Blues Traveler - Yeah, that's a band that definitely captured that gestalt 90's tone. And listening to them right now, it's actually interesting how much it seems like there's a common thread with Hootie and the Blowfish. (Which is interesting since the bands were from the same period)
I know a lot of people really like their song "The Hook," though I never thought it was nearly as good. I never listened to much Hootie and the Blowfish, though I am particularly fond of "Let Her Cry" for whatever reason.
Eagle- Eye Cherry - Man, this is one I haven't thought of in a while. Interestingly, I tend to associate more with the early 2000's, despite it actually being the late 90's. I think the sound was just early for its time.
Yeah, this is definitely the late 90s changing sound, but man, it's a good song.
The Wallflowers - This is definitely one of THE 90's songs, and it's always fantastic, but the older I get, the sadder it all feels.
Yeah, I agree. I also like their "6th Avenue Heartache," but "One Headlight" is significantly better, in my opinion.
Natalie Imbruglia - So, this is a song that I actually really didn't like when it first came out. My mom loved it, so I got really sick of it very quickly, but somewhere around the third or fourth month it was out, it grew on me. Similar to Eagle Eye Cherry, I tend to associate this one more with the early 00's sound more than the 90's despite knowing full well it came out before that.
I had a similar experience insofar as I didn't care for the song when it came out, but I've sort of fallen in love with it since.
Del Amitri - Yeah, this one has that 90's vibe. Interestingly, I don't think I've ever actually heard the song's title or who made it before now.
No joke, I legitimately thought this was a Spin Doctors song until two or three years ago. When, uh, some one I know
downloaded this song in the very early days of Napster and such, this was mis-labelled as being by the Spin Doctors, and I just always assumed that was true. Then, a couple years ago, I went looking for a YouTube video of it, and couldn't find it by them. That's when I learned the internet had been wrong.
Sister Hazel - Similarly, this is one I've heard a lot but pretty sure I've never known what it was called or who did it. Or at least that was so long ago that it's totally slipped my mind.
I mean, I know the 90s had a lot of different sounds, but of all the songs on my list here, this one just screams "90s!" to me.
Counting Crows - Appropriately 90's, though I'm not sure I can say I ever really properly vibed with Counting Crows.
I kind of hate them live, but I really like a number of their songs. "Mr. Jones," "Hard Candy," "Rain King," and "Long December" are all wonderfully lyrical, and honestly, even though it's not their usual sound, even "Accidentally in Love" is strangely infectious.
Sheryl Crow - Not one that I think I'd normally listen to, but absolutely one that I'd call an essential from the 90's.
When I was first really getting into music, I would listen to the radio while falling asleep, and there were several songs by popular female artists at the time that always stick with me because of it. Looking at when the most memorable of them were released, it must have been late 1993-early 1994. "Stong Enough" was, no pun intended, the strongest of those memories, but ones I didn't name include "Come to My Window" by Melissa Etheridge, "As I Lay Me Down" by Sophie B. Hawkins, and "Stay" by Lisa Loeb. All very mid-90s to my mind.
Vertical Horizon - I'm... not actually sure I've heard this one. (Wait, no, that hook just takes a while to get to. I think this one has that late 90's sound that was really close to evolving into the 00's sound)
I doubt this song is that memorable to most people, but I had a strong connection with it at the time, though I won't go into detail. And yeah, I would not have been surprised to find out this was very early 2000s rather than late 90s, as it was.
Savage Garden - "I Want You" & "Truly, Madly, Deeply"
The only Savage Garden song I was into, and still quite like, is "Crash and Burn."
Seal - "Kiss from a Rose"
Ahh, yes, the time in history when nearly every major movie had to have that big song release attached to it. For some reason, "Kiss from a Rose" was tied to
Batman Forever. Other songs I remember fondly as being tied to movie releases from the 90s include "Everything I Do" by Bryan Adams (
Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves), "All for Love," by Rod Stewart, Bryan Adams, and Sting (
The Three Musketeers), "Will You Be There" by Michael Jackson (
Free Willy), and of course "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion (
Titanic). Okay, so admittedly, that last one is not "fondly," as I don't actually care for either the song or the film, but still, all 90s.
R.E.M. - Take your pick. I know they spanned backwards into the 80's, but they had like 4 albums release in the 90's, so I usually think of them.
My mind usually shuffles them into the 80s, but if we're talking specifically about the 90s, I will say I love the oddly surreal music video for "Losing My Religion."
The Cranberries - "Zombie"
I was never that into them personally, but that song was everywhere when it came out.
The Proclaimers - "500 Miles" (So, this one is funny, because technically it's both an 80's song AND a 90's song.
I could have sworn this was, like, mid-80s until about four or five years ago. This, to me, has a very 80s sound.
Nirvana - "Smells like Teen Spirit" (While not the soft rock sound that I immediately associate with the 90's, the Grunge movement WAS extremely quintessentially 90's)
Oh, yeah, this is straight out of the 90s cynicism and teenaged angst that sold SOOOO much merchandise throughout the 90s. I would also point out that this is one of several songs that I heard Weird Al's parody of it before the original ("Smells like Nirvana" is a solid parody, for the record, if perhaps a little mean-spirited).
TLC - "Creep" and "Chasing Waterfalls"
I never listened to much TLC, though I think my sister really liked "Chasing Waterfalls," if I remember correctly.
Ace of Base - Just... in general (also, did not know they were Swedish.... You learn something new every day, huh?)
"I haven't heard anyone listen to Ace of Base since...1996!!!"[/South Park quote] I actually really like some of their stuff. "The Sign" was their big hit that seemed to be everywhere, but "It's a Beautiful Life" is a fun little dance number, and "All That She Wants" is catchy, if weird. While we're on the subject of 90s up-tempo dance music, I would be remiss to not mention Nicki French's cover of 80s sentimental classic "Total Eclipse of the Heart," originally by Bonnie Tyler. I hate to admit it, but I might actually like French's version a little better, though it would depend on my mood. Also, "Another Night" by Real McCoy is a personal favorite in that genre, as well. Odd (or perhaps not) that they both dropped in 95, apparently.
One song from the 90s that I failed to mention, which is odd because it is one of my favorite songs of all time, is "Gangsta's Paradise," by the recently deceased Coolio. I don't remember if this is another song for which I heard Weird Al's parody "Amish Paradise" first or not, but man, do I love the original. I really love both, honestly.
Tom Petty is one of my favorite musical artists ever, although I usually associate him with the 80s or even the 70s more than the 90s. Still, in the 90s he released such classics as "Mary Jane's Last Dance," "All the Wrong Reasons," "Walls," and "Learning to Fly," so he's got to be there, too.
Green Day also deserves a mention, and I could rattle off a lot of their songs, but I think "Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)" from '97 is quintessential, not just to 90s music fans, but to music fans.
Ye, Gods, I wish Orcish were here for this conversation. This is right up his alley.
I was never really into Beck, but "Loser" is pretty alternative-90s. I did enjoy "Where it's At," but that might have more to do with Futurama than anything else.
Speaking of 90s alternative scene, "Pepper" by the Butthole Surfers was always a favorite of mine.
Notice how I haven't mentioned any of the boy bands from the late 90s? Yeah, I'm not going to, either.
"Don't Speak" by No Doubt was another song I didn't pay much attention to at the time, but I quite like it now.
Then there's the oddity that was Queen, since they were a band that never really made it to the 90's sadly, but they still had so much content on the radio. While I don't think they really count as having that 90's sound, there's no way I could divorce them from the decade in my mind.
Odd how movies like
Wayne's World and
The Mighty Ducks put them back on the charts by using "Bohemian Rhapsody" and "We Are the Champions" respectively. Very strange, albeit welcome, circumstance there.