Tom Petty: Learning to Fly (1991)

A coming of age song for Tom Petty at his peak. There's some fun guitar work by Mike Campbell as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5BJXwNeKsQ

Pink Floyd: Lost For Words (1994)

Floyd openly examines the relationship between David Gilmour and Roger Waters in "Lost for Words." The song is openly sarcastic and honest. By the end, Gilmour is admitting that "sometimes you just can't win."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPwucFar9kM

The Cult: Sweet Soul Sister (1990)

At the time, Ian Astbury said the song was about the Americanization of European culture. Years later, he said it was about Black Panther Angela Davis. It's one of The Cult's best songs.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNobN73F2JY

Eric Clapton: Motherless Child (1994)

In 1994, Eric Clapton released a wonderful album of blues covers. "Motherless Child" might be the best song on the album. It's about an orphan that refused to follow their deceased mother's advice and regretting it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf84YrUPQUU

Thunderstruck by AC/DC (1990)

This single surprised the critics as it raced up the charts.  It could have been the anthem for the 1994 midterms.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v2AC41dglnM

Johnny Cash: Rusty Cage (1996)

Johnny Cash completely owned this Soundgarden song. In fact, the band dedicated the song to him after it won Cash a Grammy. People rightly focus on "Hurt" as one of the great covers of all-time. However, "Rusty Cage" is right up there.

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

Soundgarden: Burden in My Hand (1996)

The protagonist murders his girlfriend and leaves her in the desert. The man regretted his action and admitted to having anger issues.  The band called it "Hey Joe" for the 90s. At the time, I thought the song could have been partially inspired by the O.J. Simpson case.

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

Pearl Jam: Daughter (1993)

"Daughter" is about learning disabilities and abuse. The victims have to live with the abuse for the rest of their lives. I thought it was about someone disavowing their parents in typical teenage fashion.

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

John Williams: Duel of Fates (1999)

"Duel of Fates" provided the soundtrack to the lightsaber duel between Darth Maul, Qui-Gon Jinn, and Obi-Wan Kenobi. It contains a chorus providing a religious feel. The suite returned for Episode II and III.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzVBqBosf5w

Top 10 songs of 1990

My favorite songs of 1990.

1. Blaze of Glory- Jon Bon Jovi
2. Thunderstruck- AC/DC
3. Head Like a Hole- NIN
4. Sante Fe- Jon Bon Jovi
5. Before You Accuse Me- Eric Clapton
6. Coming of Age- Damn Yankees
7. Head On- The Pixies
8. Joey- Concrete Blonde
9. Sweet Soul Sister- The Cult
10. Doubleback- ZZ Top

The top 20 songs of 1990 (#11-20)

Once again, my favorites..

11. Yer So Bad- Tom Petty
12. Ball and Chain- Social Distortion
13. Something Happened on the Way to Heaven- Phil Collins
14. Hangar 18- Megadeth
15. No Alibis- Eric Clapton
16. Suicide Blonde- INXS
17. Bad Love- Eric Clapton
18. Ain't That a Shame- Paul McCartney
19. I Wish It Would Rain Down on Me- Phil Collins
20. The Heart of the Matter- Don Henley

Soundgarden: The Day I Tried to Live (1994)

The song is about trying to live life as opposed to being closed off.

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

Sting: Soul Cages (1991)

Sting worked through his father's death by developing The Soul Cages album. The concept album dealt with Sting's faith, his father's passing, and mortality. The album eventually influenced Sting's musical The Last Ship which premiered in 2014.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LIGtjCcdtr0

Aerosmith: Cryin' (1993)

"Cryin'" went gold for Aerosmith, but the video might have been even more popular. It received heavy MTV play when MTV played music. The video featured Alicia Silverstone before she became a star. It was one of three Aerosmith videos to feature Silverstone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfNmyxV2Ncw

Def Leppard: She's Too Tough (1993)

"She's Too Tough" is the b-side from the "Heaven Is" single. It was also a bonus track for Adrenalize in Japan.  The song is better than some of Def Lepp's singles of the period.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2baP5cVDF9U

Genesis: Jesus He Knows Me (1991)

Genesis takes a shot at televangelists. At the time, several high profile televangelists got caught with their pants down (literally). The song and accompanying video parody these gumps.

http://www.mtv.com/videos/genesis/46674/jesus-he-knows-me.jhtml

Top 10 songs of 1991

My Favorites anyway...

1. Alive- Pearl Jam
2. Enter Sandman- Metallica
3. You Could Be Mine- GnR
4. Poundcake- Van Halen
5. Smells Like Teen Spirit- Nirvana
6. The Fly- U2
7. Right Now- Van Halen
8. Man in the Box- Alice in Chains
9. On a Plain- Nirvana
10. Coma- GnR

The Beatles: Free As a Bird (1995)

The surviving Beatles took a 1977 John Lennon demo and fleshed it out into their last major release in 1995. It was the band's first release of new material since 1970. It reached #6 on the charts making it the 34th Top 10 hit for the band in America.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUW6nJQuDqM

Top 40 songs of 1991: #11-20

11. Learning to Fly- Tom Petty
12. Pretty Tied Up- GnR
13. Dust n Bones- GnR
14. Runaround- Van Halen
15. No Son of Mine- Genesis
16. Roll the Bones- Rush
17. Drain You- Nirvana
18. Texarkana- REM
19. Country Feedback- REM
20. Can't Stop This Thing We Started- Bryan Adams

Top 40 songs of 1991: #21-30

My favorites.

21. Into the Great Wide Open- Tom Petty
22. Once- Pearl Jam
23. Mysterious Ways- U2
24. The Show Must Go On- Queen
25. Losing My Religion- REM
26. Get a Leg Up- John Mellencamp
27. Why Go- Pearl Jam
28. Live and Let Die- Guns n Roses
29. Soul Cages- Sting
30. Don't Cry- Guns n Roses