Time Capsule: Billboard's Modern Tracks chart 20 years ago this week (April 2, 1994)

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The top 20 chart the week Kurt Cobain died.

The issue also featured an article about the "revamped" In Utero: "Regarding the song title change, Kurt changed it to 'Waif Me' because 'waif' is not gender-specific. 'We thought that was the best way of softening it up.' But [the label's head of marketing] adds, 'We did not have to compromise the music. The music is intact.'"

Poll Results

OptionVotes
10. Nirvana, "All Apologies" 11
6. Beck, "Loser" 9
17. Meat Puppets, "Backwater" 7
3. Enigma, "Return to Innocence" 7
1. Morrissey, "The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get" 6
8. Smashing Pumpkins, "Disarm" 6
19. James, "Laid," 5
5. Alice in Chains, "No Excuses" 4
4. Crash Test Dummies, "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm" 3
2. Tori Amos, "God" 3
12. Charlatans UK, "Can't Get Out of Bed" 3
16. Soundgarden, Spoonman" 2
18. Pearl Jam, "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter..." 1
13. Fury in the Slaughterhouse, "Every Generation..." 1
11. Counting Crows, "Mr. Jones" 1
9. Sheryl Crow, "Leaving Las Vegas" 1
7. Elvis Costello, "13 Steps Lead Down" 1
14. Cracker, "Get Off This" 0
15. Green Day, "Longview" 0
20. General Public, "I'll Take You There" 0


LimbsKing, Monday, 7 April 2014 15:23 (ten years ago) link

God, sometimes you're a stone cold fool.

take a piece of mr. baxter's hand (how's life), Monday, 7 April 2014 15:26 (ten years ago) link

Oh shit, I didn't mean you LimbsKing!

take a piece of mr. baxter's hand (how's life), Monday, 7 April 2014 15:27 (ten years ago) link

That's just how I heard the Tori Amos lyric.

take a piece of mr. baxter's hand (how's life), Monday, 7 April 2014 15:27 (ten years ago) link

Favorite here is either "Loser" or "Longview", but I'm going for "Return to Innocence" just to make sure it gets a vote

Frontier Psychiatrist, Monday, 7 April 2014 15:28 (ten years ago) link

Best of these is Backwater though. Expect the poll to basically be Backwater vs. No Excuses.

take a piece of mr. baxter's hand (how's life), Monday, 7 April 2014 15:29 (ten years ago) link

Ha. No offense taken.

I feel like the poll theme is heavily Nirvana-skewed, and yet I love "All Apologies" the best. I am torn.

LimbsKing, Monday, 7 April 2014 15:31 (ten years ago) link

Kinda baffled that Enigma actually managed to place this high, though I guess that's just a testament to the variety of this chart

Frontier Psychiatrist, Monday, 7 April 2014 15:33 (ten years ago) link

Am I the only one that's never heard of Fury in the Slaughterhouse

LimbsKing, Monday, 7 April 2014 16:39 (ten years ago) link

I like that Fury in the Slaughterhouse song, had it on a promo compilation cd that had a bunch of these songs, including the one I voted for, "Leaving Las Vegas"

Euler, Monday, 7 April 2014 16:48 (ten years ago) link

Hits Post Modern Syndrome - Happy Whatever

Tracks :

1 The Grays - Very Best Years
2 E - The Only Thing I Care About
3 Levellers - This Garden
4 Slowdive - Alison
5 Catherine Wheel - Wish You Were Here
6 Kristen Hersh - Your Ghost
7 Yo La Tengo - From a Motel 6
8 Possum Dixon - Watch the Girl Destroy Me
9 Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine - Lean on Me
10 Redd Kross - Lady in the Front Row
11 Lucy's Fur Coat - Treasure Hands
12 Meat Puppets - Backwater
13 Sheryl Crow - Leaving Las Vegas
14 Eve's Plum - I Want It All
15 Best Kissers in the World - Bleeder
16 The Other - Two Selfish
17 Fury in the Slaughterhouse - Every Generation Got Its Own Disease
18 Course of Empire - Infested
19 Dead Can Dance - The Carnival Is Over
20 October Project - Return to Me

Euler, Monday, 7 April 2014 16:51 (ten years ago) link

I don't remember Fury in the Slaughterhouse at all.

For me this is "Backwater" by quite a large margin.

cwkiii, Monday, 7 April 2014 16:52 (ten years ago) link

gotta pinch myself: a Charlatans UK single charting in '94

Bryan Fairy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 7 April 2014 16:53 (ten years ago) link

What I love:

Meat Puppets
Morrissey

What I Like:

James
Tori Amos
Green Day
Elvis C

Bryan Fairy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Monday, 7 April 2014 16:54 (ten years ago) link

man i want so badly to vote for backwater but all apologies is just a great great song

Corpsepaint Counterpaint (jjjusten), Monday, 7 April 2014 16:59 (ten years ago) link

anybody thinking about voting for spoonman needs to take a long hard look at themselves and the terrible decisions that have led them to this point

Corpsepaint Counterpaint (jjjusten), Monday, 7 April 2014 17:00 (ten years ago) link

THE ROCKETS COME AT US SIDEWAYS

cwkiii, Monday, 7 April 2014 17:04 (ten years ago) link

for me this was between Sheryl Crow, James, Counting Crows, and Fury in the Slaughterhouse

not artists I care about much beyond those songs, though! one hit wonders/"wonders" as far as I'm concerned

Euler, Monday, 7 April 2014 17:05 (ten years ago) link

I ultimately voted for Nirvana. Runners up:

3. Enigma, "Return to Innocence"
5. Alice in Chains, "No Excuses"
8. Smashing Pumpkins, "Disarm"
17. Meat Puppets, "Backwater"
18. Pearl Jam, "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter..."
19. James, "Laid"

LimbsKing, Monday, 7 April 2014 17:53 (ten years ago) link

And now it's exactly 20 years from when Cobain's death was reported

LimbsKing, Tuesday, 8 April 2014 18:37 (ten years ago) link

Probably "Backwater," but I may throw a dark horse vote to "Get Off This."

bi-polar uncle (its OK-he's dead) (Phil D.), Tuesday, 8 April 2014 18:55 (ten years ago) link

I'm surprised how many of these I like.

EveningStar (Sund4r), Wednesday, 9 April 2014 21:32 (ten years ago) link

As a Phoenix resident, have to vote Backwater.

good and relaxing like akon dont matter (intheblanks), Wednesday, 9 April 2014 22:19 (ten years ago) link

The Meat Puppets recently played a packed hometown show and the crowd went totally nuts during Backwater, which is definitely influencing my vote here.

good and relaxing like akon dont matter (intheblanks), Wednesday, 9 April 2014 22:21 (ten years ago) link

Seriously, I could vote for so many of these. But, then, this was my prime engagement period with alt-rock radio so I have fond memories of lots of this stuff. I could reasonably argue for any of these:

5. Alice in Chains, "No Excuses"
6. Beck, "Loser"
8. Smashing Pumpkins, "Disarm"
10. Nirvana, "All Apologies"
11. Counting Crows, "Mr. Jones"
14. Cracker, "Get Off This"
15. Green Day, "Longview"
16. Soundgarden, Spoonman"
17. Meat Puppets, "Backwater"
18. Pearl Jam, "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter..."
19. James, "Laid,"

an enormous bolus of flatulence (jon /via/ chi 2.0), Wednesday, 9 April 2014 22:21 (ten years ago) link

Voted for Soundgarden because it deserved a vote.

Loud guitars shit all over "Bette Davis Eyes" (NYCNative), Wednesday, 9 April 2014 23:06 (ten years ago) link

I voted for whoever rammed that fucking time capsule up their own arse forever.

xelab, Wednesday, 9 April 2014 23:33 (ten years ago) link

this is between "Laid," ""Loser," "Can't Get Out of Bed" and yes "Spoonman." voting James.

Bee OK, Thursday, 10 April 2014 01:35 (ten years ago) link

All songs I recognize from the titles and like a fair bit:

. Morrissey, "The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get"
2. Tori Amos, "God"
10. Nirvana, "All Apologies"
15. Green Day, "Longview"
16. Soundgarden, Spoonman"
18. Pearl Jam, "Elderly Woman Behind the Counter..."
19. James, "Laid,"

Might give it to Morrissey. Despite his many faults, that one still gets in my head; love the "Beware, I bear more grudges/ than lonely High Court judges" bit.

EveningStar (Sund4r), Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:03 (ten years ago) link

Meat Puppets

I got the glares, the mutterings, the snarls (President Keyes), Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:04 (ten years ago) link

oh god my freshman year roommate had that fury in the slaughterhouse album aaaa

maura, Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:21 (ten years ago) link

voted for backwater btw

maura, Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:21 (ten years ago) link

Hm, the Morrissey song might be my least favourite when I listen to them right now. Leaning towards Pearl Jam of all things.

EveningStar (Sund4r), Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:40 (ten years ago) link

Too many grisy memories of singing that PJ with my best bros.

Bryan Fairy (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn), Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:41 (ten years ago) link

lol

EveningStar (Sund4r), Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:42 (ten years ago) link

lot of songs i'm indifferent to or tired of from albums i like/love. "Laid" over "God," i guess.

some dude, Thursday, 10 April 2014 02:49 (ten years ago) link

Going with All Apologies

lolipsism (Drugs A. Money), Thursday, 10 April 2014 10:57 (ten years ago) link

charlatans. just so it gets a vote.

mr.raffles, Friday, 11 April 2014 01:09 (ten years ago) link

No Excuses

Mr. Snrub, Friday, 11 April 2014 01:51 (ten years ago) link

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

System, Sunday, 13 April 2014 00:01 (ten years ago) link

Charlatans, so it has a few votes. That album it's from holds up really well.

dlp9001, Sunday, 13 April 2014 00:08 (ten years ago) link

yeap, but i still love that band. they were always so much fun live.

Bee OK, Sunday, 13 April 2014 00:13 (ten years ago) link

i only have isolated, persistent feelings of 90s nostalgia, really only still listen regularly to nirvana of the music of the era - and when i think abt 'the 90s' the impressions that come to mind aren't amazing. too much general non-music-related aversion keeps me from ever really wanting to come back to 14-year-old me

but looking at this list, it's like, wow, there was a time when i could just sit there playing alt rock radio 24-7 and feel like it was all good

j., Sunday, 13 April 2014 01:13 (ten years ago) link

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

System, Monday, 14 April 2014 00:01 (ten years ago) link

"All Apologies" is a great song but I feel like I've seen it on the top of a thousand Nirvana lists over the past week. It's their "Imagine".

▴▲ ▴TH3CR()$BY$H()W▴▲ ▴ (Adam Bruneau), Monday, 14 April 2014 01:36 (ten years ago) link

i saw one list with it at #1 recently but i thought that was an aberration, seems like "SLTS" is always #1 (unless it's something else totally contrarian/obscure)

some dude, Monday, 14 April 2014 01:43 (ten years ago) link

The unplugged version is their "In My Life"

LimbsKing, Monday, 14 April 2014 02:42 (ten years ago) link


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