3 Rock Gems From the 1980s That Should’ve Been Bigger Hits

The numbers aren’t everything. You don’t need high-charting songs to be considered successful. However, it is a surefire way to see your growth as an artist. Whether your song is No. 40 or No. 1, your standing in the music industry is plain to see. The three songs below didn’t earn their proper chart placement. Though these songs are all hits, they never broke the Top 5, and that’s a shame. These rock anthems from the 1980s should’ve been bigger.

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[RELATED: 3 Nostalgic Rock Songs From 1984 That Will Never Get Old]

“Panama” (Van Halen)

Van Halen’s “Panama” is a hit, make no mistake. But, given its stature in the rock community, it’s odd that it didn’t go number one. In fact, it only reached No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. That chart performance is certainly not indicative of this song’s enduring appeal.

Although “Panama” did not break the top 5, it is one of Van Halen’s top-performing songs. This driving rock anthem from the 1980s has everything you’d want in a good glam metal song. Strong guitars, a good beat, and a chorus you can scream along to. It’s no wonder this song performed as well as it did, but it deserved a higher position.

[RELATED: The Massively Influential Song Van Halen Wrote as a Parody: “It Was a Stupid Thing to Us”]

“Rock You Like a Hurricane” (Scorpions)

Despite coming from a German rock group, “Rock You Like a Hurricane” achieved considerable success in the U.S., peaking at No. 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and earning this group its name-making track.

While No. 25 is a fair effort, this song is laudable even by modern standards. Because of this, it seems unforgivable that this song didn’t make the top 10, at least. Nevertheless, Scorpions still earned their fame thanks to this song. Specific chart placement likely didn’t matter to them.

“Talk Dirty to Me” (Poison)

Glam metal doesn’t get more straightforward than Poison’s “Talk Dirty to Me.” Many bands in this rock sub-genre in the 1980s riddled their catalog with innuendo. Poison decided to leave all the double talk behind and just tell it like it was: Down the basement / Lock the cellar door / And baby / Talk dirty to me.

This song is one of the most famous rock songs to come out of the 1980s, yet it only reached No. 9. While that’s a superb chart placement, given how iconic it is now, it seems a little lackluster. This song was far more popular than the charts gave them credit for.

(Photo by Fin Costello/Redferns)