completely different from anything that had touched the charts here up until this point.

This is a duo that has been active since the late 60's, this was their only notable success anywhere in the world likely due to it fitting in that sweet spot between disco and new wave right when the former gave way to the latter in terms of mainstream success. Like many of these less conventional tracks, this is highly regarded in the online music community for its willingness to experiment with conventions.

This is often considered to be "Kokomo" part II by many detractors of the latter-day Beach boys, it's not hard to see why as this appeared in the Lethal weapon 2 soundtrack a year after their big comeback hit whilst having the same vibe. While this wasn't as successful as "Kokomo," it did set the boys up for a successful run in the 90's which immediately crashed and burned with their album Summer in paradise.

22 weeks

#30 for 1982

#39 for 1983

#44 for 1979

#46 for 1980

#48 for 1989

#52 for 1990

#31 for 1982

#40 for 1983

#49 for 1989

#42 for 1981

#32 for 1982

#41 for 1983

#59 for 1988

#30 for 1984

#33 for 1982

#60 for 1988

#47 for 1980

#43 for 1981

#34 for 1982

#48 for 1980

#44 for 1981

#50 for 1987

#61 for 1988

#31 for 1984

#45 for 1981

#42 for 1983

#32 for 1984

#43 for 1983

#48 for 1979

#49 for 1980

#34 for 1986

#34 for 1985

#33 for 1984

#35 for 1985

#36 for 1985

#37 for 1985

#38 for 1985

#50 for 1980

#44 for 1983

#34 for 1984

#50 for 1989

#45 for 1983

#35 for 1984

#51 for 1987

#51 for 1989

#52 for 1989

#57 for 1990

#36 for 1984

#37 for 1984

#38 for 1984

#39 for 1984

#35 for 1986

#51 for 1980

#52 for 1987

#52 for 1980

#40 for 1984

#53 for 1980

#41 for 1984

#53 for 1987

#54 for 1987

#42 for 1984

#39 for 1985

#46 for 1981

#36 for 1986

#55 for 1987

#37 for 1986

#43 for 1984

#35 for 1982

#56 for 1987

Although "Sacrifice" proved to be the big hit off of Sleeping with the past, this was the lead single which was enough of a sleeper success to allow said album to be an improvement over most of his 80's work before "Sacrifice" made it a best seller. In the UK, these two songs were bundled together which allowed them both to top the British charts making it his second and final chart topper in his homeland.

#57 for 1987

#62 for 1988

#63 for 1988

#64 for 1988

#65 for 1988

#54 for 1980

#58 for 1987

#40 for 1985

#36 for 1982

#59 for 1987

#60 for 1987

If you ever wondered why "Power and the passion" was more of a success in NZ than it was here in Australia, that's because this was the lead single to Midnight oil's breakthrough album 10-1 as opposed to that song being the albums lead single in NZ. Both songs have a strong theme of the misuse of political power, meaning that they both resonated with audiences back in the day as well as now on oldies stations.

Given how rare it was to see a post punk band make it big here in Australia, it's odd that Public images limited would score a sleeper hit with this track which is by far their least conventional due to it being about them not wanting to sellout for a hit single. At least they had one more hit here than the likes of Joy division and Siouxsie and the banshees.

#53 for 1989

#37 for 1982

#38 for 1982

Although the original version of this song charted upon its initial release here in Australia, it was this version from their 1987 album which became the sleeper hit here due to it being released around the time of their American breakthrough "Is this love" (stay tuned for that in a bit.) Sadly, this was the full extent of Whitesnake's popularity here in Australia given they were just one of many hair metal bands of the moment.

It turns out this was a modest success here in Australia for Psychedelic furs after all given how it managed to chart long enough to qualify for this list of mine, although I guess it was seen as too bizarre for us Aussies for it to be a genuine success with the likes of ABC and Madness upon its initial release. Regardless of its minimal success back in the day, it's presence on oldies stations has since ensured its legacy here.

#39 for 1982

It took me long enough, but I've finally managed to feature a track from Hunters and collectors on this side of mine with the lead single from their biggest album Ghost nation. Now obviously this was yet another victim of a highly successful album when it came to its commercial success, however it seems said album wasn't enough to eat up all of its success given how long it remained on our charts for.

Although they didn't see the dizzying heights of success here in Australia that they did internationally, it appears the Brothers Johnson were able to find massive success with their brand of RNB and disco given how both of their entries on the NZ side of my site managed to be sleeper hits over here back in the day ("Strawberry letter 23" would've made the cut here had I included 70's tracks.)

Given how "I want a new drug" was the big hit for Huey Lewis over in NZ from their breakthrough album Sports, it only makes sense that the other favourite on oldies stations from that album would be their big sleeper hit here in Australia which thankfully didn't have any baggage attached to it back in the day involving a song ripping off its melody like their anti-drug classic did.

It's rather bizarre that this would be OMD's biggest hit here in Australia given how it owes its success to the band performing "We love you" on Countdown around the time it was released as a single, then again stranger things have happened throughout the 80's when it comes to our music scene. This won't be the band's final appearance on this list given how their theme to Pretty in pink is still to come.

Just like in NZ, this debut single from Fine young cannibals was also pushed aside here in Australia upon its initial release in favour of all the Live aid shenanigans found in the midpoint of the 80's. That of course didn't prevent this from being a massive success for the band here back in the day, rather it just slipped through the cracks of mainstream relevancy which prevented it from appearing on my 1985 list.

#61 for 1987

Like many songs that I claimed were minor sleeper hits on the NZ side of my site, this manages to make an appearance on this list of mine duo to how long it lasted on our charts back in the day. Even though this didn't become an instant hit for the band like it did in NZ, it did pique our curiosity which resulted in the success of their third album in 1985.

I get the feeling that this would've been an even bigger hit here in Australia had this been released in 1979 rather than 1980, that's not to say I agree that the disco backlash had any impact on our charts, rather this type of disco did seem to be dime a dozen when it saw the light of day. In any case, it did stick around for quite some time on our charts likely due to its surprise success in the UK.

21 weeks