What Were Rod Stewart’s 5 Biggest U.S. Hits in the ’80s?

Many artists who came to prominence in the 1970s struggled to find their footing as musical tastes drastically changed the following decade. Rod Stewart wasn’t one of them. In fact, he even did a great job navigating the shifting musical sands from the first half of the ’80s into the second half.

Stewart was a steady presence on the U.S. pop charts at a time when many of his peers made appearances only sporadically, if at all. Here is a look back at Rod Stewart’s five biggest hits of the ’80s for stateside audiences.

5. “Love Touch” (No. 6 in 1986)

If you were going to survive in the ’80s as an artist of stature, it helped if you embraced soundtrack work. Technically, “Love Touch” didn’t appear on the soundtrack of Legal Eagles, starring Robert Redford and Debra Winger. But it shows up in the end credits, and clips from the film are featured in the video. No one’s claiming the song, written by two of the top songwriters-for-hire of the day (Mike Chapman and Holly Knight), is a masterpiece. But Stewart’s light, breezy performance makes it a pleasant listen, even if you might forget it soon after.

4. “Passion” (No. 5 in 1980)

Stewart was coming out of his disco era when he made his 1980 album Foolish Behaviour. (And let’s face it: It was a lucrative era, as “Do Ya Think I’m Sexy” sashayed to No. 1 in 1979.) “Passion” was partially written by Stewart, along with four other members of his band, suggesting it was very much a studio creation. Rod mostly talk-sings through the verses, which almost have a hip-hop feel to them. From there, he segues into a melodic middle eight, and his vocals rise in intensity. It’s a well-constructed track with some interesting stuff in the nooks and crannies.

3. “Young Turks” (No. 5 in 1981)

Never let it be said that Stewart ignored the popular trends of the day when making his records. Some have criticized him for this, but it seems like it’s just a case of his own sense of musical adventurism. And here’s the thing: He’s always been talented enough to slip in and out of these genres, whereas other artists might stumble. In the case of “Young Turks,” he dives into the synth-heavy, new wave sounds that were all over the airwaves at the time. Even within that framework, he gives himself room to belt, especially in the big sweeping choruses.

2. “My Heart Can’t Tell You No” (No. 4 in 1988)

As we mentioned at the top of the article, Stewart managed to overcome somewhat of a dry patch in the middle of the decade, only to find himself red-hot once again as it came to a close. Fun fact No. 1: This song was written for country chanteuse Barbara Mandrell. Fun fact No. 2: Andy Taylor of Duran Duran fame helped produce it. All that stuff takes a back seat to Stewart’s soulful performance. It’s a pretty standard setup for a song, in that the narrator seems to be the odd man out of a love triangle. Stewart’s emotional vocal gives it new life.

1. “Downtown Train” (No. 3 in 1989)

Tom Waits wrote this track and included it on his masterpiece album Rain Dogs, where it stands out for its somewhat straightforward structure and production (as opposed to the more avant-garde writing and instrumentation elsewhere on that record). The story goes that Bob Seger had his sights set on doing the song, told Stewart about it, and Stewart beat him to the punch. It’s likely Seger would have done a pretty fine take on it as well. But Stewart’s version, elevated by an outstanding bunch of studio pros, is a thing of beauty, with Rod presiding over it all with world-weary grace.

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