Category Archives: 1990s songs

The best 500 songs from the 1990s. Lyrics, meanings and interpretations from your favorite musicians. Radiohead, REM, Weezer, No Doubt, Alanis, Jewel, and Guns and Roses. See which of your favorite 90s bands and artists rank highest on the greatest songs of all-time lists.

1990s songs, love songs

#34 Thank You- Tori Amos/ Led Zeppelin

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If the sun refused to shine/
I would still be loving you.

Tori Amos-Thank You

Both the Tori Amos version and the original Led Zeppelin version of “Thank You” are fantastic–but the Amos version is superior. She is the best artist ever at covering other people’s work. Her version sounds delicate and she sounds gracious and her “Thank You” comes across as more earnest than Zeppelin’s. While her piano arrangement sounds simple, I assure you it is not. Playing that at the same time as singing is very difficult and few could pull it off.

Thank You Song Meaning tori amos
Tori Amos

The lyrics of “Thank You” tell that the narrator has found an easier and better life with his new significant other. This is not a song about the honeymoon period—it is a song about genuine love. The narrator speaks of past tears that seem almost insignificant now, as he has found his forever love. With her, he is looking forward to walking the miles—that is living life with her.

Led Zeppelin-Thank You

The theme sounds similar to another song on this list, The Luckiest by Ben Folds. The narrator expresses that he expects the love to last forever–until the sun runs out—and he is grateful for it.  What makes it special here is the beautiful melody accompanied with the original piano arrangement and Amos’ vocals.

Thank You Meaning led zeppelin
Led Zeppelin

Thank You Lyrics

If the sun refused to shine
I would still be loving you.
When mountains crumble to the sea,
There will still be you and me.

Kind woman, I give you my all;
Kind woman, nothing more.

Little drops of rain whisper of the pain,
Tears of loves lost in the days gone by.
My love is strong, with you there is no wrong,
Together we shall go until we die.
My, my, my inspiration is what you are to me,
Inspiration look, see.

And so today, my world it smiles,
Your hand in mine, we walk the miles.
Thanks to you it will be done,
For you to me are the only one.
Happiness, no more be sad,
Happiness, I’m glad.

If the sun refused to shine
I would still be loving you.
Mountains crumble to the sea,
There will still be you and me.

written by Page/Plant
1990s songs, relationship problems

#21 One- U2

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Love is a temple, love is a higher law/
You ask me of me to enter, but then you make me crawl.

U2’s “One” is about a man questioning how great his relationship really is. He is coming to the conclusion that it might be over. The relationship is still passionate—that’s not the problem. They speak of each other as if they were “one”. But they don’t treat each other that way.

They argue late into the night, the relationship is loveless—at times she almost holds her love over him. At the end of the song Bono comes to the realization that we have one life and we should treat each other well and seek out happiness. We’re one but we’re not the same.

U2 One Meaning
U2

“One” is a bit more edgy than a lot of U2’s successful stuff off of their previous album, Joshua Tree. It is more nuanced both musically and lyrically. It helped cement them as perhaps the largest band in the world at the time. Bono’s vocal is superb.

He is restrained and avoids the vocal runs that he sometimes succumbs to. The guitar work sounds great. It is not spectacular, but the sound is perfect and creates a melancholy sound that is unique and fit the lyrics perfectly.

One U2- Lyrics

Is it getting better
Or do you feel the same?
Will it make it easier on you now?
You got someone to blame

You say one love, one life (One life)
It’s one need in the night
One love (one love), get to share it
Leaves you darling, if you don’t care for it

Did I disappoint you?
Or leave a bad taste in your mouth?
You act like you never had love
And you want me to go without

Well it’s too late, tonight
To drag the past out into the light
We’re one, but we’re not the same
We get to carry each other
Carry each other

One, one
One, one
One, one
One, one

Have you come here for forgiveness?
Have you come to raise the dead?
Have you come here to play Jesus?
To the lepers in your head
Well, did I ask too much, more than a lot?
You gave me nothing, now it’s all I got
We’re one, but we’re not the same
See we hurt each other, then we do it again
You say love is a temple, love is a higher law
Love is a temple, love is a higher law
You ask me of me to enter, but then you make me crawl
And I can’t keep holding on to what you got, ’cause all you got is hurt

One love
One blood
One life
You got to do what you should
One life
With each other
Sisters and my brothers
One life
But we’re not the same
We get to carry each other, carry each other

One, one
One, one
One
One love, one life
written by U2

1990s songs, anthem

#9 Smells Like Teen Spirit-Nirvana/Tori Amos

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With the lights out, it’s less dangerous/
Here we are now, entertain us.

Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was extremely revolutionary at the time of release-both the song and video. It came to be an anthem for Gen X angst, 90s fashion, the Seattle music scene, alt-rock and it was the breakout song that launched the careers of perhaps the two most iconic figures of rock in the 90s: Kurt Cobain and Dave Grohl. The lyrics are obscure, and to be honest, in the Nirvana version, you could only tell what half of them were at the time. Teenage angst, ambivalence and anarchy are key themes.

Smells Like Teen Spirit Meaning
Nirvana

One of my favorite parts about “Smells like Teen Spirit” is the way the song weaves between hard and softer sounds. In the intro we have stripped down guitar sound, to the full band coming in then back to the stripped-down guitar sound as we enter the first verse. That is roller-coaster of emotion before any words are sung. The softer verses contrast great with the hardcore chorus. The production is amazing: there are a lot of guitar effects that could distract but they enhance the song. Of course, the vocal stylings of Cobain are iconic.

Smells Like Teen Spirit Meaning
Tori Amos

I also want to point out the Tori Amos cover of “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. This is the most radically different cover version of any song that I think I have heard. It is amazing. One thing that is great is that it focuses on the exact opposite aspects of the song that the Nirvana song does, and still captures the essence of the song.

Amos focuses on enunciating the lyrics, and it is exciting to understand them. Her delicate piano playing allows us to focus on how the song is structured well and see it is actually well-written. And her voice enhances the melody. Had the Nirvana version never been released, Amos’ version would be on this list by itself.

Smells Like Teen Spirit Lyrics

Load up on guns, bring your friends,
It’s fun to lose and to pretend.
She’s over-bored and self-assured,
Oh no, I know a dirty word.

Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello.

With the lights out, it’s less dangerous.
Here we are now, entertain us.
I feel stupid and contagious,
Here we are now, entertain us.
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido.
Yeah, hey.

I’m worse at what I do best,
And for this gift I feel blessed.
Our little group has always been
And always will until the end.

Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello.

With the lights out, it’s less dangerous.
Here we are now, entertain us.
I feel stupid and contagious,
Here we are now, entertain us.
A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido.
Yeah, hey.

And I forget just why I taste.
Oh yeah, I guess it makes me smile.
I found it hard, it’s hard to find,
Oh well, whatever, never mind.

Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello, how low?
Hello, hello, hello.

With the lights out, it’s less dangerous,
Here we are now, entertain us.
I feel stupid and contagious,
Here we are now, entertain us.

A mulatto, an albino, a mosquito, my libido.
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial, a denial,
A denial, a denial, a denial, a denial.

written by kurt cobain