A short history of 80's music:

1980s fashion and music are currently enjoying something of a revival with clothing such as shoulder pads, leggings and tight stone washed jeans back in and artists such as ABC, Rick Astley and Kim Wilde touring again. The electronic sound of many 80s bands such as Depeche Mode and The Human League has also made a comeback through bands such as The Klaxons and Friendly Fires.

Most of the iconic 80s fashion trends have made a reappearance of late, including the New Romantic look, Power dressing, Dancewear, The Miami Vice look, Punk and the early Hip-Hop style. Even the much derided mullet hairstyle has made an unexpected comeback. Other iconic 80s fashion items such as track suits, Dr. Martens, bangles and digital watches,such as the calculator watch and 007 watch, have all become much sought-after in recent years.

The 1980s was a decade of giant-selling artists as Pop music took over the world. Michael Jackson reinvented himself with Thriller becoming the best-selling album of the decade and Madonna had number one singles in over 20 countries.

In the UK, Band Aid had the biggest selling single of the 1980s with `Do They Know It`s Christmas` beating Frankie Goes To Hollywood`s `Relax` into second place.

Rock was also huge during the decade, Def Leppard, AC/DC and Guns `N` Roses all having massive album hits.

In the UK, Punk was replaced by the New Romantic movement and the German band Kraftwerk inspired the Electronica genre. Stock, Aitken and Waterman invented a glossy brand of pop, scoring many massive hits with Artists such as Kylie Minogue, Jason Donovan and Rick Astley.

Worldwide, hip-hop became huge through artists such as Run D.M.C., Beastie Boys, NWA, LL Cool J and Public Enemy. With the music came hip-hip fashions such as Adidas trainers and gold chains.

Many 80s hits have been reworked into recent singles, for example the Sugababes reached number one with `Freak Like Me` which heavily sampled Gary Numan`s `Are Friends Electric?` Other examples include Rihanna sampling Soft Cell`s `Tainted Love` on her record `S.O.S. (Rescue Me)` and Samantha Mumba`s `Body II Body" single sampling David Bowie`s `Ashes to Ashes.`

The popularity of 1980s fashions shows no sign of abating with one high street retailer even stocking a `Kylie and Jason` t-shirt. The sales of vintage and 1980s style collectible T shirts have boomed in recent years, particularly online. It seems the 1980s retro look and sound will be around for a good while yet.