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Year-end consensus · Alternative & Modern Rock · four countdowns combined

The best alternative rock songs of 1984

Four radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 1984: KROQ, 91X, WOXY 97X and John Peel (BBC Radio 1). Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 1984 is “Two Tribes” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, which appeared on four of the four countdowns and was voted number one by one of them. Four different songs were voted number one somewhere: “Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood, “Tenderness” by General Public, “Two Tribes” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood and “How Soon Is Now?” by Smiths. Depeche Mode was the year’s most-charted artist, with five different songs placing 9 times across the countdowns.

4countdowns
196songs charted
4different #1s

Top 100 songs of 1984

All 196 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 1984 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Two Tribes Frankie Goes to Hollywood
331		 4 #1 1
2 Pride (In the Name of Love) U2
287		 3 #2 –
3 Relax Frankie Goes to Hollywood
252		 3 #1 1
4 The Killing Moon Echo and the Bunnymen
231		 3 #9 –
5 Tenderness General Public
199		 2 #1 1
6 Master and Servant Depeche Mode
181		 2 #5 –
7 How Soon is Now? The Smiths
180		 2 #1 1
8 I Send a Message INXS
180		 3 #9 –
9 Wild Boys Duran Duran
179		 2 #3 –
10 People are People Depeche Mode
179		 2 #11 –
11 Let's Go Crazy Prince
177		 3 #3 –
12 Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go Wham!
175		 2 #7 –
13 Hold Me Now Thompson Twins
170		 2 #10 –
14 Rebel Yell Billy Idol
163		 2 #8 –
15 Blue Jean David Bowie
160		 2 #18 –
16 What is Love Howard Jones
157		 2 #10 –
17 Flesh For Fantasy Billy Idol
157		 2 #19 –
18 Sexcrime 1984 Eurythmics
155		 2 #15 –
19 The Gap Thompson Twins
151		 2 #6 –
20 The Reflex Duran Duran
151		 2 #22 –
21 What Difference Does It Make? The Smiths
147		 3 #17 –
22 Catch My Fall Billy Idol
146		 2 #23 –
23 Wild Life Bananarama
140		 2 #20 –
24 The Ghost In You The Psychedelic Furs
134		 2 #30 –
25 Eyes Without A Face Billy Idol
132		 2 #26 –
26 It's My Life Talk Talk
127		 2 #27 –
27 Less Cities, More Moving People The Fixx
121		 2 #14 –
28 Eighties Killing Joke
119		 2 #40 –
29 Everything Counts Depeche Mode
100		 2 #34 –
30 Pearly Dewdrop Drops Cocteau Twins
98		 1 #2 –
31 Why? Bronski Beat
97		 1 #4 –
32 Seven Seas Echo and the Bunnymen
97		 1 #4 –
33 Erotic City Prince
96		 1 #5 –
34 Green Fields Of France (No Man's Land) Men They Couldn't Hang
96		 1 #3 –
35 Ladykiller The Vandals
94		 1 #7 –
36 Spangle Maker Cocteau Twins
94		 1 #4 –
37 Don't Tell Me Blancmange
93		 2 #38 –
38 Pretending to be Drunk Sparks
93		 2 #52 –
39 Come Back Mighty Wah
92		 1 #5 –
40 West End Girls Pet Shop Boys
91		 1 #11 –
41 Spike Milligan's Tape Recorder Membranes
90		 1 #6 –
42 Cow Punk Scott Goddard
89		 1 #13 –
43 Thieves Like Us New Order
88		 1 #7 –
44 Wood Beez Scritti Politti
88		 1 #12 –
45 Blasphemous Rumours Depeche Mode
87		 1 #13 –
46 Walk Away Sisters of Mercy
86		 1 #8 –
47 All Cried Out Alison Moyet
86		 1 #14 –
48 Dazzle Siouxsie and the Banshees
85		 1 #17 –
49 I'd Like to Get to Know You Well Howard Jones
85		 1 #15 –
50 I Love You Suzanne Lou Reed
84		 2 #7 –
51 Get the Balance Right Depeche Mode
84		 2 #42 –
52 Lay Of The Land The Fall
84		 1 #9 –
53 What's Gone Wrong The Untouchables
84		 1 #18 –
54 New Song Howard Jones
84		 2 #28 –
55 Original Sin INXS
83		 1 #19 –
56 Love Resurrection Alison Moyet
82		 1 #17 –
57 Keep On Keeping On Redskins
82		 1 #10 –
58 Saint Huck Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
80		 1 #11 –
59 Big in Japan Alphaville
79		 1 #23 –
60 General Public General Public
78		 2 #37 –
61 Lonesome Tonight New Order
78		 1 #12 –
62 Do They Know It's Christmas? Band Aid
77		 1 #25 –
63 Apollo 9 Adam Ant
77		 2 #45 –
64 Only When You Leave Spandau Ballet
76		 2 #56 –
65 Between The Wars Billy Bragg
76		 1 #13 –
66 The Lebanon The Human League
75		 1 #28 –
67 Nowhere Fast The Smiths
74		 1 #14 –
68 Save a Prayer Duran Duran
74		 1 #25 –
69 Doctor Doctor Thompson Twins
72		 2 #47 –
70 If It Happens Again UB40
72		 2 #35 –
71 Emma Sisters of Mercy
72		 1 #15 –
72 Locomotion Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
72		 1 #31 –
73 Sunset Now Heaven 17
71		 1 #27 –
74 Obsession Animotion
71		 1 #32 –
75 The Wild Boys Duran Duran
70		 1 #4 –
76 Ivo Cocteau Twins
70		 1 #16 –
77 My Ever Changing Moods The Style Council
69		 2 #57 –
78 Passion Planet Thompson Twins
68		 1 #35 –
79 The Lovecats The Cure
67		 1 #31 –
80 You Take Me Up Thompson Twins
67		 2 #44 –
81 Shout Devo
66		 2 #46 –
82 Burn for You INXS
66		 1 #37 –
83 C.R.E.E.P. The Fall
66		 1 #18 –
84 Hungry Like the Wolf Duran Duran
66		 1 #32 –
85 Heaven The Psychedelic Furs
65		 2 #50 –
86 New Year's Day U2
65		 1 #33 –
87 When Doves Cry Prince
64		 1 #39 –
88 Waterfront Simple Minds
63		 1 #40 –
89 Murder New Order
62		 1 #20 –
90 Wonderland Big Country
61		 1 #42 –
91 Kangaroo This Mortal Coil
60		 1 #21 –
92 Let's Go to Bed The Cure
59		 1 #38 –
93 War Song Culture Club
58		 1 #39 –
94 A Girl in Trouble (is a Temporary Thing) Romeo Void
58		 2 #64 –
95 So. Central Rain R.E.M.
58		 2 #56 –
96 Domino Cocteau Twins
58		 1 #22 –
97 Like a Virgin Madonna
56		 1 #41 –
98 William, It Was Really Nothing The Smiths
56		 1 #23 –
99 Wild Thing X
56		 1 #48 –
100 Melting in the Sun INXS
55		 1 #49 –

Every station’s number one of 1984

StationNumber one songCountdown
KROQ Relax Frankie Goes to Hollywood KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1984
91X Tenderness General Public 91X Top 91 Songs of 1984
WOXY 97X Two Tribes Frankie Goes to Hollywood WOXY Top 10 Songs of 1984
John Peel (BBC Radio 1) How Soon Is Now? Smiths John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1984

All 1984 countdowns in this ranking

About the 1984 ranking

Radio stations count down their listeners’ favorite songs at the end of every year. Each station’s list reflects its own audience, so a song that ruled Los Angeles could miss the top ten in Chicago. To find the songs that defined 1984 everywhere, RockLists gives every appearance percentile-based points (a number one earns 100, the last position earns close to zero) and adds them up across all four qualifying countdowns. Each radio format is ranked separately, so classic rock and hard rock countdowns never shift the alternative results; use the tabs above to switch formats. Read the full methodology.