101 Best Songs of 1988:#1 – Guns n’ Roses – Sweet Child o’ Mine (2 Viewers)

[Andy Dufresne]

Flipping up my eye patch to give you a harsh look.

You're Pete Burns?

Who the hell boos New Order?  I mean, I wouldn't boo the Sugarcubes either (or probably any band for that matter), but New Order? What happened to Midwestern nice?

Doesn't exist.

 

[Osaurus]

Doesn't exist.

Mrs. O concurs (Milwaukee born and raised)

 

[plinko]

Actually four dudes from the Sugarcubes.  I'm partial to Einar Örn (trumpet/vocals) who I heard was a judge on Icelandic Idol.  Þór Eldon (guitar) was briefly married to and had a kid with Bjork.  IIRC, Siggie Baldursson (drums) was one of the ill-fated drummers for Spinal Tap.  No idea on Braggi Olaffson (bass) - I'm all out of lies.

Einar, the real talent.  YOU'RE A GIRL

Motorcycle Mama, must be a rarity if it's not streaming.  I still love me some Rubaiyat

 

[Osaurus]

Einar, the real talent.  YOU'RE A GIRL

Motorcycle Mama, must be a rarity if it's not streaming.  I still love me some Rubaiyat

So much good stuff on there. 

 

[John Maddens Lunchbox]

WILTY Lee Mack's daughter & Ultravox

That was funny. 

I loved that album when it came out, and Birthday was my favorite by a lot. also remember liking Deus and Motorcrash. But I honestly haven't listened to the whole thing in ages. Feel like last time I made a point of listening to the album, it just didn't work for me musically outside of Bjork...so I just flipped to listening to her instead. Will have to give it a spin.

and I've never been a lyrics guy- ever. but I always got the sense that tune was about a creepy old pedophile and a 5 or 6 year old girl. I guess that's cute to Bjork... bless her.

I am sure i have seen some cover art with an old man in a beard with a young girl in a bathtub. They were deliberately were trying to get attention. But peophilia.....jfc

Bjork seems like the kind of girl you'd be attracted to until you smelled her.

Once i read a review of a concert which stated that bjork did a poop on stage as a “statement” .....not quite all there these icelandic folk

 totally.

listening to the album now.

I actually listened to the album 2 weeks ago. Bjork was always the star. When einar songs....fast forward time

 

[fatguyinalittlecoat]

Microphone Fiend

This was great, I’m not sure if I even knew it.

 

[scorchy]

#16 - Public Enemy - Bring the Noise

As much as I love PE, is it wrong that I  like the Anthrax version of Bring the Noise even more? Look for it in 1991.

And for all you hip hop agnostics (or haters) out there,  just three rap songs left among the final 15.

Bring the Noise

 

[rockaction]

#16 - Public Enemy - Bring the Noise

As much as I love PE, is it wrong that I  like the Anthrax version of Bring the Noise even more? Look for it in 1991.

And for all you hip hop agnostics (or haters) out there,  just three rap songs left among the final 15.

Bring the Nois

Not wrong, just incorrect? 
 

naw man, doowutchyalike. 
 

get it? 
 

doowutchyalike? 
 

okay, I’ll show myself out. 

 

[rockaction]

Dang. Off by a summer. 

they blur together at times. 

 

[scorchy]

Not wrong, just incorrect? 
 

naw man, doowutchalike. 
 

get it? 
 

doowutchalike? 
 

okay, I’ll show myself out. 

Help yourself to a cracker, with a spread of cheddar cheese,
Have a neck bone, you don't have to say please
Eatwutchyalike, yo, smellhowyalike.
Everybody doowutchyalike

 

[rockaction]

Help yourself to a cracker, with a spread of cheddar cheese,
Have a neck bone, you don't have to say please
Eatwutchyalike, yo, smellhowyalike.
Everybody doowutchyalike

I mean rich, poor, high, low, or upper-middle class,
Let's all get together and have a few laughs
And doowhatwelike
Yeah, and doowhatwelike, yeah, and doowhatwelike

 

[rockaction]

Awesome that I had to correct for the "y" that was missing in there. 

Why? 

I dunno. What I like...

 

[shuke]

BTW, since you broke out both "It Takes Two" and "Children's Story" ... I thought it would be cool to link to one of rap's Ur-sources of samples that both tracks use: Lyn Collins' "Think (About It)". Yes, that's James Brown in the background -- producing the record and doing backing vocals.

Mind blown

 

[rockaction]

By the way, the hip hop is really well-represented. I didn't have anything really intelligent to add about Bjork's sort of, well...I'll leave it alone, nor did I have anything more to add about rap/hip hop songs I didn't really listen to back in '88. 

Besides Slick Rick. That was on the lips of every high schooler in '88, IIRC. I was never a huge fan for reasons I won't go into lest it get serious. My friends M. and B. loved it, though. Man, they had endless hours of fun with Slick Rick's dirty rhymes. 

Slick Rick was quite the emcee in rap/hip hop history, that's for sure. 

 

[massraider]

#16 - Public Enemy - Bring the Noise

As much as I love PE, is it wrong that I  like the Anthrax version of Bring the Noise even more? Look for it in 1991.

And for all you hip hop agnostics (or haters) out there,  just three rap songs left among the final 15.

Bring the Noise

Chuck D missed his calling, he should have been writing ad copy on Madison Avenue. 

I was thinking on Straight Outta Compton when you mentioned NWA earlier.  Crazy that they were the same year.  I mean, NWA was the beginning of gangsta rap.  

Which, to me, was the beginning of the end. The stuff that was so edgy and fresh on Straight Outta Compton, I was bored by the time Ice Cube was releasing solo albums. Yeah, yeah, more gunshot sounds. By the time the Chronic came out, I was tuning it out.  The hip-hop I liked by that point was all the Native Tongues stuff.  

Difference between NWA and Public Enemy was that NWA spawned thousands of copycats, and some were really successful. No one even attempted to steal PE's style. 

 

[TripItUp]

By the time the Chronic came out, I was tuning it out.  The hip-hop I liked by that point was all the Native Tongues stuff.  

Dude, The Chronic changed everything about the hip hop sound for the rest of the decade and beyond...regardless of lyrics. 

Regarded as the best hip hop album of all time by many, easily in my personal top 3.

 

[rockaction]

Dude, The Chronic changed everything about the hip hop sound for the rest of the decade and beyond...regardless of lyrics. 

Regarded as the best hip hop album of all time by many, easily in my personal top 3.

I hated The Chronic and loved the Native Tongues sound. Due to copyright law and other issues, the beats of our youth completely changed from a spazzy jazz feel to a P-funk thing. Within about a year. Hip hop moves like light speed. It was sudden, drastic, and if you liked Bill Evans and jazz like the Native Tongues crews sampled, you might not like The Chronic. 

 

[rockaction]

Chuck D missed his calling, he should have been writing ad copy on Madison Avenue. 

I was thinking on Straight Outta Compton when you mentioned NWA earlier.  Crazy that they were the same year.  I mean, NWA was the beginning of gangsta rap.  

Which, to me, was the beginning of the end. The stuff that was so edgy and fresh on Straight Outta Compton, I was bored by the time Ice Cube was releasing solo albums. Yeah, yeah, more gunshot sounds. By the time the Chronic came out, I was tuning it out.  The hip-hop I liked by that point was all the Native Tongues stuff.  

Difference between NWA and Public Enemy was that NWA spawned thousands of copycats, and some were really successful. No one even attempted to steal PE's style. 

Nobody else really made the attempt to try and crossover with black nationalism. Most stayed w/in the hip hop culture; they didn’t seek a broader audience because of the attendant problems with that sort of approach. Chuck D went to Hofstra, if I’m not mistaken, and Flava Flav used to call in to his radio show. That’s how the two united, if my old hip hop music prof tells the story correctly.

 

[rockaction]

I listened to PE in ‘89, same year as I discovered Iggy and The Stooges’s Raw Power. I remember buying them both at a record store one night, both on cassette. 

:mind blown:

 

[Doug B]

Once i read a review of a concert which stated that bjork did a poop on stage as a “statement” .....not quite all there these icelandic folk

Didn't Alice Cooper do that first?

EDIT: Or was it Frank Zappa? (Link, no sound but text is NSFW)

 

[Doug B]

#16 - Public Enemy - Bring the Noise

Couldn't remember ... "Miuzi Weighs a Ton" was '87.

Yo Chuck -- run a power move on 'em

 

[Doug B]

Besides Slick Rick. That was on the lips of every high schooler in '88, IIRC. I was never a huge fan for reasons I won't go into lest it get serious. My friends M. and B. loved it, though. Man, they had endless hours of fun with Slick Rick's dirty rhymes.

Not a spotlight because it was 1987:

Anyone remember this Slick Rick soundalike? (Which samples these guys)

 

[rockaction]

Not a spotlight because it was 1987:

Anyone remember this Slick Rick soundalike? (Which samples these guys)

Heh. I do not remember The Derivative [redacted] in analog. 

 

[massraider]

Dude, The Chronic changed everything about the hip hop sound for the rest of the decade and beyond...regardless of lyrics.

I agree, and I thought that was too bad.

 

[scorchy]

Didn't Alice Cooper do that first?

EDIT: Or was it Frank Zappa? (Link, no sound but text is NSFW)

According to Drive-By Truckers, it was GG Allin.  From The Night GG Allin came to town:

As he read aloud The Memphis Star and their account of what went down that night
It says He took a #### on the stage and started throwing it into the crowd.
But He was gone before the cops could come and shut him down.

Gone before the #### came down.
The Night G.G. Allin Came to Town.
The Night G.C. Allin Came to Town.
Antenna Club, Memphis, 1991.
Punk Rockers Paid twelve dollars to be ##### on!
The Night G.G. Allin Came to Town

 

[scorchy]

Not a spotlight because it was 1987:

Anyone remember this Slick Rick soundalike? (Which samples these guys)

I remember the name Dana Dane but not any of his stuff.  I think I had a track of his that was on the same compilation as The Pee Wee Dance by Joeski Love - a must play at the roller rink.

 

[scorchy]

#15 - Neneh Cherry - Buffalo Stance

Ladies and gentlemen, I'd like to introduce the hi hat.

I could  have sworn Neneh Cherry was a one-hit wonder.  Debut single Buffalo Stance soared to #3 on the Hot 100 a few months after its release in late '88 and that's all I remembered.  It turns out that the second single off Raw Like Sushi (released in the U.S. in 1989 after the success of Buffalo Stance) crashed the top 10 as well - I still swear I've never heard Manchild.  

Neneh's the daughter of jazz legend Don Cherry and came up in the dub/post-punk scene in England in the late '70s/early '80s.  She was briefly a member of The Slits and also a part of the Swell Maps/New Age Steppers collective before starting work on solo projects in the latter half of the decade.  In the ensuing years, she's put out several more albums and been featured on a bunch of collaborations that had decent sales in Europe but never really made a dent in the U.S. market.  Her legacy though is one hell of a crackin' single - Buffalo Stance was ranked #412 in Rolling Stone's Top 500 Songs of All Time.

Buffalo Stance

 

[kupcho1]

Are you going to put together a list of these?  Curious as to how many I've got on "Ain't Singing for Spuds"

 

[scorchy]

Are you going to put together a list of these?  Curious as to how many I've got on "Ain't Singing for Spuds"

A lot of crossover at first glance.  I'll post a link to the playlist once this is over.  I meant to add the songs to the first post in the thread as well but I forgot at first and then it got away from me.  I'll get around to it soon.

 

[kupcho1]

A lot of crossover at first glance.  I'll post a link to the playlist once this is over.  I meant to add the songs to the first post in the thread as well but I forgot at first and then it got away from me.  I'll get around to it soon.

Well hopefully Waiting for the Great Leap Forward by Billy Bragg makes the cut.  That might be my favorite song from 1988, particularly the lyrics:

It may have been Camelot for Jack and Jacqueline

But on the Che Guevara highway filling up with gasoline

Fidel Castro's brother spies a rich lady who's crying

Over luxury's disappointment so he walks over and he's trying

To sympathize with her

But he thinks that he should warn her that the Third World is just around the corner

In the Soviet Union

A scientist is blinded

By the resumption of nuclear testing and he is reminded

That Dr. Robert Oppenheimer's optimism fell

At the first hurdle

In the Cheese Pavilion and the only noise I hear

Is the sound of someone stacking chairs and mopping up spilt beer

And someone asking questions and basking in the light

Of the fifteen fame-filled minutes of the fanzine writer

Mixing pop and politics he asks me what the use is

I offer him embarrassment and my usual excuses

While looking down the corridor out to where the van is waiting

I'm looking for the great leap forwards

Jumble sales are organized and pamphlets have been posted

Even after closing time there's still parties to be hosted

You can be active with the activists

Or sleep in with the sleepers

While you're waiting for the great leap forwards

One leap forward, two leaps back

Will politics get me the sack?

Waiting for the great leap forwards

Well here comes the future and you can't run from it

If you've got a blacklist I want to be on it

Waiting for the great leap forwards

It's a mighty long way down rock 'n roll

From Top of the Pops to drawing the dole

Waiting for the great leap forwards

If no one out there understands

Start your own revolution and cut out the middleman

Waiting for the great leap forwards

In a perfect world we'd all sing in tune

But this is reality so give me some room

Waiting for the great leap forwards

So join the struggle while you may

The revolution is just a tee shirt away

Waiting for the great leap forwards

 

[scorchy]

#14 - Fugazi - Waiting Room

I can defend the popularity of Slick Rick to death, but Fugazi may be a bridge too far.  But if you don't really know Fugazi, that's mainly because that's what Fugazi wanted.  No major labels (turned down a $10 million dollar deal from Atlantic); no corporate sponsorship (declined an invitation to Lollapalooza); no merchandising (thus the ubiquitous 'This is NOT a Fugazi Shirt' worn by punks the world over); only played all-ages shows (how I got to see them at a DC high school).  No matter how much Kurt Cobain, Eddie Vedder, Michael Stipe, and Joe Strummer talked up the band, Fugazi resisted.

I first heard Fugazi's self-titled debut EP in the summer of '88 while playing Earl Weaver Baseball on the computer with a skater friend of mine.  He dubbed it for me later that day with The Meatmen's live record We're the Meatmen and You Still Suck... on the flip side (oof).  It was one of the main soundtracks for our summer.

I finally got to see Fugazi in 1990 before heading off to college.  A group of us told our parents we were going to Baltimore for an Orioles game but instead hit DC for the show.  I'm glad my parents weren't up when I got home because it would have been tough to explain how my clothes were still soaked after a 2-hour drive back.  It was...intense.  And something I would give almost anything to experience for the first time again. 

The video for Waiting Room really captures those feels.  It's one of the only punk/hardcore/post-hardcore songs that my 17-year old doesn't roll his eyes at, and his mom - generally not the aggressive type - can't keep herself from bouncing into me whenever I play it.  Waiting Room is probably why Fugazi is your favorite band's favorite band.

Waiting Room

 

[scorchy]

And just to prove the kids are alright: Waiting Room - Cleveland School of Rock

 

[Ramsay Hunt Experience]

My wife does not share Mrs. Scorchy’s fondness for Fugazi. But God help me, I love it so, despite being a very late adopter. 

 

[El Floppo]

My wife does not share Mrs. Scorchy’s fondness for Fugazi. But God help me, I love it so, despite being a very late adopter. 

same and same.

I had Fugazi friends at the time, but the music didn't grab me at the time the way its done the last 20 or so years.

eta- lol... the wife just yelled at me to turn off the video.

 

[J R]

Which, to me, was the beginning of the end. The stuff that was so edgy and fresh on Straight Outta Compton, I was bored by the time Ice Cube was releasing solo albums. Yeah, yeah, more gunshot sounds. By the time the Chronic came out, I was tuning it out.  The hip-hop I liked by that point was all the Native Tongues stuff.  

Ice Cube sounded good though when he had the Bomb Squad working with him.

 

[massraider]

Ice Cube sounded good though when he had the Bomb Squad working with him.

Hey you won, man!!

Won what?

The wet T-shirt contest, Mutual****a!!!

Bam bam bam

 

[Roger Sterling]

And just to prove the kids are alright: Waiting Room - Cleveland School of Rock

I prefer this one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIZD9WFpWZo

One of the greatest documents on the internet.

 

[rockaction]

Yeah, Fugazi definitely walked the walk. I had a rock critic friend tell me once, though, to never underestimate how actually easier it was to walk it in Ian MacKaye's shoes because of the strength of his label and Minor Threat sales. I disagree with my friend. Ian MacKaye pretty much disbanded Fugazi because he couldn't get club dates without beer sponsorship or liquor making up most of the financial arrangement for the clubs. He wanted straight all-ages, no booze shows. It's why The Evens, his next "band," played museums and the like. Interesting guy. 

That aside, I actually had a dubbed copy of the Margin Walker EP before the Fugazi one. I thought "Promises" and "Margin Walker" were darn good songs, but that was '89. 

And I also had that Meatmen album. And yes...oof. Everything about it, down to the Sly and The Family Stone cover. 

 

[CletiusMaximus]

Yeah, Fugazi definitely walked the walk. I had a rock critic friend tell me once, though, to never underestimate how actually easier it was to walk it in Ian MacKaye's shoes because of the strength of his label and Minor Threat sales. I disagree with my friend. Ian MacKaye pretty much disbanded Fugazi because he couldn't get club dates without beer sponsorship or liquor making up most of the financial arrangement for the clubs. He wanted straight all-ages, no booze shows. It's why The Evens, his next "band," played museums and the like. Interesting guy. 

That aside, I actually had a dubbed copy of the Margin Walker EP before the Fugazi one. I thought "Promises" and "Margin Walker" were darn good songs, but that was '89. 

And I also had that Meatmen album. And yes...oof. Everything about it, down to the Sly and The Family Stone cover. 

I was a big Minor Threat guy and still have a few of those records in my basement, but going to those shows kind of sucked.  By the time Fugazi was coming around, I was done with MacKaye and his schtick.  I also have a copy of We're the Meatmen and you Suck (on red vinyl), but don't know how they got into the discussion here!  What a mistake that was ...

 

[scorchy]

I was a big Minor Threat guy and still have a few of those records in my basement, but going to those shows kind of sucked.  By the time Fugazi was coming around, I was done with MacKaye and his schtick.  I also have a copy of We're the Meatmen and you Suck (on red vinyl), but don't know how they got into the discussion here!  What a mistake that was ...

You're not alone on MacKaye - know some folks that still love him as a person but think he sucked the joy out of hardcore.  I saw a doc a while back where a former Riot Grrrl (can't for the life of me remember who) was going off on him over-policing things and trying to protect women too much.

As for the Meatmen, skaters often made some regrettable choices when it came to music.

 

[scorchy]

#13 - Boogie Down Productions - My Philosophy

I promise, 11 of the 12 songs after this are pretty chalky.*

KRS-One is an undisputed first ballot hall-of-famer among MCs.  Along with D-Nice and DJ Scott La Rock, Boogie Down Productions' debut record - 1987's Criminal Minded - helped establish the gangsta rap genre.  After Scott La Rock was killed by a jealous boyfriend later that year, KRS-One pivoted to socially conscious rhymes, often referring to himself as The Teacher.  My Philosophy was the first track on 1988's By All Means Necessary and set the tone for BDP's new direction.

My Philosophy

*ETA - felt the to need to clarify that by chalky I mean in the NCAA bracket sense of being higher seeds, not white. 

 

[ProstheticRGK]

#13 - Boogie Down Productions - My Philosophy

I promise, 11 of the 12 songs after this are pretty chalky.

KRS-One is an undisputed first ballot hall-of-famer among MCs.  Along with D-Nice and DJ Scott La Rock, Boogie Down Productions' debut record - 1987's Criminal Minded - helped establish the gangsta rap genre.  After Scott La Rock was killed by a jealous boyfriend later that year, KRS-One pivoted to socially conscious rhymes, often referring to himself as The Teacher.  My Philosophy was the first track on 1988's By All Means Necessary and set the tone for BDP's new direction.

My Philosophy

Fresh... for '88. Love this tune. Put in on my old school rap/r&b playlist for my 12-year-old when he started getting into rap music.

 

[El Floppo]

#13 - Boogie Down Productions - My Philosophy

I promise, 11 of the 12 songs after this are pretty chalky.*

KRS-One is an undisputed first ballot hall-of-famer among MCs.  Along with D-Nice and DJ Scott La Rock, Boogie Down Productions' debut record - 1987's Criminal Minded - helped establish the gangsta rap genre.  After Scott La Rock was killed by a jealous boyfriend later that year, KRS-One pivoted to socially conscious rhymes, often referring to himself as The Teacher.  My Philosophy was the first track on 1988's By All Means Necessary and set the tone for BDP's new direction.

My Philosophy

*ETA - felt the to need to clarify that by chalky I mean in the NCAA bracket sense of being higher seeds, not white. 

oh ####!!

BDP!? Niiiiiiice

 

[scorchy]

Fresh... for '88. Love this tune. Put in on my old school rap/r&b playlist for my 12-year-old when he started getting into rap music.

Awesome. Did much the same thing at that age. My kid would always walk around singing whoop whoop, that's the sound of da police.

 

[rockaction]

*ETA - felt the to need to clarify that by chalky I mean in the NCAA bracket sense of being higher seeds, not white. 

lol. There are so many minefields in trying to address a freshman/sophomore or so year appreciation of rap music. Can it be done? 

scorchy guides the way. 

 

[scorchy]

lol. There are so many minefields in trying to address a freshman/sophomore or so year appreciation of rap music. Can it be done? 

scorchy guides the way. 

For further instruction , let's see if @fatguyinalittlecoatstill has that video of him doing karaoke to Cypress Hill?

 

[rockaction]

For further instruction , let's see if @fatguyinalittlecoatstill has that video of him doing karaoke to Cypress Hill?

Here is something you can't understand...

 

[rockaction]

Cultural dilemma of the day: Wearing a Supreme™ shirt with the cover of Marvin Gaye's What's Going On depicted on it. Licensed and paid for by the company, bought new and secondhand by me because I'd looked all over for a Marvin shirt with the cover to the record and this was it. Totally legit. Pure Hanes goodness.

But still, a skateboard company selling this landmark cultural event to privileged teens? 

What's going on, indeed. 

Anyway, back to the countdown. Just spitballing in the interim. Seems like the place. 

 

[McBokonon]

Saw KRS-One at Metropol in Pittsburgh sometime between 1997-2002. That period was entirely a blend of bartending, drinking, drugs, and going to shows so all of my stories from them are inexact as to when, exactly, they took place. But I CAN remember that I started in the balcony and ended up down below about 10 rows (no seats, just standing) back from the stage jumping around like a lunatic - pasty Irish dude sticking out like crazy.

Top 10 show easily and I’ve been to hundreds. He brought it. Insane energy in that little venue. 

 

[DocHolliday]

Saw KRS-One at Metropol in Pittsburgh sometime between 1997-2002. That period was entirely a blend of bartending, drinking, drugs, and going to shows so all of my stories from them are inexact as to when, exactly, they took place. But I CAN remember that I started in the balcony and ended up down below about 10 rows (no seats, just standing) back from the stage jumping around like a lunatic - pasty Irish dude sticking out like crazy.

Top 10 show easily and I’ve been to hundreds. He brought it. Insane energy in that little venue. 

Metropol was a great venue for shows.