20 Best 80s New Wave Songs
If you’re a fan of synth sounds and electronic beats, then you need to know about the best new wave 80s songs out there! From 1979 onwards, as the new decade approached, and then progressed, various musical acts got into making new wave(s).
From British New Romantics like Duran Duran to Australian rockers INXS, via enduring duos, pretty poster boys, and one hit wonders, this list of 80s new wave songs showcases the best of the bunch.
Here are the 20 top 80s new wave songs, in no particular order.
20 of the Best 80s New Wave Songs
Enola Gay – Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (OMD)
This catchy electro-pop track from 1980 is an anti-war song, and named after the aircraft that bombed Hiroshima during World War II. In turn, Enola Gay had been named by the pilot after his mother. Due to the title, though, the song was seen as something of a gay anthem.
The track is distinctive due to having no chorus, but a musical synthesiser break instead. The appealing melody saw it hit number one in Italy, Portugal, and Spain. It also made the top 10 in France and the UK.
Girls on Film – Duran Duran
Being a new wave stroke new romantic band, Duran Duran turned out a number of top 80s new wave songs. Girls on Film seems the most new wave of these, to me, hence its appearance on this list.
Released in 1981, it was their first top 10 smash. The track combines synth sounds with real instruments, namely guitars, with great success.
Don’t You Want Me – The Human League
A synth-pop group who hit the big time during the 80s, the Human League‘s Don’t You Want Me is an absolute new wave corker. It was used in the 2009 film He’s Just Not That Into You, confirming its classic status.
The track was huge here. It was the Christmas number one, and in fact the best selling single of 1981 in the UK. This success was also reflected in other countries, including the US and Canada, where it also hit the top spot.
Video Killed The Radio Star – The Buggles
As synth riffs go, this one is up there for sure. Even the lead and backing vocals sound robotic. Strictly speaking, this was a 70s new wave song, as it was actually released in 1979. But it certainly paved the way for the new wave of the 80s.
It spent time in the charts in various countries between 1979 and 1980, anyway, reaching number one in a swathe of European nations. As well as Japan and Australia.
Turning Japanese – The Vapors
A distinctive oriental riff makes this song stand out – and stick in the mind. But what on earth is it about? Apparently, Dave Fenton, the lead singer, said it was about going crazy after losing someone you love, and changing to someone else altogether.
The track reached numero uno in Australia, and took the third spot on the UK singles chart, in 1980.
Blue Monday – New Order
New Order‘s Blue Monday is a stand-out among the best new wave songs of the 80s. It was released in 1983 by Factory Records, who ran the famous Hacienda club in Manchester – aka Madchester – during the 80s and early 90s. Which is exactly when I happened to be a student in the city. Good times – I worked at the nearby Boardwalk, which was also a seminal venue as the first place many bands rehearsed and played, including Oasis.
Anyway, I digress. Blue Monday lost Factory Records money with every copy of the single with the die-cut sleeve that was sold. Despite reaching respectable chart positions in a number of countries – such as number two in New Zealand and West Germany.
Just Can’t Get Enough – Depeche Mode
One of the lingering memories of my student days is singing along to this one while dancing at a club, fuelled by 50p pints. That was back in the early 90s, over a decade after this ditty was released. Of course we added our own word to the end of the title – can you guess what it was? Hint – it began with S, had 3 letters, and ended in X 😉
Written by Vince Clarke and released in 1981, this was Depeche Mode’s third single. In terms of chart position, it did better in Australia, where it reached number four, than here in the UK, where it peaked at number eight.
The Look Of Love – ABC
ABC’s third single, released in 1982, was their biggest hit, and is an electro pop classic. It’s a stalwart of 80s radio stations and compilation albums.
The Look of Love reached number one in Canada, number four in Finland and the UK, and the top 10 in New Zealand, Australia, and Sweden.
Take On Me – A-ha
The video for this A-ha track was ground-breaking, and paved the way for their US success. It featured pencil-sketch animation, and by 2020 clocked up a billion YouTube views. In 2021, Rolling Stone listed it at number 14 on their rundown of the greatest ever music videos.
The track was first released in 1984 here in the UK, but become a hit the following year. It reached the top spot in a long list of countries, including many European nations as well as the band’s native Norway. In the UK, though, it only hit number two.
Wishing (If I Had A Photograph Of You) – A Flock of Seagulls
A Flock of Seagulls had limited success overall, but this 1983 track is one of the best new wave songs of the 80s. Like much of the music of the time, it’s all about angst and yearning.
It wasn’t the biggest success of the time, but is often played on the radio and appears on many 80s compilation albums, testament to its enduring appeal. It did reach number 10 in the UK and Canada, eight in South Africa, six in Ireland, and one in France.
Don’t You Forget About Me – Simple Minds
This is one of those new wave greatest hits that made it to the big screen, as it was featured in The Breakfast Club film. It was unleashed in 1985, right in the middle of the decade.
The Scottish band’s biggest hit topped the US Billboard Hot 100, and was also number one in Canada and the Netherlands. Here in the UK, it peaked at number seven.
Cars – Gary Numan
Like Video Killed the Radio Star, Cars actually predated the 80s. Slightly. It was released in 1979, as the first solo single from Gary Numan. It typifies the synth pop that was first appearing around that time, and was also Numan’s most successful track.
Cars was Numan’s only song to make it to the US charts, and it made the top 10 on the Billboard. In Canada and the UK, it reached the top spot.
West End Girls – Pet Shop Boys
My favourite Pet Shop Boys track by a country mile. In 1986, it reached number one in both the UK and the US. As well as commercial success, this 80s new wave hit met with critical acclaim, scooping both Brit and Ivor Novello awards in 1987. The British Academy of Composers and Songwriters voted it the Song of The Decade between the mid 80s and mid 90s, too, while The Guardian chose it as the best-ever UK number one in a 2020 critics’ poll.
The Pet Shop Boys performed West End Girls at the closing ceremony of the 2012 Olympics in London. Today, they’re still going strong, and their new releases are currently big BBC Radio 2 favourites.
Tainted Love – Soft Cell
This classic synth pop hit came from the brilliantly titled album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret. It’s one of the biggest of all 80s new wave hits in terms of enduring popularity.
Chart-wise, it made number one here in the UK, and several other countries, back in 1981. The song also hit number eight on the US billboard.
Need You Tonight – INXS
I couldn’t not include an INXS track on here. This is the one that first got me into my favourite band ever, in fact. It’s the most new wave of their songs, in my humble opinion. I once read a Far Out article listing it as one of the best songs to have sex to. My lips are sealed…
In 1987, Need You Tonight reached number one in the US, two in Canada, the UK, and Ireland, and perhaps surprisingly, number three in the band’s homeland, Australia.
(Feels Like Heaven) – Fiction Factory
The Fiction Factory, like A Flock of Seagulls, were something of a one hit wonder – that smash being (Feels Like) Heaven. It’s another that’s favoured by the makers of 80s greatest hits albums and DJs on radio stations playing 80s music.
In 1983, (Feels Like) Heaven reached number one in Paraguay, two in Switzerland, four in Ireland, and six in the UK.
Love Will Tear Us Apart – Joy Division
Released in 1980, this is one of the top 80s new wave songs, and one that paved the way for many others. It’s a song of struggle – namely the state of Ian Curtis’s marriage, his epilepsy, and juggling pop success with a regular day job.
For some reason, this song was particularly popular in New Zealand. It was number one in 1981, and also number 19 on the year-end chart. It also reached positions three and 39 there, in 1984 and 1988 respectively.
Relax – Frankie Goes To Hollywood
Hands up who had a “Frankie Says Relax” t-shirt, back in the day? The year was 1984, and this turned out to be the second-biggest selling single of the entire decade here in the UK. It also reached number one in 10 countries, mostly in Europe but including Israel and Thailand.
I was 10 then, so I didn’t really understand what the lyrics meant…
It’s My Life – Talk Talk
I love both the original version of It’s My Life and the No Doubt cover. The former was released in 1984, and the latter in 2003. Apparently the band wanted to record a cover for their greatest hits album, and chose this over Don’t Change by my beloved INXS.
The cover had more chart success than the original, but may be the reason why the Talk Talk version still gets a lot of airtime on 80s radio stations.
Fade to Grey – Visage
This futuristic track from late 1980 still sounds fresh today. I saw it performed live recently at the Calling Planet Earth 80s show, and it sounded fabulous.
Fade to Grey reached number one in West Germany and Switzerland; the top five in Austria, Belgium, and France; and the top 10 in various European countries – including the UK – and Australia.
Which are your best 80s new wave songs?
For me, this collection of tracks embodies the spirit of new wave music. Interestingly, they all date from between 1979 and 1987. New wave began to give way to dance during the late 80s, as the 90s approached. Despite that, all of these songs have enduring appeal, and are played daily on radio stations all over the world. As well as by their fans, in the form of vinyl, CDs, or digital downloads.
If I had to name favourites (INXS apart, obvs), then I’d probably go for something with an upbeat medley like Enola Gay or Video Killed The Radio Star. Who can resist singing or dancing along to those? Not me, that’s for sure…
Marcy x
