10 Best R&B Albums Of Each Year
1980-1989

album covers for Michael Jackson's Thriller and Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814
Criteria: These 10 Best R&B albums of each year 1980-1989 were ranked based on impact, influence and popularity.

Last Updated: 2020-04-04
Best R&B Albums Of Each Year 1980-1989

10 Best R&B Albums of 1989

  1. Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814 - Janet Jackson
  2. Keep On Movin' - Soul II Soul
  3. Foreign Affair - Tina Turner
  4. Stay with Me - Regina Belle
  5. Tender Lover - Babyface
  6. 2300 Jackson Street - The Jacksons
  7. Larger Than Life - Jody Watley
  8. Silky Soul - Maze
  9. The Man Is Back! - Barry White
10. Bulletproof Heart - Grace Jones
Album cover Janet Jackson's Rhythm Nation 1814

10 Best R&B Albums of 1988

  1. Don't Be Cruel - Bobby Brown
  2. Any Love - Luther Vandross
  3. Giving You the Best That I Got - Anita Baker
  4. Karyn White - Karyn White
  5. Don't Let Love Slip Away - Freddie Jackson
  6. Oasis - Roberta Flack
  7. In Effect Mode - Al B. Sure!
  8. Guy - Guy
  9. Vesta 4 U - Vesta Williams
10. ck - Chaka Khan
Album cover Don't Be Cruel by Bobby Brown

10 Best R&B Albums of 1987

  1. Bad - Michael Jackson
  2. Characters - Stevie Wonder
  3. One Heartbeat - Smokey Robinson
  4. Jody Watley - Jody Watley
  5. If I Were Your Woman - Stephanie Mills
  6. Introducing the Hardline According to Terence Trent D'Arby - Trent D'Arby
  7. Make It Last Forever - Keith Sweat
  8. Touch the World - Earth, Wind & Fire
  9. Hearsay - Alexander O'Neal
10. All in the Name of Love - Atlantic Starr
Album cover Bad by Michael Jackson

10 Best R&B Albums of 1986

  1. Control - Janet Jackson
  2. Dancing on the Ceiling - Lionel Richie
  3. Give Me the Reason - Luther Vandross
  4. Break Every Rule - Tina Turner
  5. Word Up! - Cameo
  6. Love Zone - Billy Ocean
  7. Winner in You - Patti LaBelle
  8. Just Like the First Time - Freddie Jackson
  9. Rapture - Anita Baker
10. Precious Moments - Jermaine Jackson
Album cover Control by Janet Jackson

10 Best R&B Albums of 1985

  1. Whitney Houston - Whitney Houston
  2. Nightshift - Commodores
  3. Rock Me Tonight - Freddie Jackson
  4. The Night I Fell in Love - Luther Vandross
  5. Rhythm of the Night - DeBarge
  6. Patti - Patti LaBelle
  7. Promise - Sade
  8. As the Band Turns - Atlantic Starr
  9. Can't Stop the Love - Maze
10. All for Love - New Edition
Album cover of Whitney Houston by Whitney Houston

10 Best R&B Albums of 1984

  1. Purple Rain - Prince and the Revolution
  2. Private Dancer - Tina Turner
  3. Emergency - Kool & the Gang
  4. Suddenly - Billy Ocean
  5. Solid - Ashford & Simpson
  6. New Edition - New Edition
  7. Swept Away - Diana Ross
  8. Gap Band VI - The Gap Band
  9. She's Strange - Cameo
10. Starchild - Teena Marie
Album cover Purple Rain by Prince and the Revolution

10 Best R&B Albums of 1983

  1. Busy Body - Luther Vandross
  2. Can't Slow Down - Lionel Richie
  3. Powerlight - Earth, Wind & Fire
  4. Born to Love - Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack
  5. Between the Sheets - Isley Brothers
  6. Get It Right - Aretha Franklin
  7. Cold Blooded - Rick James
  8. Stay with Me Tonight - Jeffrey Osborne
  9. No Parking on the Dance Floor - Midnight Star
10. Juicy Fruit - Mtume
Album cover Busy Body by Luther Vandross

10 Best R&B Albums of 1982

  1. Thriller - Michael Jackson
  2. Midnight Love - Marvin Gaye
  3. Lionel Richie - Lionel Richie
  4. Jump to It - Aretha Franklin
  5. Donna Summer - Donna Summer
  6. Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium I - Stevie Wonder
  7. Janet Jackson - Janet Jackson
  8. So Excited! - The Pointer Sisters
  9. Get Loose - Evelyn "Champagne" King
10. The Other Woman - Ray Parker Jr.
Album cover Thriller by Michael Jackson

10 Best R&B Albums of 1981

  1. Raise! - Earth, Wind & Fire
  2. Being with You - Smokey Robinson
  3. Street Songs - Rick James
  4. In Our Lifetime - Marvin Gaye
  5. The Poet - Bobby Womack
  6. Something Special - Kool & the Gang
  7. Never Too Much - Luther Vandross
  8. A Woman Needs Love - Raydio
  9. Black & White - Pointer Sisters
10. It Must Be Magic - Teena Marie
Album cover Raise! by Earth, Wind and Fire

10 Best R&B Albums of 1980

  1. Diana - Diana Ross
  2. Hotter than July - Stevie Wonder
  3. The Two of Us - Yarbrough & Peoples
  4. Give Me the Night - George Benson
  5. Love Somebody Today - Sister Sledge
  6. Three for Love - Shalamar
  7. TP - Teddy Pendergrass
  8. Real People - Chic
  9. Roberta Flack Featuring Donny Hathaway - Roberta Flack
10. S.O.S. - The S.O.S. Band
Album cover Diana by Diana Ross








Custom Search of DDD


More Music Lists