When it came to competitiveness in the pop music world, the mid-1980s ranks right up there with any era you’d like to name. Case in point: the 1985 Grammys. Voters tried to take stock of the incredible music releases in 1984.

The Album of the Year award for that year pitted five legends at the absolute top of their game against each other. We look back and cast our vote 40 years after the fact.

‘She’s So Unusual’ by Cyndi Lauper

She’s So Unusual actually arrived in late 1983. Thus, it was a bit long in the tooth by the time the Grammys were held in 1985. But Lauper kept the music scene exceedingly fresh during that stretch with her effervescent, idiosyncratic personality. The key to any album’s longevity is how well it holds up beyond the hits, of which there were several on the record. This LP goes way deeper than you might remember. Beyond the huge smashes, Lauper’s expert taste and outstanding interpretive skills on covers like “Money Changes Everything” and “When U Were Mine” keep matters popping from start to finish.

‘Purple Rain’ by Prince And The Revolution

A lesser artist who was also overseeing every aspect of a major motion picture might have coasted a bit with the soundtrack. Prince, at the height of his creative powers, managed to release arguably the finest album of his career with all that happening. Every song on the album stands out as a statement of sorts, making it almost come off like a greatest hits package. But there’s also a flow, as we follow him through all manner of extreme highs and lows. From the opening sermon on “Let’s Go Crazy” to the elongated fadeout of the title track, Purple Rain gives you a front-row seat to the tempestuous life and times of this extraordinary artist.

‘Can’t Slow Down’ by Lionel Richie

Richie ended up winning the prestigious Album of the Year award, which was understandable at the time. The guy had mastered the art of the crowd-pleaser, which he demonstrated all over Can’t Slow Down. Want a benign party starter? Here you go: “All Night Long (All Night)”. How about a syrupy ballad? Got one of those too: “Hello”. And so on. The album doesn’t particularly challenge anybody with difficult themes or unsettling material. But then again, that’s not what Richie was seeking. And what he was trying to pull off was in its own way just as difficult as what any of the other artists were attempting.

‘Born In The U.S.A.’ by Bruce Springsteen

Folks don’t realize just how close Springsteen came to sticking with the hushed, confessional feel of his 1982 Nebraska album. He rather enjoyed the art for art’s sake ethos. If he hadn’t gone so far down the road with the rocking material he’d already recorded, he might just have turned on a dime and gone the quieter route. Jon Landau’s constant counsel deserves some credit. After all, he convinced The Boss to write and record one more song for the LP at the last minute. That song was “Dancing In The Dark“. It set the tone for a record that showed Springsteen could get glossy without sacrificing the integrity of his message.

‘Private Dancer’ by Tina Turner

Forget the fact that this album represented a massive comeback for a promising career that had almost been extinguished before the Grammys took place in 1985. Even deprived of any context, Private Dancer would still be a powerhouse album. Turner’s mastery of every vibe that the material throws at her can’t be denied. She carries “What’s Love Got To Do With It” to heights well beyond what’s there on paper in terms of the music and lyrics. The title track, written by Mark Knopfler, gets a tender, vulnerable vocal that focuses on the character rather than the scenario. And when Turner throws down the gauntlet on “Better Be Good To Me”, all other would-be divas have no choice but to cede her the crown.

The Verdict

Five amazing albums. But if we had to choose just one, we’d go with Purple Rain. Prince had his ultimate moment in the pop culture stratosphere, and he grabbed it with gusto.

Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images