The Top 200 Songs of the 1990s (according to Issun, no repeats)

[Issun]

After the breakup of Alice in Chains, Jerry Cantrell put out a couple of pretty good solo albums, with the first single off of his first album, #86 "Cut You In" being a standout of his solo output. His is also the only live show I've seen where the artist came out and immediately ripped the setlist off the stage and threw it into the audience.

 

[Issun]

From one AiC singer to another. Mad Season was a Seattle supergroup featuring Mark Lanegan and Barrett Martin of The Screaming Trees, John Baker Saunders of The Walkabouts, Mike McCready of Pearl Jam, and Layne Stayley of Alice in Chains. Their sound tended towards the sludginess of AiC, but #85 "River of Deceit" was a soul searching ballad that incorporated the sounds of all the composite bands.

 

[Issun]

Dre and Snoop have been one of the great power duos of rap for 30 years now, and #84 "Dre Day" was a bombshell of a dis track from them. CW: The pervasive homophobia of 90s rap music.

 

[Issun]

AC/DC were already well past their prime in 1990, yet they still managed to put out one more iconic track with #83 "Thunderstruck".

 

[Issun]

Pantera were one of the biggest metal bands of the decade (R.I.P. Dimebag). Walk may be their signature song, but #82 "This Love" is their best song, I think.

 

[Issun]

Notorious B.I.G. was one of two hugely influential rappers murdered far too early in their lives within a year of each other (the other one will be appearing, don't worry. My pick for his best song is #81 "Juicy".

 

[Issun]

Somewhere I got the numbers mixed up, so Juicy is actually #80. Anyways, New Order is one of several bands whose heyday was the 1980s, but my favorite song of theirs came out in the 90s. In this case, #79 "Regret".

 

[Issun]

Few groups have contributed as much to rap music and its place in popular culture as Wu-Tang Clan, and their most iconic track, #78 "C.R.E.A.M.", is also one of their best.

 

[Torzelbaum]

They ain’t nothing to f’ with.

 

[Issun]

The Red Hot Chili Peppers were pretty big in the early 90s, and Blood Sugar Sex Magik was an incredibly popular album. My pick for them, though, is from The Coneheads soundtrack of all things, with #77 "Soul to Squeeze". Definitely an underappreciated song of theirs.

 

[Issun]

Jagged Little Pill was a staple of my life in 1995/1996. It got regular rotation (I even listened to it while grinding levels in Chrono Trigger). It's really hard to pick one track from the album, but pressed hard enough I'd go with #76 "You Learn",

 

[Torzelbaum]

The Red Hot Chili Peppers were pretty big in the early 90s, and Blood Sugar Sex Magik was an incredibly popular album. My pick for them, though, is from The Coneheads soundtrack of all things, with #77 "Soul to Squeeze". Definitely an underappreciated song of theirs.

I appreciate it.

 

[Issun]

Salt 'n Pepa were a fixture of late 80s/early 90s hip hop, as well as trailblazers for women in the genre. Their Very Necessary album has a lot of bops to choose from, but I had to go with #75 "Shoop".

 

[Issun]

House of Pain frontman Everlast went solo in the late 90s and Whitey Ford Sings the Blues was a hell of a first solo effort. My pick for his standout track is #74 "Ends".

 

[Issun]

Tool carved out a particular niche as math metal weirdos but I think their best song is from their earlier days with simpler chord progressions. #73 is "Sober"

 

[Issun]

A Tribe Called Quest are, to this day, underappreciated for their contribution to music. Here's #72 "Can I Kick It?"

 

[zonetrope]

Wow, big coincidence. My show just did an episode breaking down The Low End Theory. It's a bit of a time commitment, but I'm just posting it on the off chance anyone might be interested. Tribe were fucking great.

 

[Issun]

#71 "Hook" by Blues Traveler is a pretty ingenious bit of songwriting about how lyrics don't matter too much as long as the hook is catchy. Ironically, the song's nonsensical lyrics are pretty fun. "Suck it in suck it in if your Rin Tin Tin or Anne Boleyn".

 

[Issun]

Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers have a vast and legendary catalog of songs to choose from, but my favorite of his has always been from later in his career. #70 "Learning to Fly".

 

[Issun]

It's tough picking a favorite Boys II Men song, but if I have to choose I'll go with #69 "Water Runs Dry. The lush instrumentals and sorrowful vocals meld to make a perfect R&B ballad.

 

[Issun]

#68, spacehog's "In the Meantime" is one of those alt rock tracks that those who were there remember fondly. I do have to thank James Gunn for giving it more exposure in GotG 3 though. Just an absolute banger.

 

[Issun]

Depeche Mode is known primarily as an 80s band, but my favorite song of theirs just squeaks in to the following decade. #67 "Enjoy the Silence"

 

[Issun]

Two future legends on one track? In the 1990s it happened all the time. #66 is Nas feat. Laryn Hill with "If I Ruled the World".

 

[Issun]

Collective Soul is a mostly decent alt rock band with a few bangers, and #65 "The World I Know" is one of the best, a ballad about losing and refinding yourself.

 

[Issun]

The late 80s and early 90s saw Megadeth at their peak, and #64 "Symphony of Destruction" is them at their headbanging best.

 

[zonetrope]

A true Guitar Hero classic.

 

[Issun]

If you were alive and conscious in 1996 it's incredibly likely you heard #63 "California Love". It was everywhere in a way songs don't get to be nowadays. It's easily one of the biggest songs of the decade, and the fact that it was 2Pac and Dr. Dre together made it all the more special.

 

[Issun]

Erykah Badu was on of the leaders in a new kind of soul music at the end of the las century. I just remember how blown away I was the first time I heard #62 "On & On".

 

[Issun]

If you've heard of Cracker, you probably mainly think of their 1993 hit "Low", and that's a great song, but I really like another song off their Kerosene Hat album, #61 "Get Off This".

 

[Issun]

Shawn Colvin is another artist who had been around for a while, got a big hit in the 90s, then went back to being lower profile. That song is #60 "Sunny Came Home", a song in a style I quite enjoy: Upbeat sound, dark lyrics.