80s Hair Bands
The classic 80s hair bands were Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard, Bon Jovi, Poison, Ratt, Twisted Sister, Quiet Riot, Cinderella, Whitesnake, Warrant, Skid Row and Winger. They mixed heavy guitars with pop choruses, teased hair and makeup, and from 1983 to 1990 they ruled MTV, rock radio and the Sunset Strip.
What was a hair band?
"Hair band" is the nickname fans and critics gave to the glam metal groups of the 80s. The name came from the look: big teased hair, spandex, scarves and eyeliner, borrowed from 70s glam acts like KISS, Sweet and the New York Dolls. The music was hard rock with bubblegum hooks, and nearly every band had at least one slow song for the radio.
Hair bands were the loudest part of 80s rock and roll, and for about seven years they sold more records than almost anyone. Every band on this page has its signature songs in the free player above.
From the Sunset Strip to MTV
Most of the scene grew up on the Sunset Strip in Los Angeles, in clubs like the Troubadour, the Whisky a Go Go and the Roxy. Bands handed out flyers on the street and packed the rooms, and record labels followed. Mötley Crüe, Ratt and Quiet Riot came out of those clubs first.
MTV turned the look into a business. In November 1983 Quiet Riot's Metal Health became the first heavy metal album to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and every label went looking for its own hair band. Bon Jovi's Slippery When Wet in 1986 made the sound the biggest thing in rock.
How it ended
By 1990 there were too many bands that sounded alike, and fans could tell. Nirvana's Nevermind came out in September 1991, and within a year grunge had replaced glam on MTV and rock radio. Most of the bands below kept touring, and many still do.
This page is a who's who of the big names. For a ranked list that goes deeper into the scene, see the best hair metal bands, ranked. Their slow songs have their own page too: 80s power ballads.
Quiet Riot
Quiet Riot were a Los Angeles club band whose early lineup included guitarist Randy Rhoads, who left to join Ozzy Osbourne. Singer Kevin DuBrow rebuilt the band, and in 1983 Metal Health knocked The Police's Synchronicity off the top of the Billboard 200. It was the first heavy metal album to reach No. 1, and it opened the door for every band below.
Signature tracks: Metal Health (Bang Your Head), Slick Black Cadillac
Mötley Crüe
Nikki Sixx, Tommy Lee, Mick Mars and Vince Neil formed Mötley Crüe in Los Angeles in 1981 and became the definitive hair band, famous for their excess as much as their songs. Shout at the Devil made them stars in 1983. Dr. Feelgood, recorded sober in 1989, was their only No. 1 album, and its title track reached No. 6.
Signature tracks: Girls, Girls, Girls, Dr. Feelgood
Ratt
Ratt came up through the same Los Angeles clubs as Mötley Crüe and gave the sound its sharpest guitars, courtesy of Warren DeMartini and Robbin Crosby. Out of the Cellar went triple platinum in 1984. Stephen Pearcy's snarling vocals led "Lay It Down" into the Top 40 in 1985, and the band kept a run of platinum albums going all decade.
Signature tracks: Lay It Down, Wanted Man
Twisted Sister
Twisted Sister spent a decade playing the bars of Long Island and New Jersey before anyone signed them. Dee Snider's garish makeup was more horror movie than glamour. Stay Hungry went multi-platinum in 1984, thanks to "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock" and their cartoon videos. In 1985 Snider testified before the US Senate against lyric labeling.
Signature tracks: I Wanna Rock
Def Leppard
Def Leppard came out of Sheffield in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, not the Sunset Strip, but producer Mutt Lange's layered guitars and stacked vocals made them the most polished hair band of all. Hysteria sold more than 12 million copies in America. "Animal" was their first UK Top 10 hit, and "Armageddon It" reached No. 3 in the US.
Signature tracks: Animal, Armageddon It
Dokken
Singer Don Dokken and guitarist George Lynch famously could not stand each other, and the tension may have made the records better. Lynch was one of the most admired guitarists of the decade. Under Lock and Key went platinum in 1985 on the strength of "In My Dreams" and its huge vocal harmonies. "Dream Warriors" came from a Nightmare on Elm Street film.
Signature tracks: In My Dreams, Just Got Lucky
KISS
KISS invented much of the look that hair bands copied. In September 1983, to promote Lick It Up, they appeared on MTV without their famous makeup for the first time. The move revived their career, and Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley spent the rest of the decade making glossy hair metal records of their own, including "Heaven's on Fire".
Signature tracks: Lick It Up, Heaven's on Fire
Scorpions
The German band had been around since the late 60s, and they became arena headliners in America in the 80s. "No One Like You" topped the Mainstream Rock chart in 1982. Love at First Sting in 1984 went multi-platinum with "Rock You Like a Hurricane" and "Big City Nights". Klaus Meine's voice and Rudolf Schenker's riffs were their trademarks.
Signature tracks: No One Like You, Big City Nights
Night Ranger
The San Francisco band had two lead guitarists, Brad Gillis and Jeff Watson, and two lead singers, Jack Blades and Kelly Keagy. "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" was their first hit in 1982. Drummer Kelly Keagy wrote and sang "Sister Christian", about his younger sister, and it reached No. 5 in 1984. Blades later formed Damn Yankees with Ted Nugent.
Signature tracks: (You Can Still) Rock in America, Don't Tell Me You Love Me
Bon Jovi
Jon Bon Jovi recorded "Runaway" with session players before the band even existed, and it reached No. 39 in 1984. Slippery When Wet made Bon Jovi the biggest band in rock two years later. New Jersey in 1988 produced five Top 10 singles, a record for a hard rock album, including "Lay Your Hands on Me".
Signature tracks: Runaway, Lay Your Hands on Me
Poison
Poison moved from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, to Los Angeles in 1983 and wore more makeup than anyone on the Strip. Bret Michaels wrote catchy, simple party songs and C.C. DeVille played flashy guitar. Open Up and Say... Ahh! in 1988 gave them "Nothin' but a Good Time", which reached No. 6, and "Fallen Angel", which reached No. 12.
Signature tracks: Nothin' but a Good Time, Fallen Angel
Cinderella
Jon Bon Jovi saw Cinderella play in their hometown of Philadelphia and helped them get signed. Tom Keifer's raspy voice set them apart. Night Songs went triple platinum in 1986, led by "Nobody's Fool". On Long Cold Winter in 1988 they leaned into the blues, which is why their records have aged better than most.
Signature tracks: Nobody's Fool, Gypsy Road
Whitesnake
David Coverdale had sung for Deep Purple, and Whitesnake started as a British blues-rock band. In 1987 he rebuilt it into an American hair metal act. The album Whitesnake sold more than eight million copies in the US, and the videos starring actress Tawny Kitaen on the hood of a car played on MTV constantly. "Still of the Night" is the heaviest of its hits.
Signature tracks: Still of the Night, Give Me All Your Love
Europe
The Swedish band's keyboard fanfare on "The Final Countdown" made them famous around the world in 1986, and the song topped charts in 25 countries. Joey Tempest's voice and John Norum's guitar carried the rest of the album too. "Rock the Night" and "Superstitious" both reached the US Top 40, and "Carrie" reached No. 3.
Signature tracks: Rock the Night, Superstitious
Great White
Great White were a Los Angeles band that leaned more on the blues than the glitter. Jack Russell sang like a soul singer. Their cover of Ian Hunter's "Once Bitten Twice Shy" reached No. 5 in 1989, and the album ...Twice Shy went platinum. "Rock Me", from 1987, is the fan favorite.
Signature tracks: Once Bitten Twice Shy
White Lion
Danish singer Mike Tramp and Brooklyn guitarist Vito Bratta formed White Lion in New York. Bratta was one of the most inventive players of the era. Their album Pride took almost a year to catch on, and then "Wait" reached No. 8 in 1988. "When the Children Cry", a ballad about war, reached No. 3.
Signature tracks: Wait
Winger
Kip Winger had played bass for Alice Cooper, and guitarist Reb Beach was a respected session player, so Winger were far more skilled than their image suggested. "Seventeen" reached No. 26 in 1989 and their debut went platinum. In the 90s, Beavis and Butt-Head made Winger the symbol of everything grunge fans hated.
Signature tracks: Seventeen
Skid Row
Skid Row came from New Jersey, and singer Sebastian Bach grew up in Peterborough, Ontario. Jon Bon Jovi helped them get a record deal. Their 1989 debut went five times platinum, and "18 and Life", about a young man who kills a friend by accident, reached No. 4. The band was heavier than most hair bands, which helped them survive into the 90s.
Signature tracks: 18 and Life
Warrant
Warrant were one of the last Sunset Strip bands to hit big. Jani Lane wrote the songs and sang them, and Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich went double platinum in 1989. "Down Boys" reached No. 27, and the ballad "Heaven" reached No. 2. "Cherry Pie" followed in 1990, just before grunge ended the party.
Signature tracks: Down Boys
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between hair bands and hair metal?
They mean the same thing. "Hair metal" and "glam metal" describe the music, and "hair bands" is the nickname for the groups that played it, from Mötley Crüe and Poison to Warrant and Skid Row.
Who was the first 80s hair band?
Mötley Crüe, formed in Los Angeles in 1981, is usually named first. Quiet Riot were playing the same clubs even earlier, and in 1983 their Metal Health became the first heavy metal album to reach No. 1 in America.
What was the biggest hair band of the 80s?
Bon Jovi and Def Leppard sold the most records. Slippery When Wet was the best-selling album of 1987, and Hysteria has sold more than 12 million copies in America. Mötley Crüe and Poison are the bands most people picture.
Why did hair bands disappear?
The scene grew crowded and repetitive by 1990, and Nirvana's Nevermind in September 1991 made grunge the new sound of rock. MTV and radio moved on quickly, and most hair bands lost their record deals within a few years.
Is Guns N' Roses a hair band?
Guns N' Roses came out of the same Sunset Strip clubs, but their sound was rawer and closer to punk and blues. Most fans treat them as the band that ended the hair metal era rather than part of it.
Last updated: September 24, 2026