I have no idea. But if they count, they're my favorite.

Not the "best," though. I don't think I'm qualified to have a clue who the best is.

Nah.Albums that have an english heart.Let's make it a little diffiicul
t.

'Great Britain' is England, Scotland and Wales.

'United Kingdom' is England, Scotland, Wales plus Northern Ireland ('The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland' is the full title as it used to appear on passports etc).

Ireland as in the Republic of Ireland is part of the British Isles (the land mass) but not part of either Britain or the UK in the political/nationhood sense.

thanks for the clarification, i am always unsure about these...

Gang of Four started before '81, but ...well, you know...whether or not they became "more known" after '81 is debatable...

Public Image, Ltd. formed in '78 (wiki) and definitely(?) became more known post-'81.

And what about The Police? Stewart Copeland, of course, being an American whose father was in the FBI, hence the band name. Since only 2/3 of the trio were born in the UK, would that be grounds for disqualification? Haha I think one could safely refer to The Police as a British band. I'm just amusing myself.

No mentions yet for Wham! or George Michael solo haha. Roger Waters solo either...I suppose Radio KAOS is good. Was Yazz from the UK? hehe Are there any Bananarama fans? hehe
No mentions yet for Siouxie and the Banshees who were pre-'81 but arguably became better known post-'81.

The Damned were also pre-'81 (just checked) but probably became known post-'81.

Yeah....my favorite of theirs is Drums and Wires (1979), and their '85-'87 alter ego, Dukes of Stratoshere,.....but for sure, they're biggest seller was c.'89 'Oranges and Lemons'....so that's an excellent choice....

I love Wire and feel their '79 album, 154, must've influenced SY to some degree....154 has some bad ass noise....and not sure, but I'd assume their biggest seller was Pink Flag or Chairs Missing....'77-'78...

Isn't Talk Talk British ?...If so...mark 'em down for me...

Sneaker Pimps. Becoming X, anyway. :)

A good one. English Settlement too.

I think my favorite might be the first, White Music.

Oh man, I haven't thought about The Dukes of Stratosphear in a long time. I still have that on a cassette somewhere.

Well the cd release combines an EP and full album I believe and for just being a one-off....DoStratosphere was great ! Some of this stuff would be single album milestones to me. Like....

The The....Mind Bomb

Funny, in year's past...the 60s and 70s, by FAR my most favorite bands were British....and since the 80s, by far my faves are American. Hmmmmmm.....

Counting England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland (the whole damn country)-

1. Radiohead
2. The Jesus and Mary Chain
3. Swervedriver
4. The Smiths
5. The Cure
6. Blur
7. Super Furry Animals
8. Placebo
9. Happy Mondays
10. Primal Scream

the fall
this heat (i know they fall slightly behind the 25 year mark, but rules be damned. deceit came out in 81)
motorhead (rules be damned again)
spacemen 3
skullflower
sunroof!
vibracathedral orchestra


aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaand i give up. trying to compose this list made me realize i am 100% clueless as to what goes on on the other side of the atlantic. do you people even make music anymore?

I think Skullflower and Sunroof! and all Matthew Bower stuff could be lumped into one perhaps? I had thought that Sunroof! was the best Matthew Bower thing but I have been listening to a lot of Skullflower lately and might have to change my opinion.

swell maps definitely can sneak into my list, somewhere in between the lines.

i second sneaker pimps and portishead, the reason i didn't include them is because i think the band that really kickstarted that sound was massive attack.

gang of four released their most influencial album in 1979.

perhaps they should be included together, but i've never liked sunroof! nearly as much as skullflower. two very different bands in my mind.

My Bloody Valentine
Nurse With Wound
Coil
Current 93
Jesus & Mary Chain
Ride
Spacemen 3
Loop
The Fall
The Smiths

Do the falkland islands count? :D
'cause everyone forgot The Fighting Pig Band.

The Fighting Pig band are the Falkland Islands Rolling Stones .. yes that's the best way to describe them. Like the Stones 'The Pigs' are knocking on a bit but can play blues/rock as only people with years of experience playing together can play. The Trough is their club and basically what happens is that news gets round there is to be a gig, announced in The Penguin News (The Islands' Newspaper) or FIBS (Falkland Islands Broadcasting Station).

http://www.fightingpigband.com

For those of you that think I'm being serious.... I'm just joking.
Pork, do ya have any of their records?? :D

Unfortunately not - the Falklands would be classed as an self-governing Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom. Which is a shame, as The Fighting Pig Band is a decent name, and I'm sure they'd be a boon to our nation.

Radiohead
My Bloody Valetine
The Cure
can I mention Belle & Sebastian too?

In no specific order:
The Fall
Throbbing Gristle (I know,so they broke up in 81, I couldn't resist)
Jesus And Mary Chain
Fred Frith
Portishead
Stereolab
Massive Attack
Radiohead
Mogwai

Jesus and Mary Chani are technically from Scotland, so does that count?

I have to say: Radiohead
Joy Division