Which 1982 album by Michael Jackson became the best-selling album of all time?
Easy Balanced
AnswerThriller
ThrillerMichael JacksonOpen on Spotify
Thriller spent 37 non-consecutive weeks at #1 on the Billboard 200.
ThrillerMichael JacksonEnglish
80s Music Quiz — 40 Questions and Answers (2026)
Free 80s music quiz with 40 questions and answers: pop icons, new wave, rock anthems and one-hit wonders. Play it here or host it at your own quiz night.
Questions and answers
1980s Pop Icons10
01 02 Which 1984 musical film starred Prince as 'The Kid' and produced the hit 'When Doves Cry'?
Medium BalancedAnswerPurple RainPurple Rain won the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score.
Open on SpotifyWhen Doves CryPrince
03 Which singer became the first artist in Billboard history to have seven consecutive #1 hits, starting in the mid-1980s?
Medium BalancedAnswerWhitney HoustonHer debut self-titled album became the best-selling debut album by a female artist at the time.
04 Which flamboyant frontman of Culture Club led the band to fame with 'Karma Chameleon'?
Medium BalancedAnswerBoy GeorgeBoy George's androgynous style made him a defining visual icon of the New Romantic movement.
Open on SpotifyKarma ChameleonCulture Club
05 Which colorful 80s pop star sang the empowerment anthem 'Girls Just Want to Have Fun'?
Easy BalancedAnswerCyndi LauperLauper won the Grammy for Best New Artist in 1985.
Open on SpotifyGirls Just Want to Have FunCyndi Lauper
06 Which singer left the duo Wham! to launch a hugely successful solo career with the 1987 album 'Faith'?
Medium BalancedAnswerGeorge MichaelThe title track 'Faith' topped the Billboard Hot 100 in 1987.
07 Which veteran rock-soul singer staged a massive career comeback with her 1984 album 'Private Dancer'?
Medium BalancedAnswerTina Turner'Private Dancer' included her hit 'What's Love Got to Do with It'.
08 Which British band, icons of the MTV era, had hits like 'Hungry Like the Wolf' and 'Rio'?
Medium BalancedAnswerDuran DuranTheir exotic music videos, often shot in tropical locations, were staples of early MTV.
09 Which striking, androgynous frontwoman sang 'Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This)' with Eurythmics?
Medium BalancedAnswerAnnie LennoxLennox's flat-top orange hairstyle in the video became instantly iconic.
Open on SpotifySweet Dreams (Are Made of This)Eurythmics
10 Which singer co-wrote 'We Are the World' with Michael Jackson for USA for Africa in 1985?
Medium BalancedAnswerLionel RichieThe 'We Are the World' session brought together over 45 major artists in one studio night.
Open on SpotifyWe Are The WorldU.S.A. For Africa
80s New Wave and Synth-Pop10
11 Which English band, formed in Basildon in 1980, became synth-pop icons with hits like 'Just Can't Get Enough' and later 'Enjoy the Silence'?
Easy BalancedAnswerDepeche ModeVince Clarke left after their debut album to form Yazoo, then Erasure.
12 Which British solo artist and former Tubeway Army frontman had a robotic-sounding 1979 hit called 'Cars'?
Medium BalancedAnswerGary NumanNuman was one of the first mainstream artists to build a hit almost entirely around a Minimoog riff.
Open on SpotifyCarsGary Numan
13 Which British duo turned the obscure Northern Soul track 'Tainted Love' into a global synth-pop smash in 1981?
Medium BalancedAnswerSoft CellIts 43-week run on the Billboard Hot 100 set the record at the time for the longest-charting single in the chart's history.
Open on SpotifyTainted LoveSoft Cell
14 Which Manchester band, formed from the ashes of Joy Division, blended rock and dance on the 1983 single 'Blue Monday'?
Medium BalancedAnswerNew OrderIts distinctive sleeve, designed like a floppy disk, was so costly to produce that Factory reportedly lost money on every copy sold.
Open on SpotifyBlue MondayNew Order
15 Which Sheffield band topped charts worldwide in 1981 with the synth-pop love triangle anthem 'Don't You Want Me'?
Medium BalancedAnswerThe Human LeagueFrontman Phil Oakey famously recruited two backing singers after spotting them dancing in a Sheffield club.
Open on SpotifyDon't You Want MeThe Human League
16 Which New York art-rock band, led by David Byrne, brought new wave into avant-garde territory with the 1980 track 'Once in a Lifetime'?
Medium BalancedAnswerTalking HeadsThe jerky choreography in the video was inspired by Japanese Bunraku puppetry and Byrne's own seizure-like dance experiments.
Open on SpotifyOnce in a LifetimeTalking Heads
17 Which English band led by Robert Smith mixed gloomy gothic textures with pop hooks on songs like 'Just Like Heaven'?
Medium BalancedAnswerThe CureRobert Smith's messy hair and smeared lipstick look became a defining goth-rock aesthetic.
Open on SpotifyJust Like HeavenThe Cure
18 Which quirky Ohio band, known for matching red 'energy dome' hats, released the new wave classic 'Whip It' in 1980?
Medium BalancedAnswerDevoTheir name comes from their satirical concept of 'de-evolution' of society.
Open on SpotifyWhip ItDEVO
19 Which British band, famous almost as much for their gravity-defying hairstyle as their music, hit big in 1982 with 'I Ran (So Far Away)'?
Medium BalancedAnswerA Flock of SeagullsFrontman Mike Score was a hairdresser before forming the band, which explains the elaborate coiffure.
Open on SpotifyI Ran (So Far Away)A Flock Of Seagulls
20 Which short-lived duo, pairing Vince Clarke's synths with Alison Moyet's soulful voice, released the 1982 hit 'Only You'?
Hard BalancedAnswerYazooIn the US the duo had to be called 'Yaz' due to a naming conflict with an existing band.
Open on SpotifyOnly YouYazoo
1980s Rock Anthems9
21 Which Bon Jovi anthem, from the 1986 album 'Slippery When Wet', declares 'Whoa, we're halfway there'?
Easy BalancedAnswerLivin' on a PrayerThe song's iconic talk-box effect was played by guitarist Richie Sambora.
Open on SpotifyLivin' On A PrayerBon Jovi
22 Which Journey song, released in 1981, opens with 'Just a small town girl, living in a lonely world'?
Easy Balanced23 Which Guns N' Roses track, famous for its ringing guitar intro, opens their 1987 debut album 'Appetite for Destruction'?
Medium Balanced24 Which Van Halen frontman fronted the band for its biggest 1980s hits before being replaced by Sammy Hagar?
Medium BalancedAnswerDavid Lee Roth25 Which Twisted Sister anthem became a defiant answer to the question 'What do you want to do with your life?'
Medium Balanced26 Which Swedish band's soaring keyboard riff powers their 1986 global smash 'The Final Countdown'?
Medium Balanced27 Which Survivor anthem became forever linked to Rocky Balboa after featuring in 'Rocky III'?
Easy Balanced28 Which British-American band's 1984 power ballad asks the question 'I Want to Know What Love Is'?
Medium Balanced29 Which Whitesnake anthem, backed by a famous MTV video on a car hood, was a 1987 reworking of one of their own earlier songs?
Medium Balanced
80s One-Hit Wonders11
30 Which choreographer-turned-singer topped the charts in 1982 with the cheerleader-chant hit 'Mickey'?
Medium BalancedAnswerToni BasilToni Basil was also a respected Hollywood choreographer before her music career took off.
Open on SpotifyMickeyToni Basil
31 Which British reggae group of teenagers had a massive 1982 hit with 'Pass the Dutchie'?
Medium Balanced32 Which Austrian singer topped the US charts in 1986 with 'Rock Me Amadeus'?
Medium Balanced33 Which duo had a surprise 1986 hit with the deceptively upbeat 'The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades'?
Hard Balanced34 Which German singer and band had a global 1983 hit protest song called '99 Luftballons'?
Easy Balanced35 Which British-American band had a joyful 1985 smash with 'Walking on Sunshine'?
Easy Balanced36 Which Canadian band's signature dance-craze hit was 1982's 'The Safety Dance'?
Medium Balanced37 Which vocal artist, singing entirely a cappella, topped the charts in 1988 with 'Don't Worry, Be Happy'?
Easy Balanced38 Which Italian act delivered the bouncy 1985 novelty hit 'Tarzan Boy'?
Hard Balanced39 Which British musician had his biggest hit with the quirky synth track 'She Blinded Me with Science' in 1982?
Medium Balanced40 Which American band had a lasting hit with the phone-number chant '867-5309/Jenny' in 1981?
Medium Balanced
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Free 80s music quiz with 40 questions and answers: pop icons, new wave, rock anthems and one-hit wonders. Play it here or host it at your own quiz night.
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