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

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

Smashing Pumpkins: Cherub Rock (1993)

Although the so-called Alt-revolution had entered its third year, "Cherub Rock" seemed to announce the death knell of the 80s. This really takes me to a time and place.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-KE9lvU810

Top 10 songs of 1993

My faves anyway

1. Cherub Rock- The Smashing Pumpkins
2. Plush- STP
3. The Wanderer- U2 w/Johnny Cash
4. Rearview Mirror- Pearl Jam
5. Dreams (Live)- Van Halen
6. Low- Cracker
7. Pieces of the Night- The Gin Blossoms
8. Numb- U2
9. Go- Pearl Jam
10. Cryin'- Aerosmith

Top 35 songs of 1993 (#11-20)

11. Nightswimming- REM
12. She's Too Tough- Def Leppard
13. St. Augustine in Hell- Sting
14. Rape Me- Nirvana
15. Elderly Woman Behind a Counter in a Small Town- Pearl Jam
16. The Sidewinder Sleeps Tonight- REM
17. Find the River- REM
18. Desert Song- Def Leppard
19. River of Dreams- Billy Joel
20. Don't Tear Me Up- Mick Jagger

Top 35 songs of 1993: #21-30

My favorites.

21. Love Is Stronger Than Justice- Sting
22. Daughter-Pearl Jam
23. Today- Smashing Pumpkins
24. Fields of Gold- Sting
25. Wired All Night- Mick Jagger
26. I'll Sleep When I'm Dead- Bon Jovi
27. Stay (Faraway So Close)- U2
28. Down in a Hole- Alice in Chains
29. Hey Jealousy- Gin Blossoms
30. Ordinary World- Duran Duran

Top 35 songs of 1993 (#31-35)

My favorites.

31. Until I Fall Away- The Gin Blossoms
32. Cannonball- The Breeders
33. Creep- Radiohead
34. Dissident- Pearl Jam
35. Steam- Peter Gabriel

U2: Dirty Day (1993)

Bono lifted several of his dad's favorite phrases to craft "Dirty Day." The song is about a man that leaves his family only to return many years later. The character meets his abandoned son. The music is very dark and captures the mood of the rock scene of the time.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GIsFPZit-_M

Smashing Pumpkins: Today (1993)

The Smashing Pumpkins were in a very dark place. Drugs, writer’s bloc, romantic difficulties, and the pressure to live up to their hype led Billy Corgan into darkness. The song is about suicidal thoughts, but the upbeat musical accompaniment overtakes the lyrical themes. There is a reference to self-mutilation, but who notices because Today is the greatest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xmUZ6nCFNoU

Nirvana: Pennyroyal Tea (1993)

Kurt Cobain wrote “Pennyroyal Tea” in 1990 and they even played it live for a few years before recording it for In Utero in 1993. The song is about an herbal abortive, which does not work. The main character is so depressed, that they are practically dead. It really is one of the most depressing songs ever.

Unplugged:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNd5cZ9lbM0

Studio:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ZtpOGEZwpg

Gin Blossoms: Until I Fall Away (1994)

Many of the bands breaking in the early 90s captured alienation and youthful frustration. The Gin Blossoms captured frustration in a different way. They were melancholy!  Here is an example. The song reached #13 on the modern rock charts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39mUEE3_xS8

Tom Petty: Mary Jane's Last Dance (1993)

Kim Basinger appears as a dead Mary Jane, whose corpse attends a dinner party with Tom Petty. Petty plays a morgue worker that decides to abscond with the body. Eventually, Petty’s character dumps Mary Jane’s body into the ocean and watches it float away. People questioned if Mary Jane was a reference to Marijuana. Guitarist Mike Campbell said the song was originally going to be called “Indiana Girl”, but the song can mean whatever people want it to mean.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aowSGxim_O8

Mick Jagger: Don't Tear Me Up (1993)

Mick Jagger released his best solo album in 1993. Wandering Spirit included many radio friendly rock songs. “Don’t Tear Me Up” performed the best commercially reaching #1 on the rock charts.  Two other tracks also charted.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CQEFlJhkhA8

Sting: Saint Augustine in Hell (1993)

This is an album track from Ten Summoner's Tales. The album title is a play on Sting's real name. The album spawned two smash hits including "Fields of Gold" and "If I Ever Lose My Faith In You."
I was partial to "Saint Augustine in Hell" because it is a good song and I found the lyrics amusing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JdpXp6qJRI

Alice in Chains: Down in a Hole (1993)

Jerry Cantrell thought this was too soft for Alice in Chains, but the band liked it. Turned out to be one of Layne Staley's best efforts.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f8hT3oDDf6c

Randy Edelman: Gettysburg theme (1993)

Loved this movie and its great soundtrack. The movie makes you think "what if?"  What if Lee listened to Longstreet? What if Stonewall survived Chancellorsville?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5X1yPoAaKL0

Sting: Love is Stronger Than Justice (1993)

Ten Summoner's Tales is a play on Sting's real name and Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales. The album represented a shift away from the themes of mortality in The Soul Cages and examined themes of love and morality. The album spawned seven singles including "Love is Stronger Than Justice."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMKxq91fA6E&feature=related

R.E.M.: Everybody Hurts (1993)

"Everybody Hurts" was written for teenagers. Peter Buck claimed that "I've never watched Buffy the Vampire Slayer but the idea that high school is a portal to hell seems pretty realistic to me." The video has the band trapped in a traffic jam on the I-10 near San Antonio. The people portrayed in the video have their thoughts appear on screen using subtitles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ijZRCIrTgQc&ob=av2e

Guns n Roses: Dead Horse (1991)

This is an old GnR song off Use Your Illusion I.  The song begins acoustically before going electric and climaxing. Axl brings it full circle with the acoustic guitar to finish it off. The band made a video for the song in 1993, but never released it as a single. It was the golden age of music video and sometimes bands did videos for songs they did not release as singles.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8X76NRiQLQ