Cheesey '80s songs that evoke strong memories

[chas_m]

I didn't care much for the more "commercial" New Wave and Pop bands of the 80s. Having been in England for the punk explosion, I dabbled in a lot of trends, but the unifying thread among most of the bands is that They Have Become Legend, But Never Sold That Many Albums.

So we're talking Talking Heads/Brian Eno/Robert Fripp, David Bowie (except for his really popular period, about 1983-90), Soft Cell/New Order/OMD/related darkish synthpop, the Smiths/Morrissey/REM/Cure Circle of the Nearly Goth, Kraftwerk/Devo/Stiff Records types and the really obscure (but fiendishly good) bands like Joe Jackson, the Nits, Siouxsie, the Undertones and Pylon.

Lifelong Elvis Costello fan as well. Yes, through all the albums and collaborations and periods, styles and moods and marriages.

Edit: in the above paragraph, I mean HIS albums/collaborations/periods/styles/moods/marriages, not mine.