Fireball's Fantastic 500 -- Early 1990s, Part I

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Pastor Fireball
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Fireball's Fantastic 500 -- Early 1990s, Part I

#1 Post by Pastor Fireball » Fri Sep 14, 2018 4:51 pm

If we're done with the childish humor surrounding Uranus, let's get to more appropriate material.

Ahh... the Nifty Nineties. The era of President Clinton, Michael Jordan, and Jerry Seinfeld. One of the greatest times to be alive in America. While the music of the 1990s in general is ironically not as memorable as the older music of the 1980s, 1970s, or even 1960s, there is certainly no shortage of good songs from the 1990s. A total of 68 songs on my Top 500 list will come from 1990-94. If you've done the math, you know now that only 77 songs on my Top 500 were released after 1994. (How those 77 songs are divided chronologically is yet to be revealed.)

Here are nine songs to kick off the decade!

#68. Cradle of Love, Billy Idol (1990)

A little punk rock starts my 1990s retrospective. This is the second video directed by David Fincher to show up on my countdown, with the first being "The End of the Innocence". Fincher would, of course, go on to direct hit films like Fight Club and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NCZuYS-9qaw

#67. Everyday, Phil Collins (1994)

Yet another purely coincidental placement of a song relative to the week in which I posted it. Phil shot this video in New York City, and the first scene shows--you guessed it--the World Trade Center.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xQpsXA36uq4

#66. Woman in Chains, Tears for Fears f/ Oleta Adams (1990)

Tears for Fears were on the downswing after "Sowing the Seeds of Love", but this song still managed to squeak into the US Top 40 in early 1990. This would not be their last hit in America, though. "Break It Down Again" would get to #25 in 1993. Oh, and this song also prevented Oleta Adams from being a one-hit wonder for her cover of Brenda Russell's "Get Here".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QzkK3ZtI9SU

#65. Set the Night to Music, Roberta Flack f/ Maxi Priest (1991)

Starship had a minor hit with this Diane Warren composition in 1988, but Roberta and Maxi turned it into a #6 smash on the Hot 100. Johnny Mathis also covered this song for his 1998 tribute album to Warren.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNajXJ9ScbM

#64. Just Kickin' It, Xscape (1993)

The first of five Top 10 hits for this all-female R&B/hip-hop quartet. One member of Xscape is married to hip-hop royalty. Tameka "Tiny" Cottle has been married to Tip "T.I." Harris (recently seen in Ant-Man and the Wasp) since 2010, though they have been going through a divorce for almost two years.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w_BTEFAVwjU

#63. She's Playing Hard to Get, Hi-Five (1992)

Yet again, we get a video that starts out with the skyline of pre-9/11 New York City. Bad timing on my part. On a more positive note, there was still a time when men knew the difference between "hard to get" and "no means no".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKLnifIvnDQ

#62. (Can't Live Without Your) Love and Affection, Nelson (1990)

Going from rap royalty to rock royalty, we now have the twin sons of Rick Nelson hitting #1 almost five years after the tragic death of their father.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1W6-ErrHls

#61. No Mistakes, Patty Smyth (1992)

Best known for the 1984 Top 10 hit "The Warrior" as the lead singer of Scandal, Patty also had some solo success. This was one of two Top 40 hits that she had in 1992.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKvhX2Z5ubc

#60. Rhythm of the Rain, Dan Fogelberg (1990)

Personally, Dan Fogelberg's music is way too sappy and schmaltzy for my taste. But when I first heard his slow cover of the 1962 hit from the Cascades, I appreciated him a little more as a singer. Though he didn't make the Hot 100, he did take this song all the way to #3 on the Adult Contemporary chart. It would be his final appearance on any singles chart.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e5Pit2WJ6dI

Much more to come next Friday!
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