The week of September 14, 1985, found John Parr hanging on to the top spot of the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘St. Elmo’s Fire (Man in Motion).’
Just behind it was another soundtrack song, Tina Turner’s ‘We Don’t Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)’ from Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome. Parr may have won the Billboard battle, but he didn’t play a post-apocalyptic warlord in his movie, as Turner did in hers.
Throwing back to the week of September 13, 1975, we find Glen Campbell atop the Billboard Hot 100 with ‘Rhinestone Cowboy.’ This was Campbell’s first chart-topping hit on the Hot 100, and his fourth to reach #1 on the Country chart. A couple of years later he would top both charts again with ‘Southern Nights.’
‘Rhinestone Cowboy’ was written and recorded a year earlier by Larry Weiss. And if you think this sounds like a Neil Diamond song (as I do), listen to Weiss’ version and you’ll swear that’s Diamond singing it. In fact, many people have erroneously attributed the original version to Diamond.
The final underrated 80s song is the first one that’s completely new to me. And it’s a great find, the sort of song I love to discover through writing this blog.
‘Under the Milky Way’ is the only U.S.-charting song by Australian alternative band The Church. The band has been recording for nearly 45 years and has released more than two dozen albums, including their latest just last year. This song was the first single from their 1988 album Starfish.
I was surprised to see today’s SOTD on the list of most underrated 80s songs. Not because of its critical acclaim, which is richly deserved, but because I figured it remained pretty well known today.
In fact, it is the fourth-least streamed song on the list, a sad state of affairs for an iconic 80s staple.
The next underrated 80s song is a case of widespread critical acclaim not being paired with commercial success. This song — ‘Just Like Honey’ by The Jesus and Mary Chain — wasn’t played much in 1985, let alone 2025.
The Scottish alt-rockers had a dozen Top 40 hits in the UK, and many more just outside the Top 40, but they had very little penetration in the U.S. I listened to a half dozen of their most popular songs and didn’t recognize one.
Meet Me In Montauk 