# 3 Obscure Songs From 1983 That Every 80s Kid Still Knows Today

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/3-obscure-songs-from-1983-that-every-80s-kid-still-knows-today/
- Published: 2026-07-16T21:00:00+00:00
- Updated: 2026-07-25T05:15:19+00:00
- Original publisher: American Songwriter
- Original article: https://americansongwriter.com/3-obscure-songs-from-1983-that-every-80s-kid-still-knows-today/
- Topics: Americas, Entertainment, Music, World

## Key points

- Three 1983 singles are presented as enduring 1980s favourites.
- “It’s A Mistake” reflected Cold War-era anxieties.
- “Gold” was Spandau Ballet’s final US Top 30 hit.

## Summary

The article highlights three comparatively overlooked 1983 singles that it argues remain familiar to people who grew up in the 1980s: Laura Branigan’s “Solitaire”, Men at Work’s “It’s A Mistake” and Spandau Ballet’s “Gold”. It presents them as examples of the decade’s varied pop sound, spanning melodic pop, rock and politically influenced new wave.

- Laura Branigan’s “Solitaire”, from *Branigan 2*, was written by Diane Warren and Martine Clémenceau and reached the Top 10 after Branigan’s major hit “Gloria”; Clémenceau had previously released it in French.
- Men at Work’s “It’s A Mistake”, written by Colin Hay for *Cargo*, was also a Top 10 single and drew on Cold War tensions, with “Ronnie” referring to US President Ronald Reagan.
- Spandau Ballet’s “Gold”, written by Gary Kemp for *True*, reached the US Top 30 and became the band’s final Top 30 American hit, although the group enjoyed greater success in the UK.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.