For those who tuned into the radio regularly throughout the 1980s, certain songs became inescapable, playing on what felt like an endless loop. Tracks like "I Just Called to Say I Love You," "Wake Me ...

This is one of our favorite topics of discussion at NPR Music: What was the worst and best decade for pop music? We'll post a survey later asking you what you think, but I say the worst is the '80s.

For decades, Richard Marx was synonymous with sweeping ballads that dominated radio, wedding playlists, and sing-alongs around the world. But as the hitmaker now admits, it took him years to fully ...