But yeah, those two together pretty much defined what pop music has become. And whoever says otherwise is just wrong.

And for Maroon 5 and A Great Big World.

I forgot about Moves Like Jagger! And she’s on TV and stuff, Christina has been fine.

Your teens were far better so far than your top 10.

One thing about Fiona Apple though, is despite her best efforts, she was hot as hell.

Are you ready? Then for the thousands in attendance and millions watching around the world - Let's get ready to suck it!!!!

"Rappers I monkey flip 'em with the funky rhythm I be kickin'"



4. N.Y. State of Mind by Nas

"Beneath the stains of time, the feelings disappear"



3. Hurt by Nine Inch Nails

"I’ve been wallowing in my own chaotic insecure delusions"



2. Forty Six & Two by Tool

4. Not to be confused with his on/off again rival Jay-Z’s similarly titled song (which came out while I was living in NY and it was cool at first but less so when I heard it fifty times a day) which projects the city as bright and full of hope and wonder, Nas’ N.Y. State of Mind takes place in a much darker version of the same place, twenty years before, but still is sly as fuck. Lyrics are so cool and were apparently written right before the song was recorded. Sometimes you just get the lightning at the perfect time. Can’t take away from the production of DJ Premier though, who does a fantastic job not only with the iconic beat but the tone shift halfway through - only going with a drum track for the beginning of the second verse.

3. Hurt has probably been heard more coming from the late Johnny Cash, who used the song to share reflections on his life. Trent Reznor’s version may be a little bit more self-contained, notes written in the middle of a sleepless night in the way many 90s rock songs were, but it is just as vulnerable. Nine Inch Nails used whisper singing to provoke emotion way before it was cool. And gosh I get chills everytime that piano comes in, drowning out his voice as he gathers himself before
belting out a massive hook to send us home.

2. Forty Six & 2 needs to be seen live to truly appreciate its majesty. The sound waves sink into your flesh in quite the paradox when contrasted with the shadows being sung about, always insisting on keeping their distance. It’s part of the reason they are my favorite concert experience I’ve ever had .. twice! It was so amazing it probably inspired the idea to do this list. Tool, like many progressive artists, transcend time - the future for the past is our present.

And the #1 song of the 90s … will be revealed after this commercial - oh wait Idol wasn't on yet so I'll just do it now.

"I grew up on the crime side, the New York Times side, Stayin alive was no jive"



1. C.R.E.A.M. by Wu-Tang Clan

-Cash rules everything around me, cream get the money, dolla dolla bill ya’ll. Method Man brings that in little by little before Raekwon explodes into the first verse. Wu-Tang Clan try to escape the hard life on the streets of New York by escaping to the shaolin-style, only to find out that they are ruled by the same lord as us - the almighty buck. But the Clan bring back hard fought lessons for the rest of us, the grass isn’t always greener, it’s the same green. Inspectah Deck takes us out on this surprisingly compact song featuring only three of the group, which has numbered up to ten over the years. Most of Wu-Tang would get solo deals after this, taking over the 90s alongside their west coast brethren. It was a crime to exclude this from my greatest songs list, and I can only hope this at least paves the road for justice.

"Neglected for now, but yo, it gots to be accepted, That what? that life is hectic"

I'm deleting the site after that top ten.

Full list!

1. CREAM - Wu-Tang Clan
2. Forty Six and Two- Tool
3. Hurt - Nine Inch Nails
4. NY State of Mind - Nas
5. Don’t Look Back In Anger - Oasis
6. The Unforgiven - Metallica
7. Sleep Now in the Fire - Rage Against The Machine
8. Otherside - Red Hot Chili Peppers
9. Changes - 2Pac
10. Criminal - Fiona Apple
11. Everlong - Foo Fighters
12. Say It Aint So - Weezer
13. Genie in a Bottle - Christina Aguilera
14. Friday I’m In Love - The Cure
15. Adam’s Song - Blink-182
16. Gin and Juice - Snoop Dogg
17. Sabotage - Beastie Boys
18. Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta - Geto Boys
19. Jumper - Third Eye Blind
20. Hypnotize- Notorious BIG
21. Freak on a Leash - Korn
22. Learning To Fly - Tom Petty
23. Passin Me By - The Pharcyde
24. Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve
25. Baby One More Time - Britney Spears
26. Breathe - The Prodigy
27. My Iron Lung - Radiohead
28. Wrong Way- Sublime
29. You Outta Know - Alannis Morrisette
30. Race for the Prize - Flaming Lips
31. Policy of Truth - Depeche Mode
32. Guilty Conscience - Eminem and Dr. Dre
33. Betterman - Pearl Jam
34. Disarm - Smashing Pumpkins
35. Torn - Natalie Imbruglia
36. When I Grow Up - Garbage
37. Burden In My Hand - Soundgarden
38. How I Could Kill A Man - Cypress Hill
39. It Was A Good Day - Ice Cube
40. All Apologies - Nirvana
41. Been Caught Stealing - Jane’s Addiction
42. Can I Kick It? - A Tribe Called Quest
43. Block Rockin Beats - Chemical Brothers
44. Gangsta’s Paradise / Amish Paradise - Coolio / Weird Al
45. Want It That Way - Backstreet Boys
46. Smooth - Santana
47. Poison - Bel Biv Devoe
48. Self Esteem - The Offspring
49. Can I Get A - Jay Z
50. No Tears - Scarface
50.1. Say My Name - Destinys Child

I haven't heard even a single song in Top 10 before even though I wasn't actively listening during that time. Good job on the list Flava

It was great until the top 5, what happened

what the fuck was that? what songs are those?

no waterfalls?

Here's the real top 42:

1. Criminal - Fiona Apple
2. Everlong - Foo Fighters
3. Say It Aint So - Weezer
4. Genie in a Bottle - Christina Aguilera
5. Friday I’m In Love - The Cure
6. Adam’s Song - Blink-182
7. Gin and Juice - Snoop Dogg
8. Sabotage - Beastie Boys
9. Damn It Feels Good To Be A Gangsta - Geto Boys
10. Jumper - Third Eye Blind
11. Hypnotize- Notorious BIG
12. Freak on a Leash - Korn
13. Learning To Fly - Tom Petty
14. Passin Me By - The Pharcyde
15. Bittersweet Symphony - The Verve
16. Baby One More Time - Britney Spears
17. Breathe - The Prodigy
18. My Iron Lung - Radiohead
19. Wrong Way- Sublime
20. You Outta Know - Alannis Morrisette
21. Race for the Prize - Flaming Lips
22. Policy of Truth - Depeche Mode
23. Guilty Conscience - Eminem and Dr. Dre
24. Betterman - Pearl Jam
25. Disarm - Smashing Pumpkins
26. Torn - Natalie Imbruglia
27. When I Grow Up - Garbage
28. Burden In My Hand - Soundgarden
29. How I Could Kill A Man - Cypress Hill
30. It Was A Good Day - Ice Cube
31. All Apologies - Nirvana
32. Been Caught Stealing - Jane’s Addiction
33. Can I Kick It? - A Tribe Called Quest
34. Block Rockin Beats - Chemical Brothers
35. Gangsta’s Paradise / Amish Paradise - Coolio / Weird Al
36. Want It That Way - Backstreet Boys
37. Smooth - Santana
38. Poison - Bel Biv Devoe
39. Self Esteem - The Offspring
40. Can I Get A - Jay Z
41. No Tears - Scarface
42. Say My Name - Destinys Child

oooh how did I miss this. I'll read through tonight.

I remember I almost picked it for the Battle of Songs contest run by David, along with Tender by Blur. It wasn't until then that I found out Torn was a cover song. A band named Ednaswap wrote it in 1993, but the first recorded version was by a Danish singer (in Danish) in the same year. Later in 1995, Ednaswap released their own recorded version that would become the basis of Imbruglia's song. The use of acoustic guitar and Imbruglia's vocal made the cover version less heavy.