'80s Dance

In the groovy realms club music, the '80s was a decade of transition, between the disco-dominated '70s and the superstar DJ supremacy of the '90s. The sound of the dance floor was a mash-up of styles, from Frankie Goes to Hollywood's landmark chunk of electro-thunk, "Relax," to New Order's clean-as-a-whistle "Blue Monday," and Platinum Blonde's rocked-up "Standing In the Dark." There was also the landmark house track "Pump Up the Volume" — a collaboration, under the moniker M/A/R/R/S, between the experimental electronic outfits Colourbox and A.R. Kane — which stood out against the breezy funk of Wham!'s "Club Tropicana." Ready for more '80s-style move-bustin' and shape throwing? Next Steps follow . . .

The cream rises to the top, as we continue to stir our melting pot of '80s dance, which includes the original mix of back-in-vogue Heaven 17's "Temptation," Kim Wilde's very English slab of synth rock "Kids In America," and Kylie Minogue's post-soap foray into the swirling waters of perky dance-pop, "I Should Be So Lucky." Fans of old-school hip- hop will appreciate the complete seven-and-a-half-minute original version of "White Lines (Don't Do It)," funkateers will dive headlong into the maelstrom of manic brass that makes the 12-inch version of "Papa's Got a Brand New Pigbag" so electrifying, and lifelong futurists will dream of alternate universes to the retro-electro of Visage's "Fade to Grey." Deep Cuts are up next, and that means Men Without Hats and Kenny Loggins.

The evolution of dance music took a huge leap forward in 1982 when Afrika Bambaataa gave us "Don't Stop...Planet Rock," the first hip-hop track to feature synthesizers: a sample of Kraftwerk's "Trans-Europe Express" provides the bedrock melody. That same year Montreal's Men Without Hats channelled a cod-medieval rustic vibe towards the dance floor with "The Safety Dance," and Blancmange released the album Happy Families, featuring standout single "Living On the Ceiling." And in 1984, the movie soundtrack made its way onto the dance floor, thanks to Kenny Loggins' title track from Footloose.

From Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean" to vintage Madonna via Grandmaster Flash & Melle Mel, we've assembled all the key tracks that made the '80s such a diverse and groundbreaking era in the ongoing story of club music. The decade saw the emergence of techno in Detroit and its subsequent cameos in the global mainstream, experiments in rap fusion (Tom Tom Club's "Wordy Rappinghood") and, spearheaded by the likes of S'Express, the birth of acid house, which would mutate into that smiley-faced monster we know and love as the rave scene. Whether you prefer the hi-NRG of Dead or Alive's "You Spin Me 'Round (Like a Record)" or the pop-funk of Kool & The Gang's "Get Down On It," here's where you're guaranteed to get your '80s groove on.