Pitchfork vehemently disagrees with me about 1982

Now this is just getting ridiculous.  I'm looking at yet another "100 Best Album's of the '80s" list in hopes of finding some publication/website that will agree with me that 1982 is the best year ever for pop music.  To date, I've examined lists at Rolling Stone, Best Ever Albums, Dave's Music Database, Popjustice, and, most recently, Slant.  Today, I look at the list put together over at Pitchfork.  1982 has placed as high as third, but the top spot has thus far eluded that year.  The bottom spot on the list is usually reserved for 1981, but I find my favorite year there this go 'round.  Dead ass last. I'm simply incredulous.  Oh, if you're a fan of 1987, that year won in a landslide.

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Using a simple formula (album #1 received 100 points, album #2 received 99 points, and so on through #100 receiving 1 point, 5050 total points available), here are the results:

		1987 Number of albums: 16 Points: 804
		1981 Number of albums: 12 Points: 594
		1989 Number of albums: 11 Points: 594
		1988 Number of albums: 9 Points: 538
		1980 Number of albums: 10 Points: 485
		1985 Number of albums: 10 Points: 448
		1983 Number of albums: 8 Points: 413
		1986 Number of albums: 7 Points: 403
		1984 Number of albums: 8 Points: 390
		1982 Number of albums: 9 Points: 381

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The nine albums selected for the list which were released in 1982 are:

27	Thriller	Michael Jackson
33	Hex Induction Hour	The Fall
46	English Settlement	XTC
49	Vs.	Mission of Burma
58	Imperial Bedroom	Elvis Costello
60	Nebraska	Bruce Springsteen
61	Homotopy to Marie	Nurse With Wound
95	Rio	Duran Duran
99	Songs of the Free	Gang of Four

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I've not heard the Mission of Burma album and I've never heard of Nurse With Wound.  I'll give Vs. a try, but to be honest, I won't be looking up Nurse With Wound because the Pitchfork review describes the album as "a twisted masterpiece of minimalism whispering terrifying suggestions of death rituals and torture chambers."  Not exactly what I'm looking for in a piece of music.

While I'm happy to see Rio made the list, there are a few 1982 snubs, most notably Avalon and 1999.

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RS	BEA	DMDB	PM	Slant	PF
1980	1984	1986	1987	1989	1987
1984	1987	1989	1984	1987	1981
1982	1989	1987	1983	1986	1989
1987	1986	1984	1982	1983	1988
1983	1980	1985	1988	1984	1980
1986	1988	1983	1986	1988	1985
1988	1983	1980	1989	1982	1983
1985	1982	1988	1985	1980	1986
1981	1985	1982	1980	1981	1984
1989	1981	1981	1981	1985	1982

RS = Rolling Stone, BEA = Best Ever Albums, DMDB = Dave's Music Database, PM = Popmatters, PF = Pitchfork

Simple meta-analysis might suggest that 1987 is emerging as the overall winner, but that won't stop this quest.

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