4 Iconic ’80s Songs from Movie Soundtracks

The 1980s had an abundance of quintessential movie soundtracks.

Films like Top Gun and Do the Right Thing offered worthy standalone albums, existing as great works beyond the big screen. These movies, and the songs that helped shape them, also endure alongside each other as important pieces of pop culture history.

The songs left indelible images as vivid as the onscreen moments by Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Kelly McGillis, Spike Lee, Patrick Swayze, Jennifer Grey, Jami Gertz, Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, Kiefer Sutherland, Molly Ringwald, Prince, and others.

Revisit four iconic ’80s songs from the movies.

“Hungry Eyes” by Eric Carmen from Dirty Dancing (1987)

The soundtrack to Dirty Dancing is one of the best-selling albums in history. Eric Carmen’s “Hungry Eyes” was released as the second single, following Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes’ duet, “(I’ve Had) the Time of My Life.” Carmen, formerly of the Raspberries, didn’t want to record the song, thinking movie songs don’t last. But “Hungry Eyes” was a massive hit and became the singer’s defining song. It endures alongside what became a cinematic franchise.

“Cry Little Sister” by Gerard McMann from The Lost Boys (1987)

Gerard McMann and Michael Mainieri wrote the theme song to The Lost Boys before seeing a single frame. That explains why the theme song to a movie about vampires doesn’t mention vampires. However, “Cry Little Sister” is about an outsider and distills the film’s gothic supernaturalism in its combination of ethereal new wave and ’80 hard rock. The Lost Boys soundtrack is one of the decade’s best, with Echo & the Bunnymen covering The Doors, and don’t forget Tim Cappello and his muscles and saxophone on “I Still Believe.”

“Pretty in Pink” by The Psychedelic Furs from Pretty in Pink (1986)

Director John Hughes named his Brat Pack film after The Psychedelic Furs 1981 single. Pretty in Pink set the benchmark for film soundtracks and if you needed a singular song to define 1980s pop culture, “Pretty in Pink” is it. The excellent soundtrack also features The Smiths, New Order, INXS, and Echo & the Bunnymen—each shaping Hughes’s cultural touchstone. However, the story of “Pretty in Pink” has nothing to do with the movie’s plot. Singer Richard Butler explained the Furs’ song follows a girl with many lovers who thinks she’s popular but people laugh at her expense when she’s not around.

“Purple Rain” by Prince from Purple Rain (1984)

Prince recorded “Purple Rain” live at First Avenue in Minneapolis. The film and album versions combine the live recording with additional studio overdubs. Stevie Nicks received an early instrumental demo but felt overwhelmed writing lyrics to Prince’s 10-minute epic. The Revolution’s Wendy Melvoin wrote the iconic guitar part after Prince presented the song on piano. What began as a country ballad became the moving anthem that defined Prince’s career and the film. It also features Prince’s weeping guitar solo that he’d later bring to greater emotional heights during his iconic rain-soaked Super Bowl performance.

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