Top 10 Rock Songs of 1995
Grunge got a little softer around the edges in 1995, as bands like Live and Goo Goo Dolls scored big with balladry. But it was a ragtag punk group from Berkeley, Calif., that really revved up the charts.
Though the band’s (long-abandoned) Twitter account claims it made “Continuous Soft Rock. All Day, All Night…,” Seven Mary Three were all muscle and grit. The Virginia-based post-grunge group slayed the charts with “Cumbersome,” with its Biblical imagery and snarling vocals courtesy Jason Ross.Buy from Amazon »
Johnny Rzeznik and the gang toiled over a decade in clubs and bars before breaking big in 1995 with the acoustic ballad “Name.” Perhaps teaming with producer Lou Giordano (Husker Du) aided in the mass appeal of A Boy Named Goo, which went on to sell more than 2 million copies in the United States.Buy from Amazon »
The banshee wail. The whipping brunette hair. The shocking lyrics about fellatio in the cinema. And the fact that this tour de force came from a former teenybopper starlet? “You Oughta Know” was an instant hit, ushering in an era of the Angry Woman. Fun fact: Half of the Red Hot Chili Peppers appear on the track, providing the intense bass and guitar noodling that accompany Morissette’s fierce performance.Buy from Amazon »
When gorgeous Brit Gavin Rossdale implored audiences to “Try to see it once my way,” they did. Bush were a straighter-laced Nirvana from across the pond, but their buzz-saw guitars and feral melodies easily captivated the alternative nation. The mates tipped their hats to David Bowie in their debut single, adapting the line “Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow” from “Life on Mars?”Buy from Amazon »
This power ballad opened with an echoing, lamenting guitar, almost church-like in its nature. Singer Ed Kowalczyk utilized his emotive tremolo to tell an inspirational tale of life and death: A friend of the band was killed in a car accident; but since she was a donor, her passing renewed the lives of others. The touching tune was another in a long list of spiritually leaning releases by the foursome.Buy from Amazon »
No, it wasn’t a Christmas carol (it wasn’t even released in its namesake month, but rather in March 1995). Collective Soul’s “December” was a seething, mid-tempo song with arpeggios galore and Ed Roland’s pissed-off ranting. “Turn your head now, baby; just spit me out,” he crooned, capitalizing on the ’90s trope of turning grime into romance. Fans ate it up, keeping the song at number one on the Album Rock Track charts for nine weeks.Buy from Amazon »
Donning a shirt emblazoned with the word “Zero,” Billy Corgan became the poster boy for angst and alienation in 1995. Tired of the ballyhooed debate of “selling out” in the alternative genre, he and the Pumpkins blew it all apart with this explosive single. “The world is a vampire,”Corgan accused, but this chart-topper sure didn’t suck.Buy from Amazon »
Grunge’s influence reached far and wide in the mid-90s. Australia answered the call with teen trio Silverchair. Melodic, fuzzy licks and a pained, sincere delivery from front man and guitarist Daniel Johns made an intriguing offering. Its blazing solo rivaled those of Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready, and the band members’ tender ages (each 15 when they recorded the album Frogstomp) made Silverchair popular among rock enthusiasts and young girls alike.Buy from Amazon »
Six-string maestro Dave Navarro makes his second appearance on this countdown. The Jane’s Addiction guitarist joined RHCP for 1995’s One Hot Minute— which was about as long as his tenure lasted before beloved ax man John Frusciante returned to the lineup in 1998. But Navarro’s brief enlistment in the funk-rock quartet led to “My Friends” ruling the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart for four weeks.Buy from Amazon »
Billie Joe Armstrong, Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt are often praised (or blamed) for the rise of pop-punk. Green Day’s melding of anarchic snarling and memorable choruses had the world rapt in the middle of the decade. “When I Come Around” was an anthem of suburban boredom (as were many of the songs off groundbreaking album Dookie), characterized by Armstrong’s faux British drawl and Dirnt’s strutting bass. Not only did the single dominate the rock charts, but it also crept onto the number six position on the general Hot 100— a feat practically unheard of for a punk band.
Chart positions courtesy Tunecaster.comBuy from Amazon »
10. Seven Mary Three - "Cumbersome"
Though the band’s (long-abandoned) Twitter account claims it made “Continuous Soft Rock. All Day, All Night…,” Seven Mary Three were all muscle and grit. The Virginia-based post-grunge group slayed the charts with “Cumbersome,” with its Biblical imagery and snarling vocals courtesy Jason Ross.Buy from Amazon »
9. Goo Goo Dolls - "Name"
Johnny Rzeznik and the gang toiled over a decade in clubs and bars before breaking big in 1995 with the acoustic ballad “Name.” Perhaps teaming with producer Lou Giordano (Husker Du) aided in the mass appeal of A Boy Named Goo, which went on to sell more than 2 million copies in the United States.Buy from Amazon »
8. Alanis Morissette - "You Oughta Know"
The banshee wail. The whipping brunette hair. The shocking lyrics about fellatio in the cinema. And the fact that this tour de force came from a former teenybopper starlet? “You Oughta Know” was an instant hit, ushering in an era of the Angry Woman. Fun fact: Half of the Red Hot Chili Peppers appear on the track, providing the intense bass and guitar noodling that accompany Morissette’s fierce performance.Buy from Amazon »
7. Bush - "Everything Zen"
When gorgeous Brit Gavin Rossdale implored audiences to “Try to see it once my way,” they did. Bush were a straighter-laced Nirvana from across the pond, but their buzz-saw guitars and feral melodies easily captivated the alternative nation. The mates tipped their hats to David Bowie in their debut single, adapting the line “Mickey Mouse has grown up a cow” from “Life on Mars?”Buy from Amazon »
6. Live - "Lightning Crashes"
This power ballad opened with an echoing, lamenting guitar, almost church-like in its nature. Singer Ed Kowalczyk utilized his emotive tremolo to tell an inspirational tale of life and death: A friend of the band was killed in a car accident; but since she was a donor, her passing renewed the lives of others. The touching tune was another in a long list of spiritually leaning releases by the foursome.Buy from Amazon »
5. Collective Soul - "December"
No, it wasn’t a Christmas carol (it wasn’t even released in its namesake month, but rather in March 1995). Collective Soul’s “December” was a seething, mid-tempo song with arpeggios galore and Ed Roland’s pissed-off ranting. “Turn your head now, baby; just spit me out,” he crooned, capitalizing on the ’90s trope of turning grime into romance. Fans ate it up, keeping the song at number one on the Album Rock Track charts for nine weeks.Buy from Amazon »
4. The Smashing Pumpkins - "Bullet with Butterfly Wings"
Donning a shirt emblazoned with the word “Zero,” Billy Corgan became the poster boy for angst and alienation in 1995. Tired of the ballyhooed debate of “selling out” in the alternative genre, he and the Pumpkins blew it all apart with this explosive single. “The world is a vampire,”Corgan accused, but this chart-topper sure didn’t suck.Buy from Amazon »
3. Silverchair - "Tomorrow"
Grunge’s influence reached far and wide in the mid-90s. Australia answered the call with teen trio Silverchair. Melodic, fuzzy licks and a pained, sincere delivery from front man and guitarist Daniel Johns made an intriguing offering. Its blazing solo rivaled those of Pearl Jam’s Mike McCready, and the band members’ tender ages (each 15 when they recorded the album Frogstomp) made Silverchair popular among rock enthusiasts and young girls alike.Buy from Amazon »
2. Red Hot Chili Peppers - "My Friends"
Six-string maestro Dave Navarro makes his second appearance on this countdown. The Jane’s Addiction guitarist joined RHCP for 1995’s One Hot Minute— which was about as long as his tenure lasted before beloved ax man John Frusciante returned to the lineup in 1998. But Navarro’s brief enlistment in the funk-rock quartet led to “My Friends” ruling the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart for four weeks.Buy from Amazon »
1. Green Day - "When I Come Around"
Billie Joe Armstrong, Tre Cool and Mike Dirnt are often praised (or blamed) for the rise of pop-punk. Green Day’s melding of anarchic snarling and memorable choruses had the world rapt in the middle of the decade. “When I Come Around” was an anthem of suburban boredom (as were many of the songs off groundbreaking album Dookie), characterized by Armstrong’s faux British drawl and Dirnt’s strutting bass. Not only did the single dominate the rock charts, but it also crept onto the number six position on the general Hot 100— a feat practically unheard of for a punk band.
Chart positions courtesy Tunecaster.comBuy from Amazon »
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