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EDIT: Duran Duran got screw big time!!!

1. Relax - Frankie Goes to Hollywood (1983)
2. Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) - Eurythmics (1983)
3. Tainted Love - Soft Cell (1981)
4. Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears For Fears (1985)
5. One Way Or Another - Blondie (1978)
6. Burning Down the House - Talking Heads (1983)
7. Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds (1985)
8. Down Under - Men At Work (1982)
9. I Ran (So Far Away) - A Flock of Seagulls (1982)
10. You Might Think -The Cars (1984)
11. I Melt With You - Modern English (1983)
12. Take On Me - a-ha (1985)
13. Hungry Like the Wolf - Duran Duran (1982)
14. Whip It - Devo (1980)
15. Peace, Love And Understanding?, (What's So Funny 'Bout) - Elvis Costello (1979)
16. Don't Stand So Close To Me - The Police (1980)
17. Shout - Tears For Fears (1985)
18. People Are People - Depeche Mode (1981)
19. True - Spandau Ballet (1983)
20. Brass In Pocket - The Pretenders (1980)
21. Something About You - Level 42 (1986)
22. Hold Me Now - Thompson Twins (1984)
23. Turning Japanese - The Vapors (1981)
24. She Blinded Me With Science - Thomas Dolby (1984)
25. Is She Really Going Out with Him? - Joe Jackson (1979)
26. Rock Lobster - B-52s (1979)
27. Need You Tonight - INXS (1987)
28. Come On Eileen - Dexy's Midnight Runners (1982)
29. Heart Of Glass - Blondie (1978)
30. Everyday I Write The Book - Elvis Costello (1983)
31. Cars - Gary Numan (1980)
32. Tempted - Squeeze (1981)
33. Who Can It Be Now? - Men At Work (1982)
34. West End Girls - Pet Shop Boys (1985)
35. Do You Really Want to Hurt Me - Culture Club (1982)
36. Doctor! Doctor! - Thompson Twins (1984)
37. Promises, Promises - Naked Eyes (1983)
38. Spirits In The Material World - The Police (1981)
39. Goody Two Shoes - Adam Ant (1982)
40. More Than This - Roxy Music (1982)
41. Pulling Mussels (From the Shell) - Squeeze (1980)
42. Love My Way - Psychedelic Furs (1982)
43. Wouldn't It Be Good - Nik Kershaw (1984)
44. Talk Talk - Talk Talk (1982)
45. Two Tribes - Frankie Goes to Hollywood (1984)
46. Senses Working Overtime - XTC (1982)
47. Obsession - Animotion (1984)
48. Save It for Later - The English Beat (1982)
49. Poison Arrow - ABC (1982)
50. Alive and Kicking - Simple Minds (1985)

51. Saved By Zero - The Fixx (1983)
52. Here Comes the Rain Again - Eurythmics (1984)
53. Tenderness - General Public (1984)
54. Voices Carry - Til Tuesday (1985)
55. Mexican Radio - Wall of Voodoo (1982)
56. Beds Are Burning - Midnight Oil (1988)
57. Destination Unknown - Missing Persons (1982)
58. Always Something There to Remind Me - Naked Eyes (1982)
59. Steppin' Out - Joe Jackson (1982)
60. Why Me? - Planet P Project (1983)
61. No One Is To Blame - Howard Jones (1986)
62. Once in a Lifetime - Talking Heads (1980)
63. Shake It Up - The Cars (1982)
64. In a Big Country - Big Country (1983)
65. Major Tom (Coming Home) - Peter Schilling (1983)
66. The Safety Dance - Men Without Hats (1983)
67. One Thing Leads to Another - The Fixx (1983)
68. She's a Beauty - The Tubes (1983)
69. Rock Me Amadeus - Falco (1986)
70. Come Back and Stay - Paul Young (1983)
71. Life In a Northern Town - The Dream Academy (1985)
72. Send Me An Angel - Real Life (1983)
73. Just What I Needed - The Cars (1978)
74. Time (Clock of the Heart) - Culture Club (1983)
75. The Sun Always Shines On TV - A-Ha (1985)
76. Girls on Film - Duran Duran (1981)
77. Der Kommissar - Falco (1986)
78. You Spin Me 'Round (Like a Record) - Dead Or Alive (1985)
79. Video Killed the Radio Star - The Buggles (1979)
80. Reap the Wild Wind - Ultravox (1982)
81. Avalon - Roxy Music (1982)
82. Wishing (If I Had a Photograph of You) - A Flock of Seagulls (1982)
83. I Want Candy - Bow Wow Wow (1982)
84. Dance Hall Days - Wang Chung (1984)
85. A Little Respect - Erasure (1988)
86. Too Shy - Kajagoogoo (1983)
87. Our House - Madness (1983)
88. Love And Money - Bronski Beat (1984)
89. Messages - OMD (1980)
90. Smalltown Boy - Bronski Beat (1984)
91. So In Love - OMD (1985)
92. Weird Science - Oingo Boingo (1985)
93. Some Like It Hot - The Power Station (1985)
94. Working Girl - The Members (1982)
95. I Got You - Split Enz (1980)
96. I Don't Like Mondays - Boomtown Rats (1979)
97. Election Day - Arcadia (1985)
98. Lawnchairs - Our Daughters Wedding (1980)
99. A Million Miles Away - The Plimsouls (1982)
100. Love Plus One - Haircut 100 (1982)

I think they put Love Plus One at #100 just to be cheeky. Cuz, come on...

You're right I don't believe it

1. Relax - Frankie Goes to Hollywood (1983)
2. Sweet Dreams (Are Made of This) - Eurythmics (1983)
3. Tainted Love - Soft Cell (1981)
4. Everybody Wants to Rule the World - Tears For Fears (1985)
5. One Way Or Another - Blondie (1978)
6. Burning Down the House - Talking Heads (1983)
7. Don't You (Forget About Me) - Simple Minds (1985)
8. Down Under - Men At Work (1982)
9. I Ran (So Far Away) - A Flock of Seagulls (1982)
10. You Might Think -The Cars (1984)
11. I Melt With You - Modern English (1983)
12. Take On Me - a-ha (1985)
13. Hungry Like the Wolf - Duran Duran (1982)


1) No Duran Duran song in the Top 10. WTF?

2) HTF did one FGTH song get rank higher than ANY Duran Duran song (let also get rank #1 greatest new wave song)?

3) Where is The Human League and/or Heaven 17?

4) Where is DEVO?

EDIT: Devo at #14!
[Edited 7/10/06 20:14pm]

no Big Country?



how about top 100 industrial Front 242, Nitzerebb, NIN

you all know MOONBEAM is gonna tear this list apart and make one of his own.

CHIC0 said:

64. In a Big Country - Big Country (1983)

71. Life In a Northern Town - The Dream Academy (1985)

THIS isn't new wave!!!

That ain't New Wave! This list is better than the others....

And Tony is right....No Human League? That was one of the first big New Wave hits, right?

TonyVanDam said:

Yes, but there should certainly be more Devo. There's definitely better Devo songs. Their version of Satisfaction wipes out half the songs on that list.

VinnyM27 said:

Sound Of The Crowd
Don't You Want Me

These 2 Human League songs put New Wave & Synthpop on the mainstream radar.

TonyVanDam said:

thanks...

39. Goody Two Shoes - Adam Ant (1982)

Now where's Adam and The Ants?

VinnyM27 said:

While I like the songs on the list that were released after 1986, it's safe to say that New Wave faded into the mainstream by 1986. Part of what made New wave what it was synth pop and other electronic and post-punk melodies which were new for its time. It peaked by 1984 and became fully mainstream by 1986. As for Tears For Fears, they may have been New wave when the first debuted in 1982, but when they released Songs In The Big Chair in 1985, their music relied as much on classic hard rock guitar licks as synthesizers. (See "Shout.") And it can be debated whether INXS was ever New Wave, since they came out of the same Aussie bar scene as AC/DC.

"Relax" is a great song, controversial, sleazy and fun. I can't really argue with it being at #1, even though I love Duran Duran with a fierce passion. Speaking of Duran Duran, I'd rather have "Rio" or "Girls on Film" rank above "Hungry Like the Wolf," and they definitely deserved a top 5 ranking. Early INXS could classify as new wave, particularly "The One Thing," which is an unfortunate omission from this list. I love "Need You Tonight," but that song is not new wave. The Human League exclusion is beyond sad. "Dare" is a quintessential new wave record. It's nice to see Bronski Beat's "Smalltown Boy," Kajagoogoo's "Too Shy" and ABC's "Poison Arrow" here, although I think they should have been higher.
[Edited 7/10/06 23:12pm]

bsbd2luvr said:

For anything, Human League's Don't You Want Me should have been THE real #1 new wave song. Without THIS track, New Wave would have never had the chance to be a success genre in North America.

Duran Duran's The Reflex should have been in the Top 10 somewhere.

59.Steppin' Out by Joe Jackson (1982)

What about the Promise by When In Rome, and This Much is True by Spandeau Ballet! This poll sucks!

TonyVanDam said:

Perhaps "The Reflex" has been too played out for me, but I wouldn't put it on my own top 10 list. I feel similarly about "Hungry Like the Wolf." I realize they were major hits; "The Reflex" went #1 in the United States. But Duran Duran did songs that appeal more to me.

I'm not taking away from "Don't You Want Me," either. Like I said, "Dare" is quintessential new wave. It's one of my favorite albums ever. But what can I say, I like "Relax" more. And I like "Sound of the Crowd" more than "Don't You Want Me." It's a matter of personal taste here.

OOps spandeau is there! But they still should have had when in rome!

CHIC0 said:

You're damn right!

No Human League is a crime! No Prince is a crime too!

My favorite is at number 2.

TonyVanDam said:

karmatornado said:

Waaaay too late to be new wave.

I don't know how a list of the Top 100 New Wave songs can exclude "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division, which normally is at the TOP of such lists.....

This list focuses heavily on Top 40 singles, and leaves out the more influential stuff that was lesser-known.

TonyVanDam said:

"Brass In Pocket" is New Wave??

The Cars "You Might Think" shouldn't be way up there. They have so many songs that are much better.

I'd pick "Let's Go", "My Best Friend's Girl", "Good Times Roll", or even "Moving in Stereo". At least they didn't list "Hello Again".

But some of these bands, I didn't even know were considered New Wave. But whatever.

Joe Jackson's "Steppin' Out" is New Wave?

And where the hell is Gary Numan? Did I miss it? And Kraftwerk?




EDIT to say, yes I missed Gary Numan.
[Edited 7/11/06 14:17pm]

minneapolisgenius said:

No Kraftwerk!


d'oh! Numan edit
[Edited 7/11/06 15:11pm]

Most of that isn't even new wave, it is pop. Most new wave bands were obscure, so the list should look much different then this.