Rock Evolution – The History of Rock & Roll - 1998 - (page 271)

[Saddleworth2]

"Design for Life" is already on the list.

no worries.

 

[FogBlueInSanFran]

1996 marked the release Call The Doctor, the second album by the incomparable Sleater-Kinney — a band I have mentioned often on music threads here. A fantastic post-punk grrrrrrl group without a bassist and an absolute whale of a drummer in Janet Weiss, CTD marked the beginning of a run of four albums in a row with effectively zero bad tunes. What a band.

Sleater-Kinney — Stay Where You Are

And then there was this monster from a band who in this day and age in a way fucked-up America is greatly missed. Unlike SK, they DO have a bass player (he’s slightly noticeable on this tune, LOL), and with Tom Morello’s wocka-wocka over the top, this is yet another tune that must be cranked to volume setting of 11 on your playback device of choice.

Rage Against The Machine — Bulls on Parade

1996 also brought us the emergence of a band that never took itself too seriously in a year that was more devoid of great music than many, at least IMO. As such, a bit of fun was certainly welcome. Enter Cake and their Fashion Nugget record.

Cake — The Distance

 

[mrbelfry]

1996 marked the Call The Doctor, the second album by the incomparable Sleater-Kinney — a band I have mentioned often on music threads here. A fantastic post-punk grrrrrrl group without a bassist and an absolute whale of a drummer in Janet Weiss, CTD marked the beginning of a run of four albums in a row with effectively zero bad tunes. What a band.

Sleater-Kinney — Stay Where You Are

And then there was this monster from a band who in this day and age in a way fucked-up America is greatly missed. Unlike SK, they DO have a bass player (he’s slightly noticeable on this tune, LOL), and with Tom Morello’s wocka-wocka over the top, this is yet another tune that must be cranked to volume setting of 11 on your playback device of choice.

Rage Against The Machine — Bulls on Parade

1996 also brought us the emergence of a band that never took itself too seriously in a year that was more devoid of great music than many, at least IMO. As such, a bit of fun was certainly welcome. Enter Cake and their Fashion Nugget record.

Cake — The Distance

In glad someone nominated Cake. There was a moment in the Archers of Loaf album that reminded me of the Distance

 

[GoatersLeftShin]

Was also at the oasis gig. Really hated the vibe and it put me off Oasis for a long time. It was partly the disrespect of LG clowning about in the boxes whilst the support acts were on but also seemed like everyone was just getting smashed and the music was secondary. I think I must be a sensitive soul

I remember it being a smashed-fest as well ha ha! I think the hot weather plus the good support bands helped :D Again, as I mentioned in the 1995 write-up it was maybe something to do with the "Lad" culture - getting absolutely obliterated and listening to Oasis was definitely seen as a cool thing to do. Being destroyed was something to aim for almost! I can imagine it was crap if you weren't on the same wavelength though.

The atmosphere was incredible though, as was the music. It was definitely one of the high-points of the Britpop era.

 

[mrbelfry]

I remember it being a smashed-fest as well ha ha! I think the hot weather plus the good support bands helped :D Again, as I mentioned in the 1995 write-up it was maybe something to do with the "Lad" culture - getting absolutely obliterated and listening to Oasis was definitely seen as a cool thing to do. Being destroyed was something to aim for almost! I can imagine it was crap if you weren't on the same wavelength though.

The atmosphere was incredible though, as was the music. It was definitely one of the high-points of the Britpop era.

Yeah I don't drink and it was one of those days that reminded me why I don't ;)

 

[GoatersLeftShin]

Of all the albums this year, Beck's Odelay stands head and shoulders above the others for me.

The album is a mix of folk, electronica, hip-hop and the rest and by rights it should be an absolute mess but it just works. It's certainly one of the finest of the decade and still sounds incredible today. I love how it manages to sound like an album and also like a test of how far he can push it. Every track on the album showcases another side of his songwriting but also the absolute genius of the producers with many of them being done by The Chemical Brothers who made Exit Planet Dust which was one of the albums I nominated in 1995.

We saw Beck at The Albert Hall in town and I was surprised he'd play a venue that size as he could easily play a bigger one. He was just brilliant - funny, musically brilliant and the encore was "Where It's At" with a million and one other songs mixed in. In some ways, he reminds me of Jarvis Cocker in that they shouldn't be good front men but they are have real charisma and great entertainers and very funny.

In fact, it's going on!

 

[FogBlueInSanFran]

Of all the albums this year, Beck's Odelay stands head and shoulders above the others for me.

The album is a mix of folk, electronica, hip-hop and the rest and by rights it should be an absolute mess but it just works. It's certainly one of the finest of the decade and still sounds incredible today. I love how it manages to sound like an album and also like a test of how far he can push it. Every track on the album showcases another side of his songwriting but also the absolute genius of the producers with many of them being done by The Chemical Brothers who made Exit Planet Dust which was one of the albums I nominated in 1995.

We saw Beck at The Albert Hall in town and I was surprised he'd play a venue that size as he could easily play a bigger one. He was just brilliant - funny, musically brilliant and the encore was "Where It's At" with a million and one other songs mixed in. In some ways, he reminds me of Jarvis Cocker in that they shouldn't be good front men but they are have real charisma and great entertainers and very funny.

In fact, it's going on!

Certainly the critics of the day agreed with you. This was, IMO, a post-post-Nirvana hangover year in the States.

 

[Black&White&BlueMoon Town]

Ok, so "less story" on this, but maybe, just MAYBE... an appreciation from the clubbers. We shall see...

For this, I'm going to phone an old friend (the 2024 me) from the Playlist Thread on an earlier reference to this 1996 album...

This 90's group was one of my favorite branch-outs of that era, and often hard to categorize or find a genre they were completely home or comfortable in. Often classified under "alternative rock" or "rap-rock", they formed in 1991 and their band name was a humorous reference to former 1960s Philadelphia 76er basketball player Lucious Jackson, after they heard his name mispronounced as "Luscious" on ESPN Sportscenter.

I saw them open up for +Live+ in 1997, and they were fantastic. Bass player, lead singer, and co-founder Jill Cunniff and her bandmates hit it big with the "Naked Eye" hit single off of Fever In Fever Out (produced by Daniel Lanois). I had nominated that song off of the playlist, but I'm going curveball here for my favourite song off of that album.

Their music samples, uniqueness, underlying beats from their NYC roots, and overall talent make them one of a kind and a favourite of many not initially attracted to the likes of rap back during this time period. The best part of this song is the group back harmonies behind Jill's leading vocals.

"Why Do I Lie?" - Luscious Jackson

i would love to be better
i would love to be free
i would love to be perfect
when you look at me

 

[threespires]

1996 marked the release Call The Doctor, the second album by the incomparable Sleater-Kinney — a band I have mentioned often on music threads here. A fantastic post-punk grrrrrrl group without a bassist and an absolute whale of a drummer in Janet Weiss, CTD marked the beginning of a run of four albums in a row with effectively zero bad tunes. What a band.

Sleater-Kinney — Stay Where You Are

And then there was this monster from a band who in this day and age in a way fucked-up America is greatly missed. Unlike SK, they DO have a bass player (he’s slightly noticeable on this tune, LOL), and with Tom Morello’s wocka-wocka over the top, this is yet another tune that must be cranked to volume setting of 11 on your playback device of choice.

Rage Against The Machine — Bulls on Parade

1996 also brought us the emergence of a band that never took itself too seriously in a year that was more devoid of great music than many, at least IMO. As such, a bit of fun was certainly welcome. Enter Cake and their Fashion Nugget record.

Cake — The Distance

Nice choices. For no obvious reason I once wasted an entire day of my life trying to recreate Cake's cover of I Will Survive with my Arturia suite and controller. I only started fannying around with the Trumpet part to compare something in a couple of different pieces of software and before I knew it I'd got a terrible sounding mess, a day I wasn't getting back and a very pissed off Mrs Spires.

 

[OB1]

I have another trio for my second pick and another title track, the down and dirty ZZ Top: Rythmeen.


One of the biggest musical events of 1996 was the original KISS members reuniting and reapplying their iconic make-up. The resulting tour was huge in the US and the original band also came over to the UK for only the second time. They started off with a headline appearance at Donington (Monsters of Rock) which I was lucky enough to have guest passes with access to backstage hospitality and even the press conference they held to announce they would be back later in the year for an arena tour (of which I saw two dates).

This reunion was presaged when KISS did an unplugged set for MTV and the album of that show was released in 1996, so I have selected KISS: Nothin’ to Lose.


My final pick is not a song or band that I was aware of in 1996 but a good many years later an American colleague introduced me to the band and their album features high on the best ever albums list for the year - Sublime: Doin’ Time.

 

[It Started With A Miss]

Think the purist's will run to the hills with this one but here goes.

Endtroducing was ranked highly on various lists of the best albums of 1996, and has been acclaimed by critics as one of the greatest albums of the 1990s.
It is considered a landmark recording in instrumental hip hop, with DJ Shadow's sampling techniques and arrangements leaving a lasting influence.
In 2020, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Endtroducing 329th on its list of the 500 greatest albums of all time.

Endtroducing samples music of various genres, including jazz, funk, and psychedelia, as well as films and interviews. DJ Shadow programmed, chopped, and layered samples to create tracks. It took 2 years to make.
He opted to sample more obscure selections, making it a rule to avoid sampling popular material. Though he also used samples of prominent artists such as Björk and Metallica.

DJ Shadow - Building Steam With A Grain Of Salt

 

[RandolphMABlue]

Since he doesn't get much mention on here, I'll put forward three songs from Alejandro Escovedo's third album, With These Hands. One is an out and out rocker, one a bit more Latin influenced, and one more folky rootsy (with a special guest vocalist.)

Crooked Frame - Alejandro Escovedo
With These Hands - Alejandro Escovedo
Nickel and a Spoon - Alejandro Escovedo

 

[Mancitydoogle]

1996 was a mixed bag for me , I was still very much into my alt country bands but also quite a few mainstream American bands appealed to me a number like Counting Crows have already been mentioned.
As recommended by my go to at the time American CD mail order company ‘Miles of Music’ a band I got to see live at a bar on Oldham Road the name I can’t remember.

North Carolina’s , Jolene from their first album ‘Hells Half Acre ‘ ALONGSIDE

This band was being played constantly in the Ski resorts near Banff and on US radio, Jakob
Dylan’s Wallflowers ‘ ONE HEADLIGHT’

Constantly played by Bob Harris on his radio 2 show and from a great debut album ,Matchbox Twenty ‘PUSH’

Finally one of a few female singer songwriters I like
Shawn Colvin ‘ SUNNY CAME HOME’

 

[Black&White&BlueMoon Town]

1996 was a mixed bag for me , I was still very much into my alt country bands but also quite a few mainstream American bands appealed to me a number like Counting Crows have already been mentioned.
As recommended by my go to at the time American CD mail order company ‘Miles of Music’ a band I got to see live at a bar on Oldham Road the name I can’t remember.

North Carolina’s , Jolene from their first album ‘Hells Half Acre ‘ ALONGSIDE

This band was being played constantly in the Ski resorts near Banff and on US radio, Jakob
Dylan’s Wallflowers ‘ ONE HEADLIGHT’

I've been waiting all week for you to show up and just take this!

Given @BlueHammer85 was going to originally have this year, he surely would have had a younger Dylan Wallflowers song among his first 10, right?? I was going to nominate this at the end of the playlist extra as the Wallflowers need representation, and you went and picked the best song. Thanks!

Constantly played by Bob Harris on his radio 2 show and from a great debut album ,Matchbox Twenty ‘PUSH’

Finally one of a few female singer songwriters I like
Shawn Colvin ‘ SUNNY CAME HOME’

Love that last song as an underrated gem. That was such a great tune.

And I would be negligent if I didn't add that the fantastic song "Everything Falls Apart" from Dog's Eye View came out in Jan 1996 as well. And yes, I know how much you enjoy that track.

Is that my final selection? No, but I'd at least think if we've got the Wallflowers covered, maybe there's room for Dog's Eye View instead. ;-)

 

[Black&White&BlueMoon Town]

In 18 days we've got a trip planned to Ireland where my wife and I haven't visited in 37 years since our first UK trip to visit her extended family. Our eldest daughter born in the year we are currently covering is coming with us for her first visit there too. She's anxious to visit to visit the homeland of my family's side, especially since my Mom's passing in recent years in not making the trip as she often talked and dreamed about.

I've got the pub already picked out to watch City's final match of the season no matter what is on the line that day. That alone should be a unique experience.

I wanted my final track to be from the Cranberries' To The Faithful Departed, but there aren't as many lesser known gems from that album, and everyone already knows "Free To Decide", "Salvation" and others.

Instead, I'll go with the album's Complete Sessions track I've had on my homemade CD for decades in this pick. This song was originally written and recorded by Dolores O'Riordan this year for the film The Devil's Own. Although often credited to the band, it is primarily a solo performance by O'Riordan. This song is one of her most intimate songs — a gentle folk influenced farewell filled with her unmistakable voice, fragile emotion, and understated melodies.

"God Be With You" - The Cranberries

 

[threespires]

Unchained, the second of Johnny Cash's American series, confirmed this was a full late career revival. Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers featured on this one. The series became hugely popular with it's mix of Cash tracks, other traditional songs and powerful contemporary covers.

Johnny Cash - Rusty Cage

 

[threespires]

I do like a murder ballad and Nick Cave obliged with an entire album this year. This in theory is a chance to sneak Kylie into one of playlists but he's got another female collaborator on the album, sorry Kylie.

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds with PJ Harvey - Henry Lee

 

[RobMCFC]

Notes on the 1996 playlist

Slim pickings on this year's list, which after my initial selections plus the next handful, really dragged but was rescued by some very good songs near the end.

Songs I didn't know but enjoyed

• "One Headlight" - The Wallflowers - I've only got one Wallflowers album, but it isn't this. Really enjoyed the vocals and instruments on this.
• "Here but I'm Gone" - Curtis Mayfield - just a really nice song
• "With These Hands" - Alejandro Escovedo - the pick of the three tracks here.
• "Alongside" - Jolene
• "Sunny Came Home" - Shawn Colvin

Songs I already knew but enjoyed

• "A Design for Life" - Manic Street Preachers - Epic and anthemic.
• "Test for Echo" - Rush - I think I've only listened to this album once on Spotify. I'not familiar with their albums after Presto and before Snakes & Arrows.
• "Three Lions" - Baddiel, Skinner & The Lightning Seeds. I never really tire of this; it's a novelty song really, but a good one.
• "Rhythmeen" - ZZ Top - a bit like Rush, I'm not familiar with the album, but I think I've heard it.
• "Everything falls Apart" - Dog's Eye View
• The R.E.M. and Counting Crows tracks that I didn't nominate

Songs I really didn't like

Most electronic & rap stuff is still not impressing me and gets the skip treatment after a minute or so, sometimes sooner.

 

[threespires]

Notes on the 1996 playlist

Slim pickings on this year's list, which after my initial selections plus the next handful, really dragged but was rescued by some very good songs near the end.

Songs I didn't know but enjoyed

• "One Headlight" - The Wallflowers - I've only got one Wallflowers album, but it isn't this. Really enjoyed the vocals and instruments on this.
• "Here but I'm Gone" - Curtis Mayfield - just a really nice song
• "With These Hands" - Alejandro Escovedo - the pick of the three tracks here.
• "Alongside" - Jolene
• "Sunny Came Home" - Shawn Colvin

Songs I already knew but enjoyed

• "A Design for Life" - Manic Street Preachers - Epic and anthemic.
• "Test for Echo" - Rush - I think I've only listened to this album once on Spotify. I'not familiar with their albums after Presto and before Snakes & Arrows.
• "Three Lions" - Baddiel, Skinner & The Lightning Seeds. I never really tire of this; it's a novelty song really, but a good one.
• "Rhythmeen" - ZZ Top - a bit like Rush, I'm not familiar with the album, but I think I've heard it.
• "Everything falls Apart" - Dog's Eye View
• The R.E.M. and Counting Crows tracks that I didn't nominate

Songs I really didn't like

Most electronic & rap stuff is still not impressing me and gets the skip treatment after a minute or so, sometimes sooner.

I can never remember how good your 'tolerance' is for female vocals but if you haven't heard it, I reckon you'd like A Few Small Repairs as an album, it's even got a Neil Finn collaboration in it.

 

[RobMCFC]

I can never remember how good your 'tolerance' is for female vocals but if you haven't heard it, I reckon you'd like A Few Small Repairs as an album, it's even got a Neil Finn collaboration in it.

Yes, I quite like a few female vocalist albums, but it's usually when there is some interesting instrumentation involved (and as you know, that goes for men, and bands as well :)

I do own one Shawn Colvin album - All Fall Down.

A Few Small Repairs looks interesting, particularly as it features John Leventhal on multiple instruments. He's Rosanne Cash's husband and has featured on albums I own by Bruce Hornsby and Sarah Jarosz, and probably some others that I've forgotten about.

Starting the listen now, thanks.

EDIT: There's also a connection on that Neil Finn track to one of my favourite albums. Malcolm Burn, who did such an amazing job on Chris Whitley's Living With The Law, produced just that one track.