Influential albums from all points on the music spectrum define 1990.
Sinéad O’Connor’s I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got and her #1 single “Nothing Compares 2 U” topped charts around the world and continue to influence pop and music culture today (just look at Miley Cyrus’ video for “Wrecking Ball”).
We also had the debut of Primus, bringing “brown” music to the airwaves with Frizzle Fry single “John the Fisherman,” Sonic Youth’s accessible alt-rock LP Goo, Vanilla Ice’s controversial and viral “Ice Ice Baby” off of To the Extreme, and the mysterious, ethereal soundtrack to the Twin Peaks TV show by Angelo Badalamenti.
MC Hammer’s Please Hammer, Don’t Hurt ‘Em was a chart-topper for the hip hop artist, spawning his biggest single with “U Can’t Touch This,” while Iggy Pop got his first and only Top 40 hit with “Candy” from Brick by Brick.
Was 1990 the Greatest Year in Music? Let us know what you think in the comments below and across social media with #XPNGreatestYear.
Albums:
I Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got – Sinead O’Connor
Frizzle Fry – Primus
Please Hammer, Don’t Hurt ‘Em – MC Hammer
AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted – Ice Cube
Goo – Sonic Youth
Violator – Depeche Mode
Flood – They Might Be Giants
Scumdogs of the Universe – Gwar
People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm – A Tribe Called Quest
Mariah Carey – Mariah Carey
Pale – Toad the Wet Sprocket
Shake Your Money Maker – The Black Crowes
The Caution Horses – Cowboy Junkies
Blacks’ Magic – Salt-n-Pepa
Manic Nirvana – Robert Plant
Fear of a Black Planet – Public Enemy
Up in It – The Afghan Whigs
Born to Sing – En Vogue
Behind the Mask – Fleetwood Mac
Days of Open Hand – Suzanne Vega
The Good Son – Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Metaphysical Graffiti – The Dead Milkmen
Goodbye Jumbo – World Party
Glider EP – My Bloody Valentine
The Revival – Tony! Toni! Toné!
Packed! – The Pretenders
Breathless – Madonna
A Catholic Education – Teenage Fanclub
Compositions – Anita Baker
Livonia – His Name is Alive
Lights… Camera… Revolution! – Suicidal Tendencies
Seven Turns – The Allman Brothers Band
Brick by Brick – Iggy Pop
World Clique – Deee-Lite
Bossanova – Pixies
Time’s Up – Living Colour
Facelift – Alice in Chains
Ritual de lo habitual – Jane’s Addiction
Mama Said Knock You Out – LL Cool J
To the Extreme – Vanilla Ice
The Neighborhood – Los Lobos
Rumor Has It – Reba McEntire
Ragged Glory – Neil Young and Crazy Horse
Pod – The Breeders
Soundtrack from Twin Peaks – Angelo Badalamenti
Lawn Boy – Phish
All Shook Down – The Replacements
Superchunk – Superchunk
The La’s – The La’s
Wrong Way Up – Brian Eno & John Cale
Shooting Straight in the Dark – Mary Chapin Carpenter
Behaviour – Pet Shop Boys
Rhythm of the Saints – Paul Simon
If There Was a Way – Dwight Yoakam
Interiors – Rosanne Cash
Bloodletting – Concrete Blonde
Are You Ok? – Was (Not Was)
