Search - Various Artists :: Billboard Top Hits: 1984

Don't Buy For the Yes Track

M. Montgomery | 06/07/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This a a good selection and, as always with Billboard, the fidelity is first rate.



But don't buy for the Yes track "Owner of a Lonely Heart." Despite the fact that the CD makes the boastful claim that each track is "Sounding exactly as it did when first released," on "Lonely Heart" the crucial upbeat explosion of an ending--the strongest part of the whole track--is cut, entirely, in favor of a boring slow fade of the song's chorus. Since I never owned the track, my knowledge of it is 100% radio based, showing that Billboard is, shall we say, shading the truth a bit in its claims. In addition to on the original Yes album "90125," you can also find the complete version of the track on Vh1's "The Big 80s: Arena Rock," along with a few other interesting tracks.



But for the other tracks (back to the Billboard 84 CD), I don't hear any problems.





Billboard puts out a good product overall, I also recommend the 1979 disco CD if you like that stuff."

An all around great 80's album!

retrowens | Alabama, USA | 05/03/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"To me, 80's rock is the best music in the world. Billboard Top Hits: 1984 is the third Billboard Top Hits album that I've bought. I also have the 1983 and the 1985 albums and I rank this one second right behind the BTH: 1985 one.This album has it all! It has upbeat rockers ("Owner of A Lonely Heart"), good ballads ("Hold Me Now"), and some songs that are downright catchy ("Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go"). If you like rock 'n roll from the 80's, I definitely recommend picking up this gem."

Rather good but not comprehensive--sigh...

Matthew G. Sherwin | last seen screaming at Amazon customer service | 04/19/2009

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Billboard Top Hits: 1984 is a budget priced CD which, of course, helps people watching their pennies to get their hands on some good 80's music without spending too much money. . The quality of the sound is excellent; and the artwork is OK despite the fact that it is standard for this CD series. Trouble is, however, that we don't get many songs here; and one of them entitled "Owner of a Lonely Heart" by Yes is cut too short--that's a disappointment



The CD starts off with the somewhat disappointing track, "Owner of a Lonely Heart." Don't get me wrong--this is excellent music; but this record label cut it short at the ending! That's a shame; Yes turned out a fantastic tune and it deserved to be presented here in its entire length. However, Ray Parker, Jr. and some mighty fine backup singers perform "Ghostbusters" from the movie of the same name. Ray Parker, Jr. does this with all his might and you can tell he puts a lot of energy into this number. Great!



The Romantics contribute a big, big hit for them entitled "Talking In Your Sleep." "Talking In Your Sleep" got lots of airplay and I remember going to the record store to snap this one up fast! The musical arrangement is actually pretty sophisticated and even lush by most 80's standards; and I'm very impressed. They use the drums and percussion to mark the beat; and it all holds its own very well. Listen also for "Jump (For My Love)" by The Pointer Sisters; this track has so much energy you should checking your pulse if this doesn't get you jumping up and dancing nearly wherever you are! It's all THAT good.



Of course, Billy Ocean was a big name then and he still remains a classic champ today; his hit "Caribbean Queen (No More Love on the Run)" just plain sounds good and Billy never lets go of a single superfluous note! The percussion marks the beat and the music that accompanies Billy Ocean never steals the show away from Billy--he remains squarely front and center right where he belongs. "Let's Hear It for the Boy" by Deniece Williams has an infectiously catchy beat and Deniece does this one up right! "Let's Hear It For The Boy" seemed to get endless airplay back in the day and it deserved all the attention it got and still gets on albums like this one.



Culture Club does their "Karma Chameleon" very well although it's not exactly my favorite song on this CD; and the album ends with a whopper of a number as Tina Turner delivers "What's Love Got To Do With It." "What's Love Got To Do With It" features Tina Turner in her natural element as a very talented singer; she sings this very passionately.



Billboard Top Hits: 1984 has, for the most part, some pretty wonderful tunes from 1984. It has two drawbacks: the shorter version of "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" and the lack of an extra song or two. However, if you want a broad brushstrokes intro to some of the best from 1984, get this album. The diehard fan would do well to look for more comprehensive CDs and CD box sets of this genre of music.

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