"Glory of the 80's" is a song by American singer-songwriter Tori Amos. It is the fourth track on her fifth album, To Venus and Back. The song was issued as the first single from the album in Europe and Australasia. The song debuted and peaked at number 46 on the UK singles chart, making it Amos's lowest debut since her 1994 single God", when both parts of the single were recalled early for a misprint in the credits. In Australia, the single peaked at number 81 on the ARIA Singles Chart, becoming Amos' final single to reach the top 100 there.
"Glory of the 80's" is an electronically driven song with a dark, club-like atmosphere. The song also marks the final appearance of the harpsichord in Amos' work until her 2009 holiday album Midwinter Graces. According to Amos, the song was written about the honesty of that decade, compared to the more conservative 1990s of censorship and political correctness. She said of the song:
The video for "Glory of the 80's" was directed by Erick Ifergan and shot in September 1999 in Los Angeles at Universal Studios and later aired on MTV Europe.
The video features Amos in Goth attire and make-up, trapped in a cubical torture chamber, with heavy cable bars fastened on her dress to the frame of the cage. Throughout the video, a shuriken is seen randomly but consistently flying around, slashing the cables, eventually freeing Amos from her prison. She is also seen sprouting black wings, and shape-shifting into various forms, including a raven.
Two versions of the single were issued containing different live tracks. UK copies of the second disc mistakenly contained the same music as the first, rather than the tracks listed on their packaging and labels.
UK CD single â Part 1
UK CD single â Part 2