In the 1980s, songwriters had pop music down to a science. They knew how to create tracks that not only stuck in your head but that stuck to your toes as well. They got you up out of your seat, singing and dancing like an old vaudeville actor.
Here below, we wanted to dive into just that. We wanted to highlight three tracks from back in the day that got everyone’s feet a-flying. Indeed, these are three pop songs from the 1980s that will get your friends dancing.
Videos by American Songwriter
“Call Me” by Blondie from ‘American Gigolo’ (1980)
Listening to Blondie is like drinking neon light. The band is catchy, fun, inspiring, and they always leave you with something to think about. But perhaps more than anything, Blondie gets you to move. The group blended rock with disco and even sprinkled in a little hip-hop flavor. That created a sound that helped to define an era. It also helped make Blondie an indelible, Hall of Fame act.
“Kiss” by Prince from ‘Parade’ (1986)
Prince wanted you to dance. He needed you to dance. That was the way he could tell his sonic spells had worked. Standing up there on stage with his purple outfits, high-heeled shoes, and his guitar, Prince wanted to get inside your soul and swim around a little. And his track, “Kiss”, did just that. With funky rhythms and lyrics that stuck to your spirit like red lipstick, the tune is guaranteed to get a room full of people to sway their hips and even sing—er, kiss along.
“I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)” by Whitney Houston from ‘Whitney’ (1987)
If you want people to dance, look no further than this 1987 song by Whitney Houston. Released on her self-titled LP, everything you need to know about this track is in the title. Dancing is always fun. It can be good on your own. But it’s better with another. And that’s just what Houston is getting at here. Love and all of its expressions—that’s what this life is all about. And of course that’s what dance is all about, too!
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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