Top 100 of the 1990s

In the 1990s, every year I compiled a "top singles" list from listening to MTV's 120 Minutes, particularly, as well as ferreting out such singles here and there. 

There was no formal criteria as such, no quantitative approach, but for me the "top" were those which demonstrated some marked originality, effective structure, and/or good melody/writing, obviously according to my own biases, although I tried to give some credit to songs even if I wasn't as fond of them (and also tried to recognize where I might be fond of something that wasn't quit all that).  Of course, any such list is subjective, no matter the criteria (well, setting aside rather unusual criteria such as something relying on length, number of verses, mathematical correlation to classical melodies, or what-have-you). 

Naturally, it's also difficult to say that #43 is really better than #42, or such.  My feeling has always been that out of the top 100, what you really have is a solid top 50, given how one's opinions tend to change - and not change.  So please consider that in some fundamental way, these are really a sort of way of getting at that.

Also, after 1999, I did a top 100 for 1990-1999.  You may well note that some songs appear in a different position relative to where they appeared in an individual year, relative to other songs of that year.  This is simply due to shifting opinions by the time I did the 1990s list.  I did not feel it appropriate to go back and tweak each year end's list.

Below are the top 172 of the 1990s.  Why 172?  As I worked to get to 100, both in individual years and at the end, I always felt there was some point in such lists where there was a notable drop in quality, regardless of whether that was at #68 or #126.  As I compiled the top 100, I found a number of songs just didn't cut it at all; and through that process, I wound up with 172 songs that did, so I included them all.  And as such, it's probable that any time I were to go back, it's very, very likely that a new top 100 would be composed almost entirely if not entirely of the songs I selected way back for this top 172.

Below this top 172 are links to each individual year, as well as a scoring of the top artists (i.e., which artists appeared more often and how high).

172

Lemonheads, "Confetti"

171

Wonderstuff, "Cut the Ropes"

170

Sinead O'Connor, "Jump in the River"

169

Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories, "Stay"

168

New Fast Automatic Daffodils, "Stockholm"

167

Chemical Brothers, "Let Forever Be"

166

Cure, "The 13th"

165

Velocity Girl, "Sorry Again"

164

Sebadoh, "Rebound"

163

Moby, "Bodyrock"

162

Breeders, "Cannonball"

161

Deluxx Folk Implosion, "Daddy Never Understood"

160

Overwhelming Colorfast, "Tomorrow"

159

Sonic Youth, "Disappearer"

158

Morrissey, "We Hate it When Our Friends Become Successful"

157

Superchunk, "Hyper Enough"

156

Jesus and Mary Chain, "Head On"

155

House of Love, "Beatles and the Stones"

154

Nitzer Ebb, "Family Man"

153

Curve, "Chinese Torture"

152

Billy Bragg, "You Woke Up the Neighborhood"

151

They Might Be Giants, "Snail Shell"

150

Sugar, "Changes"

149

Polara, "Source of Light"

148

Smashing Pumpkins, "1979"

147

REM, "Losing My Religion"

146

Sugar, "Gee Angel"

145

Beck, "Loser"

144

Swervedriver, "Sandblasted"

143

Sugar, "Tilted"

142

that dog, "Never Say Never"

141

Pixies, "Dig for Fire"

140

Yo La Tengo, "Upside-Down"

139

Sundays, "Here's Where the Story Ends"

138

Bjork, "Human Behavior"

137

Belly, "Now They'll Sleep"

136

Smashing Pumpkins, "Tonight, Tonight"

135

Darling Buds, "Sure Thing"

134

Bob Mould, "It's Too Late"

133

PJ Harvey, "Perfect Day, Elise"

132

Breeders, "One Divine Hammer"

131

Swervedriver, "Duel"

130

Dinosaur, Jr., "Feel the Pain"

129

Sinead O'Connor, "You Made Me the Thief of Your Heart"

128

Bob Mould, "Egoverride"

127

Bjork, "Isobel"

126

Bjork, "Joga"

125

Sarah McLachlan, "Possession"

124

Magnapop, "Open the Door"

123

Pearljam, "Corduroy"

122

Bjork, "Alarm Call"

121

Live, "Lightning Crashes"

120

Mark Eitzel, "Southend on Sea"

119

Blur, "Song 2"

118

Sugarcubes, "Hit"

117

Tori Amos, "Silent All These Years"

116

Radiohead, "Fake Plastic Trees"

115

Curve, "Fait Accompli"

114

Nine Inch Nails, "Wish"

113

Curve, "Missing Link"

112

Bjork, "Possibly Maybe (Remix)"

111

Butthole Surfers, "Pepper"

110

Coldcut, "Atomic Moog (Herbalizer Mix)"

109

Tori Amos, "Talula"

108

Papas Fritas, "Hey Hey You Say"

107

Lemonheads, "If I Could Talk I'd Tell You"

106

Sarah McLachlan, "Into the Fire"

105

Alanis Morissette, "Ironic"

104

Pavement, "Gold Soundz"

103

Cure, "Mint Car"

102

Coldcut, "Natural Rhythm"

101

Nitzer Ebb, "Give to You"

100

Primitive Radio Gods, " Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hands"

99

Sugar, "Helpless"

98

Pavement, "Stereo"

97

Mercury Rev, "Bronx Cheer"

96

Stereolab, "The Noise of Carpet"

95

Coldcut, "Timber"

94

They Might Be Giants, "Istanbul (Not Constantinople)"

93

My Bloody Valentine, "Only Shallow"

92

Spinanes, "Lines and Lines"

91

Imperial Teen, "You're the One"

90

Tori Amos, "God"

89

Swervedriver, "Rave Down"

88

Sonic Youth, "Kool Thing"

87

Hole, "Celebrity Skin"

86

Bjork, "Venus as a Boy"

85

Liquorice, "Cheap Cuts"

84

Weezer, "The Good Life"

83

Ben Folds Five, "Brick"

82

Tom Waits, "I Don't Wanna Grow Up"

81

Young Fresh Fellows, "Picture Book"

80

Julian Cope, "Beautiful Love"

79

Fatboy Slim, "Rockafeller Skank"

78

10,000 Maniacs, "These Are Days"

77

Cranberries, "Zombie"

76

Big Audio Dynamite II, "Rush"

75

Nine Inch Nails, "Closer"

74

Bad Religion, "Stranger Than Fiction"

73

Cocteau Twins, "Evangeline"

72

Nirvana, "Sliver"

71

Hole, "Miss World"

70

Moby, "Run On"

69

Yo La Tengo, "Sugarcube"

68

Nirvana, "Smells Like Teen Spirit"

67

Wonderstuff, "Don't Let Me Down"

66

Superchunk, "Throwing Things"

65

Sugar, "If I Can't Change Your Mind"

64

Lightning Seeds, "Pure"

63

Luscious Jackson, "Ladyfingers"

62

Wonderstuff, "Welcome to the Cheap Seats"

61

Psychedelic Furs, "Until She Comes"

60

Rentals, "Friends of P"

59

Simentara and DJ Soul Slinger, "A Mar (Storm Mix)"

58

Helium, "Honeycomb"

57

Moby, "That's When I Reach for My Revolver"

56

Peter Murphy, "Cuts You Up"

55

Blink 182, "What's My Age Again?"

54

Rentals, "Waiting"

53

PJ Harvey, "Down by the Water"

52

Nine Inch Nails, "Hurt"

51

Beck, "Devil's Haircut"

50

They Might Be Giants, "The Statue Got Me High"

49

Beck, "New Pollution"

48

Cure, "Pictures of You"

47

Air, "Le Soleil est Pres de Moi"

46

Beck, "Jack-ass"

45

Sonic Youth, "The Diamond Sea"

44

Sleeper, "Inbetweener"

43

Jesus and Mary Chain, "Far Gone and Out"

42

Beck, "Where It's At"

41

Hole, "Doll Parts"

40

Bad Religion, "Atomic Garden"

39

Orb, "Toxygene"

38

Midnight Oil, "Blue Sky Mine"

37

Robyn Hitchcock, "Driving Aloud (Radio Song)"

36

Robyn Hitchcock, "Beautiful Girl"

35

Jesus and Mary Chain, "Reverence"

34

Drugstore, "El President"

33

Tom Waits, "Hold On"

32

Sinead O'Connor, "Emperor's New Clothes"

31

Smashing Pumpkins, "Disarm"

30

New Order, "Regret"

29

Luscious Jackson, "Here"

28

Dinosaur, Jr., "Thumb"

27

Nine Inch Nails, "Burn"

26

Hole, "Violet"

25

Love Spit Love, "Am I Wrong"

24

Ben Folds Five, "Army"

23

World Party, "Way Down Now"

22

They Might Be Giants, "Birdhouse in Your Soul"

21

Radiohead, "High and Dry"

20

Sugarcubes, "Walkabout"

19

Pulp, "Common People"

18

Mercury Rev, "Young Man's Stride"

17

This Picture, "Naked Rain"

16

Pavement, "Spit on a Stranger"

15

Radiohead, "Stop Whispering"

14

Chocolate Genius, "My Mom"

13

Pavement, "Shady Lane"

12

Bjork, "I Miss You"

11

Green Day, "Time of Your Life (Good Riddance)"

10

Flaming Lips, "Race for the Prize"

9

Wonderstuff, "Caught in My Shadow"

8

Sinead O'Connor, "Success"

7

Beck, "Pay No Mind"

6

Bjork, "Hyperballad"

5

Mercury Rev, "Carwash Hair"

4

Chemical Brothers, "Setting Sun"

3

Billy Bragg, "Sexuality"

2

World Party, "Put the Message in a Box"

1

World Party, "Is It Like Today?"

Top 100 of 1990

Top 100 of 1991

Top 100 of 1992

Top 100 of 1993

Top 100 of 1994

Top 100 of 1995

Top 100 of 1996

Top 100 of 1997

Top 100 of 1998

Top 100 of 1999

Top Artists for 1990s