When my friend Chris and I sat down to write a list of our Top 5 Albums of the 90's I was beyond excited, this was not only the music I grew up with but some of the most iconic music of my lifetime. Unfortunately when the time came to make my selections we were torn between so many great releases. The amount of absolutely fantastic albums that were released in the 90's is overwhelming; it truly was an amazing time for music. That being said we put our heads together and after much debate came up with these five.
5) R.E.M - Automatic for the People (1992)
Number 5 on the list of Best Albums of the 90's list is R.E.M.'s "Automatic for the People". I was never a huge fan of R.E.M. songs like "It's the End of the world", "Shiny Happy people", and Losing my Religion were all shoved down our musical mouths by MTV so much that I was kind of over them by the time Automatic for the People came out. Then I heard Drive, it was darker than the aforementioned tracks and just had a fantastically simplistic guitar line that was so catchy. The "Hey Kids Rock and Roll" line just brought me back to the David Essex track "Rock on" in a good way. Needless to say this brought me back in as an R.E.M. lover even though MTV tried to destroy this album for me by playing "Everybody Hurts" every ten minutes I still enjoyed almost every track on this album.
Favorite tracks (Drive, Night swimming, and Find the River) Top Billboard Spot (#2)
4) The Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream (1993)
Number 4 on the list of the Best Albums of the 90's list is The Smashing Pumpkins "Siamese Dream". There was much debate on which Pumpkin album to put in this spot but in the end this was the one we agreed on. Cherub Rock, Disarm, Today, these three songs were the reason I had to buy this tape (yes I said tape) twice, I wore it out!! Corgan's voice was like nothing I had ever heard; the aggression of Cherub Rock with Corgan's tone was just amazing and after a few bars I was hooked. Another plus for me at the time which I guess can be taken as a bias is that the Pumpkins were from a Chicago suburb. As a young musician that was an amazing thing and gave hope to other young musicians in the area that you didn't have to move to the coast to have a successful music career.
Favorite tracks (Cherub Rock, Today, Disarm, and Soma) Top Billboard Spot (#10)
3) Pearl Jam - Ten (1991)
Number 3 on the Best Albums of the 90's list is Pearl Jam's Ten. I still remember hearing Alive for the first time through MTV; they actually played music back then. The video was so raw being just live performance footage in black and white it matched the raw sound so perfect. After that viewing I ran out to buy TEN and must have listened to it for a week nonstop, every single song on this album was just fantastic and flowed in and out of each other so well. Pearl Jam has released so many good albums since "Ten" but none carried the special feel that Ten had from track one through track eleven.
Favorite tracks (Porch, Release, and Oceans) Top Billboard Spot (#2)
2) Dr. Dre - The Chronic (1992)
Number two on the Best Albums of the 90's list is Dr. Dre's "The Chronic".
This may seem like an odd choice given the explosion of the Grunge scene in the 90's but there is no denying that Dr. Dre's The Chronic was not only a fantastic album but a very important album. I have to admit looking back at being a young kid I feel a bit of a poser. I remember myself hanging out with my friends in suburbia listening to gangster rap while we smoked the cigarettes we had someone buy us with the money found in our parents couch cushions, yes smokes were that cheap. Then again I think that's what makes my point about how important of an album this was. The Chronic transcended across such an eclectic group of people and even if that wasn't Dre's intent it was one heck of a feat. Then when you realize all that was going on behind the scenes between Dre and Eazy-E it just exposes what a crazy scene that was, the music wasn't only a message it was a warning. Whether you enjoy hip hop or not this album is worth a listen.
Favorite tracks (Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat, Nuthin but a G Thang and F___ wit Dre Day) Top Billboard Spot (#3)
1) Nirvana - Nevermind (1991)
Number one on the Best Albums of the 90's lists is Nirvana "Nevermind".
Well this shouldn't be much of a shock given they've sold thirty million copies of this album and has been certified as "Diamond" shipping ten million copies U.S. This album was a game changer for Alt. rock music bringing it to the masses like nobody expected. Every track on this album was just so pure that going back and listening makes me yearn for less digital and more analog. Kurt as a song writer was off the charts, I almost wonder if he had any idea just how good he was. Kurt's skill as a guitar player was questionable but it didn't matter, the man was gold and his raspy angst filled voice was the soundtrack for many people's lives, which is why this next part is so painful to look back on. Kurt Cobain was the first major death that I will personally always remember where I was. It was the first time a "celebrity" death shook me and being sixteen when it happened didn't help as it made it very hard to fully understand the impact at that time but that was my generations Lennon, Hendrix, or Elvis. You can argue Cobain didn't have as much star impact as Elvis, as talented a song writer as Lennon and few would argue he was even on the same planet as Hendrix when it came to guitar playing but his influence on my generation is undeniable. As far as tracks go it's hard to name favorites on this other that "Something's in the Way". That song was so simple yet chilling and after you hear the story of how they recorded with Kurt playing a guitar with only 5 strings, out of tune while he slouched on the couch performing it only made it better.
Favorite tracks (Something's in the Way, Polly, Lithium) Top Billboard Spot (#1)
Well that's it and though you may agree or disagree with our final choices for the Best Albums of the 90's list in fact chances are you disagree with us. I say that because the simple fact is the 90's were an AMAZING time for music with countless top 5 worthy albums. In the end writing this list was a great excuse to dust off some 90's vinyl and re live some of my favorite music from my youth.
If you would like to know a little bit more about my co-author and how these Top Albums of the 90's influenced him as a musician check this out and download the latest single from his most recent album for free.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Nolen
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8931536
read more...
5) R.E.M - Automatic for the People (1992)
Number 5 on the list of Best Albums of the 90's list is R.E.M.'s "Automatic for the People". I was never a huge fan of R.E.M. songs like "It's the End of the world", "Shiny Happy people", and Losing my Religion were all shoved down our musical mouths by MTV so much that I was kind of over them by the time Automatic for the People came out. Then I heard Drive, it was darker than the aforementioned tracks and just had a fantastically simplistic guitar line that was so catchy. The "Hey Kids Rock and Roll" line just brought me back to the David Essex track "Rock on" in a good way. Needless to say this brought me back in as an R.E.M. lover even though MTV tried to destroy this album for me by playing "Everybody Hurts" every ten minutes I still enjoyed almost every track on this album.
Favorite tracks (Drive, Night swimming, and Find the River) Top Billboard Spot (#2)
4) The Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream (1993)
Number 4 on the list of the Best Albums of the 90's list is The Smashing Pumpkins "Siamese Dream". There was much debate on which Pumpkin album to put in this spot but in the end this was the one we agreed on. Cherub Rock, Disarm, Today, these three songs were the reason I had to buy this tape (yes I said tape) twice, I wore it out!! Corgan's voice was like nothing I had ever heard; the aggression of Cherub Rock with Corgan's tone was just amazing and after a few bars I was hooked. Another plus for me at the time which I guess can be taken as a bias is that the Pumpkins were from a Chicago suburb. As a young musician that was an amazing thing and gave hope to other young musicians in the area that you didn't have to move to the coast to have a successful music career.
Favorite tracks (Cherub Rock, Today, Disarm, and Soma) Top Billboard Spot (#10)
3) Pearl Jam - Ten (1991)
Number 3 on the Best Albums of the 90's list is Pearl Jam's Ten. I still remember hearing Alive for the first time through MTV; they actually played music back then. The video was so raw being just live performance footage in black and white it matched the raw sound so perfect. After that viewing I ran out to buy TEN and must have listened to it for a week nonstop, every single song on this album was just fantastic and flowed in and out of each other so well. Pearl Jam has released so many good albums since "Ten" but none carried the special feel that Ten had from track one through track eleven.
Favorite tracks (Porch, Release, and Oceans) Top Billboard Spot (#2)
2) Dr. Dre - The Chronic (1992)
Number two on the Best Albums of the 90's list is Dr. Dre's "The Chronic".
This may seem like an odd choice given the explosion of the Grunge scene in the 90's but there is no denying that Dr. Dre's The Chronic was not only a fantastic album but a very important album. I have to admit looking back at being a young kid I feel a bit of a poser. I remember myself hanging out with my friends in suburbia listening to gangster rap while we smoked the cigarettes we had someone buy us with the money found in our parents couch cushions, yes smokes were that cheap. Then again I think that's what makes my point about how important of an album this was. The Chronic transcended across such an eclectic group of people and even if that wasn't Dre's intent it was one heck of a feat. Then when you realize all that was going on behind the scenes between Dre and Eazy-E it just exposes what a crazy scene that was, the music wasn't only a message it was a warning. Whether you enjoy hip hop or not this album is worth a listen.
Favorite tracks (Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat, Nuthin but a G Thang and F___ wit Dre Day) Top Billboard Spot (#3)
1) Nirvana - Nevermind (1991)
Number one on the Best Albums of the 90's lists is Nirvana "Nevermind".
Well this shouldn't be much of a shock given they've sold thirty million copies of this album and has been certified as "Diamond" shipping ten million copies U.S. This album was a game changer for Alt. rock music bringing it to the masses like nobody expected. Every track on this album was just so pure that going back and listening makes me yearn for less digital and more analog. Kurt as a song writer was off the charts, I almost wonder if he had any idea just how good he was. Kurt's skill as a guitar player was questionable but it didn't matter, the man was gold and his raspy angst filled voice was the soundtrack for many people's lives, which is why this next part is so painful to look back on. Kurt Cobain was the first major death that I will personally always remember where I was. It was the first time a "celebrity" death shook me and being sixteen when it happened didn't help as it made it very hard to fully understand the impact at that time but that was my generations Lennon, Hendrix, or Elvis. You can argue Cobain didn't have as much star impact as Elvis, as talented a song writer as Lennon and few would argue he was even on the same planet as Hendrix when it came to guitar playing but his influence on my generation is undeniable. As far as tracks go it's hard to name favorites on this other that "Something's in the Way". That song was so simple yet chilling and after you hear the story of how they recorded with Kurt playing a guitar with only 5 strings, out of tune while he slouched on the couch performing it only made it better.
Favorite tracks (Something's in the Way, Polly, Lithium) Top Billboard Spot (#1)
Well that's it and though you may agree or disagree with our final choices for the Best Albums of the 90's list in fact chances are you disagree with us. I say that because the simple fact is the 90's were an AMAZING time for music with countless top 5 worthy albums. In the end writing this list was a great excuse to dust off some 90's vinyl and re live some of my favorite music from my youth.
If you would like to know a little bit more about my co-author and how these Top Albums of the 90's influenced him as a musician check this out and download the latest single from his most recent album for free.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=William_Nolen
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/8931536
