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Year-end countdown · KROQ · 1981

KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1981

The year-end countdown for 1981 from KROQ in Los Angeles, CA ranks 106 songs, with “Mental Hopscotch” by Missing Persons at number one. The list features 74 different artists; Adam & the Ants has the most entries with five songs.

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KROQstation
Los Angeles, CAmarket
Make your own version All 33 editions
# Song ListsBest
1 Mental Hopscotch Missing Persons 10 #1
2 Antmusic Adam & the Ants 33 #2
3 We Got the Beat The Go-Go's 30 #3
4 It's My Party Dave Stewart and Barbara Gaskin 1 #4
5 Johnny Are You Queer? Josie Cotton 6 #5
6 On the Outside Oingo Boingo 3 #6
7 Start Me Up The Rolling Stones 19 #7
8 Never Say Never Romeo Void 53 #8
9 We Want The Airwaves The Ramones 18 #9
10 I'm With the Guys The Penetrators 1 #10
11 Stand and Deliver Adam & the Ants 19 #11
12 Janitor Suburban Lawns 7 #12
13 Homosapien Pete Shelley 9 #13
14 Adultress The Pretenders 1 #14
15 Funny Face Sparks 2 #15
16 White Girl X 9 #16
17 Jerkin' Back and Forth Devo 2 #17
18 New Toy Lene Lovich 9 #18
19 Lust to Love The Go-Go's 1 #19
20 Waiting on a Friend The Rolling Stones 11 #20
21 I Will Follow U2 69 #9
22 Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic The Police 42 #22
23 Electricity Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark 7 #23
24 Prince Charming Adam & the Ants 12 #24
25 Girls on Film Duran Duran 46 #18
26 W.O.R.K. (N.O. Nah, No No My Daddy Don't) Bow Wow Wow 1 #26
27 I Know What Boys Like The Waitresses 27 #27
28 Upstairs Sparks 3 #28
29 To Cut a Long Story Short Spandau Ballet 4 #29
30 The Friends of Mr. Cairo Jon Anderson & Vangelis 1 #30
31 Destroyer The Kinks 8 #31
32 Our Lips Are Sealed The Go-Go's 28 #32
33 It's too late Jim Carroll 2 #33
34 Dancin' With Myself Generation X 1 #34
35 Lunatic Fringe Red Rider 11 #35
36 U.F.O. Caution 1 #36
37 Tom Sawyer Rush 23 #8
38 Hard Act to Follow Split Enz 2 #38
39 Bang Bang Iggy Pop 3 #39
40 See You on the Other Side Brian Briggs 2 #40
41 Ghost Town The Specials 26 #21
42 Turn Me Loose Loverboy 2 #42
43 Dog Eat Dog Adam & the Ants 5 #43
44 Bad Boys Get Spanked The Pretenders 13 #44
45 Rock This Town The Stray Cats 30 #6
46 Primary The Cure 22 #19
47 Fascist Groove Thing Heaven 17 5 #29
48 Under Pressure David Bowie/Queen 10 #48
49 Elephant Talk King Crimson 3 #18
50 This Town The Go-Go's 4 #50
51 Neighbors The Rolling Stones 1 #51
52 Life of Illusion Joe Walsh 1 #52
53 Through Being Cool Devo 21 #53
54 Sex Junkie The Plasmatics 1 #54
55 Urgent Foreigner 8 #55
56 Red Light Wall of Voodoo 1 #56
57 Spirits In The Material World The Police 20 #57
58 What Does Sex Mean to Me? Human Sexual Response 2 #58
59 I Married a Martian Sparks 1 #59
60 You Better You Bet The Who 10 #60
61 Pack It Up The Pretenders 1 #61
62 Almost Saturday Night Dave Edmunds 1 #62
63 What You See Oingo Boingo 3 #63
64 Working In A Coal Mine Devo 11 #64
65 Shake It Up The Cars 8 #64
66 The Once Over Twice X 3 #66
67 Tips for Teens Sparks 4 #67
68 Mercury Blues David Lindley 2 #68
69 Nuclear Boy 20/20 2 #69
70 Chihuahua Bow Wow Wow 2 #70
71 Spellbound Siouxsie and the Banshees 7 #71
72 I Like Boys Missing Persons 1 #72
73 Better Be Good to Me Spider 1 #73
74 City Bound E Train Novo Combo 1 #74
75 Superfreak Rick James 1 #75
76 Jackie O Human Sexual Response 1 #76
77 Friends Adam & the Ants 1 #77
78 Goin' Under Devo 1 #78
79 Follow the Leader Killing Joke 1 #79
80 Problem Child AC/DC 2 #80
81 Lunacy The Plasmatics 1 #81
82 Mony Mony Billy Idol 15 #34
83 Jukebox Hero Foreigner 14 #47
84 Nightwatchman Tom Petty 1 #84
85 What We All Want Gang of Four 2 #85
86 Abacab Genesis 14 #86
87 How Much More The Go-Go's 1 #87
88 I Love Rock-N-Roll Joan Jett 15 #21
89 Day After Day The Pretenders 8 #89
90 Tempted Squeeze 71 #21
91 Slave The Rolling Stones 7 #91
92 Up All Night Boomtown Rats 20 #92
93 Mothers Little Helper P.S. 1 #93
94 People Who Died Jim Carroll 10 #30
95 From a Whisper to a Scream Elvis Costello & the Attractions 2 #95
96 Dream Away The Cars 1 #96
97 Just Can't Get Enough Depeche Mode 59 #2
98 Mirror in the Bathroom The English Beat 54 #38
99 Take Her Where The Boys Are Eye Protection 1 #99
100 The Stroke Billy Squier 9 #100
101 Little Sister Rockpile 1 #101
102 Now The Plimsouls 2 #102
103 Can't Stop Hurting Myself Greg Kihn 1 #103
104 One World (Not Three) The Police 5 #58
105 Adult Books X 1 #105
106 Amoeba The Adolescents 3 #106

More 1981 countdowns

Best songs of 1981 →

This is the only 1981 year-end countdown in the archive so far.

About this countdown

KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1981 was broadcast by KROQ (Los Angeles, CA). Positions are shown exactly as the station ranked them; artist and song names have been standardized so that every entry links to that song’s complete chart history across all stations. It counts toward the Alternative & Modern Rock rankings.

Contributed by Wiota, Eric Schwartz. Thank you!

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