Musical acts like Heart and Cyndi Lauper gifted us some of the sappiest songs of the 1980s, but as it turns out, two men were responsible for constructing these musical presents for all of us to enjoy. The musicians were the gift-wrapping that brought it all together.
And if we’re to continue this gift analogy—because why not—everything else quintessentially 1980s about these tracks was the bows and baubles. Think: reverby snares, soft glow filters, hair teased to high heaven with a half gallon of Aquanet, and so on.
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The Men Responsible For The Sappiest 1980s Songs
Songwriters are the unsung heroes of the musical world. While plenty of artists and bands write their own material, just as many use songwriters to write or co-write the tracks that would propel them to the top of the charts. These often unseen creatives don’t enjoy the same amount of spotlight that the performing artists do. But they get to enjoy the pleasure of having a hit song without all of the pesky, public-facing pressure.
Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly are certainly no exceptions to this music industry rule. The songwriters worked together on countless chart-topping hits, many of which came to define the sound of the 1980s. The songs were dramatic, sentimental, and, in some cases (looking at you, Madonna), shocking within the context of 1980s cultural standards. Most everyone can claim to, at the very least, know of Madonna, Heart, Cyndi Lauper, and other popular recording artists of the decade.
Far fewer people would know that Steinberg and Kelly were the men responsible for crafting some of these decade-defining hits. In 2011, the songwriting duo received a joint induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame—a well-deserved accolade, considering the hit tracks the songwriters had under their belt.
Hits For Madonna, Heart, Cyndi Lauper, and More
When one thinks of 1980s power pop, artists like Madonna, Heart, and Cyndi Lauper come to mind as musical acts who shared a common, decade-defining thread in their music. As it turns out, that “thread” was actually Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly. The songwriting duo wrote several 1980s hits, including Madonna’s “Like a Virgin,” Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors,” the Bangles’ “Eternal Flame,” Whitney Houston’s “So Emotional,” and Heart’s rendition of “Alone.” (Kelly and Steinberg actually recorded their own version of the track as i-Ten.)
Sure, musical trends, by definition, tend to permeate an entire swath of artists at any given time. But the cohesiveness of the 1980s sound is largely due to songwriting duos like Steinberg and Kelly, who provided hit tracks for multiple artists all within the same five-year span. At best, the songs were incredibly passionate and emotive. At worst, they are some of the cheesiest tracks to ever come out of the 1980s. In either case, the songs topped the charts, won awards, and invariably led to the songwriters’ induction into the Hall of Fame in 2011.
So, next time you’re bopping to Madonna’s “Like a Virgin” or belting your heart out to Heart’s “Alone,” you’ll have Steinberg and Kelly to thank for the opportunity.
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