Thursday, December 6, 1990
Two thumbs up:
The Collegian's music critics pick their favorite 1990 recordings
b Gre: Geibel
The Collegian
1. Extreme
Pornograffitti
Pornograffitti is one of the
best albums of 1990. The
talent and diversity shown on
this album outshines any rock
and roll album of the year.
Nuno Bettencourt's guitar
playing is fresh, powerful, and
an emormous step above from
their debut album.
2. Steve Vai
Passion and Warfare
When talking of a solo
album, this one takes the word
"solo" one step further. With
the exception of other
musicians to help with the
album, Vai was the only
person in the studio. There
were no producers, engineers,
or directors in the studio other
than Vai. This album was his
baby, and the end result was
nothing short of genius.
3. Living Colour
Time's Up
With their follow up to
Vivid, Living Colour proved
their place in the music
industry. Time's Up is a very
diverse and powerful album,
stressing the issues of today
while also showcasing each
member's abilities and
attitudes.
4. Flim and the BB's
New Pants
New Pants is the latest
release from Rim and the BB's.
One of the finer albums, this
easy going jazz album makes
for perfect lazy Sunday
listening pleasure.
5. Harry Connick Jr.
We Are in Love
With his latest release, the
23 year old Connick compiled
an album solely of love songs.
Working with top-rated
musicians, Connick has
released his most impressive
recording to date. Some critics
are calling him the next
Sinatra, some are calling him a
wanna-be, I just call him great.
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b Christi Luden
The Collegian
1. Janet Jackson
Rhythm Nation 1814
The best tape of the year!
Every song is full of meaning
and beat. Seven out of 12
songs have been in the Top 5
this year which breaks her
previous record of five off of
her Control tape. Two of my
favorites include "Black Cat"
and "Miss You Much." Janet's
whole Rhythm Nation project
including music, videos, and
shows is the best I've ever
seen.
2. Paula Abdul
Shut Up and Dance
Abdul's remix of her 1989
Forever Your Girl is definitely
worth buying. The outstanding
dancer-singer adds the computer
touches to her old songs and
produces a medley combining
them all at the end. Great dance
music!
3. M.C. Hammer
Please Don't Hurt 'Em
Although Hammer has poor
taste in clothes, his music and
attitude are quite different. The
jacket on his tape contains
some great statements about
God, discrimination, and the
fight against drugs. It's about
time a rap artist sings about
decent topics and has some
substance (Unlike 2 Live
Crew).
4. Heart
Brigade
Great mix of slow love
ballads, heavier songs, and still
one dream-like fantasy song
resembling the pieces from
their 1985 Heart tape. My
favorites are radio hit "I Didn't
Want To Need You" and "Tall
Dark Stranger."
S. Whitney Houston
I'm Your Baby Tonight
Houston continues to use
her beautiful voice to create
works of art. She has added
some quicker-paced music to
offset the slow, love songs,
and a duet with Stevie Wonder
entitled "We Didn't Know."
The Collegian
b Robb Frederick
The Collegian
1. The Black Crowes
Shake Your Money
Maker
The Crowes shot out of Boston
and up the charts with this
selection of chord-driven guitar
rock. The disc captures the
blues-inspired sound of the
early Rolling Stones, and the
band's live performances proved
an attitude to match.
2. Sinead O'Connor
I Do Not Want What I
Have Not Got
Forget about O'Connor's
Andrew "Dice" Clay boycott
and her national anthem
scandal. This album, launched
by the Prince-penned single
"Nothing Compares 2 U,"
clearly established O'Connor as
the first true star for the 90's.
3. Neil Young
Ragged Glory
For this disc, Young
followed a simple formula:
Turn it up and let it go. Once
again backed by his band Crazy
Horse, Young hammered out
ten incinerating tracks. The
band crams its lengthy solos
with distortion and feedback,
redefining the term "garage
rock."
4. Edie Brickell and New
Bohemians
Ghost of a Dog
It's Edie Brickell, and that's
good enough for me.
S. Tesla
Five Max Acoustical Jam
I'm not a Tesla fan, but I
had to buy this when I heard
they did a cover of the Grateful
Dead's "Truckin'." This
recording captures the band
during a stripped-down acoustic
show and proves that Tesla's
talent goes far beyond that of
the average rock band. The
unplugged sound revamps
several of the group's hits, and
revives a few classics hie "We
Can Work It Out" and
"Mother's Little Helper." The
raw cover of "Signs" is
incredible.
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The Collegian
1. Robert Plant
Manic Nirvana
Songs like "Got my eyes
on you" and "Tye Dye on the
Highway" prove this old rocker
still has plenty of punch and
yet, he always manages to
break new ground, a unique
concept for some musicians.
2. Don Henley
The End of the Innocence
Several tracks from this
album made the charts, but
more importantly, Henley has
the ability to combine
elements of Americana, for
better or for worse, into
compelling guitar riffs and
melodies. The title track and
"The Heart of the Matter" will
undoubtedly become Henley
classics.
3. Roger Waters
The Wall
This double live album is a
remake of that epic Pink Floyd
album The Wall. Artists
Sinead O'Connor, Bryan
Adams and Cyndi Lauper give
the songs an appealing flavor.
Because of these suppporting
musicians, this album is more
accesible to listeners unfamiliar
to Pink Floyd music.
4. Patrick O'Hearn
Mix Up
O'Hearn's upbeat New Age
music is remixed by technical
artists who mix dance, rap and
blues influences into some of
his best instrumentals. This
music isn't as discordant and is
more consistant than The Art
of Noise but actually a nice
blend with a heavy emphasis
on base beats.
S. Scorpions
Crazy World
Maybe not as artistically
gifted as some of the other
musicians mentioned, but they
have a distinctive sound.
Songs like "Can't Explain" and
"Tekse Me, Please Me"
emphasize explosive guitars
and fast track lyrics.
Page
John Flick
The Collegian
1. Winger
In The Heart Of The
Young
I "Can't Get Enuff" of this
album! It is the freshest hard rock
album to come out this year,
with everything from Reb
Beach's beautiful guitar work to
the heart-touching voice of Kip
Winger.
2. Phil Collins
But Seriously...
There is a lot of first-rate
talent on this beautiful work.
Eric Clapton's leads on "I Wish It
Would Rain Down" are a prime
example. Phil's voice only gets
better with time.
3. Don Dokken
Up From The Ashes
Don Dokken has teamed up
with a group of talented
individuals to put together a
wonderful collection of songs.
Don's voice gives a haunting aura
to his songs, while the band
plays solidly and tightly.
4. Slaughter
Stick It To Ya
Here is an album that is just
plain fun to listen to. Mark
Slaughter has one of the most
distinctive voices in rock music
today. Listening to the band
gives one the impression that
they were having a blast.
5. Steve Vai
Passion and Warfare
What does he do to that
guitar? Steve Vai puts on a
tremendous show on this solo
work, with his clean sound and
neat licks.
Rolling Stone's
Top 5
. • . . ' ammer -
Please Don't Hurt 'Em
2. Phil Collins -
But Seriously...
3. Michael Bolton -
Soul Provider
4. Janet Jackson -
Rhythm Nation 1814
5. Wilson Phillips -
Wilson Phillips