Some music years are very good, some are not.

What are your favorite and least favorite music years since 1990? And why? Let's discuss!

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I've made a website with personal charts by year (--> in my signature). All tracks I like more than avarage are mentioned on those pages. All styles, mainstream or not, as long as I like it. And I have to say I like 'electronic' music.

Below is the amount of tracks by year. You'll see 1992 / 2001 / 2005 peaks.

1990: 48 tracks
1991: 55 tracks (Btw: early 1991, I started 'seriously' listening music.)
1992: 75 tracks (Good tracks in many genres.)
1993: 50 tracks
1994: 27 tracks (No bad personal memories. I just don't like the 1994 sound.)
1995: 43 tracks
1996: 41 tracks
1997: 32 tracks
1998: 36 tracks
1999: 43 tracks
2000: 50 tracks
2001: 73 tracks (I like the relaxed vibe of that year.)
2002: 63 tracks
2003: 59 tracks
2004: 41 tracks (Felt quote 'cold'.)
2005: 70 tracks (Felt less cold than the year before.)
2006: 61 tracks

Both decades have got a bad 4th year...  :o

Extra question:

What do you think about the music of 2007, so far?

I'm not really enthousiast. And I don't exactly know why.

For me, almost anything past 1997 is the worst.  A few good songs have slipped through beyond 1997, but looking in the mainstream for the US and Canada, not a whole lot of good songs that I liked

Btw, I think it's a) a matter of demand and b) a matter of taste. It's a combination.

I personally don't like the 'Cheiron style' (Britney Spears when she started, Backstreet Boys and others) and maybe that's the reason 'late nineties' isn't my favorite musical period.

People who are totally crazy about extremely slick sounding music had the time of their life in the late nineties. Besides the names above, there was a lot of smooth r&b music. TOO smooth for me. And the clubtrance sound which was popular in the same period... I like electronic music, but not that substyle.

I'm European, maybe that explains something.

1994: 27 tracks (No bad personal memories. I just don't like the 1994 sound.)


Both decades have got a bad 4th year...  :o
1994 was loaded with classic albums. Its regarded by most music lovers as the last great 90's year for music.

What about the 94 "sound" did you not like? Grunge was dying, yet a few of those bands released their best material. Live released its breakthrough album. Women artists(specifically in rock) started being taken seriously after some incredible 94 releases(Liz Phair, Veruca Salt, Elastica,etc.). The pop scene was huge(Ace of Base, Mariah Carey, Tevin Campbell,Hootie and the Blowfish, etc.), rap had a breakthrough artist(Snoop) ruling the charts, and rock/metal seen incredible albums from the likes of NIN, Danzig, Collective Soul,etc., and even country had a megastar kicking some ass(Garth Brooks). Also, Seal's best album was released that year, and became HUGE in 1995.

Basically fans of any musical genre had something to be happy about.

I don't know... It's a certain 'feel'. Undefinable.

On this page of my website are the 1994 tracks I've selected, the tracks I like more than average.

You have so many amazing tracks from 1994 not on your list its not even funny.

How old were you in 1994?

You mainly have some dance music and a few hits as your music list for 1994, yet your site has the slogan "For open minded people only".


Your 1991 list is laughable, although I give you props for including Ziggy's Kosmic. Sadly, thats a forgotten track by many. You dont even have anything from GNR's Use Your Illusion on that list, which was a huge craze at the time of its release(literally lines at every record store), and sold tons of albums.

1999-2000 is a time I would rather forget. Too many boy bands/Britney/Xtina on the radio at the time.  :(

The late 90's still had TLC, Lauryn Hill and Aaliyah making hits so it wasn't too bad IMO. I just ignored all the popiness that was going on.  :-\\

Still I would choose '94 as the best music year. Maybe 2005 or '06 as the worst years.

You know what was great about that peak '90s time (1991-1996 centrally)? The fact that so many genres were co-existing. Also, "older/classic" music and artists seemed to pervade more back then, and even in the Y2K era than they do now. If you didn't like one thing, it was easily avoidable in favor of something else. The radio was still more diverse, since the Telecommunications Act/clear channel period hadn't started yet.

1991 and '92 were great because they still had some late '80s nuggets mixed in with the burgeoning Nineties sound, so it was a good mix. 1993 and '94 were like the absolute peak of grunge, AC and songs like "The Sign" or reggae-pop. 1995 and '96 were quite laid back in an urban way (R&B seemed like it was quite big then), so it was basically a bunch of mini eras all thrown in with some themes tying them together.

I would say from 1998 to 2002. Awful awful crap came out during this time period. I know some people on here still think it's bad now,but they have to admit that music is waaay better now than it was between these years.

I would say from 1998 to 2002. Awful awful crap came out during this time period. I know some people on here still think it's bad now,but they have to admit that music is waaay better now than it was between these years.


Idk I think the late 90s and early 2000s were way better than now, just look at the charts. Compare some of the hip-hop, Lose Yourself >>>> Party Like a Rockstar. You had pop like Shakira (before she released crappy hips don't lie), Michelle Branch, Kylie Minogue's comeback in 02, Dido, Train, Pink, Vanessa Carlton, Enrique Iglesias, etc. Of course some of those remain popular, but not as many good pop artists now as then and not as much in the spotlight compared to horrid artists like T-Pain. No Doubt still putting out good music, especially "Hella Good", that song owns Gwen's very mediocre imo 2007 hit "The Sweet Escape". Hip-hop/ r&b especially was in a totally different league in those days, real R&B artists like Craig David, Ginuwine, Musiq, Toni Braxton, Whitney, still topping the charts with quality music.

Best music years were from like 1994-1997. 1998-2002 was also good, 2003-2005 was ok.

Worst is 2006 and 2007.

Idk I think the late 90s and early 2000s were way better than now, just look at the charts. Compare some of the hip-hop, Lose Yourself >>>> Party Like a Rockstar. You had pop like Shakira (before she released crappy hips don't lie), Michelle Branch, Kylie Minogue's comeback in 02, Dido, Train, Pink, Vanessa Carlton, Enrique Iglesias, etc. Of course some of those remain popular, but not as many good pop artists now as then and not as much in the spotlight compared to horrid artists like T-Pain. No Doubt still putting out good music, especially "Hella Good", that song owns Gwen's very mediocre imo 2007 hit "The Sweet Escape". Hip-hop/ r&b especially was in a totally different league in those days, real R&B artists like Craig David, Ginuwine, Musiq, Toni Braxton, Whitney, still topping the charts with quality music.


You got a point there. But when i think about those years the first thing that comes to my mind is boybands and girl groups maybe thats why i'm so jadded about that time period. Yeah i'll admit there is alot of boring stuff on the radio right now like The Fray and Elliot Yamin and all those other piano bands that just put me to sleep.

You got a point there. But when i think about those years the first thing that comes to my mind is boybands and girl groups maybe thats why i'm so jadded about that time period. Yeah i'll admit there is alot of boring stuff on the radio right now like The Fray and Elliot Yamin and all those other bands that just put me to sleep.


Yeah I know what you mean bout the teen pop, especially in 99 and 00, which is why the mid '90s were better than late '90s/early '00s overall, but there was other stuff too that I remember that was quite good, not to mention I'd rather listen to "Bye Bye Bye" than "Buy U A Drank". There's always been bad music of course, but man it's really been sticking out lately to me more than ever the last 2 years as I mentioned. I guess the best solution is to not care about whatever crappy songs become popular and just enjoy the music that you like, which I am trying to do more. lol.

Yeah I know what you mean bout the teen pop, especially in 99 and 00, which is why the mid '90s were better than late '90s/early '00s overall, but there was other stuff too that I remember that was quite good, not to mention I'd rather listen to "Bye Bye Bye" than "Buy U A Drank". There's always been bad music of course, but man it's really been sticking out lately to me more than ever the last 2 years as I mentioned. I guess the best solution is to not care about whatever crappy songs become popular and just enjoy the music that you like, which I am trying to do more. lol.

Hey we all have our different opinions. That's what makes this country great!  :)
And I think the early/mid 90s is Probably the best. Even better than some of today's stuff! But most of my favorite music was made before 1990.

You got a point there. But when i think about those years the first thing that comes to my mind is boybands and girl groups maybe thats why i'm so jadded about that time period. Yeah i'll admit there is alot of boring stuff on the radio right now like The Fray and Elliot Yamin and all those other piano bands that just put me to sleep.

I like "Over My Head", but yeah, I think I get what you're saying. A band like The Fray sort of symbolize the mid-late '00s music scene in that there's a couple good songs, but not really any classic, groundbreaking albums. What they're doing isn't bad per se, it just lacks in originality and the couple singles are the better songs. If you replace the slightly Coldplay-esque vocals, they could've easily been from the late '90s.

Would anyone else agree that maybe 2002 was the last year that fit the "future oldies" bill, in terms of genres or pop songs that tended to be classics? Something like "A Thousand Miles" or the "Drift Away" cover. Real R&B seemed to still be dominating more then. And it was sort of the last gasp for veterans like Aerosmith in terms of coming out with new material that kinda equalled their older stuff in terms of popularity (they're still big names and live acts, of course, though).

Maybe it was when CD stores started noticeably declining that music did too (commercially, at least)? I noticed a huge shift in 2002-'04 with stores closing. Things like that, along with piracy and lack of CD sales probably all goes hand in hand as for why the industry has kinda declined.

I like "Over My Head", but yeah, I think I get what you're saying. A band like The Fray sort of symbolize the mid-late '00s music scene in that there's a couple good songs, but not really any classic, groundbreaking albums. What they're doing isn't bad per se, it just lacks in originality and the couple singles are the better songs. If you replace the slightly Coldplay-esque vocals, they could've easily been from the late '90s.

Would anyone else agree that maybe 2002 was the last year that fit the "future oldies" bill, in terms of genres or pop songs that tended to be classics? Something like "A Thousand Miles" or the "Drift Away" cover. Real R&B seemed to still be dominating more then, too.

Maybe it was when CD stores started noticeably declining that music did too (commercially, at least)? I noticed a huge shift in 2002-'04 with stores closing.


I really miss 2002 Marty, lol.

I really miss 2002 Marty, lol.


Me too, lol. You know what's very weird about 2002? Honestly, it's not very different from the present. It could probably pass for today very easily, especially if you didn't know the area you were in. Most of the musical genres were the same, or at least were forming. Yet it was alot more tied to the past, so it's quite old-school in that regard.

Me too, lol. You know what's very weird about 2002? Honestly, it's not very different from the present. It could probably pass for today very easily, especially if you didn't know the area you were in. Most of the musical genres were the same, or at least were forming. Yet it was alot more tied to the past, so it's quite old-school in that regard.


The difference is less crap more good stuff.

I remember "Can't Get You Out My Head", "Whenever, Wherever", "Hella Good", "Just Like A Pill", "Wherever You Will Go", etc. so much good stuff from 2002.

The difference is less crap more good stuff.


There's still some good new music. But in 2007, it's getting less airplay. It's become more difficult for a good track to reach the radio listeners. Format radio and such things destroy a lot.

It depends on your taste, though. I like electronic music, but good electronic music & radio in 2007: A bad combination. Only some internet stations play it. In the Netherlands (where I live), people are into... jump!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Op3_QT3pr0Q (Dj Porny - Me so h*rny | ex-number 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4OnXTahA4c (Patrick Jumpen - Holiday | top 10)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_a5QYFwhGE (Dj Porny - Je t'aime Porny | a hit at the moment)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y71Qs5PjApg (The Jumpers - Blue da ba de | becoming a hit)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwmdHYUd4kA (Jekyll & Hide - Freefall | ex-number 1)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gEiHFdMwiU (Jekyll & Hide - Frozen flame | was a hit, in my opinion the best commercial jumpstyle track but it will never be a personal favorite...)

:\'(

Worst is 2006 and 2007.
I'm gonna agree with Brian here & say the year 2006, especially after watching VH1's The World Series of Pop Culture in which 2 contestants were given lyrics and asked to name the "artist" & I use the term artist very loosely. They had to name the singer who sang the lyrics.  they made history in that neither was able to answer any of the 6 questions, and had no clue about the songs of 2006. Never before had a category not been given at least one answer & these guys weren't old. Viewing the lyrics of songs by Shakira, Christina Aguilera, Nelly Furtado, Fergie, and such made me realize what a deprived year 2006 was for music but that's my opinion.

Fergie... Shrill voice, no substance, just marketing and some clever producers (to be honest). I don't believe anything she's singing.

Typisch 00's, bad or simply extremely commercial artists trying to look and sound edgy. With some 'cool' electro/retro sounds and such things. And by choosing the right producers and the right stylists (who understand the current coolest streetwise looks perfectly), sometimes they succeed. If you are about 13/14 years old, it's difficult to see what's fake and what's not. Many music of today is quite deceptive.

But to be honest, I think much of that manufactured edginess still sounds better than the late nineties Britney etc.-sound. If you don't think about the background of the artist...

Idk I think the late 90s and early 2000s were way better than now, just look at the charts. Compare some of the hip-hop, Lose Yourself >>>> Party Like a Rockstar. You had pop like Shakira (before she released crappy hips don't lie), Michelle Branch, Kylie Minogue's comeback in 02, Dido, Train, Pink, Vanessa Carlton, Enrique Iglesias, etc. Of course some of those remain popular, but not as many good pop artists now as then and not as much in the spotlight compared to horrid artists like T-Pain. No Doubt still putting out good music, especially "Hella Good", that song owns Gwen's very mediocre imo 2007 hit "The Sweet Escape". Hip-hop/ r&b especially was in a totally different league in those days, real R&B artists like Craig David, Ginuwine, Musiq, Toni Braxton, Whitney, still topping the charts with quality music.
Kylie's comeback came unexcepted in 02 in my opinion. Yeah I liked Craig David back in 2001 and Ginuwine had a nice run there for awhile from about 1996-early 2003. Toni Braxton: I liked "He Wasn;t Man Enough" in 2000. Your right Musiq put some good stuff. You forgot about like an R&B artist like Faith Evans she made some good music from 1996-2005. Everybody forgets how important Faith Evans was for the mid 90-early 00's R&B scene in that her work as a artist just flys under the radar so easy in my opinion.

I don;t get whats so good about T-Pain. I mean "I'm Sprung" was an okay song in mid 2005 but the stuff he is putting now I can't stand to listen to it. "Buy U A Drank" is terrible and unlistenable but yet it went to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100.

BTW, I think I'm starting to feel like I;m 40 years old again in 2007 like I did in 1999-2000 when the boybands and Britney were on top of the world. Maybe its every 8 years that music goes through a recession of some sort I mean 2007 is terrible as was 1999 and 2000 mainly because of Britney and 1991 had some corney stuff like Rico Sauve, and "I'm Too Sexy" by Right Said Fred.

Me too, lol. You know what's very weird about 2002? Honestly, it's not very different from the present. It could probably pass for today very easily, especially if you didn't know the area you were in. Most of the musical genres were the same, or at least were forming. Yet it was alot more tied to the past, so it's quite old-school in that regard.
Yeah but in 2002 Hip-Hop wasn't all over the place like it was from 2003-early 2006.

Viewing the lyrics of songs by Shakira, Christina Aguilera, Nelly Furtado, Fergie, and such made me realize what a deprived year 2006 was for music but that's my opinion.
I think Nelly Furtado put out some good stuff in 2006/early 2007. "Hips Don;t Lie" by Shakira was terrible but than again it did go #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 so I guess somebody liked it.

Kylie's comeback came unexcepted in 02 in my opinion. Yeah I liked Craig David back in 2001 and Ginuwine had a nice run there for awhile from about 1996-early 2003. Toni Braxton: I liked "He Wasn;t Man Enough" in 2000. Your right Musiq put some good stuff. You forgot about like an R&B artist like Faith Evans she made some good music from 1996-2005. Everybody forgets how important Faith Evans was for the mid 90-early 00's R&B scene in that her work as a artist just flys under the radar so easy in my opinion.

I don;t get whats so good about T-Pain. I mean "I'm Sprung" was an okay song in mid 2005 but the stuff he is putting now I can't stand to listen to it.


Yeah I can't stand his new stuff. You're right about Faith Evans, I have heard some of her stuff just forgot to list her. There's some other artists too I'm sure that I haven't listed.

Yeah but in 2002 Hip-Hop wasn't all over the place like it was from 2003-early 2006.


Is hip-hop really not all over the place now, look at the hot 100, it's all hip-hop almost lol. It is selling less though, but radio play is still as high as ever for the time being.

Yeah but in 2002 Hip-Hop wasn't all over the place like it was from 2003-early 2006.


True, I think hip hop switched from being one genre of music to the main genre around 2003. I also agree, Kylie's comeback was literally from out of nowhere. I was as surprised as anyone when it happened. While not a big fan, I did like her cover of "The Loco Motion".

Is hip-hop really not all over the place now, look at the hot 100, it's all hip-hop almost lol. It is selling less though, but radio play is still as high as ever for the time being.
Yeah it seems like the hit single is more important right now than album sales for now in terms of gaging a hip-hop artists success.

Yeah it seems like the hit single is more important right now than album sales for now in terms of gaging a hip-hop artists success.


All the more sign hip-hop is dead I guess, everything new is just a novelty single, no classic albums worth buying anymore.