Popular Rock Music Of The 90s - The Songs That Defined A Decade

Rizzo Music is back with a new article from the "Popular Music of the 90s" series. Last week I made a list of some of the best pop music of the decade and today I am going to share with you my list for the most popular rock music of the 90s. Out of all the lists and playlists I have created in the past, this was by far the hardest to come up with. There are so many great artists and songs that originated in the 90s and deciding on just 5 songs for every year was tough. I tried to get representation out of all the key rock artists and hopefully I didn't forget anyone.

After much debate I was able to compile this list of 90s rock music. There are so many songs that I really enjoy that could not be included due restrictions on space but there are 50 great singles here for your enjoyment.

How it works:
For each genre of music I will rank the top 5 singles from each year in the 90s. I will provide a link for each song (either imeem or youtube, depending on availability) for your listening pleasure.

Disclaimer: These rankings are based on my personal preferences, not on actual popularity. I think of these lists as recommendations. Hopefully these songs will bring back some good memories, and if you have never heard them before, maybe create some new ones.

Interested in 90s Pop and Rap as well? Be sure to check out these lists as well.
90s Pop Music
90s Rock Music

Starting with the year 1999:
1. "My Own Worst Enemy" by Lit
2. "Jumper" by Third Eye Blind
3. "Scar Tissue" by Red Hot Chili Peppers
4. "The Chemicals Between Us" by Bush
5. "Heavy" by Collective Soul

1998:
1. "Inside Out" by Eve 6
2. "The Way" by Fastball
3. "Sex and Candy" by Marcy Playground
4. "Shimmer" by Fuel
5. "Closing Time" by Semisonic

1997:
1. "Bitter Sweet Symphony" by The Verve
2. "Push" by Matchbox Twenty
3. "Everlong" by Foo Fighters
4. "The Freshman" by The Verve Pipe
5. "Everything to Everyone" by Everclear

1996:
1. "1979" by Smashing Pumpkins
2. "One Headlight" by The Wallflowers
3. "Counting Blue Cars" by Dishwalla
4. "What I Got" by Sublime
5. "In the Meantime" by Spacehog

1995:
1. "Lightning Crashes" by Live
2. "Wonderwall" by Oasis
3. "Glycerine" by Bush
4. "Name" by Goo Goo Dolls
5. "Good" by Better Than Ezra

1994:
1. "When I Come Around" by Green Day
2. "Shine" by Collective Soul
3. "I Alone" by Live
4. "Self Esteem" by The Offspring
5. "About a Girl" by Nirvana

1993:
1. "Rooster" by Alice in Chains
2. "Mr. Jones" by Counting Crows
3. "Hey Jealousy" by Gin Blossoms
4. "No Rain" by Blind Melon
5. "Killing in the Name" by Rage Against the Machine

1992:
1. "Jeremy" by Pearl Jam
2. "In Bloom" by Nirvana
3. "Drive" by R.E.M.
4. "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica
5. "Creep" by Radiohead

1991:
1. "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana
2. "Man in the Box" by Alice in Chains
3. "Enter Sandman" by Metallica
4. "Losing My Religion" by R.E.M.
5. "Right Here, Right Now" by Jesus Jones

1990:
1. "Hunger Strike" by Temple of the Dog
2. "Kool Thing" by Sonic Youth
3. "Head Like A Hole" by Nine Inch Nails
4. "Stop!" by Jane's Addicton
5. "Thunderstruck" by AC/DC

Well there you have it. The top 5 songs from each year of the 90s. Thanks for listening and enjoy.

Agree? Disagree? Feel free to share your opinion by making a comment below.

by Rizzo

The Verve Pipe - The Freshman Music Video Tribute

This tribute is long overdue. "The Freshman" by The Verve Pipe is one of those songs that you either love or you hate. The song propelled The Verve Pipe into stardom and helped their album, Villains, go platinum. This was indeed their biggest hit and for good reason. I am a fan of a lot of their songs but this one is their best and has so much history for me personally. This is one of the first songs where I could sing every line word for word. It also came out at a time when I first started to follow mainstream music and began to listen to the radio quite frequently. I can still remember watching the video in my living room and hearing it countless times on the radio.

Although this song is about ten years old, I never get tired of hearing it. The song as well as the video is filled with such a powerful presence and emotion. I always found the lyrics confusing and didn't find out what he wouldn't "be held responsible for" but according to Wikipedia and other sources, the lead singer, Brian Vander Ark spilled the beans. He wrote the song in 1991 after he and his girlfriend had an abortion and later, broke up. The song does make mention of the girl committing suicide but according to Vander Ark, he was just using poetic license. For a line by line analysis by the lead singer himself, click here. Now for the haunting video, the one that was ingrained into my mind such a long time ago.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVNAp1C8LIw]

by Rizzo

Top 10 Songs You Should Know Playlist: Week #8

We are back on schedule with a new playlist for the second week of January. This playlist is no different then the others, great songs, some you might of heard of, some you haven't. It's nice to finally get back in the swing of things and hopefully I'll have a tribute or album review up in the next couple days. This playlist features some artists previously mentioned and some I haven't but nonetheless great songs. Enjoy and thanks for listening.

Top 10 Songs You Should Know - Week 8 - Jan. 8-14 2006
1. Girl Eyes - Eve 6
2. Lonely Nation - Switchfoot
3. Boston - Augustana
4. Shelter - Big City Rock
5. The Warmth - Incubus
6. Happiness Is - The Verve Pipe
7. Open Your Eyes - Alter Bridge
8. Polaris - Jimmy Eat World
9. Time Stands Still - All-American Rejects
10. Breathless - Better than Ezra

Looking for more playlists? We've got plenty.

by Rizzo

Cutting The Ribbon: Top 10 Songs You Should Know Playlist: Week 1

Now that I have that I have the mission statement out of the way, I figured I would start up the first reoccurring article. This is the first edition to the "Top 10 Songs You Should Know" from some fairly familiar artists but not so familiar songs. Hopefully pretty soon I'll be able to figure out how to link to Itunes or something so you can at least hear a sample of each of these songs because they are pretty good. I hope to release a playlist every Monday but we will see what happens. Most of the stuff that I post will be pretty random and will not have any sort of regularity so just check back often or subscribe to the blog at the top of the page.

Just for a little background, these artists featured on this playlist are all extraordinary and I regularly listen to at least 5 of their songs on a regular basis with the exception of Griffin House, which I recently saw in concert so I can vouch for his talent. Anyways, all of them might not be your style but hopefully at least one will.

Top 10 Songs You Should Know - Week 1 - Nov. 13-19 2006
1. Rosealia - Better Than Ezra
2. The End Of The World - Gin Blossoms
3. The Guy that Says Goodbye to You is Out of His Mind - Griffin House
4. Wait - Mat Kearney
5. Every Little Thing - Dishwalla
6. A Bad Dream - Keane
7. Look After You - The Fray
8. I Believe In You - Big City Rock
9. Overcome - Live
10. Penny Is Poison - The Verve Pipe

Looking for more playlists? We've got plenty.

by Rizzo