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

The best alternative rock songs of 1988

Six radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 1988: KROQ, 91X, Live 105, WLIR / WDRE, John Peel (BBC Radio 1) and Studio Brussel. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 1988 is “Suedehead” by Morrissey, which appeared on six of the six countdowns. Five different songs were voted number one somewhere: “Route 66” by Depeche Mode (2 stations), “Peek-A-Boo” by Siouxsie and the Banshees, “This Party Sucks” by The Slickee Boys, “Destroy The Heart” by House Of Love and “Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman. Morrissey was the year’s most-charted artist, with seven different songs placing 18 times across the countdowns.

6countdowns
293songs charted
5different #1s

Top 100 songs of 1988

All 293 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 1988 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Suedehead Morrissey
486		 6 #4 –
2 Desire U2
468		 5 #2 –
3 Beds are Burning Midnight Oil
436		 5 #3 –
4 Route 66 Depeche Mode
392		 4 #1 2
5 Peek-A-Boo Siouxsie and the Banshees
387		 4 #1 1
6 Chains of Love Erasure
364		 4 #7 –
7 Everyday Is Like Sunday Morrissey
325		 4 #5 –
8 Crash The Primitives
322		 5 #12 –
9 Mandinka Sinéad O'Connor
306		 4 #5 –
10 Orange Crush R.E.M.
304		 4 #6 –
11 Wild Wild West Escape Club
299		 4 #16 –
12 What's On Your Mind Information Society
287		 4 #4 –
13 (Nothing But) Flowers Talking Heads
280		 4 #20 –
14 Tears Run Rings Marc Almond
279		 4 #13 –
15 The Dead Heart Midnight Oil
262		 4 #20 –
16 Fast Car Tracy Chapman
261		 3 #1 1
17 Wild World Maxi Priest
247		 4 #11 –
18 The Killing Jar Siouxsie and the Banshees
236		 3 #20 –
19 What I Am Edie Brickell and the New Bohemians
233		 3 #9 –
20 Just Play Music Big Audio Dynamite
231		 3 #8 –
21 Under the Milky Way The Church
230		 3 #3 –
22 A Little Respect Erasure
220		 3 #4 –
23 Doctorin' the Tardis The Timelords
217		 4 #19 –
24 I Don't Want Your Love Duran Duran
210		 4 #24 –
25 Like the Weather 10,000 Maniacs
207		 3 #15 –
26 What's The Matter Here 10,000 Maniacs
203		 3 #21 –
27 Touched by the Hand of God New Order
195		 3 #8 –
28 All That Money Wants The Psychedelic Furs
195		 4 #23 –
29 Dreaming Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark
190		 4 #26 –
30 Angel of Harlem U2
189		 3 #11 –
31 Motorcrash The Sugarcubes
187		 4 #36 –
32 Harley David (Son of a Bitch) Bollock Brothers
185		 2 #2 –
33 Christine The House of Love
184		 3 #9 –
34 Carolyn's Fingers Cocteau Twins
180		 5 #26 –
35 Always on My Mind Pet Shop Boys
178		 2 #7 –
36 Wild Thing Tone Loc
177		 2 #9 –
37 Where Did I Go Wrong? UB40
176		 2 #8 –
38 The Great Commandment Camouflage
170		 2 #10 –
39 Reach Martini Ranch
167		 2 #16 –
40 Only A Memory The Smithereens
160		 2 #13 –
41 Tomorrow People Ziggy Marley
158		 3 #23 –
42 Ye Ke Ye Ke Mory Kante
153		 2 #5 –
43 Soviet Snow Shona Laing
152		 3 #25 –
44 Birthday The Sugarcubes
149		 2 #7 –
45 Inside Out Mighty Lemon Drops
149		 3 #29 –
46 I Want Your Hands On Me Sinéad O'Connor
148		 3 #29 –
47 This Corrosion Sisters of Mercy
148		 3 #45 –
48 God Part II U2
147		 2 #17 –
49 Stand R.E.M.
146		 2 #28 –
50 Charlotte Anne Julian Cope
143		 4 #46 –
51 Never Tear Us Apart INXS
139		 3 #19 –
52 Bedbugs and Ballyhoo Echo and the Bunnymen
137		 3 #25 –
53 Situations Cetu Javu
137		 3 #22 –
54 Reptile The Church
134		 2 #13 –
55 Cinderella Undercover Oingo Boingo
129		 2 #24 –
56 Im Nin'Alu ofra Haza
128		 2 #36 –
57 Tower of Strength Mission U.K.
127		 2 #32 –
58 Jane Says Jane's Addiction
126		 3 #40 –
59 Kick INXS
125		 2 #10 –
60 The Different Story Peter Schilling
122		 2 #33 –
61 There is No Love Between Us Anymore Pop Will Eat Itself
116		 3 #29 –
62 All Night Long Peter Murphy
111		 3 #55 –
63 Ship of Fools Erasure
110		 2 #46 –
64 So Important Sparks
106		 2 #47 –
65 Def.Con.One Pop Will Eat Itself
106		 3 #25 –
66 Gigantic The Pixies
106		 2 #7 –
67 Fine Time New Order
106		 2 #9 –
68 New Sensation INXS
104		 2 #6 –
69 Perfect Fairground Attraction
103		 2 #27 –
70 In Your Room The Bangles
102		 3 #44 –
71 I Beg Your Pardon Kon Kan
100		 2 #13 –
72 This Party Sucks The Slickee Boys
100		 1 #1 1
73 Destroy The Heart The House of Love
100		 1 #1 1
74 Breakfast in Bed UB40
100		 2 #26 –
75 Delicious Demon The Sugarcubes
99		 2 #16 –
76 Nobody's Twisting Your Arm Wedding Present
98		 1 #2 –
77 Teardrops Womack And Womack
97		 1 #2 –
78 Indigo Eyes Peter Murphy
96		 2 #31 –
79 Sidewalking The Jesus and Mary Chain
96		 1 #3 –
80 Somewhere In My Heart Aztec Camera
95		 2 #49 –
81 Take Me I'm Yours Wedding Present
94		 1 #4 –
82 An Englishmen In New York Sting
93		 1 #3 –
83 Winning Side Oingo Boingo
92		 2 #31 –
84 Freak Scene Dinosaur Jr.
92		 1 #5 –
85 That Smiling Face Camouflage
91		 1 #10 –
86 Halfway Home The Scabs
90		 1 #4 –
87 You Made Me Realise My Bloody Valentine
90		 1 #6 –
88 Devil Inside INXS
90		 2 #42 –
89 The Promise When in Rome
90		 1 #12 –
90 Glad I'm Not a Kennedy Shona Laing
89		 2 #35 –
91 Domino Dancing Pet Shop Boys
88		 2 #47 –
92 Prison Bound Social Distortion
88		 1 #14 –
93 Tell that Girl to Shut up Transvision Vamp
88		 3 #56 –
94 Stop This Car The Woodentops
87		 1 #15 –
95 Why Are You Being So Reasonable Now? Wedding Present
86		 1 #8 –
96 Deus The Sugarcubes
85		 2 #20 –
97 Painkiller Westworld
85		 1 #17 –
98 Ana Ng They Might Be Giants
85		 2 #53 –
99 Balloon Man Robyn Hitchcock & The Egyptians
85		 3 #41 –
100 So Excited Ranking Roger
84		 2 #63 –

Every station’s number one of 1988

StationNumber one songCountdown
KROQ Route 66 Depeche Mode KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1988
91X Peek-A-Boo Siouxsie and the Banshees 91X Top 91 Songs of 1988
Live 105 This Party Sucks The Slickee Boys Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 1988
WLIR / WDRE Route 66 Depeche Mode WLIR Top 100 Songs of 1988
John Peel (BBC Radio 1) Destroy The Heart House Of Love John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1988
Studio Brussel Fast Car Tracy Chapman Studio Brussel De Eindafrekening 1988

All 1988 countdowns in this ranking

About the 1988 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 1988 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 six 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.