Date: Oct 17, 1998
Weeks: 1
It's kind of surprising to me that there is so little representation of anything from the 90s "alternative" movement on the list. I guess it wasn't as popular as all the "you can't call it 'alternative' when it's so popular" people led me to believe. This song is about as close as this list comes to a 90s alternative song. I'm sure lots of people would argue that this was the moment when Barenaked Ladies crossed over from alternative to pop, but just the fact that they were alternative before is enough to qualify. Heck, this is probably also the closest thing to a grunge song on the list, and that's pretty appalling.
At any rate, I really like this song. I think Barenaked Ladies are a fun band who walk a very fine line between They Might Be Giants-style goofy novelty songs and conventional pop music, and they wind up being good at both. I'm really impressed that their one No. 1 hit is a bit on the goofy side, too, with lines like "Watching X-Files with no lights on... I hope the Smoking Man's in this one." I love the goofy, light rap verses in this song. They're charmingly nerdy. I also respect the variety of lyrics in the chorus, and the silly construction. "You just did just what I thought you were gonna do" is a line that would feel clunky in any other song, but it fits perfectly in here. The overall meaning is kind of fun, too. It seems to be about a couple that had a fight and are on the path to making up, and the singer is telling us that they might and make up often enough that he knows how long it will take to go through their pattern and reconcile. There's no sense of tragedy to it, it's just about two people who know each other well.
The music is nicely straightforward guitar and drum 90s rock. There's some occasional punctuation by what sounds like a trumpet, but I don't detect any synthesizer here. In particular, the chords in the chorus are strong. They give the song a decent power that grabs your attention and makes you notice when the song is on. I like the contrast between the light verse and the heavy chorus. It helps the chorus feel bigger and better.
My verdict: Like it. It's just plan fun, and I think it's a great introduction to a really good band. Although I think my favorite song by them is "Falling For The First Time."
Showing posts with label 1998. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 1998. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 13, 2012
Monday, October 3, 2011
Song #825: "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion
Date: Feb 28, 1998
Weeks: 2
I've always liked the movie Titanic. I never bought into it as some classic romance story, I just thought it was an effective disaster movie, where the romance story was crucial to giving the disaster story emotional weight. This song, on the other hand, has some significant problems.
The biggest issue is that the version of the song that charted, the version embedded above, is overproduced in just the right way to drain away most of the emotional charm. The soundtrack version is a more effective, simpler piece of music that matches the movie score pretty well. It fits, and carries a genuine, if soft, emotion. The single version just adds more to the mix. There are extra windchimes and little plucky harp noises. The drums start up much sooner and get much bigger. There are unnecessary background singers. There's that 90s power ballad electric guitar for no reason except that's how you make a cheesy power ballad in the 90s. And the effect I hate the most is the vocal echo that is applied to Celine Dion's voice, especially in her very last "My heart will go on and ooon (on on on on)." It doesn't sound like she's singing it in an echo-y concert hall or stadium. It just sounds like a fake effect applied for emphasis, and it doesn't need to be there.
The music that works is the flute and the strings, which exactly what the soundtrack version of the song consists of. I even like how the soundtrack version builds in intensity and adds in some light drums when they are appropriate. The soundtrack song isn't the greatest thing ever, being kind of slow and plodding and overdramatic even for a song about the Titanic, but it is an effective song to match the movie's score. The overproduction in the single version ruins the parts of the original song that work. At least the version with movie sounds didn't gain too much traction, because it's dreadful.
Celine Dion is a good singer. She gained a reputation for oversinging later in her career, but here I think she gives the song the drama that is necessary. She matches the music, she's quiet and subtle when she needs to be, and she sings big when the song gets big. I like her performance here.
The lyrics are decent. They're a lost love. Obviously in the movie, that lost love is lost to death, but there's room to interpret the lyrics as referring to an old relationship that is over but still remembered fondly. "Far across the distance and spaces between us" can have either meaning. These lyrics walk that fine line between being generic and being universal, so I generally give them a pass. Except for one passage. "Love was when I loved you." Generally pop songs get mocked for using the word "love" that much in such a short space. It's immediately followed up with "One true time I hold to." That's a pretty generic lyric, too. It's not that it's badly written, exactly, but it just doesn't sound right. It doesn't flow, with all those "t" and "o" sounds so awkwardly placed. Coming so soon after the word "love" twice, it just doesn't sound good. It's an awkward part of a set of lyrics that's okay at best.
My verdict: Don't like it. I might have a harder time making this decision if I was judging the soundtrack version. But the annoying overproduction in the single version makes it easy.
Weeks: 2
I've always liked the movie Titanic. I never bought into it as some classic romance story, I just thought it was an effective disaster movie, where the romance story was crucial to giving the disaster story emotional weight. This song, on the other hand, has some significant problems.
The biggest issue is that the version of the song that charted, the version embedded above, is overproduced in just the right way to drain away most of the emotional charm. The soundtrack version is a more effective, simpler piece of music that matches the movie score pretty well. It fits, and carries a genuine, if soft, emotion. The single version just adds more to the mix. There are extra windchimes and little plucky harp noises. The drums start up much sooner and get much bigger. There are unnecessary background singers. There's that 90s power ballad electric guitar for no reason except that's how you make a cheesy power ballad in the 90s. And the effect I hate the most is the vocal echo that is applied to Celine Dion's voice, especially in her very last "My heart will go on and ooon (on on on on)." It doesn't sound like she's singing it in an echo-y concert hall or stadium. It just sounds like a fake effect applied for emphasis, and it doesn't need to be there.
The music that works is the flute and the strings, which exactly what the soundtrack version of the song consists of. I even like how the soundtrack version builds in intensity and adds in some light drums when they are appropriate. The soundtrack song isn't the greatest thing ever, being kind of slow and plodding and overdramatic even for a song about the Titanic, but it is an effective song to match the movie's score. The overproduction in the single version ruins the parts of the original song that work. At least the version with movie sounds didn't gain too much traction, because it's dreadful.
Celine Dion is a good singer. She gained a reputation for oversinging later in her career, but here I think she gives the song the drama that is necessary. She matches the music, she's quiet and subtle when she needs to be, and she sings big when the song gets big. I like her performance here.
The lyrics are decent. They're a lost love. Obviously in the movie, that lost love is lost to death, but there's room to interpret the lyrics as referring to an old relationship that is over but still remembered fondly. "Far across the distance and spaces between us" can have either meaning. These lyrics walk that fine line between being generic and being universal, so I generally give them a pass. Except for one passage. "Love was when I loved you." Generally pop songs get mocked for using the word "love" that much in such a short space. It's immediately followed up with "One true time I hold to." That's a pretty generic lyric, too. It's not that it's badly written, exactly, but it just doesn't sound right. It doesn't flow, with all those "t" and "o" sounds so awkwardly placed. Coming so soon after the word "love" twice, it just doesn't sound good. It's an awkward part of a set of lyrics that's okay at best.
My verdict: Don't like it. I might have a harder time making this decision if I was judging the soundtrack version. But the annoying overproduction in the single version makes it easy.
Thursday, July 14, 2011
Song #829: "My All" by Mariah Carey
Date: May 23, 1998
Weeks: 1
I just realized the other day that for someone with as many No. 1 songs as Mariah Carey, it was surprising that I hadn't encountered her yet. Only the Beatles have more, and I've already done two of theirs.
Mariah Carey's voice is, as always, excellent. Here's a singer with a great sense of how to embellish her singing without straying so far from the melody that it takes away from the song itself. In this case, her vocals are the featured component and the music is secondary, so she has to carry the song and make it interesting. And she does a great job of that.
The music is pretty dull. Obviously this was intended as a sexy slow song, and the music is doing what it's supposed to do. It lays down a sexy slow beat for Mariah Carey to sing over. So it's pretty quiet. There are a lot of instruments involved in making so little music, including a wide variety of percussion, a lightly strummed guitar, and a string section, but it does create the sexy environment it's going for. The music is well-crafted, to be sure. It achieves its goal.
With lyrics like "I'd give my all to have just one more night with you," the message is one of regret and longing. It kind of sums up nostalgia for a relationship that didn't work out, a desire to revisit the past, an urge to reconcile and get back together, or just a desire to hook up with an ex for the short-term benefit of a one-night stand. The lyrics manage to touch on all that.
My verdict: Like it. I'm not sure I would seek this out to listen to for fun, but I can't deny that it's well-constructed and meets its goal.
Weeks: 1
I just realized the other day that for someone with as many No. 1 songs as Mariah Carey, it was surprising that I hadn't encountered her yet. Only the Beatles have more, and I've already done two of theirs.
Mariah Carey's voice is, as always, excellent. Here's a singer with a great sense of how to embellish her singing without straying so far from the melody that it takes away from the song itself. In this case, her vocals are the featured component and the music is secondary, so she has to carry the song and make it interesting. And she does a great job of that.
The music is pretty dull. Obviously this was intended as a sexy slow song, and the music is doing what it's supposed to do. It lays down a sexy slow beat for Mariah Carey to sing over. So it's pretty quiet. There are a lot of instruments involved in making so little music, including a wide variety of percussion, a lightly strummed guitar, and a string section, but it does create the sexy environment it's going for. The music is well-crafted, to be sure. It achieves its goal.
With lyrics like "I'd give my all to have just one more night with you," the message is one of regret and longing. It kind of sums up nostalgia for a relationship that didn't work out, a desire to revisit the past, an urge to reconcile and get back together, or just a desire to hook up with an ex for the short-term benefit of a one-night stand. The lyrics manage to touch on all that.
My verdict: Like it. I'm not sure I would seek this out to listen to for fun, but I can't deny that it's well-constructed and meets its goal.
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Song #828: "Too Close" by Next
Date: Apr 25, 1998
Weeks: 5
Random Youtube comment from the above video: "Most discrete song about getting a boner of all time!" Other than confusing "discrete" with "discreet", and probably meaning "subtle" anyway, and being totally wrong about anything in this song being either discreet or subtle, I think this person is exactly right.
That's pretty much all this song is about, too. The guy goes to the dance club and goes grind-dancing close to a women. He describes how she's getting him excited, and then she comments that she can tell because she can feel ... something that is left to our imaginations. But I think we can guess what it is. Him: "I love when you shake it like that." Her: "I see that you like it like that."
The writers of Saturday Night Live couldn't make a better spoof of dance club grinding music if they tried. I don't know what Next was trying to say by making this song. Were they addressing the most obvious problem with grinding in an attempt to de-stigmatize it? So the women in the dance club wouldn't be surprised when it happened? Is this an attempt at conditioning so they can keep on dancing the way they like without getting interrupted? I'm grasping for a logical explanation, when all I can really come up with is that this is a failed joke.
The music is pretty lousy and generic bass-and-drum soft R&B stuff, and doesn't even seem like very good dance music. The singers all sound pretty terrible. "You know what I waAAaaant to do." These guys need Auto-tune, but I guess it's not available yet. This is the quality of performance you'd expect from Saturday Night Live, with their rushed schedule and singers best known for their comedic talent. Are we sure this isn't an SNL sketch that somehow ran to the top of the pop charts?
My verdict: Don't like it. Unintentionally hilarious. And I prefer my humor to be intentional.
Weeks: 5
Random Youtube comment from the above video: "Most discrete song about getting a boner of all time!" Other than confusing "discrete" with "discreet", and probably meaning "subtle" anyway, and being totally wrong about anything in this song being either discreet or subtle, I think this person is exactly right.
That's pretty much all this song is about, too. The guy goes to the dance club and goes grind-dancing close to a women. He describes how she's getting him excited, and then she comments that she can tell because she can feel ... something that is left to our imaginations. But I think we can guess what it is. Him: "I love when you shake it like that." Her: "I see that you like it like that."
The writers of Saturday Night Live couldn't make a better spoof of dance club grinding music if they tried. I don't know what Next was trying to say by making this song. Were they addressing the most obvious problem with grinding in an attempt to de-stigmatize it? So the women in the dance club wouldn't be surprised when it happened? Is this an attempt at conditioning so they can keep on dancing the way they like without getting interrupted? I'm grasping for a logical explanation, when all I can really come up with is that this is a failed joke.
The music is pretty lousy and generic bass-and-drum soft R&B stuff, and doesn't even seem like very good dance music. The singers all sound pretty terrible. "You know what I waAAaaant to do." These guys need Auto-tune, but I guess it's not available yet. This is the quality of performance you'd expect from Saturday Night Live, with their rushed schedule and singers best known for their comedic talent. Are we sure this isn't an SNL sketch that somehow ran to the top of the pop charts?
My verdict: Don't like it. Unintentionally hilarious. And I prefer my humor to be intentional.
Sunday, April 24, 2011
Song #823: "Together Again" by Janet Jackson
Date: Jan 31, 1998
Weeks: 2
This is a happy, bouncy song about people who have passed away.
I joke, but honestly I have to respect the song's tone. The lyrics are about happy memories of a friend, feeling that friend is still around in some way, and looking forward to seeing that friend again in Heaven some day. A lot of songs about that would be slow and maudlin. But this one remembers that its lyrics are ultimately happy, and the result is a bouncy happy dance song.
Most of the music works really well and contributes to the happy spirit of the song. The one point of contention regarding quality might be the bass line, which makes up most of the non-vocal component of this song. Sometimes it strikes me as simplistic, and other times it seems classic. But I like so much of everything else that's going on, I'm willing to meet the song half way.
Because there's not a lot of music beyond the bass line, a lot of the song is riding on Janet Jackson's voice. And she doesn't disappoint. Her voice is softly musical and perfectly matched to the music here. I'm not sure she was always letting herself sing like this. In the 80s she seemed to be trying to be the female Michael Jackson, but she seems to have gotten better in the 90s once she started carving out her own style.
My verdict: Like it. This is a bouncy, deep, well-performed, and fun tune.
Weeks: 2
This is a happy, bouncy song about people who have passed away.
I joke, but honestly I have to respect the song's tone. The lyrics are about happy memories of a friend, feeling that friend is still around in some way, and looking forward to seeing that friend again in Heaven some day. A lot of songs about that would be slow and maudlin. But this one remembers that its lyrics are ultimately happy, and the result is a bouncy happy dance song.
Most of the music works really well and contributes to the happy spirit of the song. The one point of contention regarding quality might be the bass line, which makes up most of the non-vocal component of this song. Sometimes it strikes me as simplistic, and other times it seems classic. But I like so much of everything else that's going on, I'm willing to meet the song half way.
Because there's not a lot of music beyond the bass line, a lot of the song is riding on Janet Jackson's voice. And she doesn't disappoint. Her voice is softly musical and perfectly matched to the music here. I'm not sure she was always letting herself sing like this. In the 80s she seemed to be trying to be the female Michael Jackson, but she seems to have gotten better in the 90s once she started carving out her own style.
My verdict: Like it. This is a bouncy, deep, well-performed, and fun tune.
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