Break out the parachute pants, jelly shoes, and Aqua Net and indulge in this nostalgic illustrated trip through the 1980s’ most influential albums across all genres. In 501 Essential Albums of the ’80s, Gary Graff leads a cast of fellow music journalists in presenting the music of one of the most pivotal decades in the history of recorded music…the decade that gave us some of the most monstrous-selling albums ever and introduced more and more listeners to emergent genres like indie rock and hip-hop. With lively descriptions of the releases and nearly 600 images, this hefty volume curates 501 albums spanning genres and subgenres—pop, rock, hip-hop, R&B, metal, country, college and indie rock, and more—and features: * Year-by-year organization * Knowledgeable rundowns of every album featured * Album art for each selection * Artist imagery * Record label, release date, and producer(s) for each * Soundtracks and compilation releases The journalists detail the circumstances of the