VOTE! Round 3 - Groups C & D

It's Time for the Sweet Sixteen!

Voting is open for the C & D Groups! Below, you'll be able to vote for each of the matchups. You'll also find detailed information about each artist's 80s music, so if you need your memory jogged on these artists, we've given you summaries of their 80s accomplishments, and a YouTube video to boot. 

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(1) Bon Jovi vs. (5) John Cougar Mellencamp

Bon Jovi

Take some arena rock, add a bit of pop metal, throw in some glam, and you get a Jersey band that made their own genre. And Slippery When Wet has sold 28 million copies worldwide!

The 80s albums:

Bon Jovi - Platinum
7800 degrees Fahrenheit - Platinum
Slippery When Wet - 12x Platinum
New Jersey - 7x Platinum

The 80s singles: “Wanted Dead or Alive,” “Livin’ on a Prayer,” “Runaway,” “You Give Love a Bad Name,” “Bad Medicine,” “I’ll Be There for You,” “Lay Your Hands on Me,” and more.

John Cougar Mellencamp

Some people call him a poor man’s Springsteen, but tell me you don’t know all the words to “Jack and Diane.” John Cougar Mellencamp was the champion of the small town and we loved him for it.

The 80s albums:

Nothin’ Matters and What if it Did - Platinum
American Fool - 5x Platinum
The Kid Inside
Uh-Huh - 3x Platinum
Scarecrow - 5x Platinum
The Lonesome Jubilee - 3x Platinum
Big Daddy - Platinum

The 80s singles:  “Hurts So Good,” “Jack and Diane,” “Pink Houses,” “Authority Song,” “Small Town,” “ROCK in the USA,” “Paper in Fire,” “Cherry Bomb,” and lots more.

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(6) U2 vs. (2) Whitney Houston

U2

The Irish boys that changed the entire direction of rock music. And Bono’s unplanned walkabout during “Bad” at Live Aid was a seminal moment for a generation. 

The 80s albums:

Boy - Platinum
October - Platinum
War - 4x Platinum
Under a Blood Red Sky - 3x Platinum
The Unforgettable Fire - 3x Platinum
The Joshua Tree - Diamond
Rattle and Hum - 5x Platinum

The 80s singles:  ”With or Without You,” “I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For,” “Pride (In the Name of Love),” “Sunday Bloody Sunday,” “Gloria,” “Where the Streets Have No Name,” “Desire,” “In God’s Country,” “All I Want is You,” “Angel of Harlem,” New Year’s Day,” “I Will Follow,” and more.

Whitney Houston

The voice! The biggest single in history! The first artist with seven consecutive #1 hits! And one of the strongest voices pop music has ever heard. It’s all Whitney.

The 80s albums:

Whitney Houston - Diamond (13x Platinum)
Whitney - 9x Platinum

The 80s singles:  “Saving All My Love for You,” “The Greatest Love of All,” “I Wanna Dance with Somebody (Who Loves Me),” “Didn’t We Almost Have it All,” “So Emotional,” “One Moment in Time,” “You Give Good Love,” “Where Do Broken Hearts Go,” and more.

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(1) Prince vs. (4) Elton John

Prince

The case for Prince: If you have to ask, maybe you’re not qualified to vote.

The 80s albums:

Dirty Mind  - Gold
Controversy - Platinum
1999 - 4x Platinum
Purple Rain - Diamond (13x Platinum)
Around the World in a Day - 2x Platinum
Parade (Music from the Motion Picture Under the Cherry Moon) - Platinum
Sign ‘O’ the Times - Platinum
Lovesexy - Gold
Batman - 2x Platinum

The 80s singles:  “1999,” “Little Red Corvette,” “When Doves Cry,” “Purple Rain,” “Let’s Go Crazy,” “Raspberry Beret,” “Kiss,” “Delirious,” and many more. And don’t forget the singles Prince gave to others, like “Manic Monday,” “When You Were Mine,” and “Nothing Compares 2 U,” and more.

Elton John

From his Rocket like start in the 70s, Sir Elton John continued strong through the 80s, releasing 9 albums of new material plus live and compilation albums. If the 70s made Elton a star, the 80s moved him into icon territory.

The 80s albums:

21 at 33 - Gold
The Fox
Jump Up - Gold
Too Low for Zero - Platinum
Breaking Hearts - Platinum
Ice on Fire - Gold
Leather Jackets 
Reg Strikes Back - Gold
Sleeping With the Past - Platinum

The 80s singles:  “I Guess That’s Why They Call It The Blues”, “I’m Still Standing”, “Sad Songs”, “Passengers”, “Nikita”, “Wrap Her Up”, “I Don’t Want to Go on With You Like That”, “Sacrifice”, and many more

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(6) Journey vs.

(10) Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Journey

Steve Perry. Neal Schon. Enough said. Maybe you’ve heard “Don’t Stop Believin’?” 

The 80s albums:

Departure - 3x Platinum
Dream After Dream
Captured - 2x Platinum
Escape - 9x Platinum
Frontiers - 6x Platinum
Raised on Radio - 2x Platinum

The 80s singles: “Any Way You Want It,” “Don’t Stop Believin’,” “Open Arms,” “Separate Ways (Worlds Apart),” “Faithfully,” “Send Her My Love,” “Be Good to Yourself,” and more.

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

Genuine heartland rock that played counter to much of the prefab gloss of the decade. Tom was one of our greatest songwriters, and he and the Heartbreakers always appealed to our best sensibilities.

The 80s albums:

Hard Promises - Platinum
Long After Dark - Gold
Southern Accents - Platinum
Pack Up the Plantation
Let Me Up (I’ve Had Enough) - Platinum
Full Moon Fever (solo) - 5x Platinum

The 80s singles: “I Won’t Back Down,” “Refugee,” “Runnin’ Down a Dream,” “Free Fallin’,” “Here Comes My Girl,” “The Waiting,” “You Got Lucky,” “Don’t Come Around Here No More,” “So You Want to Be a Rock ‘n Roll Star,” “Jammin’ Me,” and more.