This week on my playlists: mid-90s music!

Following last week’s lunch discussion of 80s cartoons and movies, and my recent unearthing of 80s music in my library, comes the 90s. Believe me when I say, though, that it was semi-entirely coincidental. At the start of the week I heard My Humps over the radio, which reminded me of Alanis Morisette’s version, which reminded me of her first album, which also happens to be the first album I ever bought with my own money.

The year was 1995.

The mid-90s was the time when most 11-year-olds like me danced to Macarena, the Backstreet Boys, Boyzone, and other boybands. Meanwhile, I was raiding my brothers’ room to listen to NU107 and borrow their cassette tapes. I was more into alternative rock than pop, except for Pizzicato 5’s Sweet Soul Revue, which was, honestly, love.

Oh, and needless to say (but I’m going to say it anyway), it was also around this time when I was close to mastering the Eraserheads’ Tindahan ni Aling Nena, and when I attempted to master the Punk Zappa series. I don’t think I did at the time.

Aaaaaaaaaaanyway. I present to you My Mid-90s Soundtrack! (Or at least some of it.)

Alanis Morissette – Jagged Little Pill (1995)

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Featured Song: You Learn

To be honest, I can’t remember why I chose this album to be the first that I buy. Maybe it’s because it’s the album that I liked that my brothers didn’t already have. (Seeing as they own all the other albums mentioned in this blog post, and many others not mentioned.) I remember memorizing each song in this album. I’ve forgotten some of it now, but there are some choruses that I can still sing along with Alanis Though the most popular tracks from this album are Ironic and Head Over Feet, my favorites would be You Learn, Perfect, and Right Through You.

Track list:

1. All I Really Want
2. You Oughta Know
3. Perfect
4. Hand in My Pocket
5. Right Through You
6. Forgiven
7. You Learn
8. Head over Feet
9. Mary Jane
10. Ironic
11. Not the Doctor
12. Wake Up
    [hidden track] You Oughta Know (The Jimmy the Saint Blend)/Your House

Cardigans – First Band on the Moon (1996)

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Featured song: Been It

The album that brought us Lovefool, Been It, and Your New Cuckoo! I began to love the Cardigans because it was interesting to hear Nina Persson’s sweet voice blending so well with a rocking band, which, in turn, blends so well with the ocassional flute and string section. It’s so cute without trying to be cute. I usually listened to this back to back with Life.

Track list:

1. Your New Cuckoo
2. Been It
3. Heartbreaker
4. Happy Meal II
5. Never Recover
6. Step on Me
7. Lovefool
8. Losers
9. Iron Man
10. Great Divide
11. Choke

The Cardigans – Life (1995)

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Featured Song: Beautiful One

This one isn’t as popular as First Band on the Moon, but I think I’ll go and say that I love this album more. Every single track in this album makes me smile and feel all warm and fluffy… Whether or not that has to do with Nina’s coat with fur on the album cover, I can’t be sure. I distinctly remember the time when Life was my Good Night album. (It’s either this, or Beethoven for Bedtime.) I fell asleep either to soft sounds of Gordon’s Gardenparty, or right after the short clip of Life at the end of Closing Time.

Track list:

1. Carnival
2. Gordon’s Gardenparty
3. Daddy’s Car
4. Pikebubbles
5. Tomorrow
6. Beautiful One
7. Travelling with Charley
8. Fine
9. Sunday Circus Song
10. Hey! Get Out of My Way
11. Closing Time

No Doubt – Tragic Kingdom (1995)

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Featured song: Sunday Morning

The album that never seems to run out of energy. I remember the video of Don’t Speak, which was basically the cover brought to life; complete with the oranges! Or…wait. Maybe the album cover was the video frozen into a photo? Er…yeah.

Track list:

1. Spiderwebs
2. Excuse Me Mr.
3. Just a Girl
4. Happy Now?
5. Different People
6. Hey You
7. The Climb
8. Sixteen
9. Sunday Morning
10. Don’t Speak
11. You Can Do It
12. World Go ‘Round
13. End It on This
14. Tragic Kingdom

Weezer – Weezer (1994)

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Featured song: Undone – The Sweater Song

Geekdom + Rock = Weezer! From the sad but somehow funny Undone (The Sweater Song), to Buddy Holly that oddly makes me think of that La Bamba movie, to the rocking Say It Ain’t So, we can safely say that all their singles are made of awesome! But I think the non-single that is my favorite would probably be Holiday. I wonder where our original tape is now…

Track list

1. My Name Is Jonas
2. No One Else
3. The World Has Turned and Left Me Here
4. Buddy Holly
5. Undone (The Sweater Song)
6. Surf Wax America
7. Say It Ain’t So
8. In the Garage
9. Holiday
10. Only in Dreams

Moonpools and Caterpillars – Lucky Dumpling (1995)

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Featured Song: Trampling Rose

Whenever I think of Lucky Dumpling, I always think of cars. Whether it was because of the car in the album photography, or because we listened to this album on long road trips to the province, I can’t be sure. Or maybe it’s just that Moonpools’ sound really was just joyride-y. Ren, Soon, Trampling Rose,
Heaven are simply love.

For everyone else, you might remember that Hear was used in Wish Upon a Star, and that Summertime was used in the Baby Sitters Club soundtrack. I remember Larisa Oleynik having loooooong hair in that movie. And Rachel Leigh Cook had short, straight, straight, straight hair. Haha.

Track list:

1. Hear
2. Ren
3. Soon
4. Trampling Rose
5. Colossal Youth
6. Summertime
7. Heaven
8. Sundays
9. Traveling Song
10. The Buick
11. Koo Koo Koo
12. Jubilee
13. Crazy Old World

So that concludes my playlist for this week. But that’s just the albums I listened to this week. If I was to write about all my mid-90s music, I’d include Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (Tonight, Tonight and 1979 yeah!!!), The Cranberries’ Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?, Oasis’ (What’s the Story) Morning Glory, and a whole lot more. But I guess I’ll save those for next time.

I had fun reminiscing. I hope you did, too. And to close this blog post, I leave you with the super happy Sweet Soul Revue! Haha!

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