The 1980s were pretty spectacular years for contemporary music. There was the advent of MTV. Michael Jackson's album Thriller sold millions of copies and completely rewrote the playbook for fashion, dance, music videos, and pop. Madonna was everyone's Material Girl. Country artists like Alabama, the Judds, Barbara Mandrell, and Kenny Rogers were hugely popular, presaging the country music wave of the 1990s. Many great country albums were released in the glammed-up decade of Dynasty and Dallas. They richly deserve a revisit now.
Videos by Wide Open Country
'Trio' by Linda Ronstadt, Emmylou Harris, and Dolly Parton
These three artists combined their voices with stunning results. This successful LP, which dropped in 1987, had 11 tracks like "Wildflowers," "Making Plans," "To Know Him Is to Love Him," and "Telling Me Lies." Per The Boot, Trio went to number 1, and snagged a pair of Grammy awards, It also showcased a quartet of hit singles and was multi-platinum. The album was honored by the CMA and the ACM as well. Ronstadt, Parton, and Harris were simply meant to sing together. Per Pitchfork, "Ronstadt once compared singing with Harris and Parton to trying on their voices, like 'getting to wear the dress or the face or the figure of the prettiest girl on the block.'" A 1980s gem.
'Diamonds & Dirt' by Rodney Crowell
Crowell, now 75, is a songwriter who has penned tunes for just about everyone who is anyone in the country genre. He has stepped up to the mic himself over the years, with exceptional success. One of those undeniable triumphs was this LP. It was released in 1988. Per Saving Country Music, the album spun off no less than five chart-topping singles. They were "Above and Beyond (The Call of Love)," "It's Such a Small World," "After All This Time," She's Crazy for Leavin'," and "i Couldn't Leave You If I Tried." Diamonds & Dirt was certified gold. Vince Gill participated in the background vocals.
'Right or Wrong' by George Strait
This 1983 release was "the King of Country's first No. 1 album," per American Songwriter. He maintained his loyalty to the traditional country sound, eschewing the pop infiltration of the genre that was gaining a foothold at the time. The album had perennial favorites like "You Look So Good in Love," "Right or Wrong," and "A Fire I Can't Put Out." It also perched atop Billboard's Top Country Albums chart. Strait was well on his way to becoming a fan favorite for the ages, not just the 1980s.
'Buenas Noches From a Lonely Room' by Dwight Yoakam
A 1988 release, this album features Yoakam's "unique approach to hard honky-tonk music, Bakersfield-style," per allmusic.com. Most of the tracks were written by Yoakam himself. The album spawned a pair of sturdy number 1s - "I Sang Dixie" and "Streets of Bakersfield." It also helped to establish him as an idiosyncratic country artist who boldly went his own way.
