I grew up playing travel hockey which means hundreds of hours in a car listening to the radio. Remember listening to music on the radio? As a kid, I digested a wide palette in Western New York from 97 Rock, Kiss 98.5, and Oldies 104. A little mixture of The Who, MC Hammer, and The Temptations. Throw in MTV at its peak and it was a good time to love a variety of music.

Looking back, I marvel at how 1991 set the table for a wonderful discovery of music for me. I’m not the only one who remembers it fondly–if you look at most lists for the best year in music 1991 is usually among the top.

It’s difficult not to begin with Nirvana’s Nevermind album released just after the school year began in the fall of 1991. That compact disc got absolutely worn out in my household, and even to this day, remains as fresh and biting as it was nearly 30 years ago.

Grunge was about to take over!

Pearl Jam’s Ten was released in the summer of 1991 and while sharing some similarities to Nevermind they are still pretty different albums. The Smashing Pumpkins released their debut album Gish but were a couple years away from becoming stars on their second LP.

1991 did show the way to a new world where heavy metal and hair metal were on the way out for this new type of modern rock music. In August, Metallica’s self-titled album aka the Black Album dominated the charts upon its release but mostly marked the end of an era for metal. The band would embark on a multi-year tour and wouldn’t release a new album for another 5 years–I vividly remember the feeling of Metallica seeming like they were an ‘old’ group when they eventually released Load in 1996, although that corresponding tour was my first concert. Guns N’ Roses dropped their Use Your Illusion I and II albums 10 days prior to Nevermind and was the group’s last foray into the national spotlight. All of those old metal powerhouses of the 80’s were on their last gasp, as well.

This is the MTV I remember from 1991. Metal was something you’d watch at 2 o’clock in the morning not really understanding or grasping its meaning fully. That was for the weird, angry kids.

This is an interesting watch with hindsight. 

There were a few other massive rock albums dropped in 1991. Out of Time by REM was a personal favorite of my brother’s (and won the Grammy for Best Alternative Album) and of course “Losing My Religion” was a MTV and radio staple. U2’s Achtung Baby came later in the year and gave us several hit songs. Mostly, the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Blood Sugar Sex Magic was right up my alley for someone approaching 10 years old.

Country music was beginning its slow turn from its roots into the over-produced pop country that is so prevalent today. Garth Brooks released his massive album Ropin’ the Wind in September and I can especially remember my friend’s mom blasting that for months around their house. This concludes my relationship with country music.

Of course, I was a few years away from wearing flannel, screen-printed t-shirts, corduroy pants, and Airwalks to school. In 1991, we’re talking neon shorts, Zubaz or jeans rolled at the cuff, and you know I was rocking a pair of the Air Jordan VI in the white colorway.

It’s wild to think of the juxtaposition between Nirvana and the likes of Color Me Badd, Boyz II Men, Another Bad Creation, C&C Music Factory, PM Dawn, Paula Abdul, with plenty of aftershocks from Vanilla Ice, MC Hammer, and Salt-N-Pepa from their own massive 1990 songs. For whatever reason, when I think back to this era I picture “3 AM Eternal” from The KLF pounding through a boombox.

Turn it up.

There was a softer side to indulge in, too. “More than Words” by Extreme is still one of my favorites. The Scorpions scored big with their song “Winds of Change” and Bryan Adams’ “Everything I Do (I Do It For You)” was so big we ended up singing it in my elementary chorus.

I distinctly remember the long wait for Michael Jackson’s latest album Dangerous coming off a 4-year wait from his previous CD. I was a tiny kid playing Thriller on vinyl and still too young for Bad so this was my first offering from the King of Pop that I could comprehend musically. On November 14, 1991 his lead single “Black or White” video debuted on MTV, VH1, BET, and Fox while 500 million people tuned in. I thought the song was okay but pretty weird. I wanted to like the album but recalled it being so long and unwieldy–only 14 tracks but they spanned 77:03 minutes basically two albums worth of music. I sensed Jackson’s was past his prime and that turned out to be painfully true.

Rap was present but still lurking in the shadows. This was a weird time with acts from the 1980’s (Ice-T, Ice Cube, Public Enemy, Geto Boys, N.W.A) still dominating and mixing with newer and different acts like De La Soul and A Tribe Called Quest. Songs like “Summertime” from DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince and “O.P.P” from Naughty by Nature played on an endless loop but it was a far cry from what would come in 1995 with the absolutely massive mainstream appeal of Notorious B.I.G., 2Pac, Nas, Wu Tang Clan, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, and many more.

Perhaps this is my biggest takeaway from 1991. On the one hand, some of the rock acts could’ve fooled you into believing a new Renaissance was going to emerge for the rest of the decade. While there were some big movers (Smashing Pumpkins, Oasis, Rage Against the Machine, and Weezer are some highlights I’d point out from the rest of the decade) and bands that cemented Hall of Fame legacies (Pearl Jam, Radiohead, Green Day) no one was as culturally relevant like the way, for example, Jay-Z was by the start of the 2000’s.

Nirvana effectively ceased being a band on April 8, 1994 and within a few years time rap became the dominant force of the youth culture across the United States. The 1990’s ended up being a melting pot of music but pop and rap would emerge victorious as rock music took a firm backseat in the consciousness of popular culture.