The Best '80s Supergroup Songs That Still Go Hard Today

The supergroup is one of rock history's greatest novelties, but every time that a bunch of people from different bands get together for a mutual side project, the results can be extremely hit or miss. The phenomenon enjoyed a peak of popularity and creative success in the 1980s, so much so that the supergroup songs from that decade that struck it big did so with panache and purpose. A precious few of these mega-collaborations aged particularly well, ranking with other more organically generated rock music to become classic hits.

Here then are the songs from '80s supergroups that understood the assignment. They're tracks that have stood the test of time and can be something all the band's members can be proud of because they were enjoyable listens that showed what supergroups could achieve if everything went according to plan, all while still rocking timelessly. These tunes from The Firm, The Traveling Wilburys, GTR, Lords of the New Church, and Electronic are the best and most eternal supergroup hits of the '80s.

Perhaps fated to be remembered as the Jimmy Page supergroup that time forgot, The Firm opened for business in 1984. Led Zeppelin's chief creative force handled lead guitar, playing counterpoint to singer Paul Rodgers, previously known for his time in Free and Bad Company. With another famous member, Chris Slade of Uriah Heep on drums, The Firm came out with an eponymous album in 1985 that bore the muscular and hard-rocking single "Radioactive," which blew into the pop Top 30.

"Radioactive" showed that Page and Rodgers had changed a lot since the 1970s. The heavily processed drums give the song a palpable '80s feel, but the dancing bass and acoustic riffing take listeners back to the '60s. Then Rodgers, whose vocals are usually bright and high, comes in with some moody and deep singing, allowing the electrical, more metal-adjacent elements to build up and take the song into arena rock territory. For most of its running time, "Radioactive" is captivatingly understated, as if the talented rock stars don't want to show off too much, only for Page to start jamming out with some disjointed, blues-inspired solos. The Firm didn't sound like Led Zeppelin or Free, but something new and futuristic.

The Traveling Wilburys are the best example of a supergroup because every member was a rock legend: George Harrison of The Beatles, boomer icon Bob Dylan, and Jeff Lynne of Electric Light Orchestra, plus Tom Petty and early rock 'n' roll superstar Roy Orbison. Owing to the sudden death of Orbison, the band's recording career lasted two LPs. Both albums were well received, but nothing they did was as great as the single that announced the project to the world, 1988's "Handle With Care."

Everyone gets their moment to shine in "Handle With Care," and in rapid succession, until it all blends into a layered classic rock hit with an emotional breakdown. It opens with that notable Lynne-orchestrated chugging percussion and a punchy, plucking riff from Petty. Up on the mic first is Harrison, with his vulnerable tenor, and the only person who can follow a Beatle is Orbison, whose tender warning to treat him kindly still gives chills. Then Petty and Dylan lead a group-wide sing-along before the whole thing resets and happens again, although with increasing crossover between factions and glorious harmonizing.

One might assume that a supergroup populated by denizens of the early waves of notorious U.S. and U.K. punk bands would make their records extremely serious and a little harrowing. But when vocalist Stiv Bators of The Dead Boys and guitarist Brian James of The Damned got together with Sham 69 bassist Dave Tregunna and Nick Turner of The Barracudas in the Lords of the New Church, they set out to make music with slightly more commercial appeal while also clearly having a lot of fun. The Lords of the New Church had a silly good time building a hard rock cover of Madonna's "Like a Virgin," and that feeling is infectious.

At first, it's a respectful if much more rocking take on the sensual pop standard, with much louder drums, bouncy synthesizers, and playful guitar. The latter gets more aggressive and noise-centered as "Like a Virgin" progresses, following the lead of Bators, who chooses to go hilariously unhinged. His snotty, old-school punk side emerges with his straining to reach high notes and wordless vocal improvs, all in service of imitating Madonna's over-the-top hot-and-bothered character from the original track. Bators goes all out, and he's as bravely silly while the other Lords of the New Church truly rock out.

One part '80s alternative rock and one part cerebral dance music, Electronic took sounds equally from its founders: guitarist Johnny Marr of The Smiths, multi-instrumentalist Bernard Sumner of New Order, and singer Neil Tennant of Pet Shop Boys. In 1989, the trio convened for the single "Getting Away With It." One of the best pop supergroups of all time, Electronic would later release three full-length albums, but nothing packed as futuristic or enchanting a wallop as did that first try, a top 5 hit on Billboard's alternative rock chart.

While Electronic may have faded from the collective memory of alternative rock aficionados, "Getting Away With It" reminds the world why The Smiths, New Order, and Pet Shop Boys all enjoy such sterling reputations. All the best parts of each of those bands come through on the single. Marr's fluid, florid, and emotional folky guitar solo is a treat amid an elegant song built primarily from synthesizers and studio wizardry, a hallmark of Sumner and New Order. His melodic bass line and inscrutable lyrics come across as earnest, merging so nicely with Tennant's ironic and disaffected tone. "Getting Away With It" is the hippest soft rock ever, and the most relaxing dance track of the '80s, all of it constructed by modern rock icons.