THE Song of the 90s

I have been watching VH1's top 100 videos(or songs) of the 90s, and though I haven't seen #20-1, I have my opinions. I was a fan of 1990s music. Unlike some of my best friends, I just don't get 80s music. I was 6 when this stuff was REALLY around. Shoot, I was born in 1981, so I consider Mary Had a Little Lamb 80s music. I was 3 in 1984, give me a break.
But the 1990s is when I was in middle and high school. That is when I was really listening to music. And I think you can certainly break the 90s down into three categories.....Grunge in the early 90s, rap in the mid 90s and Dave Matthews rip-offs in the late 90s.

But without question the #1 song of the 90s is Nirvana's Smells like Teen Spirit. If that song is not #1 on that list, then the list is up there with ESPN's top 25 players in college football history where Red Granger and Barry "one year" Sanders finished ahead of Hershel Walker-only THE most dominant college football player EVER. He should have won 4 straight heismans. Oh well, back to the 90s music.

If I had to make a top 6
6 Semi-Charmed Life 3rd Eye Blind
5 Big Poppa-Biggie
4 Hold My Hand-Hootie
3 What Would you say-Dave
2 California Love-Tupac and Dre
1 Smells like Teen Spirit

You have the grunge in there, the Dave and dave ripoff in Hootie, and the rap war which maybe defined the 90s.
Tupac gets out of jail and appears on Dre's California Love. The War breaks out East Coast v West Coast. One rapper "dies," another really dies, the first "dead" rapper puts out 13 more CDs.
And if you tell me Hootie and the Blowfish don't deserve to be mentioned as one of the defining bands of the 90s (if not ever) you are an idiot. Cracked Rear View made so much money it was unreal. They had 4 songs in the top 20 AT THE SAME TIME (Hold my hand, Let her Cry, only wanna be with you, time). They appeared on Friends. They got Berman and ESPN to appear on their music video. Tiger Woods had them play at his wedding. They were THE band, but please don't call Darius Rucker "Hootie!" He hates that, even though he was the lead singer of a band called Hootie and the Blowfish.

Dave Matthews also allowed that genre of college frat music to go big. Now you REALLY could just take a guitar and make poppy-catchy music that didn't always make sense and sell it big time. But the weirdest thing. His Crash into me MAY have been his biggest hit. I loved Dave Matthews Band for Jimi Thing, Warehouse, Ants before he blew up all OVER the country (I am from Virginia for pete's sake. we were listening to bootleg performances from bars in VA before the Recently LP came out and Under the Table and Dreaming hit circuit cities and Sam Goody's everywhere). He inspired Pat McGee Band, Fighting Gravity, John Mayer, Gin Blossems, 3 Doors Down among others. He was a great musical power, but his recent album stuff hasn't been as good as his live shows. Watching him do Wild Horses or Grace is Gone brings tears to my eyes, and if you don't get goosebumps, then I don't believe you have a soul.

Finally, I love the band 3rd Eye Blind. CT stole my 3eb CD with Semi-charmed life and London and God of Wine and Jumper and ....well you get the idea. What a great CD, which you KNOW the guys wrote while they were on drugs. But, like I said with Amy Whinehouse, if that works for you, do it. The Beatles were on drugs for the later stages of their career. But 3eb really went downhill when the lead singer broke up with his girlfriend, wrote the "blue album" (which actually had two REALLY good songs on it Never Let you go, being one of them) and promised the "black album", but never delivered. The drummer got sick of the lead singer whining about his ex and left the band.

Speaking of whining, can some one get Art Alexis of Everclear a tissue. His father left his mother when he was little and he STILL hasn't gotten over it 30 years later. He writes all of his songs about it, and while So Much For the Afterglow had some good "music" on it, all the themes were the same: Dad left us. He is STILL writing about his. He Art: 43% of America is in your situation. Stop complaining. I am a child of divorce, but you don't see me SINGING OUT IT. You obviously have talent when it comes to playing music, play something more like Everything to Everyone. Sunflowers. Quit with the I will buy you a new life. Father of Mine. GET OVER IT.

That's it for now. I could talk 90s music for hours, but YOU will just have to wait until next Thursday for another music blog.