KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1987

About 1987

In 1987, KROQ captured the peak of alternative rock’s rise, spotlighting anthems from The Cure and U2 alongside indie favorites like The Smiths and R.E.M. The station also embraced eclectic tracks from Pet Shop Boys and Los Lobos, reflecting the diverse sounds of the late 80s.

Check out notes on lesser-known songs at the bottom of the page.

Rank	Artist	Song	Album
1	The Cure	Just Like Heaven	The Kiss of Death (1987)
2	The Smiths	Girlfriend in a Coma	Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
3	Depeche Mode	Strangelove	Music for the Masses (1987)
4	Echo & The Bunnymen	Lips Like Sugar	Echo & The Bunnymen (1987)
5	The Cure	Why Can't I Be You?	The Kiss of Death (1987)
6	INXS	Need You Tonight	Kick (1987)
7	XTC	Dear God	Skylarking (1986)
8	New Order	True Faith	Substance (1987)
9	U2	With or Without You	The Joshua Tree (1987)
10	Depeche Mode	Never Let Me Down Again	Music for the Masses (1987)
11	R.E.M.	The One I Love	Document (1987)
12	The Bangles	Hazy Shade of Winter	Less Than Zero (Soundtrack) (1987)
13	Love and Rockets	No New Tale to Tell	Earth, Sun, Moon (1987)
14	U2	Where the Streets Have No Name	The Joshua Tree (1987)
15	Gene Loves Jezebel	The Motion of Love	The House of Dolls (1987)
16	The Smiths	Is It Really So Strange?	Louder Than Bombs (1987)
17	Pet Shop Boys	Rent	Actually (1987)
18	U2	Sweetest Thing	The Joshua Tree (1987)
19	Depeche Mode	Behind the Wheel	Music for the Masses (1987)
20	The Alarm	Rain in the Summertime	Eye of the Hurricane (1987)
21	The Bolshoi	Please	Friends (1986)
22	Oingo Boingo	We Close Our Eyes	Boi-ngo (1987)
23	Gene Loves Jezebel	Twenty Killer Hurts	The House of Dolls (1987)
24	The Smiths	Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before	Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
25	Public Image Ltd	Rules and Regulations	Happy? (1987)
26	U2	I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For	The Joshua Tree (1987)
27	Pet Shop Boys	It's a Sin	Actually (1987)
28	Icehouse	Crazy	Man of Colours (1987)
29	Faith No More	We Care a Lot	Introduce Yourself (1987)
30	The Replacements	Alex Chilton	Pleased to Meet Me (1987)
31	Squeeze	Hourglass	Babylon and On (1987)
32	Dramarama	It's Still Warm	Box Office Bomb (1987)
33	Siouxsie and The Banshees	The Passenger	Through the Looking Glass (1987)
34	The Cult	Love Removal Machine	Electric (1987)
35	Pato Banton	Absolute Perfection	Never Give In (1987)
36	The Damned	Alone Again Or	Anything (1986)
37	Oingo Boingo	Not My Slave	Boi-ngo (1987)
38	The Psychedelic Furs	Heartbreak Beat	Midnight to Midnight (1987)
39	New Order	Bizarre Love Triangle	Brotherhood (1986)
40	X	4th of July	See How We Are (1987)
41	The Smiths	I Started Something I Couldn't Finish	Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
42	U2	Bullet the Blue Sky	The Joshua Tree (1987)
43	Tonio K	I'm Supposed to Have Sex With You	Weird Science (Soundtrack) (1985)
44	Duran Duran	Skin Trade	Notorious (1986)
45	David Bowie	Time Will Crawl	Never Let Me Down (1987)
46	Pet Shop Boys	What Have I Done to Deserve This?	Actually (1987)
47	The Dukes of Stratosphear	Vanishing Girl	Psonic Psunspot (1987)
48	The Cult	Wild Flower	Electric (1987)
49	Erasure	Victim of Love	The Circus (1987)
50	U2	Silver and Gold	The Joshua Tree (1987)
51	Beastie Boys	Fight for Your Right	Licensed to Ill (1986)
52	The Stranglers	Always the Sun	Dreamtime (1986)
53	Sting	We'll Be Together	...Nothing Like the Sun (1987)
54	David Bowie	Never Let Me Down	Never Let Me Down (1987)
55	The Psychedelic Furs	Shock	Midnight to Midnight (1987)
56	The Cure	Hot Hot Hot!!!	The Kiss of Death (1987)
57	World Party	Private Revolution	Private Revolution (1986)
58	Echo & The Bunnymen	People Are Strange	The Lost Boys (Soundtrack) (1987)
59	Billy Idol	Mony Mony (Live)	Vital Idol (1987)
60	R.E.M.	It's the End of the World as We Know It (and I Feel Fine)	Document (1987)
61	Oingo Boingo	Elevator Man	Boi-ngo (1987)
62	ABC	When Smokey Sings	Alphabet City (1987)
63	The Icicle Works	Understanding Jane	If You Want to Defeat Your Enemy Sing His Song (1987)
64	Billy Idol	Sweet Sixteen	Whiplash Smile (1986)
65	Pseudo Echo	Living in a Dream	Love an Adventure (1985)
66	The Cars	You Are the Girl	Door to Door (1987)
67	Public Image Ltd	Seattle	Happy? (1987)
68	U2	In God's Country	The Joshua Tree (1987)
69	Gene Loves Jezebel	Desire	Discover (1986)
70	Duran Duran	Meet El Presidente	Notorious (1986)
71	Lions and Ghosts	Contradiction	Velvet Kiss, Lick of the Lime (1987)
72	Flesh for Lulu	I Go Crazy	Long Live the New Flesh (1987)
73	Love and Rockets	All in My Mind	Express (1986)
74	Erasure	Sometimes	The Circus (1987)
75	Jon Astley	Jane's Getting Serious	Weird Science (Soundtrack) (1985)
76	Bryan Ferry	The Right Stuff	Bête Noire (1987)
77	The Smiths	Ask	Louder Than Bombs (1987)
78	Echo & The Bunnymen	New Direction	Echo & The Bunnymen (1987)
79	Oingo Boingo	Pain	Boi-ngo (1987)
80	Siouxsie and The Banshees	This Wheel's on Fire	Through the Looking Glass (1987)
81	Los Lobos	La Bamba	La Bamba (Soundtrack) (1987)
82	The Smiths	Panic	Louder Than Bombs (1987)
83	INXS and Jimmy Barnes	Good Times	The Lost Boys (Soundtrack) (1987)
84	Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark	We Love You	The Pacific Age (1986)
85	Flesh for Lulu	Siamese Twist	Long Live the New Flesh (1987)
86	The Sisters of Mercy	This Corrosion	Floodland (1987)
87	U2	Spanish Eyes	The Joshua Tree (1987)
88	David Bowie	'87 and Cry	Never Let Me Down (1987)
89	The The	Infected	Infected (1986)
90	Gary Numan	Radio Heart	Berserker (1986)
91	Cruzados	Bed of Lies	After Dark (1987)
92	The Jesus and Mary Chain	Happy When It Rains	Darklands (1987)
93	Talking Heads	Love for Sale	True Stories (1986)
94	Mick Jagger	Throwaway	Primitive Cool (1987)
95	Dramarama	Anything, Anything (I'll Give You)	Cinema Verité (1985)
96	Squeeze	Trust Me to Open My Mouth	Babylon and On (1987)
97	The Smiths	Shoplifters of the World Unite	Louder Than Bombs (1987)
98	The Bangles	Walking Down Your Street	Different Light (1986)
99	The Cult	Lil' Devil	Electric (1987)
100	Private Domain	Don't Need That Much	Private Domain (1987)
101	The Fixx	Don't Be Scared	React (1987)
102	Love and Rockets	Ball of Confusion	Express (1986)
103	The Silencers	I See Red	A Letter from St. Paul (1987)
104	Killing Joke	Sanity	Brighter Than a Thousand Suns (1986)
105	Walk the Moon	Daddy's Coming Home	Non-album Single (1987)
106	Mojo Nixon & Skid Roper	Elvis Is Everywhere	Bo-Day-Shus!!! (1987)
106.7	The Swinging Erudites	Walk With an Erection	Non-album Single (1987)

Notes on Lesser-Known Songs

Rank 21: The Bolshoi - Please - Friends (1986)
The Bolshoi, a British gothic rock band, created this haunting track with moody guitars and introspective lyrics, from their debut album. It blends post-punk with a theatrical flair, a hallmark of their style. KROQ played it for its dark, underground appeal.
Rank 32: Dramarama - It's Still Warm - Box Office Bomb (1987)
Dramarama, an American alternative rock band from New Jersey, delivered this gritty track with jangly guitars and raw vocals, from their second album. It captures the band’s early punk-inspired energy. KROQ gave it airplay as a local favorite.
Rank 35: Pato Banton - Absolute Perfection - Never Give In (1987)
Pato Banton, a British reggae artist, produced this upbeat track with smooth vocals and a dancehall beat, from his debut album. It’s an early example of his positive, uplifting style. KROQ featured it for its fresh reggae vibe.
Rank 47: The Dukes of Stratosphear - Vanishing Girl - Psonic Psunspot (1987)
The Dukes of Stratosphear, a psychedelic side project of XTC, crafted this retro track with 60s-inspired harmonies and jangly guitars, from their second album. It’s a nod to the Beatles’ era of pop. KROQ played it for its quirky charm.
Rank 71: Lions and Ghosts - Contradiction - Velvet Kiss, Lick of the Lime (1987)
Lions and Ghosts, an LA-based alternative band, released this dreamy track with shimmering guitars and introspective lyrics, from their debut album. It reflects the 80s college rock sound. KROQ supported it as part of the local scene.
Rank 75: Jon Astley - Jane's Getting Serious - Weird Science (Soundtrack) (1985)
Jon Astley, a British artist and producer, made this catchy new wave track with playful lyrics, tied to the *Weird Science* soundtrack. It features bright synths and a pop sensibility. KROQ aired it for its quirky appeal.
Rank 100: Private Domain - Don't Need That Much - Private Domain (1987)
Private Domain, an obscure LA rock band, produced this melodic track with a mix of new wave and rock elements, from their debut album. It’s a lesser-known gem with a polished sound. KROQ played it for its local roots.
Rank 103: The Silencers - I See Red - A Letter from St. Paul (1987)
The Silencers, a Scottish rock band, created this atmospheric track with driving rhythms and emotive vocals, from their debut album. It blends new wave with Celtic influences. KROQ featured it as a UK import.
Rank 105: Walk the Moon - Daddy's Coming Home - Non-album Single (1987)
Walk the Moon, an early indie rock band (not the later pop group), released this single with a lo-fi, jangly sound and nostalgic lyrics. It’s a rare track with a DIY vibe. KROQ played it for its underground charm.
Rank 106.7: The Swinging Erudites - Walk With an Erection - Non-album Single (1987)
The Swinging Erudites, a satirical punk band from California, made this humorous track parodying The Bangles’ "Walk Like an Egyptian." It’s a novelty single with cheeky lyrics and a punk edge. KROQ aired it for its comedic value.

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