The 1990s were known for Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Celine Dion, among others. Each of those artists has some merit, more so than others maybe. But while the music of the 1990s was not quite as excellent as the 1980s, there was still plenty of goodness.
Like every decade, some wonderful albums get forgotten. This can even be the case for popular bands who continue to make great music. One example of an underrated album by a well-known musical artist follows, for example.
Because of the above, it's important to keep reminding ourselves of the bits of greatness that might be close to being lost for good. Great music remains so eternally. Some of that excellent music lies in the four albums that follow.
Four albums from the 1990s that deserve more love
Grant Lee Buffalo - Mighty Joe Moon (1994)
Los Angeles-based Grant Lee Buffalo was always a difficult band to pigeonhole. They borrowed from so many genres and subgenres that calling them rock or folk rock or anything else was just a falsehood. After frontman Grant Lee Phillips went solo years ago, he might have fallen into more of a folk-pop routine, but Grant Lee Buffalo made anything from heavier rock to alt-country. Those sounds are all explored on Might Joe Moon.
The first track, "Lone Star Song," is a banger about the federal government's siege on the Branch Davidians in 1993. That sounds like a bad idea for a song that might easily go awry if turned into a tune, but the band manages to become observers of the aftermath in the narrative and you still want to rock.
But what separates this album from most anything else you will ever listen to are the final four tracks, "Happiness," "Honey Don't Think," "Side by Side," and "Rock of Ages." Three are mid-tempo tracks that ring every once of emotion out of you possible. The fourth, "Side by Side," is more bombastic but with a coda that leaves you slightly uneasy and ready for the sweet release of album closer, "Rock of Ages."
Cracker - Kerosene Hat (1993)
This album is so underrated that one cannot even find it on Amazon Music now. This is a shame because not only did the record produce some often-played singles in 1993 and 1994, but the songs that were not released as singles might make up the majority of the best tracks on the album. You may have heard "Low" but you might not have heard "Take Me Down to the Infirmary" and that is just a shame.
The name of the album comes from when vocalist David Lowery, who you may also know from Camper Van Beethoven, and guitarist Johnny Hickman were living together in a small house in Richmond, Virginia, and needed kerosene to help stay warm in the winter. Lowery would often bundle up, including a wool hat, to walk to a nearby store to get more kerosene. Hence, kerosene hat.
The album itself is a mix of country-tinged rockers mixed with slower burners. There is not a bad song on the entire album, though pop fans might have a bit more difficulty getting to love songs such as "I Want Everything" and "Hi-Desert Biker Meth Lab." The latter not exactly being a hidden track, but one you will have to wait for.
Kerosene Hat was Cracker's second studio record. Their first featured the excellent "Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)" but the band's self-titled debut album lacks the depth of quality that their second record does.
Counting Crows - August and Everything After (1993)
August and Everything After is Counting Crows' first and best record. There is no better album ever made to listen to on a rainy day. Maybe the band drew inspiration from their native San Francisco as that area of California is no stranger to dreary days, but while the album itself might have a gray feel, the tracks find their way through the gloom to remain listenable 30 years after the record's release.
To be fair, August and Everything After sold a bunch of units. In the United States alone the record sold 7 million copies and went multi-platinum in several other countries, but three decades later no one is talking about this record as one of the better records of the 1990s and it most clearly is. Perhaps the record eventually was overshadowed by the several great grunge albums that were being released around the same time.
Counting Crows overall, and August and Everything After specifically, is the antithesis of grunge. The band can still produce some fantastic straight-ahead rock songs, such as "Angels of the Silences" from the band's second record, Recovering the Satellites. But the intent of the band on their first album is to make bluesy-folk with amazing lyrics and interesting vocals.
The band started off as a duo, vocalist Adam Duritz and guitarist David Bryson. Soon, though, the duo wanted to be able to do things other than acoustic shows and members were added. Many of the songs from August and Everything After were recorded during this time. Part of the rawness of the band forming likely helped make the magic of more of the raw tracks on the album, such as "Raining in Baltimore."
Dave Matthews Band - Crash (1996)
This album, such as August and Everything After, also sold millions of copies, but like the Counting Crows record, Crash does not get the love now that it should. That might partly be based on the Dave Matthews Band themselves and their concerts. They are fantastic live but tend to play with songs a bit and do not mind jamming around. This changes the tenor of the original songs somewhat.
There must have been something in the water in southeast Virginia in the early-to-mid 1990s because as Cracker formed in Richmond, the Dave Matthews Band was beginning in Charlottesville. Both bands seem to borrow from the scenery around them but don't fall into any specific genre. While Cracker stole a little bit more from country, the Dave Matthews Band took a bit more from jazz. Both bands were rock and pop bands, though.
Crash produced three singles that most people likely know. "Too Much" was released in April, 1996, "So Much to Say" was released in August, 1996, and "Crash" was released in December, 1996. Today, releasing three songs from one album over most of a year would be odd. Record companies want to get as much as they can and as quickly as they can, but the Dave Matthews Band was always more of a slow burn.
Plus, while the singles off of Crash are fantastic, what makes the album special are the lesser-known tracks. "#41" winds its way through different musical topographies making each one that it touches a bit better. "Lie in Our Graves" is tinged with a bit of melancholy but with an ironic air of hope. The entire album is brilliantly conceived, however.