90s Rock: Best Songs

This list is fucking impossible to make, but I'm going to try to do it anyway.  The 90s is my favorite decade of music out of the last five.  As an aside, if I had to extinguish one decade's music from existence, my first pick is the 70s.  Then it would be the 2000s.  I'd much prefer to have the 60s, 80s, and 90s still in my future cloud player that will clearly be jacked directly into my brain like I'm Neo from the Matrix.

But I digress.  I was at Dick Tracy's house the other night and we were going through our favorite 90s songs.  There were too many to count, so I understand that my efforts will likely be futile.  I'm trying to come up with a Top 20, but let's start with the first batch of songs that, if they were at the Cold Stone Creamery, they would come in "Gotta Have It" size.

1) "Dead And Bloated" by Stone Temple Pilots

This song gets me pumped.  If I ever needed to win a Super Bowl, murder a vampire, or pull off a bank robbery with Jason Statham, I believe I would pick this song to put me in the right mindset. 

Making playlists for murder worked for Jessica Biel in "Blade: Trinity."

Obviously, this song is helped by me just having seen STP in July, but nonetheless, it tops my list of 90s Rock songs.  I'm not sure where Scott Weiland's deep grunge voice has disappeared to, but if I could request a return for their next hypothetical record, I would love to do so.  Make it happen interwebs!

2) "Drain You" by Nirvana

This song is a classic.  It is not overplayed like almost every other song on "Nevermind," and if it ever comes on the radio, I do not change the station.  This song really, really brings me back to my youth.  I can still remember watching a pink haired Kurt Cobain perform this song on MTV... ya know, back when MTV had music- not just Ronnie and CT knocking fools out.

MTV also had this crazy show that was probably awesome... on WEED!

3) "Them Bones" by Alice In Chains

This list is dominated with songs that get my juices flowing. "Them Bones" is a perfectly written Rock/Metal/Grunge song that stands up all these years later. Layne Staley yelling "AH!" a few times at the beginning sets the stage for an epic rocker with ridiculously memorable harmonies. With two of the original members of AIC dying due to heroin addiction, one has to wonder if they could've produced this song without the drugs. One could also wonder if they could've produced even more great songs had they actually kicked the junk. Much like, "How many licks does it take to get to the center of a Tootsie pop?"- the world may never know.

4) "Infected" by Bad Religion

Another song that gets me pumped and would keep my attention if it came on the ol' FM radio. Changing the station when this song comes on could get your hand slapped in the same manner as if you were stealing french fries off my plate. Do not do either of those things!

"There are several sacred things in this world that you don't ever mess with. One of them happens to be another man's fries."

The overlapping lyrics at the end of this song are a highlight of not only just this song, but the entire decade of the 90s.

5) "Standing Outside A Broken Phone Booth With Money In My Hand" by Primitive Radio Gods

I can't name one other song by this band off the top of my head.  I'm certain one of my friends had the CD and I listened to it, but this is the only song that stood out- and it is a doozy.  I believe the sample in this song is of B.B. King and I still listen to this song regularly to calm myself during particularly stressful days.  The piano solo seems awfully improvised, and it works well within the framework of the song.

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Like I said, this list is impossible and ever-changing.  The point is, the 90s was a great decade for music and I love reminiscing about the great songs from back then.  It brings nostalgia to the forefront of my brain... in a great way.  Stay tuned for more songs and bring your list to the party in the comments.

90s Rock: Nirvana

Here is a post from my old blog. Nirvana is one of the corner stones of 90s rock, so they deserve a mention over here. Leave your favorite songs in the comments, if you so desire.

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On April 5, 1994, Kurt Cobain took his own life and robbed the world of any further musical genius that he had to offer.  (Obviously, it's more important that he wasn't there to raise his daughter, but since I didn't know him personally, this is about the music.)  I can't believe he's been dead for 17 years.  Considering how repetitively I listened to Nirvana albums during my formative years, it still feels like Cobain's legacy lives on through his smaller-than-it-should-be song collection.  Let's look at some of my favorite songs (this may or may not include their biggest hits):


"Blew" - The first track off their "Bleach" album.  This song rocks in a dirty punky way, but also shows the obvious potential for catchy songs they were about to put out a few years later on "Nevermind." 



"Aneurysm" - I'm going to talk about "Incesticide" first because a lot of these tracks were recorded before "Nevermind" even though the physical album was released afterward. This song has multiple phases and is very well written. The "She keeps it pumping straight to my heart" portion of the song is a fine climax to cap off a great tune.



"Drain You" - I'm totally stoked that I found the video I wanted for this song. It's from MTV Live in 1992. Kurt has pink hair and they rock this song. It has pop sensibility with a grungy build up in the final third of the song. This might be one of the most underrated tracks they ever released as it was never a huge hit, but really is one of their best.



"Lithium" - Ok, besides the fact that this song is unbelievably awesome, here is another video that I'm excited to find. Dana Carvey intros the band at the 1992 MTV Music Video Awards. Kurt plays a few bars of "Rape Me" to give MTV execs a heart-attack, then goes on to play a killer version of "Lithium." Of course, the cherry on top is when bassist Krist Noveselic throws his bass in the air and hits himself in the face. IN THE FACE!



"Radio Friendly Unit Shifter" - This song is also highly underrated. For anyone who complains about "In Utero," just chill. The album is full of great songs. Sure, it's less pop-y than "Nevermind" but it's a great album none-the-less. If you want to rock, then look no further than this song.



"Heart Shaped Box" - I'm trying to balance some singles in to this post along with some of the lesser known tracks. This song is obviously one of their big singles. It's still awesome, and holds up well in 2011.



"On A Plain" (Unplugged) - The whole "Unplugged In New York" album is just amazing. Seeing a band that naturally loves to rock with punk/grunge riffs as the backbone of their music then go completely acoustic is interesting. Seeing them make that transition into something wholly beautiful is a whole other ball game. It's hard to pick specific tracks, but I do love this song.



"Where Did You Sleep Last Night" - A Leadbelly cover tune (from 1944 no less) that seems appropriate to be the closer to this post. Nirvana transformed music for the better. It's unfortunate that Kurt Cobain is gone, but their music will live on for generations to come.