1980's

"Further proof that great things come in little packages, Prince Rogers Nelsomn was the super-funnky, hard rock, sweet soul tornado that whipped through the decade. Taking his lead from Bowie's image manipulation, James Brown's bandleading and The Beatles' musical invention, Prince was the superstar all the others watched and envied.
Springsteen, Wacko Jacko and Madonna trailed behind as the man later to be known as a squiggle went from one outlandish incarnation to the next. As a live performer and envelope puching artist, Prince put all his contemporaries in the shade. The lavish energetic shows for the Parade and Sign O the Times albums showcased a whirlwind talent - guitar hero, sex-machine, heartbroken balladeer and a fire-and-brimstone rocking preacher.
So talented that he could afford to give away some of his greatist hits to The Bangles, Sinead O'Connor and even Sheena Easton, Prince always had something in reserve. He could do spirituality (The Cross), apocolyptic party music (1999), pure pop genius (Raspberry Beret) and heavyweight social commentary (Sign O The Times).
While others dithered, Prince crossed boundaries with joyful abandon. By the mid '90's his power may have waned, but he'd already been prolific enough to shame most careers that last a lifetime. No musical royal family would be complete without him.
My runners up - REM, The Smiths, Public Enemy, Madonna."

I think I couldn't have put it better myself! The winners are really poor if you ask me, Cliff Richard, Robbie Williams and Cliff Richard Pah!