Black Sabbath‘s second life started with this album, Heaven And Hell (Vertigo, 1980). Ronnie James Dio‘s powerful vocals combined with Iommi ‘s riffs make it an almost unbeatable hard rock classic (review).
AC/DC also needed a new singer on their 8th album Back In Black (Atlantic, 1980), because the charismatic Bon Scott had died. The album sold 50 million worldwide – the ultimate proof for the universal appeal of this uncomplicated and powerful rock machine (review).
Saxon‘s 2th album, Wheels Of Steel (Carrere, 1980) (reviews), and 3th album, Strong Arm Of The Law (Carrere, 1980) (review) are genre defining metal albums. The heavy yet accessible songs are prime NWOBHM.
Foreigner – 4 (Atlantic, 1981)
Y & T – Earthshaker (A&M, 1981)
Journey – Escape (CBS, 1981)
Iron Maiden – The Number Of The Beast (EMI, 1982)
Hughes/Thrall – Hughes/Thrall (Epic, 1982)
Bryan Adams – Cuts Like A Knife (A&M, 1983)
Metallica – Kill ‘em All (Roadrunner, 1983)
Van Halen – 1984 (WB, 1984)
Survivor – Vital Signs (Scotti Bros, 1984)
Bon Jovi – Slippery When Wet (Mercury, 1986)
David Lee Roth – Eat ‘em And Smile (WEA, 1986)
Joe Satriani – Surfing With The Alien (Relativity, 1987)
Whitesnake – 1987 (EMI, 1987)
Guns N Roses – Appetite For Destruction (Geffen, 1987)
Def Leppard – Hysteria (Vertigo, 1987)
Living Colour – Vivid (Epic, 1988)
TNT – Intuition (Phonogram, 1989)
