Well, he was certainly big, and I would say that getting shot makes a good case for being notorious. Bonus points for sampling Diana Ross’s unintentional gay anthem “I’m Coming Out” in his biggest (no pun intended) hit.
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Nineties Female Vocal R&B
While their rock sisters were, uh … angry … female R&B acts in the 90s turned out some of sweetest, silkiest music since the Philly Soul days. While the sound seems best suited for love ballands, many of the songs were, inexplicably, about having a job and/or paying bills. Also: Many acts with three-letter names.
Nineties Alt Rock Women
By the time the 90s rolled around, women in rock had come a long way from “Going to the Chapel” and “Be My Baby.” And, you know—yay for girl power and all that—but on balance, I’d probably rather have lunch with the Chiffons.
Nineties Alt Rock Men
When I first heard that there was a #1 song called “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” I figured it was a novelty tune along the lines of “Oh Mickey you’re so fine, you’re so fine you blow my mind” or Alvin and the Chipmunks. Then I actually heard the song. Um … wrong.
Nina Simone
“Mississippi Goddam” gets my vote for greatest song of all time. Nina Simone also gets my vote for “person you would not want to cross.”
New Wave
A brief evolution of white people music as the 70s turned into the 80s:
- Punk—We only know four notes on our instruments, and we don’t know how to write a tune.
- New Wave—We only know four notes on our instruments, but we’ve learned how to write a tune.
- Techno Pop—Thanks to synthesizers, we never had to learn to play any instruments. But boy can we write a tune!
It’s been all downhill from there.
New Orleans R&B
This list came about a bit by accident. When I researching New Orleans brass bands for last Friday’s list, I realized that there is a separate, distinct New Orleans R&B genre. So you can indirectly thank Trombone Shorty for this one. (Not that I am trying to earn brownie points. Really.)
New Orleans Brass
This one’s a bit of a cheat, because it includes Trombone Shorty, who’s very much a post-2000 artist. I’m letting him in because 1) Daveon and I saw him in SF on New Year’s Eve, and the show was blow-off-the-roof awesome; 2) the two of them have the same birthday; and 3) he (Trombone Shorty, not Daveon) is carrying on a tradition that dates well back into the 19th century. I am not including him because I hope he will invite me down to New Orleans to hang out with him and his friends. Nope. Not at all.
New Jack Swing
Once upon a time, kids, R&B music was all about the beat. And no beat was beat-ier than the glory that was New Jack Swing.
Neo-Soul
Apparently the requirements for being a 90s neo-soul singer were: 1) Have large/great hair; 2) Bust out with a critically acclaimed, massive selling debut album; 3) Promptly disappear for many years before releasing your follow-up. Clearly D’Angelo spent all that time perfecting his body for the “Untitled” video. Not sure what everyone else’s excuse was.
Playlist of the Day 