I’ve always felt like I have the potential to be a big Matthew Sweet fan. I don’t really know any of his music, but I’m aware enough of his sound to get that he lands in the same general ballpark as a lot my favorites.
Sweet is a power pop singer-songwriter who hails from Athens, Georgia, and once formed a band with R.E.M.’s Michael Stipe. He has the DNA of an alternative rocker raised on 50s and 60s pop.
I’ve written before that I never feel whiter or older than when I listen to a rap album considered one of the all-time greats.
I gave it another shot with Tupac Shakur’s 1995 Me Against the World, but again I’m coming up empty. Despite critical raves calling this one of the best rap records of all time, I find it rather corny and repetitive.
The early 90s were the heyday for Britpop, with Oasis and Blur leading the charge. I already covered Oasis’ classic What’s the Story (Morning Glory)? so now it’s time to highlight the album with which it competed for the Britpop title in 1995.
In August of ’95, Blur and Oasis went head-to-head, releasing singles on the same day. Today’s SOTD, ‘Country House,’ wound up outselling Oasis’ ‘Roll With It,’ and gave the band their first #1 hit in the UK. Oasis, of course, went on to win the larger battle, as their album became one of the best-selling records in the world.
Getting back to the albums of 1995, here’s the first one that struck me as something I wish I’d had in my life over the last 30 years.
Wrecking Ball is Emmylou Harris’ 18th studio album and the only one I’ve heard all the way through. I’m more familiar with the country legend through her guest appearances in the work of other artists (she is a particularly welcome presence on Elvis Costello’s The Delivery Man album).
Today’s 1995 album isn’t exactly new to me — it found a home in my CD collection when I married my wife 27 years ago. But I haven’t spent enough time with it over the years to consider it a favorite.
Annie Lennox’s Medusa was her second solo album after taking a break from Eurythmics in 1990. Her first release, Diva, was a very successful collection of original pop soul songs. This one had a similar sound but focused entirely on covers of other artists’ material.
