Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Wednesday Night Playlist

During the heyday of Napster, the greatest illegal music sharing period in the Internet's history, our buddy Vanwarmer and his Fellowship of the Geeks would give each other projects and make music compilations. At first it was things like 'download every song ever recorded by R.E.M.' but as their band discographies grew they needed bigger challenges. Soon the projects were more specialized like 'Rolling Stone's Top 100 Albums' or 'Spin Magazine's Top 100 Guitar Solos.'

Perhaps the crown jewel of their downloading projects was when they decided to compile as many of the Billboard Top 100 Singles of each year. This unbelievable undertaking gave birth to more than 50 years worth of singles. The reason I love these Billboard collections is not neccesarily because I love the songs. As you will soon find out they don't exactly hold up, but it's fun to say, "what songs were popular when I was in 6th grade" and then breakout Billboard's Top 100 of 1988. These lists are also very handy on roadtrips as timekillers, conversation starters and the cause of much laughter.

Because it is the last week of school and it has been 15 years since I graduated high school, here are the top 15 from Billboard's 1994 Top 100 Singles. Is it any wonder after rehashing these 'classics' that I became the extreme music snob that I am today? Be ashamed fellow graduates of 1994, be very ashamed...

BILLBOARD'S TOP 15 SINGLES FROM 1994

15 John Mellencamp & MeShell NdegeOcello - Wild Night
14 Salt n Pepa/En Vogue - Whatta Man
13 Madonna - I'll Remember
12 Janet Jackson - Again
11 R Kelly - Bump n Grind
10 Ace of Base - Don't Turn Around
9 Ace of Base - All That She Wants
8 Bryan Adams, Sting & Rod Stewart - All For Love
7 Toni Braxton - Breathe Again
6 Lisa Loeb and Nine Stories - Stay
5 Mariah Carey - Hero
4 Celine Dion - The Power of Love
3 Boyz II Men - I'll Make Love To You
2 All-4-One - I Swear
1 Ace of Base - The Sign

Apparently we really had a thing for over produced love ballads and terrible Swedish Pop. Not exactly a muderer's row of classics. I'm not too smug to admit that I enjoyed many of these songs back in my day but how badly have these held up? Did we really need three Ace of Base songs in the Top 10? Good grief.

If you are interested in seeing how the popular music of your generation has held up, click here for a handy list that goes back to 1946.

15 comments:

Kim said...

Oooh. That list does not bode well for graduates of 1994. It is a wonder that you are not all sex addicts.

I totally forgot that Sting defamed his name by singing with Rod Stewart. Yuck.

But, it is impossible to sing Whatta Man, whatta man, whatta man, whatta mighty good man without a smile of your face.

And Lisa Loeb's Stay is *still* a great song.

kg said...

I was going to add a comment on my post how 'Stay' was the only song that I would still want to listen to after all of these years but couldn't bring myself to talk badly about Boyz II Men. Other than those two though, wowza.

Mindy said...

I'm with Kim. I love Stay and I'm glad that Lisa got a new pair of glasses. And we won't talk about Boyz ll Men now, we'll just remember them as they were then.

...all that she wants is another baby, he's gone tomorrow...
I can't believe I listened to that crap.

kg said...

Before we throw stones, oh class of 1992, let's recall these gems from your year's top 15 -

02. Baby Got Back » Sir Mix A-lot
03. Jump » Kris Kross
09. All 4 Love » Color Me Badd
13. I'm Too Sexy » Right Said Fred
15. Achy Breaky Heart » Billy Ray Cyrus

I swear popular music gets worse and worse. Go back to the middle school days. Everybody says how bad the 80's were but I'm much prouder (more proud?) of my middle school top 15's then my high school days and let's not even get started talking about Wheels' high school music. I'm just glad I was in South America during the mid 1990's.

Mindy said...

The only stones being thrown are more like tiny pebbles being lightly tossed.
What does Billboard know? 1992 was the year that brought us the Queen classic "Bohemian Rhapsody" that came in at #39. The U2 anthem "One" that will be played until we're all 101 came in at #66. The Cure's "Friday, I'm in Love" was a sad #71 and the great Bonnie Raitt came in at #100 with "I Can't Make You Love Me". So unless you count the Burger King commercial for Sir Mix A Lot,(which you shouldn't) it seems the further down the list you are the more longevity you have.

Corbie said...

Wow - you guys are tough critics. I still don't mind the songs from Madonna, Toni Braxton, the Bryan Adams trio, Mariah Carey, or Celine Dion...and other than the Bryan Adams trio, I don't like any of those artists much at all.

I would have included the Lisa Loeb song on my acceptable list if she weren't such a terrible actress/lip syncer/dresser in that video...that was beyond even my low standards of grooviness.

Wheels said...

Marc knows every word to Whatta Man...I'm not kidding.

kg said...

Corbie - you take that back about the lovely Ms. Loeb. She didn't have a budget for that crap. That song was the first song by an artist not signed to any label to become the #1 song in the country. She was hot then and is hot now...

Wheels - I'm not surprised about Marc and I'm not kidding...

Wheels said...

I love Stay and I know every word to THAT song. It was in Reality Bites. Best movie ever...if you're 14 and longing to be a hipster college kid.

Robyn said...

The only three songs I would listen to now...are the three Ace of Base songs!

As a fellow graduate of '94 - I am ashamed.
(But not because of Ace of Base - it's totally not 'crap'!)

kg said...

Robyn - How could you bring such a delightful playlist to the Skog Blog (minus the country of course) and then sing the praises of Ace of Base? The shame! The horror! I hated those songs then and I hate them even more now. Ace of Base should be ashamed that they ruined a perfectly good Neil song.

Mindy said...

Robyn,
When I say 'crap' I mean it in the most loving, 'I can still sing all the words and I'm only slightly ashamed of that and don't want KG to find out' kind of way.

Robyn said...

Three words for you...

Boyz II Men

Watch yourself KG. How can you bring us ALL such delightful music on a daily basis and NOT bring yourself to talk badly about lame boys! The Shame!
Ace of Base has given me so many good memories I will never turn my back...NEVER!
Drive to Moab really fast and turn Ace of Base up - then tell me you hate them!

Mindy - it's ok - I listen to 'crap' like that all the time. KG never has to know. I'll keep your secret.:)

kg said...

Fine, I won't mock Ace of Base and you don't mock Boyz II Men. Truce. In reality who am I to mock anyone when I admitted publicly that I still love Rick Astley.

brohammas said...

SInce when has "Pop" been an accuracte measure of anything other than what 14 year old girls and parents trying to be cool are listening too?
I'm pretty sure I lit something on fire in '94 while listening to Rage Against the Machine. I believe the early nineties also gave us Outkast...
I am not ashamed!