Yep it's very good, atmospheric, reminds me of the best atmospheric 80s ballads The Cars - Drive or Mr Mister - Broken Wings when the synths come in. Very good vocal as you say.

The use of bass guitar player Pino Palladino seems to be influenced by Gary Numan's use of him the year before.

Billie Jean is catchy and Phil Collins does a good cover of You Can't Hurry Love.

Edited January 10Jan 10 by TheSnake

There are few people who can cover a Marvin Gaye song and improve on it but Paul easily did thst here. Moody soulful and classy its one of the best records of the year. Top 5 for sure but behind Billie Jean n Billy Joel so far.

I got tickets to see Paul last year but had to miss it as i had a stinking cold or covid or summat and didnt want risk killing off half his local fans. Tch! I still havethe memory of Paul walking past me at Wembley with his model girlfriend as I stood outside listening to Kim Wilde warming up the Michael Jackson crowd. Couldnt get tickets unlike him....

'Billie Jean' is an all time classic but several of MJ's other singles from this era are on the same level as that for me.

I like Phil's cover of 'You Can’t Hurry Love' but Supremes is class as well.

Not crazy on 'Wherever I Lay My Hat (That’s My Home)' though. It's okay at best but does plod along and not in an interesting way for me, much prefer 'Love Of The Common People' and 'Come Back and Stay'.

"Billie Jean" is fantastic - an absolute contender for number 1 for me. My favourite MJ song.

The cover version of "You Can't Hurry Love" is alright and Phil gives the whole song a new atmosphere.

Not a big fan of the Paul Young - would be close to the bottom for me. I find it really boring and uninspired. Come Back And Stay is soooo much better and has a great refrain, hich is lacking here.

4. Down Under - Men At Work

Men At Work were formed in Melbourne in 1979 and first recorded Down Under the following year as the B side to their first single 'Keypunch Operator'. The version we all know had a faster pace to it and was part of the group's 1981 album 'Business As Usual'. The first single from that album, 'Who Can It Be Now?' stalled at number 45 but went all the way to the top of the Billboard chart, leading the way for Down Under to reach number 1 on both sides of the Atlantic. Over here, it spent three weeks at number 1 in February. At one point, the single and album topped the UK and US charts all at the same time.

In 2007, an Australian quiz show included the question "What children's song is contained in the song Down Under?" The answer being "Kookaburra" led two years later to a court case with Larrikin Music, who held the rights to the song, being awarded $100,000. Lead singer Colin Hay said that his legal fees amounted to much more, about $4.5 million. The disputed part of the song was the flute solo and he said that the stress of the court case had led to the early death of the flute player, Greg Ham, in 2012.

Down Under returned to the top 5 in 2022 in the shape of a drum'n'bass rework by Luude which featured a new vocal by Colin Hay. Men At Work's other three top 40 hits were all in 1983. Colin Hay still fronts the group but with no other original members.

You don't get many number 1 singles as quirky and unusual as this one. The lyrics describe a trip around the 'hippie trail' and then to Brussels and Bombay where the person in the song encounters people who warn him that the modernisation of Australia and the selling of land could have some harsh consequences. This is counteracted by the light, cheerful sound to the music and the humorous music video. I think the flute bits are my favourite parts of the song.

No surprises that Phil Collins would be waaayyyyyy lower for me, the original every time for me.

Men At Work has aged really well and would be top 5 for me I think - it's another song that I used to think was a novelty track tbh, probably just because of the lyrics, but actually it's shown itself to be really distinctive and deserving of its success.

The Paul Young track is one I quite like but I've always thought it was such a strange #1 out of all of his hits, it also just felt quite sort of boring compared to most of the other #1s from this era. I agree with others that Come Back and Stay is better, I also preferred Love of the Common People although it hasn't aged that well. My parents had his No Parlez album and I realised that it was actually where I first knew Love Will Tear Us Apart, I'm surprised that he never released that as a single as I think it would have been a hit - it's obviously nowhere near as good as the Joy Division original but it's also not as bad as it sounds.

Men at Work and Men Without Hats it could only be '83!

3. Every Breath You Take - The Police

London group The Police had already reached number 1 with 'Message In A Bottle', 'Walking On The Moon', 'Don't Stand So Close To Me' and 'Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic' and this ended up as their final chart topper with four weeks at number 1 in June. Sting said he woke up in the middle of the night with one line in his head and wrote the rest of the song on a piano in half an hour. Later on in the studio, guitarist Andy Summers added the guitar riff for which the song is best known. In the US, the single spent eight weeks at number 1, the group's only chart topper there, and was the best selling single of the year, also winning two Grammy awards. The cinematic black and white video was directed by Godley & Creme.

In 2019, the BMI declared Every Breath You Take as the most played song in radio history. It was also sampled on the 1997 number 1 single 'I'll Be Missing You' by Puff Daddy and Faith Evans, another huge seller adding to the fortune that Sting has made from writing the song. He might lose some of that fortune as, in August 2025, Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers sued him for writing credits and lost royalties. Bringing things even further up to date, the song is at number 17 on the current chart after featuring in 'Stranger Things'.

I'd put this in the same category as 'Billie Jean', it's a song that's universally well regarded but only gets a 'very good' rating from me, below 'great'. The guitar part certainly stands out and Sting puts in a fine vocal. The lyrics are quite menacing, written from the point of view of someone stalking their ex partner. As with 'Billie Jean', I prefer two other singles from the album, 'King Of Pain' and 'Synchronicity II'.

The Paul Young song is a bit plodding for me but I do like 'Every Breath You Take' and 'Down Under'! It's mad how much of a classic the former has become in the streaming era, with over 3 billion plays on Spotify. It indeed re-entered the top 40 this week but was unfortunately skipped on the chart show. It's a shame 'I'll Be Missing You' is so tainted now as it's my birthday #1 😅 classic riff anyway. I wasn't crazy about the Luude makeover of 'Down Under', a bit too harsh for my ears, but the original is brilliant. I like the comedic song-writing (Vegemite sandwich and all) and the heavy use of the flute.

A quite depressing song with the lyrical themes, certainly compared to The Police's other hits. It is iconic though.

Lot of love for Men at Work, that would be quite high up for me too. Just a very addictive song, a lot of cultural references from the time haven't aged the best, but this one still holds up.

Every Breath You Take is a classic too, first knew about it through the (now tainted) Puff Daddy version, the original is certainly very dark but fit the isolated mood of Synchronicity well when the band were in a bad place.

Billie Jean would definitely be lot higher for me, MJ himself is a question mark these days, but most of Thriller remains absolutely timeless and this is a good candidate for his best song.

The others in the top 10 aren't big favourites, I do have a soft spot for the Phil Collins cover, he certainly sells it enthusiastically even if it's not quite as smooth as the original.

To coincide with my countdown, BBC2 are showing 'Paul Young At The BBC' this evening along with 'Top Of The Pops 1983: Big Hits' and 'Top Of The Pops: The Story Of 1983'.

Love both "Down Under" and "Every Breath You Take" - good positioning.

'Down Under' is great. Shame about the dance version a few years back.

'Every Breath You Take' is also fab!

I'm not too keen on the Paul Young song but it is a competently performed version (I can't remember if I've heard Marvin Gaye's original). 'Down Under' is one I'd have similarly high up though, a unique #1 that makes good use of humour. I didn't know about the court case, that's sad to learn about the toll that took.

'Every Breath You Take' is an undisputed classic, the riff is unmistakeable and the lyrical theme is subtly buried in what initially comes across as a straightforward love song. That is the one I was thinking might top this that I'd back, although my own favourite is still yet to be revealed!

Down Under is fab, a number one for me as was Every Breath You Take, both classics. Men At Work I went to see in Nottingham in 1983/4 and they were fun, but Down Under is their gem no question. It's struck a nerve due to the number of Aussies abroad roaming the world and ending up in London - which had been a pop music tradition since the 60's for anyone wanting global success! Top 5 for me. Every Breath You Take is my number 2 so far, stark but moving and immacculately created, shame about the court case but I tend to go with the U2 band attitude - if you contribute to the success of a song via drum and bass bits you come up with, it's only democratic to get a writers credit. That might not be necessary where one person hires in talent (though I think morally they should for anything new they add to a finished product) but a band is a group. Shame about Down Under too, it would have been cheaper just to credit the original song and everyone gains and you avoid stress.

That does seem to be a lesson the pop biz has learned these days, just be upfront with the credits!

2. Let's Dance - David Bowie

For his fifteenth album, David Bowie enlisted the help of Nile Rodgers to bring a more commercial sound to his music and get some hits. His plan worked with Let's Dance becoming his first transatlantic number 1, topping the UK chart for three weeks in April, and it's still his best selling single. The song's video was filmed in Australia and its theme of the Aboriginal people being marginalised by unrestrained capitalism reminds me of some of the lyrics of 'Down Under' which I reviewed the other day. The next two singles from the 'Let's Dance' album, 'China Girl' and 'Modern Love' both reached number 2.

The song immediately grabs the listener with that rising vocal intro followed by the bass, drums. trumpet and saxophone. An echo is put on David's vocal to give it a bit of scale. I like words "flower" and "serious moonlight" being extended to give them emphasis. All the while, the band assembled for the recording make some impactful contributions. David had not worked with them before. Nile Rodgers' production is also excellent in bringing everything together. As for the lyrics, they're a bit cryptic. There's seems to be some threat to the dancing couple, either they're not happy with their relationship, suggested by "put on your red shoes and dance the blues" or maybe the "serious moonlight" is some sort of danger over which they have no control, like in 'Dancing With Tears In My Eyes' by Ultravox. The nuclear bomb exploding in the song's video could back up that theory. Having relistened to Let's Dance just now, I would say it's well ahead of 'Every Breath You Take' in my affections.

1. Total Eclipse Of The Heart - Bonnie Tyler

Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler first hit the charts in 1976 with 'Lost In France', a number 9 hit, which was followed a year later by 'It's A Heartache' (number 4). After a few lean years, she changed record labels and chose Jim Steinman to be her producer after liking his work with Meatloaf. Having met up with her, Steinman wrote Total Eclipse Of The Heart to suit her unique vocal style. The single spent two weeks at number 1 in March and also topped the US chart for four weeks. It's certainly become her signature song with 1 billion streams on Spotify and 1.2 billion views of the video on youtube. For a long time, I believed the myth that Gianfranco Zola was the boy at the end of the video. It was claimed that he was on a school exchange trip from Italy at a school that was near the location where the video was filmed. He has confirmed in an interview that it wasn't him, just a lookalike.

Bonnie went on to have two more top 10 hits in the 80s and then much later on, in 2013, surprised many by representing the UK in the Eurovision Song Contest, finishing in 19th place.

So I've chosen the only number 1 to have female vocals as my favourite from 1983. I like dramatic songs and had no hesitation in picking this epic power ballad. It has an unusual structure with the "turn around" section at the start going on for one and a half minutes. The song then drives forward from the line "and I need you now tonight" before calming down from "once upon a time, I was falling in love". Have we got to the chorus yet? Who knows?, that's why I like it so much, it's unpredictability. Next comes the instrumental break with keyboards, drums and sleigh bells. How inspired to put sleigh bells in a non Christmas song. Bonnie then belts out the next section with her husky voice before the song quietens down once more with just the piano and bass guitar accompanying her. It then closes with more "turn around bright eyes" from the uncredited vocalist, Rory Dodd. The lyrics are not easy to make sense of but I'll settle for Jim Steinman's explanation that this is a vampire story.

This is a recap of my rankings for 1983:

1. Total Eclipse Of The Heart - Bonnie Tyler

2. Let's Dance - David Bowie

3. Every Breath You Take - The Police

4. Down Under - Men At Work

5. Wherever I Lay My Hat (That's My Home) - Paul Young

6. You Can't Hurry Love - Phil Collins

7. Billie Jean - Michael Jackson

8. Is There Something I Should Know? - Duran Duran

9. Too Shy - Kajagoogoo

10. Red Red Wine - UB40

11. Uptown Girl - Billy Joel

12. True - Spandau Ballet

13. Only You - The Flying Pickets

14. Give It Up - KC and the Sunshine Band

15. Karma Chameleon - Culture Club

16. Baby Jane - Rod Stewart

17. Candy Girl - New Edition

Thanks to everyone who has commented on or followed my countdown.

'Let's Dance' is a cracking track and a fully deserved runner up but 'Total Esclipe Of The Heart' is just magnificent. Powerful and dramatic with the eerie ghost like sound. Bonnie sells the hell out of it.

My ranking

1 Karma Chameleon

2 Total Eclipse Of The Heart

3 Billie Jean

4 Let's Dance

5 Every Breath You Take

6 Uptown Girl

7 Down Under

8 Baby Jane

9 Too Shy

10 Only You

11 Red Red Wine

12 Give It Up

13 You Can't Hurry Love

14 Is There Something I Should Know?

15 Wherever I Lay My Hat, That's My Home

16 True

17 Candy Girl

Only the last three I could do without!

Thanks for running this Rollo!