These are a few of my dad's favorite 80s songs (1938) and I'm just curious about any other Silents or early Baby Boomers (i.e. into their 30s, 40s even 50s at the time) who perhaps were at least casual fans of music on the radio, if this was more their style? I'm sure very few adults liked New Kids on the Block or something. :D

I Just Called to Say I Love You- Stevie Wonder
Holding Back the Years- Simply Red
Don't Worry Be Happy
Every Breath You Take (and many other Police songs)
Sailing- Christopher Cross
Nightshift- Commodores
Being With You- Smokey
California Girls & Just a Gigolo- David Lee Roth
One More Night- Phil Collins
Sexual Healing- Marvin Gaye
One - U2 (yeah I know 1992, but I think it could pass)
Dancing in the Dark- Springsteen

First, my general opinion:

Jack Wagner- All I Need
Honeydrippers- Sea of Love
Barry Manilow- When October Comes
Bette Midler- The Wind Beneath My Wings
Peabo Bryson- If You're Ever in My Arms Again
Richard Marx- Right Here Waiting
Most Phil Collins really (except for perhaps Sussudio and Don't Lose My Number)
USA For Africa- We Are the World (a shame that so few stations that play '80s music actually play this with its meaning still relevant today where one can just look up a non-profit and donate)
Whitney Houston (except for perhaps How Will I Know, So Emotional, and I Wanna Dance With Somebody)
ALL Lionel Richie
ALL Stray Cats
Anything by a former '60s/early '70s artist really (Elton John, Billy Joel, Chicago, former Beatles)
Virtually all of the country crossover hits early in the decade
ALL Dan Fogelberg
ALL Christopher Cross
All Barbra Streisand (after 1981 her hits didn't crossover with the young generation, but remained popular with her loyal fans)
ALL Michael Bolton after his first two albums (peaked in the early '90s, but started in the late '80s and catered for the same demographic)
They (the former Elvis/early Beatles generation) may have liked most of the other, poppier stuff being perhiphery demographic similar to some of the '60s pop, but they would NEVER listen to any post-punk/college/rap (except for perhaps Walk This Way).

A good idea of what somewhat older fans listened to (mostly centering on thirtysomethings) is to check out the Adult Contemporary charts of the era if you can access them (called Easy Listening in the '60s/most of the '70s). Nowadays, adult contemporary seems to have the most appeal with the twentysomething demographic just like the pop chart is for teens and tweens.

First, my general opinion:

Jack Wagner- All I Need
Honeydrippers- Sea of Love
Barry Manilow- When October Comes
Bette Midler- The Wind Beneath My Wings
Peabo Bryson- If You're Ever in My Arms Again
Richard Marx- Right Here Waiting
Most Phil Collins really (except for perhaps Sussudio and Don't Lose My Number)
USA For Africa- We Are the World (a shame that so few stations that play '80s music actually play this with its meaning still relevant today where one can just look up a non-profit and donate)
Whitney Houston (except for perhaps How Will I Know, So Emotional, and I Wanna Dance With Somebody)
ALL Lionel Richie
ALL Stray Cats
Anything by a former '60s/early '70s artist really (Elton John, Billy Joel, Chicago, former Beatles)
Virtually all of the country crossover hits early in the decade
ALL Dan Fogelberg
ALL Christopher Cross
All Barbra Streisand (after 1981 her hits didn't crossover with the young generation, but remained popular with her loyal fans)
ALL Michael Bolton after his first two albums (peaked in the early '90s, but started in the late '80s and catered for the same demographic)
They (the former Elvis/early Beatles generation) may have liked most of the other, poppier stuff being perhiphery demographic similar to some of the '60s pop, but they would NEVER listen to any post-punk/college/rap (except for perhaps Walk This Way).

Great choices and I hadn't thought of some of those but I agree. Yeah, its interesting how there were adult-oriented singers (like Whitney & Phil Collins) who had just enough youth appeal with their dancey upbeat pop songs, which the older crowd might've not liked so much.

Yeah, I'd say they definitely would've strayed away from "edgy" 80s music like punk, college/alternative, heavy metal (especially "harder" metal like Judas Priest and Ozzy or definitely thrash like early Metallica) and that time's girly teenpop like Debbie Gibson. It's amazing to think of how diverse the bulk of the Top 40 was.

I imagine that my parents (born in '46 and '49) could have definitely enjoyed "Born in the USA" by Bruce Springsteen. I suppose that my dad probably enjoyed the Highwaymen (a country supergroup composed of Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Kris Kristofferson, and Waylon Jennings), considering that he was a big fan of Kris Kristofferson's 70's work. While 60's rock seems to be his favorite music, I think country was one genre where he kept up with current artists well after he had tuned out of present day rock (for example, his purchase of Billy Ray Cyrus's 1992 album "Some Gave It All" when he would have been about 43 was perhaps the only example I remember of him being into contemporary popular music when I was a child). However, since my parents didn't listen to a lot of music on our large home stereo apart from 1960's rock when I was a kid, I am not really sure.

My parents were also born in '46 and '49.  They actually listened to a lot of oldies when I was a kid.  My mom listened to Top 40 sometimes, and my dad listened to country on occasion, but I guess they were going through 50's and 60's childhood nostalgia the same way I'm going through it now by listening to a lot of 80's and early 90's.  So, actually, oldies remind me more of the 80's than 80's music does, a lot of times, because that's mostly what I heard as a kid who had very little interest in my own music until I was about 13.

My parents were also born in '46 and '49.  They actually listened to a lot of oldies when I was a kid. 

My Parents were born 1941 and 1945 and they listened to a lot of doo-wop music.

My parents were both born in 1947 and my mom loved nearly everything that came out in her time.

My parents were both born in 1947 and my mom loved nearly everything that came out in her time.


What about 50's Doo-Wop music?

What about 50's Doo-Wop music?


She hates some of that ga ga goo goo stuff.

I Just Called to Say I Love You- Stevie Wonder


Yep Stevie's "I Just Called..." will always remind me of my dad in the 80s (he was born 1936).

As for my Mum, she loved/loves Julio Iglesias (she was born in 1940).

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She hates some of that ga ga goo goo stuff.


It's not that bad, some of it is good.

Paul McCartney: No More Lonely Nights
John Lennon: Woman
George Harrison: When We Was Fab

Yep Stevie's "I Just Called..." will always remind me of my dad in the 80s (he was born 1936).


Oh that's cool. :) Your dad is even a little older than mine and he likes it too? I think its pretty easy listening and even kinda sounds like a Christmas song, so in a way it doesn't surprise me middle-aged people liked it too.

My parents are "Silent" and by then they really were kind of out of it.  There were some songs they liked, but I think those were popular songs that the morning AM talk shows would bother to mix in.

The last act I remember my mother liking a lot was Village People (in fact, disco is the last genre she really liked).  But that was '70s!  LOL  She just turned 40.

I think if I could play my hit albums in front of them they may realize they missed a bit!

Back in the '80s I remember certain songs entertainment writers would mention they liked, but their teens didn't care for.

Plus I used to listen to more than one radio station back then including one "adult contemporary" station, and another station that played Muzak, but would play a non-Muzak song every now and then.

And let's don't forget VH-1. When VH-1 started it was supposed to be MTV for people over the age of 30.

So with that, these songs come to mind,

One On One - Hall & Oates
Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime - Korgis
Somewhere - Barbra Streisand
The Time Of My Life - Bill Medley & Jennifer Warnes
Time - The Alan Parsons Project
And of course, all Air Supply songs
Seven Year Ache - Rosanne Cash
Someone That I Used To Love - Natalie Cole
Arthur's Theme - Christopher Cross
Do Right - Paul Davis
I Made It Through the Rain - Barry Manilow
Morning Train - Sheena Easton
The Living Years - Mike & The Mechanics
Key Largo - Bertie Higgins
Suddenly - Billy Ocean

And let's don't forget VH-1. When VH-1 started it was supposed to be MTV for people over the age of 30.

Didn't MTV in the earlier years did the same thing?

VH1 offered adult-only entertainment well into the 1994's.  It was only post 1995 that they went all Nickelodeon on our asses.  But yes, until then it was Stevie Wonder & Nicks, classic jazz, high school musicals, and even Radiohead on a regular basis.  I don't think they ever really got the point, and that's why the channel didn't last.  All hail the short-lived, ill-fated cable music channel VH1.  I remember this was its logo when it started out:

http://images.wikia.com/logopedia/images/archive/d/d8/20130107001009!HBO_ident_1978.jpg

Maybe Got My Mind Set On You by George Harrison?

Aretha Franklin- Who's Zooming Who?
Aretha Franklin- Jumpin' Jack Flash
Gregory Abott- Shake You Down
Paul McCarthy and Michael Jackson - Say Say Say
Tommy Tutone - 867-5309/Jenny
Patti Labelle and Michael McDonald - On My Own

Aretha Franklin- Who's Zooming Who?
Rolling Stones- Jumpin' Jack Flash
Gregory Abott- Shake You Down
Chaka Khan- I Feel For YouPaul McCarthy and Michael Jackson - Say Say Say
Tommy Tutone - 867-5309/Jenny
Patti Labelle and Michael McDonald - On My Own


You mean the Aretha Franklin version from 1986, not the original Rolling Stones song from '68. I don't know about that Chaka Khan song due to some rapping in it and is quite rhythmic that sounds nothing like '70s R&B/funk.

You mean the Aretha Franklin version from 1986, not the original Rolling Stones song from '68. I don't know about that Chaka Khan song due to some rapping in it and is quite rhythmic that sounds nothing like '70s R&B/funk.


You're right, I went back to correct everything.

My mom was born in 1938 and she really liked a lot of the '80s music I was listening to growing up. She'll still say the '80s were a great decade for music. I remember she really liked "Total Eclipse of the Heart."