1981 in music

1981 in music

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List of albums released

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This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1981.

Specific locations[]

• 1981 in British music
• 1981 in Norwegian music

Specific genres[]

• 1981 in country music
• 1981 in heavy metal music
• 1981 in hip hop music
• 1981 in jazz

Events[]

January–April[]

• January – Nearly a year after the suicide of Ian Curtis, the surviving members of Joy Division plus Gillian Gilbert, now under the name New Order, release their debut single "Ceremony"; the single and its B-side, "In a Lonely Place", are both re-recordings of songs originally written and performed by Curtis.^[1] The single's release marks the band's first public use of the "New Order" moniker, which they would retain for the remainder of their career.
• 10 January – A revival of the Gilbert and Sullivan operetta The Pirates of Penzance opens at Broadway's Uris Theatre, starring Linda Ronstadt and Rex Smith.
• 11 January - The Country Singer Hank Williams Jr. was released the 32nd album called Rowdy. It has been certified Gold by the RIAA.
• 18 January – Wendy O. Williams of The Plasmatics is arrested in Milwaukee for simulating masturbation with a sledgehammer on stage. In a scuffle with the police Williams is pinned to the floor and receives a cut above the eye requiring twelve stitches.^[2]
• 24 January – Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler is injured in a motorcycle crash that leaves him hospitalized for two months.
• 9 February – Phil Collins releases his first solo album, Face Value, whose opening track "In the Air Tonight" popularizes the gated reverb drum sound that would become ubiquitous for the next ten years; while the album would end up a smash success, Collins would remain a member of Genesis until 1995.
• 12 February – Rush release the highly regarded album Moving Pictures which eventually becomes the band's sixth platinum album.
• 14 February – Billy Idol leaves the band Generation X to begin a solo career.
• 25 February – The 23rd Annual Grammy Awards are presented in New York, hosted by Paul Simon. Christopher Cross, with his self-titled debut album and its single "Sailing", becomes the first artist to win all four General Field awards in a single ceremony, controversially beating Pink Floyd's The Wall for Album of the Year.
• 14 March – Suffering from bleeding ulcers, Eric Clapton is admitted to United Hospital in Saint Paul, Minnesota, USA. Clapton's 60-city tour of the US is cancelled, and he remains in hospital for a month.
• 21 March – Yellow Magic Orchestra release their fourth studio album, BGM; the album is the first to make use of the Roland TR-808 drum machine, which would go on to become an influential device in both electronic dance music and hip hop music.^[3]
• 27 March – Ozzy Osbourne bites the head off a dove at a CBS record label gathering in Los Angeles.^[4]
• 1 April – The Go-Go's sign to IRS Records.
• 4 April – British pop group Bucks Fizz wins the 26th Eurovision Song Contest, held at the RDS Simmonscourt Pavilion, Dublin, with the song "Making Your Mind Up".
• 11 April – Van Halen's lead guitarist Eddie Van Halen marries actress Valerie Bertinelli.
• 18 April – Yes announce that they are breaking up. (They would reunite frequently in years to come).
• 20 April – The Mamas & the Papas' John Phillips is sentenced to five years in jail after pleading guilty to drug possession charges. Phillips' sentence would be suspended after thirty days in exchange for 250 hours of community service.
• 22 April – Eric Clapton is taken to the hospital suffering from bruised ribs and a lacerated shin, following a car accident in Seattle, Washington.
• 27 April – Ringo Starr and Barbara Bach marry, in London, England.

May–August[]

• 2 May – British vocalist Sheena Easton hits No. 1 in the US with "Morning Train (9 to 5)" following a swift rise to fame as the result of a reality TV show.
• 14 May – Diana Ross signs with RCA Records (EMI internationally), leaving Motown Records, her label of two decades. The $20,000,000 deal is the most lucrative recording contract in history at that time.
• 15 May – A riot breaks out at The Ritz rock club in New York when Public Image Ltd plays behind a videoscreen while completely different music plays over the club's speakers.
• 4 June – U2 appears on The Tomorrow Show with Tom Snyder, their first U.S. television appearance.
• 5 June – The TV series Night Flight, a variety show featuring music documentaries and videos, is premiered on the USA Network.
• 6 June – Kerrang! magazine publishes its first issue. Angus Young of AC/DC is on the cover.
• 30 June – Jerry Lee Lewis is rushed to hospital in Memphis for emergency surgery for a tear in his stomach. Despite being given less than a 50% chance of survival, he eventually pulls through.
• 27 July – Stevie Nicks releases debut solo album Bella Donna, which sold 4 million copies in the US alone.
• 1 August
  • MTV broadcasts for the first time on cable television in the United States, playing music videos 24 hours a day. First to air is "Video Killed the Radio Star" by The Buggles.
  • The success of Stars On 45 leads to a short-lived medley craze. The most successful imitator of the Stars On 45 format is, rather unexpectedly, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, whose "Hooked On Classics (Parts 1&2)" reaches number two in the charts.
• 15 August - Endless Love - Diana Ross & Lionel Richie recorded the song for Motown, and it was used as the theme for the Franco Zeffirelli's film adaptation of Scott Spencer's novel Endless Love. (Jamie Bernstein, as the character Susan, sings the song during the course of the movie.) Produced by Richie and arranged by Gene Page, it was released as a single from the film's soundtrack in 1981.
• 23 August – The Violent Femmes are discovered by members of The Pretenders busking outside a Milwaukee venue and are invited to play a 10-minute acoustic set as a second opening act in the Pretenders' show that night.

September–December[]

• 11 September – Iron Maiden fires lead singer Paul Di'Anno.
• 19 September – Simon & Garfunkel perform a free reunion concert in New York City's Central Park attended by over 500,000 fans.
• 25 September – The Rolling Stones open their US tour in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
• 26 September – Iron Maiden hires Samson lead singer Bruce Bruce AKA Bruce Dickinson to replace Paul Di'Anno. Dickinson will finish off the last 7 dates of the Killer World Tour.
• 26 October – Iron Maiden plays its first show with Bruce Dickinson as the new lead singer in Bologna, Italy.
• 27 October – The British Phonographic Industry takes out newspaper ads unveiling its new slogan: "Home Taping Is Killing Music". The ads advocate a levy on blank cassette tapes.^[5]
• 31 October – Punk band Fear makes a memorable appearance on Saturday Night Live. A group of fans storm the stage and damage TV equipment while moshing, resulting in the show cutting to commercial.
• 18 November – While sitting in Tom's Restaurant in New York City, Suzanne Vega composes the song "Tom's Diner".
• 18 December – An estimated 35 million people around the world watch a live satellite transmission of a Rod Stewart concert at the Los Angeles Forum. It is the first broadcast of its kind since Elvis Presley's "Aloha from Hawaii" special in 1973.
• 31 December – The tenth annual New Year's Rockin' Eve special airs on ABC, with appearances by Four Tops, Rick Springfield, Barry Manilow, Alabama and Rick James.

Also in 1981[]

• The organ at the famous Heinävesi Church in Finland is renewed, using locks from the original organ.
• Alice Cooper drastically changes his appearance, leaving behind his trademark make-up and donning a military uniform.
• Synthpop enjoys mainstream popularity in the UK, with groups such as Ultravox, Depeche Mode, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and The Human League releasing hit singles and albums. The Human League's "Don't You Want Me" and Soft Cell's "Tainted Love" become the years best selling singles in the UK.^[6]
• Menudo's golden era (1981–1985) begins in Latin America, parts of Europe and Asia.
• Brad Whitford leaves Aerosmith and is replaced by Rick Dufay.
• Hal Willner "invents" the modern tribute album with Amacord Nino Rota.

Bands formed[]

• See Musical groups established in 1981

Bands disbanded[]

• Amon Düül II
• Bay City Rollers
• The Buzzcocks (they reform in 1989)
• City Boy
• Cluster (they reform in 1989)
• Generation X
• Klaatu
• The Knack (reformed in 1991, onwards)
• Luv' (they reform in 1989, 1993 and 2005)
• MFSB
• Raydio
• Rockpile
• Sam & Dave
• The Slits
• Starland Vocal Band
• State of Alert
• Steely Dan (They reform in 1993)
• Throbbing Gristle
• Toots & the Maytals (they reform in the early 90s)
• Paul McCartney & Wings

Albums released[]

January[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	The Nature of the Beast	April Wine	-
	Take My Time	Sheena Easton	-
15	In Our Lifetime	Marvin Gaye	-
19	Paradise Theatre	Styx	-
23	Kiss Me Deadly	Generation X	-
	Trust	Elvis Costello and the Attractions	-
28	Healing	Todd Rundgren	-
	Welcome to the Wrecking Ball!	Grace Slick	-
?	...And Don't the Kids Just Love It	Television Personalities	-
	Evangeline	Emmylou Harris	-
	Frost and Fire	Cirith Ungol	-
	Radioland	Nicolette Larson	-
	Stands for Decibels	The dB's	-
	There Must Be a Better World Somewhere	B. B. King	-
	To the Bone	Kris Kristofferson	-
	Turn Back	Toto	-
	The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent	UFO	-

February[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Atomkraft? Nein, Danke!	Earthstar	-
2	Killers	Iron Maiden	UK
3	Difficult to Cure	Rainbow	-
12	Moving Pictures	Rush	-
13	Face Value	Phil Collins	solo debut
	St. Valentine's Day Massacre	Motör Headgirl School	EP
	Fire Down Under	Riot	-
14	Working Class Dog	Rick Springfield	-
17	Another Ticket	Eric Clapton	-
	Being with You	Smokey Robinson	-
	To Love Again	Diana Ross	Compilation
26	Point of Entry	Judas Priest	-
?	Another One Rides the Bus	"Weird Al" Yankovic	EP
	Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks	Hanoi Rocks	-
	Captured	Journey	Live
	Coconut Telegraph	Jimmy Buffett	-
	Feels So Right	Alabama	-
	The Fool Circle	Nazareth	-
	From the Tea-rooms of Mars ....	Landscape	-
	Higher Plane	Al Green	-
	Juice	Juice Newton	-
	Mondo Bongo	The Boomtown Rats	-
	My Life in the Bush of Ghosts	Brian Eno – David Byrne	-
	Seven Year Ache	Rosanne Cash	-
	Stray Cats	Stray Cats	-
	The League of Gentlemen	Robert Fripp and The League of Gentlemen	-
	Wild-Eyed Southern Boys	38 Special	-

March[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Intensities in 10 Cities	Ted Nugent	Live
6	Journeys to Glory	Spandau Ballet	-
10	There Goes the Neighborhood	Joe Walsh	-
13	Never Too Late	Status Quo	-
	We'll Bring the House Down	Slade	-
16	Breaker	Accept	-
	Face Dances	The Who	-
20	Time Tells No Lies	Praying Mantis	-
26	Fancy Free	The Oak Ridge Boys	-
	The Dude	Quincy Jones	-
27	Carl Wilson	Carl Wilson	-
30	Extended Play	The Pretenders	EP
31	Music for Stowaways	British Electric Foundation	-
?	Dad Loves His Work	James Taylor	-
	Directions	Miles Davis	-
	Franke & The Knockouts	Franke & The Knockouts	-
	Future Shock	Gillan	-
	Grand Slam	The Isley Brothers	-
	Hardware	Krokus	-
	Honi Soit	John Cale	-
	Long Play Album aka Stars on Long Play	Stars on 45	-
	Magnets	The Vapors	-
	Nightwalker	Gino Vannelli	-
	No Fun After Midnight	A II Z	EP
	Party 'Til You're Broke	Rufus	-
	Rock Away	Phoebe Snow	-
	Solid Gold	Gang of Four	-
	Somewhere Over the Rainbow	Willie Nelson	-
	A Woman Needs Love	Ray Parker, Jr.	-
	White Lace & Black Leather	Helix	-

April[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Reckoning	Grateful Dead	Live
	Rock Steady with Flo & Eddie	Flo & Eddie	-
2	Modern Times	Jefferson Starship	-
6	The DeBarges	DeBarge	-
	Fun in Space	Roger Taylor	-
	Prayers on Fire	The Birthday Party	-
7	Street Songs	Rick James	-
10	Faith	The Cure	-
11	Come an' Get It	Whitesnake	-
	The Flowers of Romance	Public Image Ltd.	-
13	Don't Say No	Billy Squier	-
	Of Skins and Heart	The Church	-
14	Sucking in the Seventies	The Rolling Stones	Compilation
15	What Cha' Gonna Do for Me	Chaka Khan	-
17	Go for It	Stiff Little Fingers	-
20	Hit and Run	Girlschool	-
	Twangin...	Dave Edmunds	-
27	Slates	The Fall	EP
29	Fair Warning	Van Halen	-
?	Bad for Good	Jim Steinman	-
	Chariots of Fire	Vangelis	Soundtrack
	The Completion Backward Principle	The Tubes	-
	Dedication	Gary U.S. Bonds	-
	El Rayo-X	David Lindley	-
	The Electric Spanking of War Babies	Funkadelic	-
	Goddo Live: Best Seat in the House	Goddo	Live
	Mistaken Identity	Kim Carnes	-
	The Nightcomers	Holocaust	-
	Punks Not Dead	The Exploited	-
	Spellbound	Tygers of Pan Tang	-
	Waiata	Split Enz	-
	Where Do You Go When You Dream	Anne Murray	-
	Zebop!	Santana	-

May[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
3	Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports	Nick Mason's Fictitious Sports	-
5	Hard Promises	Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers	-
10	Computer World	Kraftwerk	-
11	Balin	Marty Balin	-
	Nightclubbing	Grace Jones	-
	Shut Up 'n' Play Yer Guitar	Frank Zappa	Live
14	Breaking All the Rules	Peter Frampton	-
	It Must Be Magic	Teena Marie	-
15	East Side Story	Squeeze	-
	Long Distance Voyager	The Moody Blues	-
	Shock Tactics	Samson	-
17	Tinsel Town Rebellion	Frank Zappa	-
18	Knights of the Sound Table	Cameo	-
20	The Fox	Elton John	-
22	Anthem	Toyah	-
25	Hard 'n' Heavy	Anvil	-
29	In Concert	Amy Grant	Live
	Present Arms	UB40	-
30	Heaven Up Here	Echo & the Bunnymen	-
?	As Falls Wichita, so Falls Wichita Falls	Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays	-
	Beyond the Valley of 1984	The Plasmatics	-
	Dedicated to Peter Kürten	Whitehouse	-
	Look Out!	20/20	-
	Magnetic Fields	Jean-Michel Jarre	-
	Mecca for Moderns	The Manhattan Transfer	-
	Positive Touch	The Undertones	-
	Red	Black Uhuru	-
	Wild Gift	X	-

June[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	The Baron	Johnny Cash	-
5	Somewhere in England	George Harrison	-
6	Juju	Siouxsie & the Banshees	-
	Talk Talk Talk	The Psychedelic Furs	-
8	Season of Glass	Yoko Ono	-
12	Black & White	The Pointer Sisters	-
15	Duran Duran	Duran Duran	-
16	Made in America	The Carpenters	-
19	Only a Lad	Oingo Boingo	-
27	No Sleep 'til Hammersmith	Motörhead	Live
29	Kim Wilde	Kim Wilde	-
30	As Far as Siam	Red Rider	-
	Breakin' Away	Al Jarreau	-
?	Children of Paradise – The Greatest Hits of Boney M. – Vol. 2	Boney M.	Compilation
	Deuce	Kurtis Blow	-
	Fire of Unknown Origin	Blue Öyster Cult	-
	Fresh Fruit in Foreign Places	Kid Creole and the Coconuts	-
	Here Comes the Night	David Johansen	-
	In the Pocket	Commodores	-
	I've Got the Rock'n'Rolls Again	The Joe Perry Project	-
	Jumpin' Jive	Joe Jackson	-
	Party	Iggy Pop	-
	A Product Of... (Participation)	Thompson Twins	-
	Reflector	Pablo Cruise	-
	Renaissance	Village People	-
	RocKihnRoll	The Greg Kihn Band	-
	Share Your Love	Kenny Rogers	-
	Six Pack	Black Flag	EP
	Some Days Are Diamonds	John Denver	-
	The One That You Love	Air Supply	-
	Wanted Dread And Alive	Peter Tosh	-
	Wha'ppen?	The Beat	-
	What's THIS For...!	Killing Joke	-

July[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
2	4	Foreigner	-
4	Signals, Calls, and Marches	Mission of Burma	EP
8	Beauty and the Beat	The Go-Go's	-
11	High 'n' Dry	Def Leppard	-
20	El Loco	ZZ Top	-
	Pleasant Dreams	The Ramones	-
21	You Want It You Got It	Bryan Adams	-
26	Bucks Fizz	Bucks Fizz	-
27	Bella Donna	Stevie Nicks	-
	KooKoo	Debbie Harry	-
29	The Time	The Time	-
31	Escape	Journey	-
	Step by Step	Eddie Rabbitt	-
?	Blue and Gray	Poco	-
	Document and Eyewitness	Wire	-
	Dreamtime	Tom Verlaine	-
	Endless Love	Various Artists	Soundtrack
	Freetime	Spyro Gyra	-
	The Friends of Mr Cairo	Jon and Vangelis	-
	Girls to Chat and Boys to Bounce	Foghat	-
	Heavy Metal Soundtrack	Various Artists	Soundtrack
	Hoy-Hoy!	Little Feat	Compilation
	It's a Condition	Romeo Void	-
	Love Songs	Cliff Richard	-
	The Man with the Horn	Miles Davis	-
	Marauder	Blackfoot	-
	Night of the Demon	Demon	-
	Party Mix!	The B-52's	Remix
	Pirates	Rickie Lee Jones	-
	The Pirates of Penzance Broadway Cast Album	Various Artists	Broadway cast recording
	Precious Time	Pat Benatar	-
	Three Quartets	Chick Corea	-
	Time	Electric Light Orchestra	-
	The Visitor	Mick Fleetwood	-
	Walking Wild	New England	-
	Was (Not Was)	Was (Not Was)	-
	Whomp That Sucker	Sparks	-
	Word of Mouth	Jaco Pastorius	-

August[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
1	Torch	Carly Simon	-
10	Friday Night in San Francisco	Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucía	Live
12	Shot of Love	Bob Dylan	-
	Never Too Much	Luther Vandross	Debut
14	Maiden Japan	Iron Maiden	Live EP
15	Give the People What They Want	The Kinks	-
	Pretenders II	The Pretenders	-
18	Dark Continent	Wall of Voodoo	-
20	Love All the Hurt Away	Aretha Franklin	-
21	Sleep No More	The Comsat Angels	-
24	Tattoo You	The Rolling Stones	-
25	Scissors Cut	Art Garfunkel	-
	Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash	The Replacements	Debut
26	Dead Set	Grateful Dead	Live
	New Traditionalists	Devo	-
28	Alive Alone	Mickey Thomas	-
	The Spirit's in It	Patti LaBelle	-
31	Fire of Love	The Gun Club	-
?	Brothers of the Road	The Allman Brothers Band	-
	Heartbreak Radio	Rita Coolidge	-
	The Innocent Age	Dan Fogelberg	-
	Joy	The Minutemen	EP
	King Cool	Donnie Iris	-
	Level 42	Level 42	-
	The Pressure Is On	Hank Williams, Jr.	-
	Short Back 'n' Sides	Ian Hunter	-
	Simplicity	Tim Curry	-
	Sons and Fascination/Sister Feelings Call	Simple Minds	-
	There's No Gettin' Over Me	Ronnie Milsap	-
	Time Exposure	Little River Band	-
	Whitford/St. Holmes	Brad Whitford and Derek St. Holmes	-

September[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
2	1234	Ronnie Wood	-
4	Dance	Gary Numan	-
	Dead Ringer	Meat Loaf	-
	Strait Country	George Strait	-
	Why Do Fools Fall in Love	Diana Ross	-
7	Burning Blue Soul	Matt Johnson	The The singer
11	Rage in Eden	Ultravox	-
14	Songs in the Attic	Billy Joel	Live
18	Abacab	Genesis	-
19	Allied Forces	Triumph	-
21	You Could Have Been with Me	Sheena Easton	-
22	Discipline	King Crimson	-
23	You Are What You Is	Frank Zappa	-
24	Something Special	Kool & the Gang	-
25	Wild Things	The Creatures	EP
?	Boonoonoonoos	Boney M.	-
	Buchenwald	Whitehouse	-
	Camouflage	Rufus	-
	Camera Camera	Renaissance	-
	Cats & Dogs	Mental As Anything	-
	Dangerous Acquaintances	Marianne Faithfull	-
	Deaf	You've Got Foetus on Your Breath	-
	Gosh It's...	Bad Manners	-
	Grand Funk Lives	Grand Funk Railroad	-
	Happy Birthday	Altered Images	-
	Hooligans	The Who	Compilation
	If I Should Love Again	Barry Manilow	-
	Kix	Kix	-
	Lord Upminster	Ian Dury	-
	Love Byrd	Donald Byrd and 125th St, NYC	-
	Magic, Murder and the Weather	Magazine	-
	Magic Windows	Herbie Hancock	-
	Mark of the Mole	The Residents	-
	MSG	Michael Schenker Group	-
	Nine Tonight	Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band	Live
	Penthouse and Pavement	Heaven 17	-
	Premonition	Survivor	-
	Private Eyes	Hall & Oates	-
	Red Mecca	Cabaret Voltaire	-
	Rock Until You Drop	Raven	-
	Snaz	Nazareth	Live
	Special Forces	Alice Cooper	-
	Too Late the Hero	John Entwistle	-
	Walk Under Ladders	Joan Armatrading	-
	Wanna Be a Star	Chilliwack

October[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
2	7	Madness	-
	Ghost in the Machine	The Police	-
3	Law and Order	Lindsey Buckingham	-
5	Denim and Leather	Saxon	-
	Kollaps	Einstürzende Neubauten	-
	Speak & Spell	Depeche Mode	-
7	Get Lucky	Loverboy	-
8	Looking Back with Love	Mike Love	solo debut
	Still	Joy Division	Compilation
10	Present Arms in Dub	UB40	Remix
12	October	U2	-
14	Controversy	Prince	-
16	Dare	The Human League	-
	In the Garden	Eurythmics	-
18	Sonic Attack	Hawkwind	-
19	Underneath the Colours	INXS	-
21	Bobby and the Midnites	Bobby and the Midnites	-
23	Almost Blue	Elvis Costello and the Attractions	-
24	Don't Stop	Billy Idol	EP
26	Greatest Hits	Queen	Compilation
	Freeze Frame	The J. Geils Band	-
29	Exit...Stage Left	Rush	Live
31	The Best of Blondie	Blondie	Compilation
?	Big City	Merle Haggard	-
	Chances Are	Bob Marley & the Wailers	Compilation of previously unreleased material
	Christmas Album	Boney M.	Christmas
	Circle of Love	Steve Miller Band	-
	Coup de Grâce	Mink DeVille	-
	Face to Face	GQ	-
	Fourth Drawer Down	Associates	-
	Gonna Ball	Stray Cats	-
	Inside You	The Isley Brothers	-
	Living Eyes	Bee Gees	-
	Love Is Only Feeling	Donovan	-
	Mask	Bauhaus	-
	Physical	Olivia Newton-John	-
	Quarterflash	Quarterflash	-
	Round Trip	The Knack	-
	See Jungle! See Jungle! Go Join Your Gang, Yeah. City All Over! Go Ape Crazy	Bow Wow Wow	-
	The Sound of the Sand and Other Songs of the Pedestrian	David Thomas & the Pedestrians	-
	Strictly Personal	The Romantics	-
	Tom Tom Club	Tom Tom Club	-
	Wrap It!	Doug and the Slugs	-

November[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
2	Re·ac·tor	Neil Young and Crazy Horse	-
	Prince Charming	Adam and the Ants	-
4	Mob Rules	Black Sabbath	-
6	Shake It Up	The Cars	-
	Tonight I'm Yours	Rod Stewart	-
7	Diary of a Madman	Ozzy Osbourne	-
8	Architecture & Morality	Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark	-
9	Business as Usual	Men at Work	Australia, debut
	La Folie	The Stranglers	-
	On the Way to the Sky	Neil Diamond	-
10	Music from "The Elder"	Kiss	-
	Memories	Barbra Streisand	Compilation +3 new tracks
	Too Fast for Love	Mötley Crüe	-
11	The Jacksons Live!	The Jacksons	Live
	Adventures in Modern Recording	The Buggles	-
13	Movement	New Order	-
	Till Deaf Do Us Part	Slade	-
	Tin Drum	Japan	-
14	Raise!	Earth, Wind & Fire	-
15	Renegade	Thin Lizzy	-
16	Take It Off	Chic	-
	Changestwobowie	David Bowie	Compilation
18	I Love Rock 'n' Roll	Joan Jett & the Blackhearts	-
20	Stop and Smell the Roses	Ringo Starr	-
23	A Collection of Great Dance Songs	Pink Floyd	Compilation with alternate mixes
	Christmas Album	Boney M.	-
	For Those About to Rock We Salute You	AC/DC	-
27	Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret	Soft Cell	-
	Ten Out of 10	10cc	-
29	In Concert Volume Two	Amy Grant	Live
30	Bad Religion	Bad Religion	EP
	Best of the Blues Brothers	The Blues Brothers	Compilation
	The Visitors	ABBA	-
?	The Ascension	Glenn Branca	-
	Christmas Wishes	Anne Murray	Christmas
	From the Lions Mouth	The Sound	-
	Great Gonzos!: The Best of Ted Nugent	Ted Nugent	Compilation
	Pearls	Elkie Brooks	-
	The Poet	Bobby Womack	-
	She Shot Me Down	Frank Sinatra	-
	Still the Same Ole Me	George Jones	-
	Take No Prisoners	Molly Hatchet	-
	Wired for Sound	Cliff Richard	-

December[]

Day	Album	Artist	Notes
5	Damaged	Black Flag	-
7	Ten Years of Harmony	The Beach Boys	Compilation
15	LC	The Durutti Column	-
30	For Those Who Think Young	Rough Trade	-
?	The Best of Top of the Pops '81	Top of the Poppers	-
	The Blasters	The Blasters	-
	The Catherine Wheel	David Byrne	-
	In God We Trust, Inc.	Dead Kennedys	EP
	Peter Cetera	Peter Cetera	-
	Small Change	Prism	-
	Welcome to Hell	Venom	-
	Wilder	The Teardrop Explodes	-

Release date unknown[]

Biggest hit singles[]

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the charts of 1981.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	Kim Carnes	Bette Davis Eyes	1981		US BB 1 – April 1981, Canada 1 – April 1981, France 1 – June 1981, Switzerland 1 – June 1981, Norway 1 – June 1981, Germany 1 – June 1981, Australia 1 for 5 weeks May 1982, Grammy in 1981, US CashBox 2 of 1981, Austria 2 – July 1981, South Africa 2 of 1981, Sweden (alt) 4 – May 1981, Italy 5 of 1981, Australia 6 of 1981, UK 10 – May 1981, Netherlands 16 – May 1981, RYM 16 of 1981, Germany 18 of the 1980s, OzNet 45, Scrobulate 66 of 80s, RIAA 268, Acclaimed 738
2	Soft Cell	Tainted Love	1981		UK 1 – August 1981, Canada 1 – November 1981, France 1 – August 1981, Australia 1 for 3 weeks January 1983, Austria 2 – December 1981, Switzerland 2 – November 1981, Germany 2 – January 1982, Scrobulate 2 of 80s, Australia 3 of 1982, Sweden (alt) 4 – October 1981, RYM 4 of 1981, Netherlands 5 – October 1981, South Africa 5 of 1982, US BB 8 – May 1982, US BB 15 of 1982, POP 18 of 1982, Germany 37 of the 1980s, KROQ 38 of 1982, Virgin 41, US CashBox 50 of 1982, Party 142 of 2007, Acclaimed 163, Belgium 242 of all time, OzNet 451, WXPN 745
3	Phil Collins	In the Air Tonight	1981		Netherlands 1 – February 1981, Sweden (alt) 1 – February 1981, Austria 1 – April 1981, Switzerland 1 – April 1981, UK 2 – January 1981, France 2 – March 1981, Germany 2 – March 1981, Canada 3 – June 1981, Norway 4 – March 1981, OzNet 7, Poland 12 – August 1982, Europe 13 of the 1980s, RYM 15 of 1981, POP 16 of 1981, US BB 19 – July 1981, Australia 23 of 1981, Italy 23 of 1981, US BB 27 of 1981, Germany 44 of the 1980s, Scrobulate 60 of pop, TheQ 87, Belgium 230 of all time, Acclaimed 1238
4	John Lennon	Woman	1981		UK 1 – January 1981, Canada 1 – January 1981, Republic of Ireland 1 – February 1981, New Zealand 1 for 5 weeks February 1981, US BB 2 – January 1981, Switzerland 2 – March 1981, Austria 4 – March 1981, Norway 5 – February 1981, France 7 – March 1981, Germany 7 – February 1981, US CashBox 16 of 1981, Sweden (alt) 18 – February 1981, Netherlands 21 – March 1981, RYM 22 of 1981, US BB 30 of 1981, Italy 34 of 1981, POP 34 of 1981, Virgin 59, OzNet 139, Germany 213 of the 1980s
5	Stars On 45	Stars On 45 Medley	1981		US BB 1 – May 1981, Netherlands 1 – January 1981, Austria 1 – May 1981, Switzerland 1 – May 1981, Germany 1 – March 1981, New Zealand 1 for 7 weeks June 1981, Australia 1 for 4 weeks June 1982, UK 2 – April 1981, Australia 2 of 1981, Germany 5 of the 1980s, Sweden (alt) 7 – June 1981, US CashBox 13 of 1981, Italy 54 of 1981

Chronological table of US and UK Number One hit singles[]

Chronological table of US and UK Number One hit albums[]

Significant singles[]

Published popular music[]

• "9 To 5" w.m. Dolly Parton from the film Nine to Five
• "All Those Years Ago" w.m. George Harrison
• "Allentown" w.m. Billy Joel
• "Allergies" w.m. Paul Simon
• "America" w.m. Neil Diamond from the film The Jazz Singer
• "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" w. Tom Eyen m. Henry Krieger from the musical Dreamgirls
• "Arthur's Theme" w.m. Carole Bayer Sager, Burt Bacharach, Christopher Cross & Peter Allen from the film Arthur
• "At This Moment" w.m. Billy Vera
• "Baby, Come To Me" w.m. Rod Temperton
• "Being With You" w.m. William "Smokey" Robinson
• "Believe it or Not (Theme From The Greatest American Hero)" w. Stephen Geyer m. Mike Post
• "The Best of Times" w.m. Dennis DeYoung
• "Bette Davis Eyes" w. Donna Weiss m. Jackie DeShannon
• "Black Limousine" w.m. Mick Jagger, Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood
• "Bruce" w.m. Rick Springfield
• "Chariots of Fire" w. Jon Anderson m. Vangelis
• "Dynasty theme song" m. Bill Conti
• "The First Time it Happens" w.m. Joe Raposo, from the film The Great Muppet Caper
• "Good Thing Going (Going Gone)"     w.m. Stephen Sondheim
• "Hill Street Blues theme song" m. Mike Post
• "Key Largo"     w.m. Bertie Higgins & Sonny Limbo
• "Memory w. Trevor Nunn & T. S. Eliot m. Andrew Lloyd Webber. Introduced by Elaine Paige in the musical Cats.
• "One of the Girls" w. Fred Ebb m. John Kander introduced by Lauren Bacall in the musical Woman of the Year

Classical music[]

• Milton Babbitt
  • Don, for piano four-hands
  • Ars Combinatoria, for small orchestra
• Leonard Bernstein
  • Olympic Hymn, chorus and orchestra
• Rob du Bois
  • String Quartet no. 3
  • Sonata for solo viola
• George Crumb – Gnomic Variations for piano
• Peter Maxwell Davies – Piano Sonata
• Joël-François Durand – String Trio
• Morton Feldman
  • Bass Clarinet and Percussion, for bass clarinet, cymbals and gongs
  • Triadic Memories, for piano
  • For Aaron Copland, for violin
• Lorenzo Ferrero
  • Balletto
  • Arioso II
  • Variazioni sulla notte, for guitar
• Cristóbal Halffter
  • Fantasia sobre una sonoridad de G. F. Haendel, for string orchestra
  • Ricercare, for organ
• Bengt Hambraeus – Voluntary on a Swedish Hymn Tune from Dalecarlia
• Wojciech Kilar – Exodus, a vocal-symphonic poem for mixed choir and orchestra
• George Lloyd – Tenth Symphony (for brass)
• Tome Mančev
  • Symphonic Poem, for large orchestra, Op. 16
  • Dance, for piano and percussion, Op. 19
  • The Year 1014 , for mixed chorus, Op. 20
  • March of the Bicyclists, for children's chorus
• Miroslav Miletić
  • Sonatina for violin and guitar
  • Sonata for viola and piano
  • Three Popular Songs from Dalmatia for voice and guitar
• Steve Reich – Tehillim
• Roger Sessions – Concerto for Orchestra (recorded by Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and for which the composer receives the Pulitzer Prize for Music)
• Robert Simpson
  • Quintet for clarinet and strings
  • Symphony No. 8
• Stanislaw Skrowaczewski – Clarinet Concerto
• Alfred Schnittke
  • Symphony No. 3
  • Minnesang, for 52 voices
  • String Quartet No. 2
• Karlheinz Stockhausen
  • Klavierstück XIII
  • Traum-Formel, for basset horn

Opera[]

• Lorenzo Ferrero – La figlia del mago
• Conrad Susa and Richard Street – Black River
• Karlheinz Stockhausen – Donnerstag aus Licht (March 15, La Scala, Milan, but without act 3, due to a choir strike; first full performance on April 3)

Jazz[]

Musical theater[]

• Barnum – London production opened at the London Palladium on June 11 and ran for 655 performances
• Bring Back Birdie – Broadway production
• Cats (Andrew Lloyd Webber) – London production opened at the New London Theatre on May 11 and ran for 8949 performances
• Dreamgirls – Broadway production opened on December 20 at the Imperial Theatre and ran for 1522 performances
• March of the Falsettoes – off-Broadway production
• Merrily We Roll Along – Broadway production opened at the Alvin Theatre on November 16 and ran for 16 performances
• The Pirates of Penzance – Broadway revival
• Song and Dance – London production
• Woman of the Year – Broadway production opened at the Palace Theatre on March 29 and ran for 770 performances

Musical films[]

• Aakkramanam
• American Pop
• The Great Muppet Caper
• Heavy Metal
• Lili Marleen
• Nandu
• Pennies from Heaven
• Shock Treatment

Births[]

• January 4 – Silvy De Bie, Belgian singer
• January 5 – Carmen Monarcha, Brazilian operatic soprano
• January 7 – Ania, Polish singer-songwriter and composer
• January 15
  • Howie Day, American singer-songwriter
  • Pitbull, Cuban-American rapper
• January 16 – Marta Roure, Andorran singer and actress
• January 19 – Thaila Zucchi, British singer and actress (allSTARS*)
• January 21 – Andy Lee, South Korean singer and actor (Shinhwa)
• January 22 – Willa Ford, American pop singer-songwriter, model, musician and actress
• January 25 – Alicia Keys, American singer-songwriter, record producer, pianist, actress and activist
• January 29 – Jonny Lang, American blues artist
• January 31 – Justin Timberlake, American singer (NSYNC), collaborator with Britney Spears (Jessica Biel, JC Chasez)
• February 1 – Jay R Sillona, Filipino singer
• February 5 – Zameer Rizvi, Canadian singer/songwriter, composer and record producer
• February 9
  • Tom Hiddleston, English actor, film producer and musician (Taylor Swift)
  • The Rev, American musician (Avenged Sevenfold) (d. 2009)^[7]
• February 10 – Natasha St-Pier, Canadian singer
• February 11 – Kelly Rowland American singer-songwriter, member of Destiny's Child
• February 12 – Lisa Hannigan, Irish singer-songwriter, musician and voice actress.
• February 15
  • Matt Hoopes, musician, guitarist and singer-songwriter, (Relient K)
  • Olivia, American singer-songwriter and actress
• February 17 – Paris Hilton, American singer-songwriter, DJ, youtuber and writer
• February 18 – Kamasi Washington, American crossover jazz saxophonist
• February 19 – Beth Ditto, American singer-songwriter, author, entrepreneur (Gossip)
• February 26 – Sharon Van Etten, American singer-songwriter and actress
• February 27 – Josh Groban, American crossover singer-songwriter
• March 3
  • Tobias Forge, Swedish musician
  • Kim Yoo-jin, South Korean singer and actress
  • Shatha Hassoun, Iraqi singer
  • Cristina Scarlat, Moldovan singer
• March 7 – Anna Leese, New Zealand operatic soprano
• March 9 – Chad Gilbert, American musician, singer-songwriter (New Found Glory)
• March 11
  • Russell Lissack (Bloc Party)
  • LeToya Luckett (Destiny's Child)
• March 20 – Declan Bennett, English singer-songwriter
• March 26
  • Anaïs Mitchell, American singer-songwriter, producer and musician (Rachel Ries, Jefferson Hamer, Ani DiFranco, Justin Vernon, Greg Brown and Ben Knox Miller)
  • Jay Sean, British singer-songwriter
• March 27 – JJ Lin, Singaporean singer
• March 29 - Megan Hilty, American singer
• April 1
  • Theresa Sokyrka, Canadian Idol 2 runner-up
  • Hannah Spearritt, English singer and actress (S Club 7)
• April 2 – Raghav, Canadian singer
• April 5 – Mariqueen Maandig, a Filipino American musician and singer-songwriter. (How To Destroy Angels, West Indian Girl, Trent Reznor)
• April 6 – Aidonia, Jamaican dancehall artist
• April 8 – Gummy, Korean singer
• April 10 – Laura Bell Bundy, American actress and singer
• April 17 – Hanna Pakarinen, Finnish singer^[8]
• April 27 – Sandy Mölling, German pop singer
• April 29 – Tom Smith (Editors)
• April 30 – Justin Vernon, American multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter and producer (Bon Iver, Taylor Swift's Folklore and Evermore)
• May 3
  • Farrah Franklin, American singer-songwriter, actress (Destiny's Child)
  • Josh Tillman, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, drummer and record producer
• May 5
  • Jesse Colburn, Canadian guitarist and songwriter
  • Craig David, British singer-songwriter, rapper and record producer
• May 12 – Hannah Ild, Estonian singer-songwriter and pianist
• May 20
  • Sean Conlon, English pop singer (5ive)
  • Rachel Platten, American singer-songwriter
• May 21 – Stig Van Eijk, singer, composer and lyricist
• May 23
  • Dessa, American rapper, singer, spoken word artist, writer and record executive
  • Pierre Lapointe, Canadian singer-songwriter and keyboard player
  • Gwenno Saunders, Welsh singer and dancer (The Pipettes)
• May 30 – Devendra Banhart, Venezuelan American singer-songwriter and visual artist
• June 1 – Brandi Carlile, American folk rock and Americana singer-songwriter
• June 2
  • Brandon Jenner, indie pop musician (Brandon & Leah)
  • Catherine Manoukian, Canadian violinist
• June 7 – Dave Catching, American guitarist, songwriter and producer (Earthlings? and Mondo Generator)
• June 8 – Alex Band, American rock singer-songwriter (The Calling)
• June 9
  • Vic Chou, Taiwanese actor, singer and model
  • Anoushka Shankar, British Indian sitar player
• June 10 – Hoku Ho, Hawaiian singer and musician
• June 15 – Billy Martin (guitarist), American guitarist
• June 17 – Ken the 390, Japanese rapper
• June 20 – Alisan Porter, American singer, winner of season 10 of The Voice (US)
• June 21 – Brandon Flowers, American singer-songwriter, musician, Multi-instrumentalist, advocate, member of (The Killers)
• June 23
  • Mikey Bustos, Filipino-Canadian singer and entertainer
  • Antony Costa (Blue)
  • Shi Xin Hui, Malaysian singer
• June 28
  • Michael Crafter, Australian singer-songwriter (Confession, I Killed the Prom Queen, Carpathian and Bury Your Dead)
  • Savage (AKA Demetrius Savelio) New Zealand born Samoan rapper
• July 1 – Clemency Burton-Hill, English classical music broadcast presenter
• July 3 – Hayley Holt, New Zealand snowboarder, host and ballroom dancer
• July 6 – Emily West, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• July 7 – Synyster Gates, American musician (Avenged Sevenfold)
• July 8
  • Oka Antara, Indonesian rapper and actor
  • Dagmar Oja, Estonian singer
• July 12
  • Rebecca Hunter, English pop singer (allSTARS*) and actress
  • Maya Sar, Bosnian singer
• July 14 – Milow, Belgian singer-songwriter
• July 15 – OC Ukeje, Nigerian actor, model and musician
• July 20
  • , American rapper and producer
  • Dayang Nurfaizah, Malaysian singer
• July 21
  • Paloma Faith, English singer-songwriter
  • Blake Lewis, American Idol 6 runner-up
  • Claudette Ortiz, American singer and model (City High)
• July 22 – Anthony Santos, American singer-songwriter and composer
• July 25 – Kizito Mihigo, Rwandan gospel singer, organist and peace activist (d. 2020)^[9]
• July 31
  • Mesut Kurtis, British Turkish Islamic singer
  • Ira Losco, Maltese singer
  • M. Shadows, American singer-songwriter and musician (Avenged Sevenfold)
• August 1 – Vaiko Eplik, Estonian singer-songwriter
• August 4 – Florian Silbereisen, German singer and television presenter
• August 5 – Ko Shibasaki, Japanese singer and actress
• August 6 – Leslie Odom Jr., American singer and actor
• August 8
  • Vanessa Amorosi, Australian singer-songwriter, musician, guitarist and rock star (Dave Stewart)
  • Bradley McIntosh, English pop singer (S Club 7)
  • Kaori Iida, Japanese singer and actress
• August 11 – Sandi Thom, Scottish singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist
• August 24 – Jiro Wang, Taiwanese actor and singer (Fahrenheit)
• August 28 – Iracema Trevisan (Cansei de Ser Sexy)
• September 4
  • Beyoncé, American singer-songwriter, dancer and actress
  • Lacey Sturm, American singer-songwriter (Flyleaf)
• September 6 – Yumiko Cheng, Hong Kong singer
• September 7 – Do, Dutch singer
• September 14 – Ashley Roberts American singer-songwriter, dancer, choreographer, actress, model, presenter and television personality (The Pussycat Dolls)
• September 16 – Nazril Irham, Indonesian singer
• September 18 – Jesse Frasure, American music publisher, record producer, songwriter and DJ
• September 25 – Perfume Genius, American indie EDM musician, singer-songwriter and artist
• September 26 – Christina Milian, American singer-songwriter, dancer and actress
• September 29 – Suzanne Shaw, English singer (Hear'Say) and actress
• October 1 – Jamelia, British singer
• October 5 – Breakbot, producer and DJ
• October 8 – Ruby, Egyptian singer
• October 10 – Una Healy, Irish singer (The Saturdays)
• October 13
  • Doveman, American singer, pianist and producer
  • Kele Okereke, Kele, English musician (Bloc Party)
• October 14 – Ruslan Alekhno, Russian-Belarusian singer
• October 15 – Nick White (Tilly and the Wall)
• October 19 – Christian Bautista, Filipino singer, actor, host and model
• October 25 – Josh Henderson, American actor, singer and model
• October 29 – Angelika Dela Cruz, Filipina actress and singer^[10]
• October 31 – Frank Iero, American rock guitarist (My Chemical Romance)
• November 1
  • Tommy Karevik, Swedish metal vocalist (Kamelot, Seventh Wonder, Ayreon)
  • LaTavia Roberson, American R&B singer-songwriter (Destiny's Child)
• November 7 – Krystal Harris, American singer-songwriter
• November 13 – Shawn Yue, Hong Kong actor and singer
• November 16 – Kate Miller-Heidke, Australian crossover singer-songwriter and actress
• November 17 – Sarah Harding, English pop singer-songwriter, dancer, model and actress (Girls Aloud) (d. 2021)
• November 20
  • Scott Hutchison, Scottish singer-songwriter, guitarist and artist (d. 2018)
  • Kimberley Walsh, English pop singer-songwriter (Girls Aloud)
• November 22
  • Ben Adams, English pop singer-songwriter (A1)
  • Jenny Owen Youngs, American singer-songwriter
• November 26 – Natasha Bedingfield, English singer-songwriter
• November 30 – Mavado, Jamaican deejay and singer-songwriter
• December 2 – Britney Spears, American singer-songwriter, dancer, performer, musician, clothes designer, author, activist and advocate
• December 9 – Camoflauge, American rapper (d. 2003)
• December 11 – Zacky Vengeance, heavy metal rhythm guitarist and backing vocalist (Avenged Sevenfold)
• December 13
  • Gary Innes, Scottish accordionist, shinty player and broadcaster
  • Amy Lee, American singer-songwriter, musician and multi instrumentalist (Evanescence)
• December 16
  • Gaby Moreno, Guatemalan singer
  • Krysten Ritter, American musician and actress
• December 17
  • Wacław Kiełtyka, Polish musician and composer
  • Houari Manar, Algerian raï singer (d. 2019)
• December 21 – Lynda Thomas, Mexican musician, singer-songwriter, eurodance and alternative rock musician
• December 23 – Beth, Spanish singer and actress
• December 28 – Frank Turner, English punk and folk singer-songwriter

Deaths[]

• January 1 – Hephzibah Menuhin, pianist and human rights campaigner, 60
• January 4 – Ruth Lowe, pianist and songwriter, 66
• January 23 – Samuel Barber, composer, 70
• January 25 – Adele Astaire, US dancer, actress and singer, 84
• February 1
  • Frank Merrick, pianist
  • Geirr Tveitt, Norwegian composer, 72
  • Ernst Pepping, composer, 79
• February 9 – Bill Haley, rock and roll pioneer, 55 (heart attack)
• February 15
  • Mike Bloomfield, blues guitarist, 37 (accidental drug overdose)
  • Karl Richter, German organist and conductor, 54
• February 19 – Olive Gilbert, actress and singer, 82
• February 21 – Ron Grainer, electronic music pioneer and composer, 58
• February 26 – Howard Hanson, composer, 84
• April 5
  • Bob Hite, vocalist (Canned Heat), 38 (heart attack)
  • Maurice Zbriger, violinist, composer and conductor
• April 7 – Kit Lambert, former manager and producer of The Who, 45 (fell downstairs)
• April 8 – Burt Shevelove, librettist, 66
• April 14 – Ivan Galamian, violin teacher, 78
• April 28 – Steve Currie, bassist of T.Rex, 33 (car crash)
• May 11 – Bob Marley, reggae musician, 36 (cancer)
• May 25 – Roy Brown, blues singer, 55
• May 28 – Mary Lou Williams, jazz pianist, 71
• July 1 – Rushton Moreve, US bass player and songwriter (Steppenwolf), 32
• July 16 – Harry Chapin, US singer-songwriter, 38 (car crash)
• August 18 – Robert Russell Bennett, composer and arranger, 87
• August 26 – Lee Hays, folk singer, 67
• September 2 – Tadeusz Baird, composer, 53
• September 8 – Master Venu, film composer, 65
• September 14 – Furry Lewis, country blues guitarist and songwriter, 88
• September 15 – Chick Bullock, US singer, 72
• September 22 – Henry Warren, film songwriter, 87
• October 2 – Hazel Scott, classical pianist and singer, 61
• October 5 – Sven Gyldmark, film composer, 77
• October 13 – Marius Casadesus, violinist and composer, 88
• October 15 – Elsie Randolph, English actress, dancer and singer, 77
• October 29 – Georges Brassens, singer-songwriter, 60
• November 27 – Lotte Lenya, actress and singer, wife of Kurt Weill, 83
• December 13 – Cornelius Cardew, avant-garde composer, 45 (road accident)
• December 27 – Hoagy Carmichael, pianist, singer and songwriter, 82

Awards[]

Grammy Awards[]

• Grammy Awards of 1981

Country Music Association Awards[]

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Eurovision Song Contest[]

• Eurovision Song Contest 1981

Charts[]

List of No. 1 Hits[]

• List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1981

See also[]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Music in 1981.

• Timeline of musical events

References[]