Five superb 1980s debut albums that need to get more respect

The Christians - The Christians

This debut album has clocked up just short of a million sales. That's very creditable, but the majority come from their UK homeland, where it was a number two album chart success. It was such a great soulful blend of vocals and music with several brilliant songs that it deserves a much wider hearing. 

It came out in 1987 and had five UK top 40 singles released from the album. Gary Christian’s smooth vocals worked so well for the songwriting of keyboard player Henry Priestman and film director Mark Herman who co-wrote some of the lyrics. The songs are well crafted, and the lyrics pointedly cast a light on the social difficulties of Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Britain. 

These weren't loud and raucous protest songs, but they still hit home. If you want to get a feel for the band or the album, look up any of those five singles: "Forgotten Town," "Hooverville," "When the Fingers Point," "Ideal World," and "Born Again." Or indeed any other of the album’s tracks, there were no weak points, fillers, or skips. 

The Silencers - A Letter From St Paul

Another Scottish rock band from the 1980s. There were so many of them around, but sadly most only had very moderate success. The Silencers and their debut album, A Letter To St Paul, is just one example of that. The album was released in 1987 and started out with three songs originally recorded as demos. One of those, “Painted Moon,” was a standout track on the album and a modest hit single. 

The album, though, didn't make any real chart impression but is critically recognized. The band's second and third albums A Blues For Buddah and Dance To The Holy Man take the limelight. But even that is at sales of only around 100k each. A Letter to St Paul is definitely overshadowed by those and quite probably the best of the three but less well-known and underplayed. If you do want to have a listen, make sure you try the somewhat eerie but brilliant title track too. 

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