10 Worst Number One Rock Albums Of The 1980s
4. Asia - Asia
Rather than a band featuring the peoples of an entire continent, Asia are instead an English supergroup comprised of members of other acts like Uriah Heap, Yes, and Emerson, Lake & Palmer.
It was Palmer, in case you were wondering.
They released their first album, which was self-titled, in 1982 and people went absolutely bonkers for it. It was the best-performing album of the entire year in the States, beating out efforts from big hitters like Paul McCartney, Peter Gabriel, and Kate Bush.
It also spent nine weeks at the number one spot in America, though strangely only made number 11 in the UK. Clearly the Brits had no taste.
Or perhaps they did, as Asia was lambasted for sounding far too artificial. It was labelled as AOR (album-oriented rock) at its schmaltzy, commercialised worst, with dull riffs, uninspired lyrics, and themes that were surface level at best.
If you like your music middle of the road (which isn't always a bad thing), then Asia will have plenty for you, but in the grand scheme of artistry, this massive seller with an ocean scene on the cover is ironically shallow.