Turn Up the Volume on This ‘80s Music Quiz

Billy Joel’s 1989 song “We Didn’t Start the Fire” includes over 100 references to important figures and events from history and pop culture. The song’s lyrics begin by mentioning U.S. President Harry Truman, and the final reference pays homage to the cola wars between Coke and Pepsi when they hired Paula Abdul and Michael Jackson, respectively, as brand representatives.

Though it produced a widely ridiculed music video, Mick Jagger and David Bowie’s 1985 cover of “Dancing in the Street” proved to be a musical hit, and it was all done for charity. The video debuted at the Live Aid famine relief concert on July 13, 1985, and reached No. 1 in the U.K. and No. 7 stateside.

Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” was revolutionary in the music video space, thanks in part to Aardman Animation, the company behind the popular claymation cartoon “Wallace and Gromit.” Gabriel described the scene where clouds flew across his face as “painful,” because paint was constantly reapplied to his face for each stop-motion take.

Released posthumously four years after John Lennon’s death, “Milk and Honey” was the final studio release of new material from the former Beatle. The album was recorded with his wife, Yoko Ono, and was a sequel to the final studio album released during Lennon’s lifetime, 1980’s “Double Fantasy.”

The signature songs from James Bond movies have featured some of the world’s most iconic artists, from Shirley Bassey to Madonna. “Nobody Does It Better” by Carly Simon and “Live and Let Die” by Paul McCartney and Wings came close to topping the U.S. Billboard chart, both placing at No. 2. But it wasn’t until 1985 that Duran Duran got Bond to the top spot with their synth-pop hit “A View to a Kill,” from the film of the same name, which starred Roger Moore as Bond.

A-ha, the band behind the 1985 hit “Take On Me,” hails from Oslo, Norway. The song was on their debut album, ”Hunting High and Low,” which sold 11 million copies, earning the band a Best New Artist Grammy nomination. The catchy synth-pop track — and its iconic, award-winning video — remains the band’s biggest hit to date.

One of the biggest acts of the disco era, KC and the Sunshine Band had the first No. 1 hit of the 1980s with their love ballad “Please Don’t Go” off the 1979 album “Do You Wanna Go Party.” Released at the tail end of the 1970s, the song topped the charts on January 5, 1980.

When the Chicago White Sox won the World Series in 2005, baseball fans around the country belted out Journey's 1981 hit “Don't Stop Believin'.” The song is the official anthem of the team thanks to one fateful night at a bar. A group of White Sox players heard the anthemic power ballad during a night out in Baltimore and decided it fit the team’s hopeful story. The track enjoyed yet another life when it scored the talked-about series finale of HBO’s “The Sopranos” in June 2007.

In 1985, the movie “The Breakfast Club” came out, with a theme song specifically written for the film: “Don’t You (Forget About Me),” performed by the Scottish band Simple Minds. Today, the song is synonymous with John Hughes' beloved Brat Pack film starring Molly Ringwald, Judd Nelson, Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, and Emilio Estevez.

N.W.A. ushered in a new era of gangsta rap with their 1988 album “Straight Outta Compton.” Though the album’s namesake single was banned from airing on MTV, the album went on to redefine the genre. “Rolling Stone” named it one of the “500 Greatest Albums of All Time,” and it was later certified triple-platinum.

Many of us have been there — your friend sends you a link to something that sounds amazing, you click it, and BAM, you’re suddenly watching the video for Rick Astley’s 1987 cheesy hit “Never Gonna Give You Up.” You’ve been rickrolled. The prank cropped up around 2006, and soon the song soon enjoyed a second wave of popularity.

Though they didn’t achieve worldwide acclaim until the 1990s, the grunge act Nirvana hit the scene in 1989 with their debut album “Bleach.” Featuring Kurt Cobain on guitar and Krist Novoselic on bass, the album predated future drummer Dave Grohl and showcased Chad Channing on drums. The band’s first single was “Love Buzz,” a cover of a Shocking Blue song.

The first song to appear on MTV, in 1981, was more than a little prophetic: The song was The Buggles’ “Video Killed the Radio Star” — and that’s pretty much what happened, for a time at least, after music videos hit the scene. As MTV became enormously popular, television surpassed radio as the music industry’s primary hit-maker.

Madonna’s first No. 1 hit was 1984’s “Like a Virgin,” off the album of the same name. The provocative pop track reached the top of the charts on December 22 that year and stayed there for six weeks, helping catapult Madonna to superstardom. The song was so popular that it’s endured in pop culture, even featuring in several Hollywood films, including Quentin Tarantino’s “Reservoir Dogs.”

“Danger Zone” was the hit single from the soundtrack to the 1986 movie “Top Gun.” Musician Kenny Loggins had previously reached No. 1 two years earlier performing another song from a soundtrack, the theme to the movie “Footloose.” The “Danger Zone” track was pitched to acts including Toto, Bryan Adams, and REO Speedwagon before Loggins ultimately signed on to perform.

“This Is Spinal Tap” starred comedic actors Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer as a satirical hair metal band. Though they were conceived of as parody, the movie’s soundtrack — on which those actors actually performed their instruments — was a hit. Spinal Tap went on to tour in real life, and released a follow-up album in 1992.

Though Survivor’s “Eye of the Tiger” was the theme song for “Rocky III” only, it quickly became synonymous with all of the “Rocky” movies. The song was written specifically for the movie, at the request of Sylvester Stallone (who played Rocky). It was a switch from the previous theme, “Gonna Fly Now” by composer Bill Conti, because Stallone wanted something with a better beat.

Live Aid was a huge charitable effort organized by Bob Geldof that raised $127 million for African famine relief. The show’s lineup featured acts including Elton John and The Who, but no act made more of an impact than Queen. Frontman Freddie Mercury’s performance of indelible tracks such as “Bohemian Rhapsody” captivated the audience both in person and at home.

1982’s “Africa” by Toto remains a smash hit, even today. The song appeared on the album “Toto IV,” and was conceived of when band member David Paich happened upon the brassy sound on his new keyboard. Paich initially finished the chorus’s melody and lyrics in just 10 minutes, only to spend the next six months refining the words.

In 1982, Prince released “1999,” a seemingly apocalyptic song urging us to party like it’s 1999, the year the world is sure to end. But according to Prince, it’s actually an optimistic song. He had no concerns about what would happen when the year 2000 ushered in the new millennium, and he wanted to write a song that would give people hope.