I Love 1986: Peter Gabriel & Run DMC

I Love 1986: Peter Gabriel & Run DMC

From Album Nerds by Album Nerds

February 23, 2026 · 53 min · Episode 326

About this episode

The episode explores the music of 1986, focusing on Peter Gabriel's 'So' and Run-D.M.C.'s 'Raising Hell'.

Don and Dude keep the “I Love the 80s” journey moving into 1986, when pop music turned glossy, global, and emotionally grown-up while hip-hop kicked down the door to the mainstream and refused to close it. One of us drops the needle on a blockbuster art-pop record that turned a former prog-rock oddball into an MTV-era icon, and the other cranks a Queens rap classic where drum machines, DJ wizardry, and rock guitars collide to launch hip-hop into its album era. The Albums Peter Gabriel – So (1986) Peter Gabriel’s fifth solo LP trades full-on prog theatrics for a song-focused blend of art-pop, soul, and worldbeat that still feels intimate and strange even as it aims for stadiums. "Red Rain" and "Sledgehammer" frame the record’s range, from cinematic storms and ritual grooves to horn-driven 60s-style soul reimagined as big-budget 80s pop. "Don’t Give Up," a duet with Kate Bush, turns Linn drums and warm keys into a slow-motion conversation between despair and reassurance that speaks to unemployment, depression, and stubborn hope. Deep cuts like "That Voice Again," "Mercy Street," "Big Time," "We Do What We’re Told," and the Laurie Anderson collaboration "This Is the Picture" keep…

People in this episode

Hosts: Don, Dude

Topics covered

  • 1980s music
  • art-pop
  • hip-hop
  • album analysis
  • music history

Keywords

  • Peter Gabriel
  • Run-D.M.C.
  • 1986 music
  • So album
  • Raising Hell album
  • art-pop
  • hip-hop

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Run-D.M.C.

Books & works: So, Raising Hell

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