1990s Single Songs ================== The 90s are the last decade where I like quite a few of the popular radio singles of the day. There were also quite a few songs off of singles or less successful records by my favorite artists. - "What's Up" by **4 Non Blondes** - This has become the poster child for embarrassing 90s alt rock. Holds up though. - "Crying in the Rain" by **A-ha** - The last great song in their first run. The trademark gorgeous harmony vocals and crisp melodies are there in full force. - "The Sign" by **Ace of Base** - Every decade has some killer Swedish pop. This played several times an hour on VH1 in 1993. - "I Stay Away" by **Alice in Chains** - The first of several great tracks from the ultimate "greatest hits" band of 90s alt rock. - "No Excuses" by **Alice in Chains** - Even better on their unplugged album. - "Rooster" by **Alice in Chains** - Sounds a bit goofy and over the top to my adult ears, but I still dig it. - "Would?" by **Alice in Chains** - Their finest moment. If they could have capture this kind of focus more often, they could have been so much more. - "Flying Dutchman" by **"Amos, Tori** - One of my absolute favorite songs was supposed to be the last track on the double album version of *Little Earthquakes**. It instead gets to be the ultimate Tori rarity. - "Honey" by **"Amos, Tori** - This wouldn't have fit on *Under the Pink* and makes total sense as a B-side. - "Purple People" by **"Amos, Tori** - Still making spectacular B-sides at the close of the decade. - "Sugar" by **"Amos, Tori** - Yet another great track left off of *Little Earthquakes*. She had a whole album of B-sides that outdid most other artists at the time. - "Take to the Sky" by **"Amos, Tori** - I made a playlist to simulate the full original track list for **Little Earthquakes**. It is the greatest unreleased album of all time. - "Upside Down" by **"Amos, Tori** - See above - "Poison" by **Bel Biv DeVoe** - **New Edition** split in four different directions and dominated the charts of the day. This is the ultimate New Jack Swing track. - "No Diggity" by **Blackstreet** - Everywhere in the mid 90s. I can finally listen to it again. - "The Crying Game" by **Boy George** - Hard to separate this from the backwards thinking of the context in which this was presented in Ace Ventura. A great song when I do divorce it from that film. - "Motownphilly" by **Boyz II Men** - Essentially there theme song, and their finest moment. - "The Distance" by **Cake** - What a strange and wonderful band. I strongly considered putting *Fashion Nugget* on my list, but really it is mostly about this track. - "Where the Wild Roses Grow" by **"Cave, Nick and Kylie Minogue** - What a creepy video, but a great song. - "Gangser's Paradise" by **Coolio** - I was really disappointed when I discovered this is pretty much straight up theft of a Stevie Wonder song. The original is a stunning work of genius, this track is a solid piece of nostalgia. - "Paper Sun" by **Def Leppard** - A shockingly mature and effective track, well after their peak years. - "Say My Name" by **Destiny's Child** - I was very on board with this. I am probably one of the few who was dissapointed with how **Beyonce's** career panned out. - "Counting Blue Cars" by **Dishwalla** - Kind of dumb but really enjoyable, like the fanstastic album that would come next. - "Free Your Mind" by **En Vogue** - Another album that nearly makes my list it is really just about two amazing singles though. - "My Lovin' (You're Never Gonna Get It)" by **En Vogue** - What an amazing couple of singles, how did they fade away so quickly? - "Learn to Fly" by **Foo Fighters** - Another greatest hits type band that never made a great album. - "My Hero" by **Foo Fighters** - See above. - "Killing Me Softly" by **Fugees** - Probably the best cover of all time. - "I Think I'm Paranoid" by **Garbage** - The best song you are likely to hear on your PlayStation (Gran Tursismo 2). - "Civil War" by **Guns N' Roses** - The big dumb epic from **Use Your Illusion II** is by far the best thing from the album. - "November Rain" by **Guns N' Roses** - The big dumb epic from **Use Your Illusion I** is by far the best thing from the album. - "Damn I Wish I Was Your Lover" by **"Hawkins, Sophie B.** - Is this the most 90s of singles? It is hard to listen to this an not picture a coffeehouse, plaid shirts, and VH1. - "Pardon Me" by **Incubus** - The beginning of their commercial turn, and their finest moment in my opinion. - "This is How it Feels" by **Inspiral Carpets** - Rhino's *Brit Box* connected me to this gem of 90s psychedelic BritPop. - "Beautiful Girl" by **INXS** - A gentle moment was their last time in the popular consciousness. - "Foolish Games" by **Jewel** - Delightful cheese. Memories of my freshman year of college. - ""Right Here, Right Now""" by **"Jones, Jesus** - Another track that is so early 90s, I am almost transported back to the mall. - "Constant Craving" by **K.D. Lang** - Hated it at the time, as an adult I totally get the appeal. - "It Ain't Over Till It's Over" by **"Kravitz, Lenny** - I used to love this guy, now I only really like his breakout hit. - "The Dolphin's Cry" by **Live** - I also used to really like these guys, now I only need this single track from the last days of their time of relevance. - "Vogue" by **Madonna** - It was an uneven decade for her, and this track was probably the highpoint, and the end of her classic era. - "Motorcycle Emptiness" by **Manic Street Preachers** - An outstanding bit of pop-punk that feels very light in comparison to what they would do in the years ahead. - "Fantasy" by **Meriah Carey** - Mainstream pop music at its very finest. - "Fade Into You" by **Mazzy Star** - Anything could become massively popular in the 90s, even this kind of moody indie rock. - "Carnival" by **"Merchant, Natalie** - Probably the high water mark of the 90s VH1 fueled, adult contemporary renasiance. - "Uninvited" by **"Morissette, Alanis** - I never cared for Alanis, but she did a great job singing this epic sountrack song. - "Alma Matters" by **Morrissey** - The second half of the 90s was a weaker moment for the Moz, but each album produced a solid single. - "The Teachers are Afraid of the Pupils" by **Morrissey** - See above. Also the Shostakovitch sample is quite effective here. - "Sunburn" by **Muse** - The one album where they are pretty clearly riffing off of **Radiohead**, but to great effect on this track. - "Unintended" by **Muse** - They also produced a pretty good ballad on their debut. - "Only Shallow" by **my bloody valentine** - I never saw this as a classic album unlike a lot of people. Great opening track though. - "Regret" by **New Order** - An 80s band has their very finest moment in the next decade. Nostalgia in song form. - "In Bloom" by **Nirvana** - I do not like this band as much as most people my age. This poppier moment is my favorite song off of their studio albums. - "Don't Speak" by **No Doubt** - The kind of top notch rock radio single that doesn't get made anymore. - "Nothing Compares 2 U" by **O'Connor Sinead** - A lot of people think this is the greatest cover of all time. Not quite for me (see **Fugees** above) but pretty close. - "Harness Your Hopes" by **Pavement** - As I type this (2025) this song is more popular than ever for some reason. A non-album obscurity that is one of their finest moments, and a summary of what makes them great. - "Temple of Love" by **Sisters of Mercy** - This electro-dance track was their last commercial single of note, and a great way to exit the mainstream. - "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space" by **Spiritualized** - Sounds way more like "Pachabel's Cannon" than the dozens of other songs that uses this chord sequence. (Including the one by **Elvis** that it also references.) - "Streets of Philadelphia" by **"Springsteen, Bruce** - I really liked this song when it came out. I really like it now. One of the all-time great tracks. Once of the all-time great productions. - "Save Yourself" by **Stabbing Westward** - Overly dramatic screaming industrial, that holds up better than I would have thought. - "Here's Where the Story Ends" by **"Sundays, The** - There was a really cool kind of pop music coming out of the UK in the early 90s, that didn't really register in the USA. This is one of the top tracks from that time. - "Chop Suey!" by **System of a Down** - It was cheesy but very appealing at the time. It is cheesy but very appealing today. - "Hunger Strike" by **Temple of the Dog** - I almost didn't include this. I'm kinda sick of it to be honest, but wow is it central to the time and place. - "There She Goes" by **The La's** - Another great song from the early 90s UK scene, that those of us in the USA didn't know about until years later. - "The Kid's Aren't Alright" by **The Offspring** - In retrospect, these jokey kids kind of look like pop geniuses. I only need this one from them though. - "Waterfalls" by **TLC** - Yeah they copied the lyrics from **Paul McCartney**, but the song is a truly unique bit of Hip-hop/R&B. - "If You Could Only See" by **Tonic** - Another of those outstanding pop-rock radio singles that I will never tire of. - "Open Up Your Eyes" by **Tonic** - See above. - "The Way I Feel About You" - by **Karyn White** - A great song from later in the New Jack Swing era that brings in more those 90s beats. - "Your Woman" by **White Town** - I'm not alone in believing this to be one of the great "one hit wonder" tracks of all time. How did this get so popular anyway? It is such a strange and wonderful track. - "Autumn Sweater" by **Yo La Tengo** - Another album largely thought to be a classic, on which, I really only care for one song.