In terms of album sales, 1983 belonged to one man: Michael Jackson. Though his Thriller was technically released in late 1982, it picked up steam in the early months of ’83 and became an unstoppable juggernaut by March. Thriller dominated the albums chart all year, stepping aside occasionally to allow other artists a brief moment in the sun.

The Police, too, had a hell of a showing. Between them, Synchronicity and Thriller owned the #1 spot in 38 of the 52 weeks. In third place was Men at Work’s debut album, Business As Usual, which was released in the U.S. in June of 1982 but spent 15 weeks at #1 between late ’82 and early ’83. Fourth… Lionel Richie, whose Can’t Slow Down claimed the top spot for three weeks at the end of the year.

The only other albums to reach #1 on the Billboard 200 were the Flashdance soundtrack, for two weeks over the summer, and Quiet Riot’s Mental Health, which spent a week there over Thanksgiving.

Today’s featured album never hit #1 (it peaked at #2), but Def Leppard’s Pyromania sold five million copies in its year of release and is over 10 million total sales today, making it one of the 100 top-selling albums of all-time.

Best known for the hard rock classics ‘Photograph,’ ‘Foolin’,’ and ‘Rock of Ages,’ Pyromania has a glossy veneer that makes it far more listenable than typical hair metal output. Much of that credit belongs to producer “Mutt” Lange, who worked similar magic for AC/DC.

The rest of Pyromania fails to reach the heights of its three standout tracks, but it’s hard to deny the enduring brilliance of those songs.