5 Rock Songs From The '80s That Aged Terribly

You sang along with them at the top of your lungs when they came on the radio and danced in front of the TV when the videos played. But many of the rock songs from the '80s were anything but innocent, even if the lyrics were sly and concealing. As long as the melody was catchy and the beat was solid, you were happy to side step the subject matter, which in many songs turns out to be far more troubling decades later than it was when it first hit the airwaves. 

Songs about stalkers, men being mistaken for women, and the icky attraction of adult men to teenage girls were not only fodder for rock fans; they also led to chart success and ridiculous wealth for some of the best known bands in the business. But the messed-up truth about the 1980s music industry is that very few topics were off limits, and even the most ill-advised subject matter could fuel a hit if the melody was catchy enough.

With so much questionable material floating about in the rock world during the era of hair bands and MTV, it's hard to narrow down the collection of rock songs from the '80s that aged the worst overtime. These five selections, which were some of the most popular tunes of the decade, covered some of the gnarliest topics ever set to music.

If you're intrigued by songs about skeevy older guys ignoring warnings from others about unhealthy interests in 16 year-olds, "Into the Night" by Benny Mardones is one to look into. But be warned: the dramatic rock ballad comes with a heavy dose of melodic charm that can make it easy to miss the statutory violation of the situation being described.

Mardones doesn't play coy with the content, starting the lyrics with the opening line, "She's just 16 years old / leave her alone they say" (via Genius). He spends the rest of the song explaining just how obsessed he is with this teenage girl, saying how he'd wait till the end of time for her, but if he could fly he'd spirit her away into the night and "show her a love like she's never seen." Major blech, and also a major felony.

The song was a huge success for one-hit-wonder Mardones. It charted not just once but twice in the '80s, hopping up to No. 11 in 1980 during its initial release and reappearing at No. 20 after a nostalgic 1989 re-release of a newly-recorded version. And while it would be easy to frame the creepy storyline as a sort of Romeo-and-Juliet situation between two teenagers, Mardones actually wrote and recorded the song when he was in his early 30s. He claimed later that it was about looking after his next-door neighbor after her father left, which absolutely does not make it better.

Who doesn't love a catchy ditty about stalking someone, except maybe anyone who's been the unfortunate target of a stalker? When The Police introduced "Every Breath You Take" from their mega-popular album "Synchronicity," it ascended to dizzying heights, spending eight weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the U.S and four weeks at the top of the U.K. charts as well. Not only did it become the band's all-time highest charting single, it was also named the number one song of 1983.

Much of its success was due to the lyrics being mistaken for a declaration of romance rather than horrifying promises being made by an obsessed lover. Even Sting himself — the man who wrote it, sang it, and became worth a lot more than you'd think — is amazed that his song is treated like a love song instead of the exploration of a warped psyche that it is.

The song coincided with the reality of women being stalked by jealous boyfriends and husbands that crystallized throughout the '80s and '90s. Though the stigma of domestic violence may have dimmed over time, the very real threat has never gone away. Forty years later, the dark declarations made by one of the most important rock bands of the 1980s seem even more disturbing than they did when it was released, and yet it's racked up millions of streams online in 2025 alone. Go figure.

The hidden truth of Sammy Hagar and his need for speed came to light in 1984, when "I Can't Drive 55," his well-known tribute to high speed travel, became one of his biggest hits. Hagar's lyrics bemoan the restrictive speed limit of the California highway system and warn everyone in the vicinity that he won't be taking it slowly regardless of what the signs say. It sounds perfectly rock 'n' roll in its defiant attitude and speaks directly to drivers crank up the tunes to get in the spirit when they hit the road.  

That may not be such a good thing in hindsight. While the song was quickly becoming an anthem for lead footed drivers everywhere, the death rate of drivers involved in high speed accidents was rapidly increasing. The trend accelerated in 1995 when the national speed limit was repealed. A study found that there was a 15% increase in highway fatalities in the states that adhered to the repeal; the percentage jumped to 17% when adjusted to allow for vehicle miles of travel (per Science Direct).

Of course, a song isn't responsible for the behaviors of high-speed drivers. But in the era of self-driving cars and high-tech vehicles that course-correct and keep everyone inside on the straight and narrow, the notion of celebrating high speed on the highway is pretty antiquated. With some freeways allowing 75 mph or higher, we've left 55 in the rearview mirror.

Aerosmith launched an eternal earworm in 1987 when the band set "Dude (Looks Like a Lady)" loose on the world. The funky opening riff and catchy refrain are instantly recognizable and became an iconic piece of soundtrack history when it accompanied Robin Williams beloved performance in "Mrs. Doubtfire." The tune was a biggie for the band; it rose to No. 14 on billboard's hot 100 and claimed to No. 4 on the mainstream rock chart.

But the rolling track with its tongue-in-cheek description of lead singer Steven Tyler putting the moves on a figure in a bar only to discover the voluptuous body belongs to a man is far less funny in 2025. An upswell in the ongoing violence and fearmongering in the transgender community recasts the song's attempt at humor as being taunting and cruel. The chorus itself has been used as a shame-inducing chant to call out men with feminine appearance, creating a hurtful pop culture association to trans individuals.

Though Tyler's initial surprise seems to turn into eager curiosity as the song progresses, in the modern world this song is reduced to its simplest components: a catchy hook that has been used to take aim at an undeserving target. The music video went further, turning the idea of mistaken gender identity into a visual joke. No matter how much of a bop it may be, the song's tone-deaf message continues to be an emblem of derision and ridicule. 

Winger is a name that makes you wonder "Whatever happened to hair bands of the '80s?" when Spotify serves up an oldie. The band's 1989 hit "Seventeen" is an unabashed celebration of underage groupie culture. Lead singer Kip Winger describes in detail a fan making her post-concert approach at his dressing room — not an uncommon rock song trope. The twist comes when the chorus declares, "She's only seventeen / Daddy says she's too young / but she's old enough for me." It may have been a fun surprise in the heavy metal era, but it's a stomach-turner in the post-#MeToo age.

The lyrics are biased toward the girl being the aggressor. The unsettling spin puts a teenager in the power position, while the grown man in the encounter calls her a "bad girl," and Winger even sings at one point, "It must be love." It should be cause a-plenty to pull the record from airplay and demand that the band rethink their life choices. 

The lax attitudes toward such cringeworthy theme in music at the time helped the song reach No. 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was the 87^th best hard rock song of all time as determined by VH1, a dubious honor at best. Now that the headbangers who rocked along to it have 17-year-old girls of their own, the song's gross, predatory nature is bound to hit a lot closer to home.