Tuesday, September 14, 2010

My Favorite Songs of The 1990s, Pt. 3

This is the third and final installment--a.k.a. the top sixty--of my My Favorite Songs of The 1990s list. Woo hoo. To reiterate...

The music of the 1990s is my music, or so I feel. Even though I was still pretty young when the decade came to a close, I was old enough to have been transformed by its culture. I was old enough to have breathed its air, watched its cartoons, and played with its action figures. And I was old enough to hear its music. (P.S. My sister deserves credit for my knowledge and love of Hanson, as well as many other of the '90s finest pop acts, from Aaliyah to TLC to New Radicals to etc. etc. etc.)

Well here we are: the end. Below you'll find my absolute most favorite-est favorite songs of the decade that bore me. These sixty songs are... I don't even know. They're just awesome. Enjoy. (Oh, and if you haven't perused the first two parts of the list, the honorable mentions are here and #s 180 through 61 are here.)



60. Destiny's Child--Say My Name
59. Sonic Youth--Kool Thing
58. Black Tambourine--Black Car
57. Depeche Mode--Enjoy The Silence
56. Radiohead--Paranoid Android
55. Elliott Smith--Needle In The Hay
54. Boards Of Canada--Roygbiv
53. Daniel Johnston--Some Things Last A Long Time
52. Tricky--Aftermath
51. Green Day--Longview

50. Beastie Boys--Sabotage
49. Bjork--Hyperballad
47. Nirvana--Polly
46. Bone Thugs 'n' Harmony--The Crossroads
45. Underworld--Born Slippy.NUXX
44. Pixies--Is She Weird
43. Blackstreet & Dr. Dre--No Diggity
42. Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg--Nuthin' But A 'G' Thang
41. My Bloody Valentine--Soon

40. Portishead--Sour Times
39. Blur--Song 2
38. Aphex Twin--Windowlicker
37. Beastie Boys--So What'cha Want
35. Neutral Milk Hotel--Oh Comely
34. Weezer--Buddy Holly
33. Nirvana--All Apologies
32. Guided By Voices--Watch Me Jumpstart
31. Wu-Tang Clan--Protect Ya Neck

Here it is folks: the top thirty. Close your eyes, take a breath, think about your favorite memory from the '90s. Now keep reading the list...

30. Bonnie "Prince" Billy--I See A Darkness
29. Modest Mouse--Cowboy Dan
28. New Order--Regret
27. Sinead O'Connor--Nothing Compares 2 U
25. Pulp--Common People
24. Massive Attack--Unfinished Sympathy
23. Neutral Milk Hotel--Holland, 1945
22. Nine Inch Nails--Closer
21. My Bloody Valentine--To Here Knows When

17. Yo La Tengo--Autumn Sweater
16. The Beta Band--Dry The Rain
15. Deee-Lite--Groove Is In The Heart
13. Jeff Buckley--Hallelujah
12. The Verve--Bittersweet Symphony
11. TLC--Waterfalls

10. Palace Music--New Partner
9. Beck--Where It's At
7. Beck--Loser
6. My Bloody Valentine--Only Shallow
5. New Radicals--You Get What You Give
4. Neutral Milk Hotel--In The Aeroplane Over The Sea
3. Weezer--Say It Ain't So

1. Guided By Voices--Game Of Pricks
Why "Game Of Pricks"? It's tough for me to say exactly, but it's my number one--and I'm sure of that. Because when I just typed it there at the #1 spot, I smiled wide. And I kept smiling. I couldn't help it. I love this song so much. It's not that it's the most jaw-dropping, unique, mind-blowing piece of music ever recorded, but it's mesmerizing nonetheless. In just about 90 seconds it packs in a magnificently relatable story fraught with some of the most sincere and slimy emotions ever put to (hissy, scratchy) tape. It does so with a hook that'll never leave your head and a power-pop guitar riff sure to haunt your dreams in the best possible way. Simplicity has never been represented so well. And if those aren't reasons enough to have it take my number one spot, it deserves to be at the top for the sheer reason that I can listen to "Game Of Pricks" more than just about any other song ever. No matter the time of day, no matter the mood--I always wanna hear it.



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