The 80s: Music's Greatest Decade?

80s music is often dismissed as a joke, all drum machines and big hair. But, as author Dylan Jones argues, the 1980s should be looked on as the most creative, radical and innovative decade in pop.

In this music compilation, Dylan Jones celebrates some of the stars who created the timeless legacy of the 1980s, from Prince to Madonna and Duran Duran to Sade. Featuring rarely seen archive television footage from the BBC vaults.

The 1980s was a time when artists in both the UK and US were delivering powerful social commentary in their songs. Dylan Jones selects some of the finest alternative voices from this era.

The 1980s was an era in which a fusillade of new genres emerged, and many are still here today, such as hip-hop and house. Dylan Jones has mined the archives to select some of the most crucial tracks in the rise of these two genres. From a young Kurtis Blow making his `Top of the Pops' debut to the sonic bombardment of Public Enemy and the sampling skills of Bomb the Bass, this is a showcase of the evolution in rap and house music across the decade.