“Songs From the Big Chair” by Tears for Fears

My absolute favorite 80s album.

Programming note: It’s 80s week! I'm spotlighting some of my favorite records released between 1980 and 1989. Like previous decade-themed newsletter posts, I've selected albums that cover multiple genres and deliberately avoided the well-worn titles that top all "best of" lists for this decade. In other words, no Thriller*,* Purple Rain*, and so on.*

If you love 80s music, check out other write-ups I’ve done on classic albums or songs from that decade.

Hope you enjoy it!

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Hello! 😊👋

Welcome to a new edition of the Daily Music Picks newsletter!

Today’s music pick is, by far, the 80s album to which I’ve devoted the most front-to-back listens.

Genre: Pop, Alternative

Label: Mercury

Release Date: February 25, 1985

Vibe: 💓💓💓💓💓

When I think of albums most representative of the 80s, both sonically and in terms of capturing the era's mindset, I think of Songs From the Big Chair. The group’s follow-up to their 1983 debut, The Hurting, this LP is often miscategorized as mainstream synth-pop, mainly on the back of its best-known hit single, “Everybody Wants to Rule the World.” But, upon closer inspection, much more is happening beneath the surface.

There are jazz-inspired moments, complete with appropriately glossy saxophone layering, piercing guitar solos, and, on the album’s iconic opener, “Shout,” live percussion accents that blend seamlessly with programmed beats. All these elements frame the poignant, frequently elegant songwriting from Roland Orzabal and Ian Stanley that tackle enormous themes, including love, greed, war, and trauma. Despite that stylistic grandeur, the overall vibe is intensely personal, as if intimate conversations you could have with your best friend have been repackaged as chant-worthy arena-rock choruses. That level of universality is one of the reasons why this record is so timeless.

Even though I know this record by heart, I decided to give it another spin to write this post. Was there anything I’d missed over the years? Had fandom blinded me to any rough spots in the production or writing? I did my best to poke holes in its reputation and came up empty. There’s not a weak moment on this LP. The ballads, in particular, have aged spectacularly well, avoiding the decade’s well-deserved reputation for camp. “I Believe” is the gentlest of recordings, caressing you like a wisp of smoke in a dimly lit lounge. “Head Over Heels,” which is embedded in a more expansive suite of music, weaves a conflicted tale of unrequited love out of show-don’t-tell lyricism (”I’m lost in admiration, could I need you this much?”). The instrumental, which is as grand as these sorts of arrangements come, stands in contradiction, building to a chorus that positively soars.

I could go on, but I’m afraid I can’t begin to do this one justice. From a decade that produced more than its fair share of new wave, synth-pop, and art-rock classics, you’d be hard-pressed to find an outing more air-tight and musically memorable as this album.