With the advent of “retro” music shows and eighties music formats, radio has clearly revived interest in that decade. Chicago Top 40 Charts 1980–1990 examines the Windy City’s top hits from that era by way of the weekly music surveys issued by radio stations WLS and WYTZ. Transition and change were the watchwords for radio and music in Chicago in the 1980s. Dance, heavy metal, alternative music and the advent of boy bands all changed the face of contemporary music, as it became the property of FM radio, leaving AM to talk. Meanwhile, the rise of cassettes and CDs as singles became less important and the loss of “mom and pop” record stores in favor of giant chains eventually resulted in the demise of the printed survey that previous generations had collected and cherished. This book documents that music and those charts one last time. Chicago Top 40 Charts 1980–1990 lists every song to reach the WLS and WYTZ surveys alphabetically by title and artist, with debut and peak dates, highest position reached and number of weeks on the charts. The top songs of each year and for the entire decade are ranked as well. For those who grew up listening to Chicago radio as well as for record collectors from anywhere, Chicago Top 40 Charts 1980-1990 will be a valued addition to their music reference libraries.
