Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

[Haddock]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

Also from 1994:
Morrissey's Vauxhall and I, which is better than any single Smiths album
Stereolab's Ping Pong is the greatest-ever Marxist critique of boom and bust capitalism in the form of a jaunty pop ditty.
Also Protection by Massive Attack and Ill Communication by the Beasties. Plus Headz on Mo' Wax

[Jah Womble]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

Haddock wrote: Stereolab's Ping Pong is the greatest-ever Marxist critique of boom and bust capitalism in the form of a jaunty pop ditty.

Yep, that was my 1994 single of the year.

Singles, eh? Remember them..?

[evilC]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

This track alone is enough to get 1994 off the hook.

[Satchmo Distel]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

A great album recorded in 1994 but not released until Feb 1995: Maxinquaye by Tricky

[Geoffrey de Ste. Croix]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

And She Closed Her Eyes by Stina Nordenstam came out in April 1994, an album which instantly puts the year of its release in the greatest music years ever. Plus I have never partied as hard as I did in 1994 so I can't hear a bad word against it.

[MiserableOldGit]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

Jah Womble wrote: Unless the post was intended ironically, I'm surprised that Marion rate as anyone's favourite group of all time, tbh.

That's not a slight, however. This World and Body (1996) still stands up well. I liked 1998's Miyako Hideaway single as well. It was produced by Johnny Marr, apparently.

It was all about that first album, which was an absolute corker. The follow-up was rather patchy, but I've since found enough superb unreleased material to have made an exceptional third. It was down to a combination of one of the best vocalists I've ever heard, coupled with some highly melodic songs that were both skilfully played and arranged. One of my favourite tracks is an unreleased rehearsal studio track called Sorry-Go-Round. It's under-rehearsed and slightly chaotic, yet still quite wonderful. It's a terrible shame that the singer's personal problems threw them off course, but they did get back together for a truly excellent live album (Live In Manchester) in 2012.

Sparkle has to be one of their best tracks, but I'm also very fond of The Collector, from their Sleep EP in 1995.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=xztSsg2O9Iw

[Jon]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

I was working in a record shop in 1994 so many of these songs and albums mentioned bring back a whole heap of memories. That Rolling Stone list of alternative albums, for example. I don’t think I could hum many of the tunes (and the only two albums from that list that I own is Johnny Cash’s American Recordings and Blur’s Parklife) but I remember selling truckloads of them all back in 1994. And I had to endure that Oasis album being played in the shop on a daily basis for at least 6 months.

Talking of evocative memories, anyone who worked in a record shop in the 90s should see the film Empire Records. It came out in 1995, I think, and features Liv Tyler and Renee Zellweger, at the start of their careers. It is written by a former Tower Records employee and is kind of a like a Breakfast Club coming of age film for the 90s. I only saw it (or indeed heard of it) last year.

For my part, I had been introduced to modern R and B and gangsta rap by a colleague of mine at the shop so I was mostly listening to The Chronic, Doggystyle and 12 Play and going to see Warren G and Adina Howard. So entrenched was I in the west coast rap thing that I didn’t get into Wu-Tang Clan and Nas until about a decade later. The erstwhile colleague I mentioned is still stuck in 1994 musically and every time I see him he’s playing me some old Dogg Pound track he’s unearthed.

[Satchmo Distel]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

This was also the Danny Baker Radio 1 era.

[jason voorhees]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

Anyone who says 1994 was the worst year for music needs to have pain brought to them. On a bus.

Outkast Southernplayalisticcadallaicmusik?

Massive Attack's Protection?

[Bored Of Education]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

Jon wrote: I had to endure that Oasis album being played in the shop on a daily basis for at least 6 months.

Not many albums would bear that sort of rotation though. As it goes, one of the albums on that list - Grace - was on heavy rotation a couple of years later but I can't remember any of it apart from "Hallelujah". That I don't instinctively hate it suggests it was enjoyable enough but I literally can't remember it.

[anton pulisov]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

evilC wrote: This track alone is enough to get 1994 off the hook.

Don't forget one that one hit wonder by The Grid.

I loved that song at the time. It has aged a bit, but not too badly.

I've now just seen the video for the first time. Proper shite.

[Various Artist]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

The Grid a.k.a. Dave Ball of Soft Cell, lest it be forgotten. I thought Swamp Thing was a great song at the time, haven't heard it in donkey's years. They/he were mentioned positively in a review I read only the other day though of Marc Almond's new career-spanning compilation, for a remix Ball (as The Grid) had done for his old mucker.

[Auntie Beryl]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

Swamp Thing destroyed any hope The Grid may have had of being remembered as fondly as contemporaneous synth duos, but there's some good stuff out there.

Floatation

Crystal Clear

Rollercoaster

Richard Norris, him who wasn't out Dave Ball of Soft Cell, has had a life ducking in and out of music history - he was a contemporary of Tracy Thorn on the Hertfordshire pub scene before she went off to uni in Hull, wrote for the NME, did The Grid, appeared on Joe Strummer solo albums, became half of Beyond The Wizard's Sleeve, and wrote Paul Oakenfold's official biography.

I always file The Grid with Fluke as amongst those that lost out when several techno duos came to prominence at a similar time in the early 90s.

[Jah Womble]

Was 1994 the worst year in musical history?

antoine polus wrote: Don't forget one that one hit wonder by The Grid.

While they didn't impact like Swamp Thing, Texas Cowboys - which was a hit twice within the space of a year - and Rollercoaster also went Top 20 for The Grid.