Reviews (page 2 of 16)
Oi. Olipahan huippu levy. Kolme hittisingleä (Shout, Everybody Wants to Rule the World ja Head Over Heels) olivat hyvinkin tuttuja, mutta kaikki muutkin biisit olivat hienoja. Tästä ei varmaan 80-luvun popmusiikki kauheasti parane.
Amazing synthpop records. There's a sort of cohesion that makes it feel more than just a collection of great tunes, but not crossing into concept album territory. It is also quite dark without being gothic, and flamboyant without going full New Romantic. The long-ish track lengths also work to its favor, and one track has applause(?), kinda weird. Really enjoyed this one and it definitely stands as a full work beyond its big hits. Key tracks: Shout Everybody Wants to Rule the World Mothers Talk Head Over Heels
Vsy en vrai c’est bien deux ou 3 son et l’outro et vrmt cool
Everybody Wants To Rule The World is a banger, obviously. I don't know if I needed this whole album. I could have left some of the jazzy ballad energy. But the synth pop sound is so nostalgic (of 80s movies). Also enjoyed Mothers Talk which I had never heard before. Also liked Head Over Heels/Listen.
This has one of my all time favourite songs 'everybody wants to rule the world' which I bought on cassette when I was a kid while on holiday. So of course I like this album a lot though I confess I didn't listen to it until very recently.
Very nice album - knowing the singles the rest of the tracks are similar. They have that dense production of multiple instruments all playing. Enjoyed it a lot
A few solid bops but the rest didn't do much for me
This couldn’t be more 80s but it works sooo well. Had no idea I’d like this so much
I don't know if there's any other music that so encapsulates the 1980s for me. Madonna maybe? The Eurhythmics? The singles from this album are each, individually, towering achievements that have permeated the fabric of pop culture for decades and will likely continue to do so for centuries. If the album cuts are not as strong, they are at least equally epic and dramatic. There was really nothing like this, before or since. A band in its time, making that time timeless.
A new wave album under the hood of some of the most iconic songs known to man kind. It’s an interesting duality for sure, but damnnnn it’s very good when it hits.
Отличный альбом, 9/10
Lots of songs with heavy airplay when this came out. This one is more polished than their first album, and less dark. I must say, I enjoyed the previous album more, it had better synth and was less aggressively commercial. Just not a big fan of this album overall, not my thing.
Two bangers and a whole load of guff.
This is a good, but not great album. Head Over Heals and Everybody Wants to Rule the World are sounding a bit schmaltzy these days. In general, this album doesn't have the edge, bravado or strong themes of the first album. That album deserves to be on this list...I don't think this one does.
Enjoyable.
The songs individually are good, but I thought the way the album flowed was great. The transition from Broken to Head Over Heels stood out.
Artistic. All around good: lyrics, melodies, execution, and variety.
Great synth pop, the hits are phenomenal and the rest is good with interesting momenta
hmm...heel wat overbodige kussens op deze grote stoel
A nice album. Typical 80s. Some very popular songs, which I find better than the other ones. But generally ok.
Super 80s, very cool. Difficult to hear with fresh ears because those singles are so huge and such distinctive sounds. Every tone of the singles feels familiar already. However the album they built around those tracks is absolutely surprisingly credible! There's some really beautiful stuff going on. Some of the instrumentals and soundscape kind of bits are almost progy! Super pop done proper I guess. Really pleasant surprise for me.
Such an amazing album…. Start to finish good.
4.5/5 This was great album, I loved the overall meanings of the songs. I felt there was such a bittersweet experience since the songs captured glooming events such as world disparity but hid them with ear-catching pop. Top Three Songs: Head Over Heels, Mothers Talk, I Believe
This is fine. Smash hits, relative uniqueness, cultural impact. Not my cup of tea, but probably one of the best of the '80's.
Some foundational songs in my life. Roland Orzabal has an incredibly strong and distinct voice that plays well with the music. These songs were densely produced. THere was so much going on that it at times was tough to tell what was going on. I strongly disliked "I Believe" as it was just boring. I really had trouble understanding what was going on with the whole "Broken" and "Head Over Heels/Broken (Live)" bit... just didn't make much sense. Then the final song "Listen" was interesting until they slowed things down to a snail's pace, and Orzabal sang. Then it went on way too long. Strong Side A, very weak Side B, except for my favorite song ("Head Over Heels").
What a fantastic album. So many hits on MTV, I never listened to the whole thing. So glad I did.
Great production. Big synths and really strong melodies. Nice album.
#240 - I knew I would at least like 3/8 of this album, 3 hits scattered throughout. I was not sure of the rest but the back half (past Everybody Wants to Rule The World) ends up being this medley of sorts that ties it all together. Its brings a cohesion to a record you might just skip through to listen to the hits. I enjoyed it a lot, and will come back to it. Biggest Hit - Everybody Wants to Rule The World Biggest Miss (if I had to choose) - Listen Hidden Gem - Mothers Talk
Loved it when it came out, still love it
🤍
Oh dear... A favorite of my mom when driving me to school and I am not looking forward to revisiting this. Just to get it out of the way, I don't like this and never have. But there are some big hits here. It's really not for me. "Shout" and "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" keep it from being a bottom of the barrel 1 star. The best of these belong on nostalgic movie soundtracks, the rest in the bin. How many movies have used "Head Over Heels" must be dozens. Good for them I guess, it certainly gives a era. 2 stars and I'm done with it. I really feel like I must be running out of cheesy 80's music, there's been so much of it. really can't get behind it. Give me a break please.
This was good! At least two classic hits on one album. It would be 5 stars if it was only a genre I was more into (and less 80's vibe), but I would listen again on occasion!
I've loved this album for so long and I'm so glad it's on the list. Shout is one of the best songs of the 80s - I love the crescendo, and how Chris Hughes' drums transform the second half into a stadium song. Everybody Wants... is another memorable riff and Head Over Heels is probably Tears For Fears' best ballad. Mother's Talk was a bit of a strange choice for the lead single, although as a bridge from their first album, it's probably most similar to their earlier work. Of the rest, Working Hour merges synths and jazz effectively and there is a fantastic flow to the second half of the album, based around the Head Over Heels centrepiece. And Listen is such a beautiful way of rounding it all off. A total 5 star blast from the past.
I never much liked Shout, and I can take or leave Everybody Wants to Rule the World, but damn if the rest of this album isn't pretty good. Turns out, if you pass over the pop melodies and keep the production, this is a great chill-out album. Love the mid-80s drum machines and synths.
Great album, sort of like how I wish Depeche Mode albums were… I.e consistent. Singles are great, rest of the tracks are solid, great production. Overall a really good listen 4.2
Singles are great and a couple of 5 star tracks in shout and everybody wants to rule the world. The rest of the album is sold too
Every track in this album pulls its weight and has its own special moment that contributes to an overall banger.
2,4/5
Surprised by how good this is. Always impressive when you find out an artist's biggest hits are off the same album, but the other tracks are solid too, and the whole album has a great atmosphere.
Quite a cool album although I have not found anything more for myself other than the two I had already known and enjoyed (Shout and Everybody Wants to Rule the World)
I know why some folks love this record. But It’s not for me. Just not my taste.
Surprisingly really very good.
I just played this album for someone literally a month ago because they were trying to poo poo Tears For Fears. This album is awesome.
Vele herinneringen
Super leuk, heel veel bekende liedjes
Shout was awesome; I was really into that. But it got a little too Muzak for me. You run that risk when you throw an alto sax on top of 80s atmospherics...
An album I was very aware of but never owned. To my regret now Tears for Fears were never my favourite in the 80’s. I liked the single Mad World and was even more intrigued by Roland Orzabal‘s dancing in the video but never bothered to sit down and listen to their output which I now consider to be excellent. In fact today was the first time I’ve listened to this album in its entirety. I now understand why so many consider the album to be a classic. A good example of how one’s musical tastes can change over time and maturity. I will right the wrong of not owning this album immediately. 5/5 12/9/26
Just not that into 80’s pop today.
Jag hittade detta album på cd 2016 på en loppmarknad i Edinburgh när jag precis hade upptäckt Tears for Fears. Både Everybody Wants to Rule the World och Head Over Heels är bland det bästa som kommit ur 80-talet, men även de andra låtarna är topp.
There's been a lot of talk on here how a lot of pop music from the eighties doesn't stand the test of time due to lacklustre production making it feel very of its time. I agree with a lot of that sentiment, but I would not say that applies to Songs From The Big Chair. Packed with bangers like "Shout" and "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" that sound absolutely massive, no group did pop music this decade better than Tears For Fears do on this record. Having a great vocalist with even greater hooks, songs go to some interesting places and never get boring. Side two isn't as strong as the first side, but it is still great and closes out the record with the atmospheric "Listen".
Fun 80s record
I love 80s British music!! can't be a 5 as it loses a bit of steam in the middle but there's some absolute classics in here
Shout was the first music video I remember seeing. 3.5.
3 out of 8 songs became instantly identifiable 80s classics. Not a bad ratio. 9 year old me owned this on cassette. It was an early memory that my music sounded way different from what my parents listened to.
Perfect
Not sure what everyone else is hearing in this.
distilled liquid 80s
Perfect 80s easy listening, that still manages to be a bit moody and atmospheric. 3.5* but the hits round it up to 4*
Other than EWTRTW not thing.
Oh yeah little man, tears for fears are one of those bands that will pop up through your life, and you won’t be mad. This album is filled with synth pop, sax, hip shakers that you’ll dance through the house with I’m sure, and slow tunes that’ll get you brooding. Either way, we’ll dance with you, believe me.
fantastic album with the perfect blend of pop techno and soul searching lyrics
Solid
Loved! When I think of the 80’s, the sound of this album is right in the bullseye. Shout is a perfect first album track. It tells me to play the album on good speakers and turn it up loud. Was surprised to hear that Head Over Heels has a companion song that leads into it, introducing the theme.
Outstanding and still one of my top 1001
Buen disco, ni wow, ni choto. Agradable, con un gran tema, que es everybody wants to rule the world. Despues normalito. 7/10
Some insane all timers with quite a bit of mid and repetive songs inbetween.
It was solid, fun to hear the hits
8/10
4.5/5 - Great instrumentation, vibes, catchy, etc... Did Shout need to be 6 minutes? Probably not. Otherwise, generally a very solid album with few negative things to say.
Reviewing and listening to this on the 5th of September. In my opinion this is a prime example of how great popular music can be. This is beautiful stuff, interesting, well mixed and with something to say. Easy 4 stars for me, it lacks something a little bit I can't put in words to reach 5 stars, however I'm thinking 4.5 on RYM easily.
Enduring hits, no filler. Easy 4.
I don't love Everybody Want to Rule the World so it was a pleasent surprise hear the rest of this ablum. I especially like The Working Hour, Head Over Heels/Broken, and Listen.
Very good.
Grew up hearing the singles but have never listened to an entire Tears For Fears album. It's damn good.
As competent as ‘80s pop gets. Quite good.
Like the most quintessential 80s sounding album ever. Two absolute bangers, the rest hits good too.
It doesn’t have TFF best song, but it’s still a solid album.
One of the better synth pop albums I have ever listened to.
This album is so 80s it hurts but honestly had some bangers - specifically "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" and "Head Over Heels".
The worst thing about 80s music is how 80s it sounds.
Better than I thought it would be.
this shit sounds good 👍
Peak 80s pop album right here. I really don't want to like the album because I feel like Everybody Wants to Rule the World is crazy overplayed, but it's just a really solid, cohesive album.
Classic. Excellent record
"Then tell me, future boy, who's President of the United States in 1985?" "Ronald Reagan." "Ronald Reagan? The actor? Then who's vice-president, Jerry Lewis? I suppose Jane Wyman is the First Lady!" Back to the Future (1985)
Not what I thought it was going to be. Enjoyed
Incredible distillation of that 80s sound but the listening experience for me is just: one of the best songs ever made followed by one of the worst and then a bunch of tracks I've already forgotten about
RATING: 9/10 HIGHLIGHT: Everybody Wants to Rule the World LOWLIGHT: Mothers Nature
Timeless, iconic. What else needs to be said?
its fine and I liked the singles as a kid, but jfc this album reuses motifs to an insane degree. I'll be in the middle of one of the instrumentals and thinks its the bridge to the previous song
Classic 80s music, really fits into that cliche sound in an enjoyable way. Really strong beginning, this was a fun album to listen to to overall with a few misses
Short (only 8 tracks) but I know at least two of them already. Didn't know Tears for Fears were only two. Love the sound of these songs compared to yesterday's of Rolling Stones which were very classic rock.
Didn't like the last song but the few bangers made up for it. Great album.
awesome
Possible hot take but I liked The Hurting more.
A very 80s album. Not timeless so much - probably wouldn't have been made today. But a good slice of music for its time.
Apparently I have liked several songs on this album for years and had no idea Catchy, solid tunes.
just wasn’t my taste or what i wanted to listen to at the moment. some good moments but overall just didn’t do much for me.
I approve of this album for #500. Full of hits that still stand up today. I enjoyed it. Rating: 8/10
Loved it!
Love the singles, the rest of the album is pretty solid as well.
This is major for alternative. Stands up to time wonderfully
Banger
Very 80s-90s music.
intresting but not with too much other impression
Meh.
4 out of 5, iconic songs. Well done
80s cinematic magic Saved loads to faves Knew more than I thought I would Reminds me of home
The hits are great but some of the other songs are a bit forgettable. 3 1/2
A straightforward 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟. This is almost the quintessential ’80’s album. Full of life and made by a band who truly believe in what they are doing. The Hurting was a terrific first album but they raised all levels with this. The singles are all terrific, of course, but the whole album speaks to me. It came along just at the time I was starting to appreciate music so that is part of it, but it just signifies the era for me in a way that almost nothing else does.
good stuff
Bring back the SRL
This experience has made it very clear I am a huge New Wave and Synth-Pop fan. I was realllly excited to get this album. Especially after getting Depeche Mode and Gary Numan, both of which were immediate 5 stars even at the first song. But I feel a little underwhelmed at this album, which I went into with very high expectations. Shout, Everybody Wants To Rule The World, and Head Over Heels/Broken are standouts for a reason. But, otherwise, I didn’t really feel super drawn to anything else. And some songs went on a minute too long for me without anything enticing me to feel like no time was passing.
Peak 80s. One of the only British bands that was actually cool.
Good
Head Over Heels is one of my favorite songs from the 80s. Add in Everybody Wants to Rule the World and Shout and you have a few hits. The rest of the songs fit the album and an iconic cover.
OK. 3/5
I remember hating on "Shout" when i was 15 because it was one of the few songs my dad liked. He is not much of a music guy, and all the modern music he listens to falls pretty much under radio and edm music, so i just never took his opinion on music seriously. However, when he was younger, he did listen to some more music, most notably Tears For Fears and Depeche Mode. He tried getting me into them a couple of times, but i just had decided i was going to hate it from the get go. Thankfully, i've since grown ears and brains, and i can appreciate music from the past much better. Songs From The Big Chair slaps ong
Fire.
This has to be one of the greatest pop albums ever released! 'Shout', 'Everybody Wants To Rule The World', 'Mothers Talk' and 'Head Over Heels' are completely flawless songs, definitely some of the greatest ever released, but it's not like the other tracks are bad. In comparison, they're weaker, but it'd be very unfair to judge these tracks because they aren't perfect! My favourite would have to be 'Head Over Heels', there just aren't any other songs quite like it, the other ones that I claimed to be flawless are, but 'Head Over Heels' is in a league of its own!
Great album. One of the best intros of CD any song.
unter de duschi am hocke aber glich au tanze
Parentscore
Good to listen properly to another band I've only been vaguely aware of. I rather liked it. The singles I already knew are great, and the rest holds up too. A bit on the poppy, bombastic side for my tastes, but I enjoyed it.
The texturing and layering on Shout and Everyone Wants to Rule the World alone make this a 4
Very strong album. Interesting that the best tracks are basically all the odd-numbered ones: 1. Shout, 3. Everybody wants to rule the world, 5. I Believe (wasn't as big but I love it), 7. Head over heals. This is close to a 5-star album.
This album could just be “Shout,” “Everybody Wants to Rule the World,” “Head Over Heels” and the band farting into a microphone for 30 minutes and I’d still probably give it 4 stars.
Even the big hits have a schlocky 80s feel, like James Spader is going to come around the corner in an unbuttoned linen blazer, no socks, ready to say something cutting about how your parents couldn't afford skiing in Vail at winter break. Maybe too of its time to truly enjoy - and the non-singles are pretty consistently terrible.
How funny, I get the what’s supposedly the top rated electronic album on this site, and I end up really liking it!(I don’t consider this album electronic to be honest, more new wave than anything). Going in, I’d already heard the whole album before, but I didn’t really remember too much besides the big hits. After listening to it, I can safely say that pretty much the whole track list stands well alongside those classic songs. I feel like this album holds up while some of the other 80s albums I’ve heard so far don’t for a few reasons. Firstly, it doesn’t feel dated and restrained by cliche 80s sounds(cough cough Dare cough cough). Instead, it has a bright, nostalgic feel. No better song exemplifies that fact than Everybody Wants To Rule The World, my first standout track. This song is just one of those song everybody just universally knows is good, especially the iconic opening guitar riff. This kind of bright sound and use of unique synth textures is part of the reason the album shined. The only place I don’t feel like this holds up is Mothers Talk, which I’m not big on, since I feel like it kind of relies on that bouncy, 80s drum machine sound. Another reason that I feel like the album holds up is due to Roland Orzabal’s vocal performance. His singing, along with the unorthodox instrumentals and soaring saxophone really sell The Working Hour, my second standout track, where his vocals capture the desperation of being stuck in the day-job cycle. He is also able to push to the top of his range on songs like Head Over Heels, my third standout and another classic off this album. This song also really shows off the musicianship present on the album, as it not only stands out as a really good pop love song, but it also expertly ties in with the song Broken. The way that the piano motif for Head Over Heels is introduced in Broken, and then Broken is reprised at the end of Head Over Heels is a really cool touch that not many bands do. My final standout track would have to be Shout, which stands as an incredible opener to the album, with it’s politically charged lyrics setting the tone for other songs on the album while standing on its own as a great song. Listen is definitely a runner up for a standout as well, with its sparse yet ripping guitar, and backing vocals making it feel as if you’re touching down on a distant planet. Overall, I think this is definitely a classic 80s album that doesn’t feel dated to the time. I feel that the track-list stands head and shoulders above a lot of the albums of that decade, and the songs feel timeless in their own unique way. Now, I’m gonna fall head over heels into the next album.
One of the best albums ever. Holy cow everything is beautiful. Incredible songs yet it still has standouts, namely the moster singles. Mid 80s might be my favorite period in music, so many good albums came out around then. Like my 1 and 2 of my favorite albums on this list, Purple Rain and Steve McQueen. This album isn't too far off from that
Quintessential mid-80s pop rock album. I could visualize the videos from MTV in real time while the singles from this album played because they were so prevalent on the channel.
7/10
It's alright
Marvellously overblown and over produced. If I was a different frame of mind, I'd score it higher, but today .... nope.
1,3,4,7曲目が良いです。 思ってたよりめっちゃ良くて、うまいこと電子音も使ってるというか８０年代にしかできないことをしてると思うし、その中でものすごく完成度の高い作品であるとも思った。これはいいです。
Pretty forgettable album, it’s carried by the popular tracks
Sooo pretty and easy to listen to! I loved The Working Hour
I went into a pit absolutely chock full of dishes, feeling sick and tired, and unsure of myself. I put on this album, and I let the energy wash over me, and I knocked that shit out in 30 minutes while moving and grooving. 4.5 rounded up to a 5.
Really good and nostalgic album, heard these songs on the radio a bunch plus playing everybody wants to rule the world in black and gold band was a blast, the album is full of great music
Literally everything is amazing except for last song
Exactly!
Some bangers, good vibes.
I like it the most. It is so good and OG most of the time. However there are some parts really confusing like the intro and outro. 7/10 or 4/5
Nie ma co oceniać, genialna płyta, nawet poza głównymi singlami, perełka roku 1985, nie zestarzała się ani o sekundę.
Great album, didn't expect it to be this good. Shout, Everybody Wants To Rule The World and Mothers Talk are my favorites. The last 3 songs were fire though.
I would have never thought that rock could sound so good
Instant 5 for me. I have loved many of the songs on this album for most of my life, but it wasn’t until a few years ago that I decided to listen to the album in full, and I was blown away.
Not much to say. It's a classic!
Broken into Head Over Heels is sick.
This was a surprisingly diverse 80s pop album. Very enjoyable but not quite as good as Peter Gabriel, so 4.
The only thing holding this album back is how often my coworker's radio plays these tracks and how she won't turn it down a click and everyone in-fact encourages her to turn it up.
It's 40 minutes of Tears For Gears, including some of their biggest songs. It's every bit of whatever you expected from that. Even though they only did one Bond song, the whole album sounds like 80s era Bond.
A couple good songs, but overall I didn’t enjoy it.
despite my hate for 80s sounds, this is one of the outliers. a fun, full of hits, really good album. some songs don't connect that much, but even then, i find myself enjoying a lot how clean and clear this album sounds in a good pair of headphones
no me gusta sinceramente, la cancion "everybody wants to rule the world" siento que la ocuparon demasiado entonces por eso le tengo un amorodio a el disco
This album obviously has so many hits like shout and everybody wants to rule the world and one other one I can’t remember, and I really appreciate that. Tears for Fears kept this at eight songs. They chose their best eight and I admire that because too many albums are bloated and include way too many tracks. This is just personal preference and I don’t love music in the 80s just cause it gives me a funny feeling. This is sort of like how I feel about the Peche mode. Good album, but it’s not one that I’m going to go back to and listen to all the way through again. Head over heels as a bop. Writing this review as I drive with voice text.
Very enjoyable album. Amazing guitar work and production value. The arrangements are both inventive but not at all jarring, everything still resolves nicely. Really original work here and although the style of it is of its time, it still sounds fresh and creative to me.
Atmospheric 80's synth pop, through in some world music influences. There are 3 just all-time classic songs on this album which really bring it up. The others are decent tunes but the highs are just so high, hard to compete against those songs. And I forgot about how good the closing track is, the beautifully haunting and creepy Listen!
Shout was a hit and it is terrible. Why is there so much New Wave on this list?!? I'll hand it to them, Everybody Wants To Rule The World is a banger. These dudes look like such dorks. The album cuts are terrible. Two songs with the Head Over Heels music, double your pleasure.
Still ruling the world one movie clip at a time outlasting expectations.
Very fun listen that is all 80s and I am here for it! Everyone wants to rule the world is the best somg to get on the Guardians ride at Disney World. 8.5/10 Top song... Everybody wants to rule the world
3 massive songs here! 80s tastic but sounds fresh. Enjoyed this.
Started with an enjoyable song in Shout but for some reason it went on for 7 minutes. A few good songs in here
A mix of amazing highs and filler
pretty fantastic, closer to a 5 than a 3
Wall to wall BANGERS and utter classic
Pretty decent but didn't stand out all that much.
Such an 80s album but that's no bad thing. Consistently good throughout apart from I Believe which was boring.
Already a personal favorite, when I think of the 80s I think of this album, reading into its history I wholeheartedly believe it's underrated
on backlog and listened twice now. it's a 5/5, but i don't have detailed reviews. very voluminous sound even on headphones. it's enjoyable. good instrumentation. minor key on i believe is intriguing. ya know, it's good
Um bom album, as músicas são marcantes, e gosto do estilo. Acho que é o primeiro a levar a nota 4. É difícil tentar ser imparcial aqui quando, head over hells, shout e everybody wants to rule the world já estavam salvas nas minhas playlists pessoais. 4/5
pop perfection. next
It would be easy to file this away with much of the other synth-pop of this era as simply signifying "Eighties." And it does signify its era, but the way it does it is deeper and more subtle in a way that I think explains its staying power. This is *samizdat* in New Wave form - ostensibly commercial music about the very anti-consumerist sense that you are not really free but rather are only being allowed to *feel* free because someone more powerful than you decided in their magnanimity to permit you that illusory feeling, because it serves their interests to do so. That truth is *encoded* here, disguised by the pop rhythms and melodies on display. It isn't a new trick but it's one this band performs incredibly well. Some of what I'm talking about is conveyed by "The Working Hour," Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal's reaction to being pushed by their record label for more and bigger hits. "This day and age for all and not for one," Orzabal sings, "all lies and secrets." Here is the modern experience of having your natural empathy and altruism weaponized against you, of being told by the bosses that We're A Family Here while they keep the profits and you get a pizza party. "Broken" similarly takes the bassline from Queen's "Radio Ga Ga" and bends it into something more paranoid and sinister; "I stop believing everything will be alright." Likewise, "Mothers Talk," which lifts one of the jauntiest Beatles lyrics - McCartney's "we can work it out" - for a tale about living in the shadow of mutually assured nuclear destruction. "You were paid not to listen, now your house is on fire," Orzabal accuses, the older generation squarely in his sights. And what is one to do in this state of affairs? Act out where you can, of course ("Shout"). But also, at the very least and always, carry with you in your heart the truth that the world does not have to be this way. "Put your head right next to my heart," Orzabal continues on "Mothers Talk," before ending the song with a critical variation: "*only* we can work it out." And on the soaring bridge of "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," the same message: "there's a room where the light won't find you, holding hands while the walls come tumbling down." Sometimes things have to be hidden because they are valuable, in other words. "Listen" takes this furtiveness even further, using both literal nonsense (badly butchered Swahili, technically) and Smith's almost whispered vocals to call for detente - not just between East and West. but between all the factions constantly attempting to carve up the planet for the sake of making a number go up on a spreadsheet somewhere. *Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.* No wonder this album has continued to find entire new generations of listeners (my teenage kids among them): it describes the experience of being young and waking up to what the world is really like. It is an album about disillusionment - and yet it is not cynical music. People don't hide unless they have some hope of being able to come back into the light someday. "Broken" segues right into the dizzy, gorgeous "Head Over Heels," and that's the whole point - that love, in every sense, actually can prevail, even if only temporarily. Something similar is true of "Shout," which would be easy to write off as an anthem in search of a cause if it weren't so good at buoying up the listener to face the world as it is. On the points that really matter - the power of youth to change things, even if that project seems daunting and even if it will require judgment in addition to simple bravery - this album is clear and direct: *come on, I'm talking to you. You shouldn't have to sell your soul.*
Bien
5/10 A couple classics but overall not my fav
Have this but don't think I ever listened to it. Always thought Shout was a Depeche Mode song. It's quite good, still has that 80s sound but seems more vibrant. 3.5 rounded up Heard before? Already have Owned: Yes, 98/371 (26%) Will I get: Already have
More like Tears for... BEERS!!! Wait that's an actual song? Shit
Always thought they were knobheads
Such a belter. Amuses me no end that this has become a must have for burgeoning record collections. I'm sure I remember it at one time being the punchline of various gags.
Love the singles on here, but I'm not sure if it really ends up being more than the sum of its parts like a great album should. Synthpop in general kind of ends up like that, actually. I should love it, but it doesn't quite come together entirely, so I merely like it.
A genuinely great album, uniquely 80s, a spectrum of instruments used well and a mysterious tone that follows through the slow build from song 1-7 finishing with a mystical down track on song 8. Good boat music or autumnal cabin weekend (somewhere by a lake with good friends).
Нью вейв перфекшон
I'll trade you 16 tears for one of your fears. Yeah, I've got 'em right in this vial. Deal? Awesome. AHHHH SNAKES AHHH OH GOD. Pleasure doing business with you. Sit on down in this comically sized chair and be whisked away by our androgynous baddies until the chair regains the thoughts of the bird whose feathers make up it's innards. The chair writhes and squawks beneath the pressure of your body. It is attempting to reanimate, but with no recognizable anatomy, it screams into a second, interminable death spiral. So grab some popcorn, and listen to the music of the 80's! Please ignore the red fluid oozing out of the big chair. Please stop noticing things about the big chair. 2.5 GENRE: Quatre-vingt-cinq
An interesting album. The hits are still good. I remember them as a kid. I have never listened to the rest of the album. They are a grab bag of different styles but it all worked for them. I’m not sure they would reach these heights again with their music but they wrote some really good songs on this album and it’s an impressive feat. Oh I forgot they did have success with the next album as well.
mui weno
Yeah I like 80s music, so what?
I already loved 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World', but I was pleasantly surprised by the rest of the album. 'Shout', 'Head over Heels' and 'The Working Hour' were all standouts, and I liked both lead singers. 'Listen' wasn't really for me, so I probably wouldn't replay the whole album, but I'd definitely come back to several of these songs.
Tasteful synthesizers and reverby vocals to make you feel like partying in 1985
Album #227 Tears For Fears: Songs From The Big Chair Listening to Songs From The Big Chair is not for the faint of heart. You need to be strong both in mind and body; your mind must be strong in order to prevent yourself from manically breaking out into song and dance like some sort of medieval mass psychosis, and your body must be strong for when you inevitably cave in and spend the next 40 minutes performing like you’re Michael Jackson to a crowd of nobody. Tears For Fears created the most grandiose, life-affirming pop anthem of all time, then did it three more times and put them all on the same album. I will forever die on the hill that the 80s were the greatest decade for music, and Songs From the Big Chair is one of the first albums that I point to to support my claim. I don’t care if you don’t like pop music, if you’re a critic, or if you’re deaf; if you’re human, you will like this album. Though it might not be my favourite song of all-time (albeit it’s not far off), I also think it has to be said that Everybody Wants to Rule the World is probably the greatest song ever written. It has absolutely everything needed to make a song a hit: a catchy synth hook, soul-crushingly relatable lyrics, and vocals with enough passion to make Hitler cry; I could probably give the album a 10 off that song alone. One of my favourite albums of all-time, and if I’m ever found getting sick of it, just pull the plug. Best Songs: Everybody Wants To Rule The World, Head Over Heels, Shout Worst Song: None Score out of 10: 10
Gen Z 80's nostalgia aside, pretty good!
Sympa ! Quelques chansons hyper connues
I'm not into this era of 80s synth pop at all. But this is excellent and along with Depeche Mode, an exception to the stream of dirge that accompanied this time and style.
Loved it
Geen gem toch
Such a great record. Really the perfect 80's sounds going on here. "Shout" is a strong opener. It balances the more heavy pop/rock songs with the more slow and lengthy pieces so well. The guitar is great on the later tracks.
Maybe I've watched too much Psych, but I enjoyed the album.
Shout I knew well already. I like the smooth sound and voices. They also put a lot of emotions in their voices. The quality of the recording is great
I liked this much more than I thought I would.
Never really listened to Tears for Fears as i thought they were crap. How right i was.
SPLENDIDO. MAI L'AVEVO ASCOLTATO INTERAMENTE, E CONOSCENDO SOLO "HEAD OVER HEELS" E LA FAMOSA "EVERYBODY WANTS TO RULE THE WORLD" PARTIVO CON DISCRETE ASPETTATIVE. SONO CONTENTISSIMO DI AVER TROVATO DUE TRACCE MOLTO MIGLIORI: LA SOTTOVALUTATISSIMA "LISTEN" E LA SASSOFONATA "WORKING HOUR", CON STRUMENTALI E VOCI DI GRANDE LIVELLO. "MOTHERS TALK" E' L'UNICA CANZONE CHE NON MI E' PIACIUTA PER NULLA. E' UN VOTO TRA 4 E 5 CHE OSCILLA PIU' VERSO IL 4. 4/5.
I am aware of the existence of this band. This was first released when I was in college, and you could not avoid hearing the songs "Shout" and "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" if you wanted to. For this reason, I kinda got tired of this group and never really gave them a chance. Also, they were too "poppy" for my tastes at the time - which tended to skew towards rock bands such as U2, The Police, Pretenders, Springsteen, Petty and Mellencamp etc. - around that time. For this reason I never actually bought this album nor revisited it on Spotify once that existed. I am curious how this holds up after 40+ years. I must add that I was not into The Cure at the time for similar reasons - but I've grown to really like them over time - so I am hoping this will have some good surprises. I was surprised (in a good way) to see that this only has 8 songs - and that most of them are over 5 minutes long. I like songs that build. I forgot how much saxophone was used in the 80s. Oh yeah - "Head Over Heels" was also pretty popular and ubiquitous at that time as I recall. Ok - I ended up liking 4 songs on this - the big hits "Shout" and "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" PLUS 2 that I never heard before which kind of have a slower, more hypnotic feel to them "The Working Hour" and "Listen". The lyrics to "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" seem even more relevant in 2026 - with the greater influence of billionaires on government, media and society in general PLUS the delusions of grandeur we see in many people on social media and reality TV. And "turn our backs on Mother Nature" has proven to be very prophetic where despite reducing "pollution" we have managed to literally change the weather patterns of the earth through relentless growing of greenhouse gas emissions since that time - making many parts of the earth much less hospitable to human civilization. I'm glad I relistened to this one after so long. Liked songs on Spotify: 4/8 Rating: 3/5
not bad
I think this is my first 5 star album for this project. Absolutely an essential album.
I didnt realize how famliar I was with this album. It still sounds great today and I thoroughly enjoyed the listen. The singles of course do the heavy lifting but entire package is still worth a listen. Its a lean 8 songs but I think it works in their favor.
Very enjoyable saxophone on this one! Loved the singles too. Overall this album has aged pretty well
My birth year 1985 was a great year for music. Here is a quick top 15 1. The Cure: The Head on the Door 2. The Replacements: Tim 3. New Order: Low-Life 4. The Jesus and Mary Chain: Psychocandy 5. Prefab Sprout: Steve McQueen 6. Kate Bush: Hounds of Love 7. Beat Happening: Beat Happening 8. The Smiths: Meat Is Murder 9. Husker Du: New Day Rising 10. Tears For Fears: Songs from the Big Chair 11. Leevi and the Leavings: Raha ja rakkaus 12. Tom Waits: Rain Dogs 13. Talking Heads: Little Creatures 14. Camper Van Beethoven: Telephone Free Landslide Victory 15. The Pogues: Rum, Sodomy & the Lash First 6 albums are 5-star classics, and the rest are strong 4-star albums.
I knew and liked the singles, but this is a really good album, too. Typically 80s, of course, and poetry radio friendly. But also quite diverse and experimental, so multiple listens are very rewarding.
the songs that slap SLAPPP
Nice music. Wouldn't have heard it by choice if not for this
Nah bruh, 2 bangers the rest is just too much 80s sounds gets pretty annoying
unapologetically 80s
The 80's really just isn't my thing. This album is good, it is, but I just constantly felt this weird sense of how it sounded a lot like Genesis, but without any of the interesting parts from Genesis. The record didn't blow me away and I think a big part of that is that I really don't enjoy the sound of the 80's, I think it's very bland. Not a bad album, but definetely not for me.
Good album for 1980s pop did not like most of the songs though. Of course shout and Everybody wants to rule the world are very populair and are good songs in its own right, I am not sure to what to degree I like them though; Is due to how many times I've heard it on the radio or during my childhood? What I was surprised by was the most unpopular song on the track Listen. It's the first time I heard it and did enjoy it quite a bit. All in all album with some momorable songs but doesn't stand out to me as a full album.
1010 - "Here's your juice box and orange slice. Thanks for coming." (This album is worthy of more than one orange slice.)
Snapshot of an era. I forgot how good “Shout” is in its entirety.
ehh ik this album is popular but sure its a vibe
Skibidi Toilet Music
Man what an album, most of their big hits all together. Why is Broken just playing Head over Heels?
Absolute classic. Captures the mid 80's perfectly.
Everybody wants to rule the world. es un discazo.
Solid pop album slightly let down by a lacklustre closing track. I’ve never heard the album version of Head Over Heels before. Really enjoy the instrumental ending of that.
Such a great and classic album, great to have an album pop up on this list that I have on CD
- I’m excited for this - Shout! - The working hour felt cringe? Idk if I’m just not in the mood - Listen - new fave for me
One of the best albums of the 80s ❤️
Nice
I recognised the two big singles. I don't think I had realised quite how much "Shout" is six-and-a-half minutes of a chorus on repeat. "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" is shorter and sharper. For me, the album kind of fizzled out. I guess that if you really love that archetypal 1980s synth sound then the closing track "Listen" is great to immerse yourself in. I found it just went on and on in a landscape of electronic sounds that didn't really have a purpose.
Mid
nice
Thanks mom :)
every track on this album felt like its own epic. And Each song kinda felt repetitive from beginning to end. It was a little bit boring at the first time honestly. But strangely, that very repetition became the part of the album's charm. Every track had its own distinct identity, yet each maintained a consistency, and I found that balance surprisingly beautiful. (I'll rate 3 stars because this is the first recommendation)
I found this album mid. It has one iconic song and that's it.
Very 80s pop rock, if you like that this album is good, but honestly for me it was a drag. I prefer taking heads remain in light when it comes to layered 80s songs. This album has some popular songs that compliment the album well.
What a record! Just… amazing.
I love it, very striking lyrics combined with a good texture
another one i've already heard! never been too crazy about this album to be honest. obviously everybody wants to rule the world is one of the greatest songs of all time, but the rest of the album is pretty lackluster. even shout, which i've heard called just as good as everybody wants to rule the world by some people, doesn't really click with me. 3/5 largely off the backs of everybody wants to rule the world and head over heels, though definitely deserves to be on this list, js not something i like too much myself.
Pretty good. Some real icons in here. With their most popular/best songs coming off this album, I suspect this is their opus. The sound is full and alive, and the hits have aged very well. Probably like 3.75 or so.
2.3/5 Solid album bar 2 tracks (5 & 8) so it brings it down a few points.
I like it. Classics
I had this on voinyl. I don't remember the ballads, I must have skipped them. Upon a revisit, it's a really great album with only one track that I didn't feel, it was just a bit too maudlin. "I Believe". 4/5
There are some big hits on this one. It sounds so 80s but is well done.
These boys had some monsters on this one.
One of my all time favorite albums and part of the soundtrack of my youth.
It’s giving better off dead
Certified pop classic. As 80s as it gets and I love it for that. Everybody Wants To Rule The World was my fav song of the album. Mothers Talk (my fav first listen) and Broken were my other highlights
8/10 fav: shout
Een van de meest iconische jaren 80 albums. Head over Heels is misschien een van de beste nummers ooit tbh.
357/1089 i fear shout has been overplayed, and the repetitiveness is a bit too much the working hour was cute everybody wants to rule the world is iconic for a reason, genuinely timeless (but also still identifiably 80s) i will say though that i do prefer the Lorde version from Hunger Games/Assassin’s Creed Unity Head Over Heels is another great track i think the album was decent but was carried by a couple of tracks, the rest did feel a bit too dated to the 80s imo faves: Everybody…, Head over heels/Broken 67/100
*Songs* is a melodically-rich and sonically amazing record of which the main fault is that it tries too hard lyrically and ironically comes across as alternately shallow and/or ridiculous. Unlike on their more stripped-down debut, here TFF pile on keyboards, guitars and reverb-heavy drums in an effort to build a mountain of sound, and it mostly works as the giant riffs and hooks are often equal in size to ambitious arrangements. On an album where many of the better tracks were released as successful singles, only "I Believe" (pretentious) and album closer "Listen" (laughable) pale in comparison to the other numbers. (And why is Roland Orzabal singing about "Mother Russia" on the aforementioned "Listen"?) Toss the lyric sheet, cut a few tracks and you've got a terrific mini-LP.
not great, too old for me
No es mi estilo favorito, pero honestamente tiene unas canciones muy buenas y una vibra oscura que me gusta. De todas formas no es algo que escucharía.
Good first three tracks and then it runs out of steam
Idk, besides a few highlights it didnt really stick with me Everybody Wants To Rule The World is great ofc, so is The Working Hour or Head Over Heels, but the rest didnt really stick with me that much Still an enjoyable expirience, just not that much for me
I can't believe I'm saying this but, this album is easy too overblown. It got a bit much to listen to
3.5. Not ideal listening for sitting on the beach, but a few of these songs are pretty great.
I've listened to Shout, Everybody Wants To Rule The World and Head Over Heels countless times. Even the other songs that I didn't know as well were pretty good.
2.75 - The best songs on the album are GREAT. A lot of the other stuff is forgettable. Maybe I just need to listen more.
Muy buen álbum, creo que puedo decir que aquí está una de mis canciones favoritas.
Enjoyed this far more than I expected. I was never that keen on them back when they were having hits, but I don’t think I had really paid attention to how good his voice was. The album tracks on here struggle against the big hits on here, and again with those hits, which were so ubiquitous in the 80s, I don’t think I stopped to properly listen to them until now.
Instant 5 star. Perfect sound of the 80's, 2 absolute all timers in EWTRTW and Shout, the rest of the album is good to great. 6 bags of popcorn for sure.
LOVE IT
This album has a few iconic singles on it (2.6 BILLION streams for "Everybody wants to rule the world" is incredible). I had TFF greatest hits as a kid (a Columbia House CD no doubt) The rest of the album is solid. My favorite song on this album is Head over Heels/ Broken. I was a Donnie Darko Teen (TM)
This was meh. The only songs that were interesting were the ones they are famous for. One other was kinda catchy but other than that...
As 80s as The Breakfast Club.
mirá lo que me haces escuchar, es hermoso
I was looking forward to this and the songs Shout, Head over Heels and Everybody Wants to Rule the World are iconic but the other album tracks while well written and produced didn’t enthral me.
such a good album, grungy, emotive and cinematic. I like the repetition in most of the lyrics and some of the guitar solos are really fun. Also each song is nice and unique, keeps things interesting throughout. Always a big fan of half the song being purely instrumental and a slow build and I feel The Working Hour and Listen do just that. Everyone wants to rule the world is one of the best songs ever made so this 5/5 was almost inevitable.
An album from my teenager years - containing some hits and some more great songs!
Three songs. That's the case for this record and it's a strong enough case to win the argument. "Shout," "Everybody Wants to Rule the World," and "Head Over Heels" are three of the defining singles of 1985 — enormous, melodically generous, built on layered keyboards and processed drums that fill every available sonic space without quite tipping into the schmaltz that sinks lesser records of the era. Forty years later they still hit with an immediacy that separates genuine pop achievement from mere period artifact. The honest accounting of everything else is brief: forgettable. The back half of Songs from the Big Chair does the work of existing between the peaks without generating any pull of its own, which is a significant gap between the record's best moments and its filler. Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith built something genuinely ambitious here — the conceptual foundation in primal scream therapy, the maximalist production, the sheer sonic scale of the whole enterprise — and the singles justify every bit of that ambition. The album tracks around them do not. What tips it to four rather than three is simply the quality of the peaks. Three exceptional singles constitutes a real achievement regardless of what surrounds them, and "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" alone has earned its place in the permanent rotation of songs that sound like a specific moment in time without being diminished by it. A four carried entirely by its highs, which is sometimes exactly enough.
Oo
JL: 3, Listen A : 3 ,Head Over Heels
Sounds like the typical 80's Pop Rock of that era. It has some of their biggest hits on the album and is probably their most well-known. It's a really good album! Definitely a staple of the era!
No Notes
Damn, what a classic album!
Enjoyable synthy goodness. Lots of big 80s bangers on here. Good fun. I gather this was once serious music.
I understand more about Oneohtrix Point Never, listening to this album.
I really liked the songs here. Like all of them, really nice, will definitely listen again
Mid
everybody wants to rule the worldddd head over heels liked some didn't like others
Perfect album. 10/10, no notes. Everybody Wants to Rule the World is the greatest song of the ‘80s, and one of the best in general, period.
Super dated, squarely ‘80s fun with the added benefit of it actually being interesting and good. At its best, reminded me of Kate Bush. And the hits are fun. I went of an Everybody Wants to Rule the World kick after Marty Supreme and got a new appreciation for it even though I heard it a million times growing up with Gen X parents.
Surprised by this, three great hits. This sound it's very personal, I like that.
Some really experimental and vibey tracks make this one stand out for me. Extremely unique sound. I do find the singer's voice a bit grating in the popular songs like Shout or Everybody wants to Rule the World (although both are catchy). Fav tracks: Working Hours, Head Over Heels and Listen.
awesome
Belo álbum de pop. Músicas clássicas e dançantes muito bem feitas. QoA Cloudscape.
👃🏼🎹 I smell 80’s 🤢
Cudowne Ofc. Chłopaki trochę mylą że są z depeche mode
Wszystko co było w Vice City to z automatu 10/10, niech zyja 80s
Ten album grał mi często w poprzednim roku razem z innymi new wave z lat 80. Więc przypomina mi trochę mieszkanie na Sądowej. Dziś gra równie miło
grube 80's energy; zaskakująco progresywny
Brilliant album. One of my favorites.
Iconic 80s album with some decade defining songs (but also with some snoozers). As a pre-existing 80s and Tears for Fears fan, this can’t get lower than a 4/5.
Majestic
I was going to give it a 3.5 but the second half of the album had some really interesting songs. Would listen to again
Favorite track(s): Shout, The Working Hour, Everybody Wants to Rule the World, Mothers Talk, Broken, Head Over Heels Hating this album for being too 80s is like hating a sundae for having too much ice cream. Heard before Previous rating: 9/10
Really sick, near perfect 80s synth pop. The one and only thing that really drags it down for me is that the vocals have minimal variation and the back half of the album isn't as good as the first half. I mean, Everybody Wants to Rule the World is nigh impossible to beat but you should punt it to open Side B for that reason
I was intimately familiar with the singles of this album, but wow have I been missing out on the full picture. Polished, dreamy extended cuts meet with tight, nerdy jams and contemplative lyrics that glue together a really wonderful 42 minutes. Tears for Fears drew directly from the prog-rock formula of the 70s and transformed it into something new, shiny, and addictive. Having only heard the single version of Head Over Heels, I had a mind blowing experience listening through the full suite with Broken. This album sets an impossibly high standard for 80s New Wave/Rock/Pop. Instant classic.
What a magical experience this album is. There is not a single song on here that I felt didn't belong. It feels like a musical tour of the 80s and everything special about the music of that time. Will definitely be getting many more plays from me in the future.
fine
This album sounds like the 80s but somehow hasn’t aged poorly at all. Each song is a pop banger, what’s not to love.
Every KING needs his Big Chair. Great album front to back. Besides the many great classic singles off this record it's absolutely bursting with creative energy. Big recommend. Fav tracks: Shout, The Working Hour, Everybody Wants to Rule The World, I Believe