Table of Contents

1990

1991 

1992

1993 

1994 

1995 

1996

1997 

1998 

1999 

1999

 The Offspring 

Shania Twain - Come On Over 

Silverchair - Neon Ballroom 

Celine Dion - All the Way... A Decade of Song

This might not be a popular opinion, but maybe Celine Dion is the artist of the decade?  There’s as case to be made as to why she should be considered.  She certainly sold quite a few albums. 

We started off the decade with Jive Bunny and ended up with Celine. Maybe that tells you everything you need to know about the 1990s. 

Yes, along the way there were some really “cool” bands such as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, You Am I, Powderfinger etc etc… but equally there was more than a fair share of mindless dance pop (Aqua, Blackbox) a lot of movie sound tracks and a surprising small number of hip-hop and boybands that made it to number one. 

The top three selling artists were female (Celine, Shania and Alanis) and there’s not a grunge act in the top 10.  So maybe the received wisdom about the 90s being wall to wall grunge needs a revisit…

Metallica - S&M

This is such a cliché.  A band who wants to get serious hires an orchestra and plays their songs.  It should make perfect sense – the power of an orchestra is a magnificent thing to behold.  Adding electric guitars and loud drums should be a match made in heaven.  It very rarely works.  This album is good, but it might be a case of too much of a good thing.  Metallica are powerful enough on their own.  The don’t really need any additional support.     

Korn - Issues

 Another Korn album.  I think I’ve already covered them.

Savage Garden - Affirmation

Where the previous Savage Garden album had its charms, this feels like it is everything the critics said was bad about that album.  It feels a bit too calculated (I Knew I Loved You, is a straight rip off of Truly, Madly, Deeply for instance).  I know that this is a bit to “muso” for a general review, but I feel that there are some good ideas on this album and if they had chosen a more cutting edge producer they might have drawn these ideas out.  Instead they have Mariah Carey’s producer.  So, the album has a nice pop sheen to it.  But it could have done with a few more rough edges. 

Taxiride - Imaginate

This feels like a boyband, but with guitars.  I’m not sure that’s a compliment.  Maybe a better description would be Bryan Adams crossed with a boyband.  Again, not really a compliment. The melodies are strong, but there’s not a lot of substance here.  It feels like a sugar rush.  Soon forgotten. 

Live - The Distance to Here

“Let’s go hang out in a church.  We’ll go find lurch”.  I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.  Would someone really write a lyric that bad?  I distinctly remember walking into a music shop (remember them?) and looking at the lyric book to see if that was right.  Reader, it was…That lyric isn’t on this album.  But it’s so bad that I can’t forget it, no matter how hard I try.  

I’m not a fan of this album, but while we consider bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam to be the standard bearers of 90s rock, bands like Live and Matchbox 20 have sold more than their fair share of records.  This album went twice platinum in Australia, so a lot of people like them.

Jamiroquai - Synkronized

Perennially groovy.  Jamiroquai are referred to as Acid Jazz (nope, me either).  For me, they take a bit of disco, a bit of funk, some electronic and dance music and put it all together.  I have to say that it’s nice to have a band at number one that has a bit of a groove to it. Jamiroquai have a number of really great songs (Cosmic Girl, Virtual Insanity for starters).  Synkronized features both Deeper Underground and Canned Heat. This album feels effortless, but in a good way. 

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication

I feel that the Red Hot Chili Peppers should only exist when John Fruisciante is in the band.  The guitarist has come and gone at various points in their career and his presence lifts the band.  Or more accurately, his absence is keenly felt on the albums when someone else replaces him.  I think this is the Red Hot Chili Peppers best album.  It is the point where they start to focus some of the rougher edges into proper songs, but without losing what makes them unique.  This album features tracks like Scar Tissue, Parallel Universe and Around the World. It elevated them to become stadium fillers.  Rightly so. 

Songs from Dawson's Creek

Did you know that the theme song from Dawson’s Creek was replaced when the show was put onto Netflix?  For me that’s almost criminal.  The song “I Don’t Wanna Wait” is so evocative of the show, but for some reason they didn’t have the streaming rights. I can’t imagine a whole generation of people watching the show and not having that song set up each episode. It just feels wrong.

Human Nature - Counting Down

It’s surprising that more boybands don’t feature on this list.  The late 90s and early 2000s were really the era of boybands.  Human Nature were Australia’s version of a boyband.  I guess they were OK if you like that kind of thing.  

Ricky Martin - Ricky Martin

You might not like Ricky Martin.  I might not like Ricky Martin.  But Livin La Vida Loca is undeniably catchy. Also, isn’t it nice to have a bit of a Latin influence in the charts?  Having said that, there’s no doubt that Shake Your Bon Bon is taking things too far.

Bee Gees - One Night Only

This is a band that is so good that two countries lay claim to them.  The UK (Manchester and the Isle of Man) and Australia (Brisbane) both have solid claims. You can see why though.  This is a band that has weathered the storms of being so unfashionable that it hurts, to now having (in Barry Gibb) someone who is considered one of the greatest songwriters of all time.

It’s quite ridiculous how many great songs that Barry Gibb wrote. From his own hits (Tragedy, Staying Alive, You Should Be Dancing, Jive Talking) to Islands in the Stream (yes, the Dolly and Kenny song), to Grease.  Yes, even Grease.  The man knows how to write a song and most of them are on this album.  

Silverchair - Neon Ballroom

Knowing what comes next (the brilliant Diorama) it is easy to see this as a stepping stone from the Silverchair of old to a more varied body of work that eventually saw Daniel Johns disband his own group and walk his own path.  Diorama is a complex and layered album.  It has strings and keyboards and unusual song structures.  It is a million miles away from Frogstomp and Freak Show.  Diorama was released in 2002 so is out of scope of these reviews.   Neon Ballroom has songs like Emotional Sickness and Paint Pastel Princess which point in the direction that Daniel Johns was about to head in.  These songs are layered and feature lush production, which are at odds with the loud guitars of the other tracks.   

Perhaps the most revealing song on the album is Ana’s Song. A song about anorexia.  Daniel Johns has admitted that there were so many things in his life that he couldn’t control, what he ate (or didn’t eat) was something he could.  Of course, no one really took this seriously at the time.  What more could he do?  He wrote a freaking song about it!!! But I think the pressure of him being a Cash Cow for so many people made them ignore that he really needed help.  Looking back now, you can’t help but feel for him. No wonder he retreated into his own world for the next album.  And created a masterpiece. 

Shania Twain - Come on Over

This album is the fourth best-selling album of all time in Australia. Only Meat Loaf, Abba and John Farnham sit above Shania on the list. I have to admit that I was expecting more from it. It’s a solid pop album, with some super catchy songs on it – specifically That Don’t Impress Me Much, Man I Feel Like A Woman and You’re Still The One.  Aside from these three songs, I don’t have much to say.  Which is a bit disappointing really.  You’d expect more from an album that has sold 40 million copies.

The Offspring - Americana

Timing is everything.  The Offspring released Pretty Fly for a White Guy (from this album) just before voting closed for the Triple J hottest 100 and it was catchy enough for it to land the number one spot.  Suffice it to say that the song doesn’t have much staying power. The novelty wore off pretty quickly.  But it also got the band a number one album – Americana – so what would I know?  

1998

Aqua

Titanic 

Pearl Jam - Yield 

Madonna - Ray of Light 

Massive Attack - Mezzanine 

Olivia Newton-John, John Farnham and Anthony Warlow - Highlights from The Main Event

I’m not even sure of what the Main Event was.  Looking at who participated, I don’t care to investigate further.

Chef Aid: The South Park Album

I don’t want to be rude about this album, but this is just a novelty album from a TV show.

U2 - The Best of 1980–1990

Greatest Hits collections are basically a sampler of a band’s catalogue.  More snobby music fans think of them as “not proper albums”.  But actually, for most people, they don’t want to hear obscure album tracks. They want hit after hit.  This collection does exactly what you’d expect.  I would argue that it has pretty much every song that you’d want to hear from U2.  Yes, the die-hard fan (guilty, your honour), can point out what is missing.  But that would be churlish.  (although the absence of Gloria from this compilation rankles …)

The Living End - The Living End

“We don’t need no one

To tell us what to do”

Is there any better articulation of the spirit of rock than that? 

Sometimes all you need to hear is the opening track from a band’s debut album and you know everything you need to know about them. 

This album is a good shot of punk rock, with a rockabilly twist.  

Cold Chisel - The Last Wave of Summer

Cold Chisel are an Australian Institution.  This was their first album in 14 years, so it is understandable that anticipation was high.  By this point in any bands career, I don’t think you’re looking for works of genius.  What you’re looking for is songs that when played on tour don’t make you rush for the bar/toilet.  “This is from our new album” is one of the most feared phrases at any concert.  Having said that, this is a worthy addition to the Cold Chisel catalogue.  It is a solid album – albeit without any classic tracks on it.

Vonda Shepard - Songs from Ally McBeal

I couldn’t have told you a Vonda Shepard song with a gun to my head before I played this album. But it turns out that I knew the song Searching My Soul (which was the title song of the TV show).  Not bad.  Not bad at all.  

Kiss - Psycho Circus

Kiss invented the modern rock concert production. This is undisputed. Their stage shows are the template for every modern rock show.  Fireworks.  Raised platforms (no, I’m not just talking about Gene Simmons shoes…), lasers.  If you’ve seen it at a concert, almost all of it can be traced back to this band.  Is anyone listening to Psycho Circus these days?  I doubt it.  It’s the first album since 1979’s Dynasty album to feature the original band (although that’s only on a couple of tracks) and, strangely, is their only number one album in Australia.  I guess that goes to show that judging bands by the number of number one albums isn’t always a great measure of success. You’d have to go a long way to find a band that had a longer career, and sold more albums than Kiss.   

 

Marilyn Manson - Mechanical Animals

Even back in the 90s I thought that Marilyn Manson was trying too hard.  Trying too hard to be edgy.  Marilyn Manson always felt more fake to me than any boyband. I didn’t like it then and I don’t like it now. 

Powderfinger - Internationalist

When Powderfinger played their farewell tour, I was sure that I’d know the entire setlist.  They were such a big part of the Australian music scene in the late 90s/early 2000s that I felt I would know their entire catalogue.  It turns out that, at some point, I had disengaged with the band and only knew half their songs.  No matter.  This album was probably the high point of their catalogue.  Pick You Up (witten in Canberra no less!) was on the preceding album.  My Happiness was on the album that followed (and probably the point where I started to check out) but this was where it all came together.  Catchy, intelligent songs.  Great hooks.  Raw and dirty.   

This album is great from start to finish.  High points are The Day You Come - about the rise of the political right in Australia (sadly a song still relevant today), Don’t Want To Be Left Out and Hindley Street.  Although, probably the best song from this period in Powderfinger’s history was a song that doesn’t feature on the album.  These Days was from the Two Hands soundtrack (it does feature as a B-Side to the single Passenger on this album) and it is a true Australian classic.  

Korn - Follow the Leader

Nu Metal gets a bad wrap.  Or should that be a bad rap?  (I’ll see myself out…)  I get the impulse, combining Rock and Rap.  Both are anti-establishment forms of music.  But, for mine, it takes the worse elements of both and combines them.  I am not a fan. The only half decent song on this album is Got the Life. 

Natalie Imbruglia - Left of the Middle

Initially I had written this off as a bit of a one hit wonder type album (Torn being that hit).  But there were a couple of songs that were minor hits (Big Mistake, Wishing I Was There).  Overall, though, it’s a fairly anonymous album.  I doubt it is played very much these days.   

Beastie Boys - Hello Nasty

I think this might be the first album by a hip-hop artist to make it to number one in the 90s which seems so strange as hip-hop was such a defining musical genre of the decade.  The Beastie Boys moved away from their early roots (Fight For Your Right To Party, No Sleep til Brooklyn) to becoming … I want to say Elder Statesmen of Hip Hop.  But that doesn’t feel quite right.  They evolved into being more socially conscious.  They organised the Tibetan Freedom Concert and diversified their interests (as all good hip-hop artists do) with their Grand Royal label which was a record label / clothing brand / magazine etc.  Beastie Boys best song (Sabotage) isn’t on Hello Nasty.  But Intergalactic is.  And that’s pretty great too.     

Neil Finn - Try Whistling This

God, I love the title of this album.  His gift for melody didn’t desert him, but he wasn’t making it easy for his fans.  I definitely admire an artist who doesn’t want to keep repeating themselves.  You may as well have an office job, I think.  It is well established that I think Neil Finn is a musical genius.  There are some great tracks on this album (including She Will Have Her Way and Sinner) but this is no easy listening.  

City of Angels - Soundtrack

Clearly this album got to number one because of the song Iris by the Goo Goo Dolls. But it also features songs by Sarah McLachlan, U2 and Alanis Morisette.  A solid 90s compilation album.  

The Smashing Pumpkins - Adore

This is a more electronic sound for the fans after the grunge sound of their earlier albums. It divided fans.  Ok, that might be going a bridge too far.  It sold a fraction of their previous work.  it didn’t so much as divide their fans as watch them leave in droves.  I always liked the (almost) title track Ava Adore, but that’s about as far as it goes.

You Am I - You Am I's #4 Record

I had kind of dismissed this album before I listened to it.  While I admire You Am I, I was never the biggest fan of the band.  But listening to this album made me realise the answer to a question that bothers me from time to time.  Authenticity in music.  I’ve often thought that “Authenticity” is a made up construct by “cool” journalists to dismiss pop music.  But listening to this album, I realised what they were talking about.  This is the sound of a band playing in a room.  For better or for worse.  In other words, there are some good songs on this album and there are some duds.  But it is the sound of 3 guys playing music together.  It feels authentic.  It feels real.  

 I can’t let this review go and not mention Heavy Heart.  If Tim Rogers was from the US or the UK I’d say his song writing would be mentioned in the same breath as Springsteen or Dylan.  It is top shelf.  You won’t find a better heartbreak song than Heavy Heart anywhere. 

 

Matchbox 20 - Yourself or Someone Like You

In the film Clueless, Alicia Silverstone called the music her step brother listened to as “complaint rock”.  I’m not sure a better description of rock music in the 90s was ever coined.    

We like to think that the sound of the 90s was Nirvana and Pearl Jam but maybe Matchbox 20 is closer to the truth.  There’s a lyrical thread that runs through this album that sums up the mood of the times.  They’re defeatist, downcast and, yes, a little depressing.   

If you match these lyrics with a pretty standard classic rock sound, you get Matchbox 20.  Obviously this was a successful formula as the album was number one for six weeks and it sold 10 times platinum in Australia. 

Jeff Buckley - Sketches for My Sweetheart the Drunk

It was definitely a tragedy that Jeff Buckley drowned in a river in Memphis.  Grace was a really great album that showed a talent about to emerge into the light.  There’s nothing quite like mourning for a talent unfulfilled.  These songs are the demos from his half written second album. There’s a good question to be asked about posthumous albums. Should they be released? I can understand the motivation to hear everything by an artist, I’m not always convinced it’s a good idea. Quite clearly Jeff Buckley didn’t have the opportunity to finish these songs.  Some of them are really great (Everybody Here Wants You for one) while others are half finished ideas.  No surprise there.     

The Wedding Singer - Soundtrack

Culture Club, The Police, Buggles, The Smiths, Psychedelic Furs, Thompson Twins, New Order… yes, this is just a best of 80s compilation?  What of it?  I know that every new decade brings on a new trend and you tend to look back at the previous decade with a bit of distain “what was I thinking??” type of thing.   But I guess by 1998 that taint was starting to wear off.  These songs are all great.  Fun to listen to.  It’s no surprise that this album made it to number one.

Massive Attack - Mezzanine

Boom.  Tch.   Boom. Boom.  Tch. 

That’s the sound of Protection. 

It was sparse. 

It was minimal. 

It was mesmerising. 

It was unlike anything you’d ever heard before.  It was so unique that it stood out from everything else released at the time. 

It is a miracle that Massive Attack managed to repeat the trick on Mezzanine with Teardrop.  Often it is foolish to try to recreate something so unique.  I’m not really sure how Teardrop manages this trick, but it takes the template of Protection and manages to twist it just far enough to be both familiar and yet new.  Mezzanine as a whole manages to create a mood of edginess and paranoia.  Teardrop fits in seamlessly.   

Madonna - Ray of Light

This is probably the most complete Madonna album.  The title track, Drowned World, Frozen, The Power of Goodbye are all really great songs. It’s such a meaningless thing to say that an album is a mature bit of work, but this feels like a great album from start to finish. Where previously I thought that every Madonna album had 3 decent tracks on it, this one is pretty much all good. A triumph.

Pearl Jam - Yield

This is the last great Pearl Jam album.  After the misstep of No Code, they came back all guns blazing.  This album features Given to Fly, Wishlist and Do the Evolution.  But it is one of those albums where the singles don’t tell the whole story.  Every song is great.  The band sound re-invigorated.  It’s a great album from start to finish.

James Horner - Titanic: Music from the Motion Picture

Celine Dion’s stock was so high at this point that she just needed to put one song on a soundtrack and it would make it to number one.  That’s what she did here, and this album was number one for eleven weeks.  Eleven!
 

Aqua - Aquarium

Barbie Girl was a bit of a joke in 1998 and it is a bit of a joke now.  It is a typical novelty song and it hasn’t aged well.  Basically, this whole album sounds like it is a soundtrack from a game you played on a 90s Nokia phone.  This is almost the textbook definition of lightweight. 

1997

Romeo and Juliet Soundtrack

Silverchair - Freakshow 

U2 - Pop 

Savage Garden 

Faith No More - Album of the Year 

Prodigy - The Fat of the Land 

 

The 12th Man - Bill Lawry... This Is Your Life

Another 12th man album.  Another number one. While not my thing, releasing seven albums and having them all reach number one is a serious achievement.   

Celine Dion - Let's Talk About Love

Hmmm…. Let’s not. 

My Best's Friend Wedding: Music from the Motion Picture

Never underestimate the power of a movie.  I’m guessing this must have got to number one on the strength of the cast singing I Say a Little Prayer.  Great song.  There’s not really much else to say about this movie soundtrack.     
 

Midnight Oil - 20,000 Watt R.S.L.

Some albums are just perfectly titled.  I think this is one of them.  I think the RSL is the spiritual home of Midnight Oil.  While they have played big stages around the world throughout their career, from festivals to arenas, they were always a band born to play the pubs and clubs of Australia.  This greatest hits collection does exactly what you’d expect.  It’s loud, uncompromising and music that is begging to be played in a sweaty pub. 

John Farnham - Anthology 1: Greatest Hits 1986–1997

I’ve reviewed John Farnham before and there’s not much more to add.  This is a greatest hits album – no more.  No less. 

Mariah Carey - Butterfly

A mix of hip-hop sounds and smooth ballads. It feels like a move away from her pop roots into a more urban sound.  Mariah Carey says that at this point she felt like she was taking control of her career for the first time. I think we can accept that she’s not really my cup of tea, but it’s a solid album and I definitely admire her for being in control of her own music and career.