Friday, December 18, 2009

Children of the 90s Mix Tape Travel Playlist: Road Trip Sing-Along

Disclaimer: This playlist give you full license to judge me relentlessly. I don't claim any of this to be quality music. Quite the contrary. That's what makes it so fun to sing along to.


Bon voyage, children of the 90s. Your faithful 90s servant is about to embark on a vacation, but I can't leave my faithful readers in a lurch. I leave you with my personal (and incredibly embarrassing) road trip playlist. These infectious songs are more than enough to entertain you on a long journey--your singing and boy band-esque dance moves in the car will probably keep neighboring drivers entertained as well.

Without further ado, my personal picks for road trip sing-along playlist:


When the Lights Go Out (5ive)



This band spells their name with a number. How clever is that? Whatever they're pushing, it's got to be good.


C'est La Vie (B*Witched)



Why don't we have more Irish dance breaks in songs today?


Never Ever (All Saints)



There's something just so inexplicably fun about singing along to that spoken part. It's just so long, and has such a poor rhyme scheme. How can you resist?


Spiderwebs (No Doubt)



Tragic Kingdom was the first CD I owned, so the songs on that album hold a special place in my heart. I always imagined that when I was a grown-up, I would leave the chorus of this on my answering machine as my outgoing message. It turns out the joke's on me: answering machines no longer exist. Tough break.


Jumper (Third Eye Blind)



I have a soft spot for Third Eye Blind. They played this song when I went to the concert in 8th grade, and again when I saw them last year. I enjoyed it just much. It's one of those songs with easy-to-learn lyrics that you can just belt out along to.


What I Got (Sublime)



Looking back, it's hard to believe I liked this song as a kid. I don't think I understood a word of it, I just like the beat. I think I also liked that he had a dalmatian. That was pretty much my grasp of it.


500 Miles (The Proclaimers)



A 90s one-hit wonder classic. You can try to harmonize along, attempt to impersonate their accents, or just contemplate the meaning of the verb "to haver". Whichever way, you win.


Wannabe (Spice Girls)



As far as Spice Girls go, no matter what you choose is pretty embarrassing. For me, it was between this and "Stop", to which my friends and I choreographed a full-length dance. It's too tough to perform this complicated dance in the car, though, so we'll go with "Wannabe". It'll make you really, really, really want a zig-a-zig-ah. Whatever that means.


Calculus (2ge+her)



The funniest part about this fake boy band is that when it comes down to it, 10 years later I'd rather have these guys on my playlist than most real boy bands. Touche, 2ge+her.


One Week (Barenaked Ladies)



These guys were huge in the 90s, and as kids the band name could definitely summon a giggle or two. It's always fun to try to learn all the words to a song that goes really fast, it's a very satisfying feeling to get them all right. Or more likely, assume you got them all right. I've got a few questionable mumbled phrases in mine.


You Oughtta Know (Alanis Morisette)



I don't care if you're going through a breakup or not, this song is one of the most fun to sing along to. It's just so angry. It also might be about Uncle Joey, which makes it that much more ridiculous. I want to know the theater this alleged action happened in so I can make a note to never, never go there. It's bad enough to watch Uncle Joey do those god-awful woodchuck impressions, I don't want to have to consider him in these compromising positions, too.


Always Be My Baby (Mariah Carey)



This one is just catchy, plain and simple. Mariah's been at it for years, and she's still got it. And who can hate on that part that goes "do do do dum?" Those are the best ingredients for a quality sing-along.


Inside Out (Eve 6)



This song is pretty dark now that I can make a little more sense of the words, but back in the day I loved singing to it. I didn't really consider the repercussions of putting my tender heart in a blender and watching it spin around to a beautiful oblivion. I just liked the beat. Eve 6 is following me on Twitter, which makes me feel like a champ, too.


Who Will Save Your Soul? (Jewel)



I have a feeling a lot of you will disagree with me on this one, but this is one of those guilty pleasures. I'm still not totally sure what some of the words are, but that won't stop me from singing what I think them to be at the top of my lungs.


Walkin' on the Sun (Smashmouth)



I love how in this video the newscaster introduces them as "Rock n' roll's Smashmouth!" I don't quite see these guys as representative of rock n' roll, but you have to admit they're about as 90s as you can get.


Ants Marching (Dave Matthews)



How can that intro not make you feel just the tiniest upbeat? It's just a happy-sounding song.


MmmBop (Hanson)



You know, I think I can feel you judging me. I was in maybe 6th grade when this came out, and I instantly fell in love with Zach Hanson. Mostly I think I was just jealous that his hair was prettier than mine, but I liked the song either way.


Tubthumping (Chumbawumba)



What exactly is tubthumping? And for that matter, a chumbawumba? This is a sort of (okay, really) terrible song, but it's just so catchy.


Summer Girls (LFO)


Speaking of pretty terrible songs. I still like it. I can't help it. It makes no sense, but it's just pure kitsch. Plus, one of the band members commented on my post on LFO, which I thought was pretty cool.



I Want You (Cherry Cola) (Savage Garden)



If I still have any male readers left by the time I got to this one, I'd be shocked. I know, I know. This is pretty bad. But they say ch-ch-cherry cola! It's fun!


Runaround (Blues Traveler)



This is another one of those songs that just has tons of words squeezed into it, so it's fun to imagine I know all of them. As a kid, I just really liked that part where he goes, "I like coffee and I like tea". I don't know why. As a kid, I didn't like either.


Steal My Sunshine (Len)



Oh, come on. You know you listened to this one, too. The final choice was either this or Vitamin C's graduation song, so you should be thankful I spared you that one.


Alright, I think that's enough humiliation for this week. Have a great weekend, children of the 90s! I swear if you put this on your iTunes and take it to the gym or in your car, you won't regret it. Just don't turn it up too high or roll your windows down. That would just be embarrassing.

30 comments:

Molly said...

I have about a dozen songs stuck in my head all at the same time now. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

2Gether!!! My. Favorite. Ever.

I have at least 75% of these songs on my mp3 player, love it!

Have a great time!

Kristen said...

OMG this playlist is ah-mazing. Seriously, instant nostalgia- these were all of my favorite songs (except for DMB, never been much of a fan of his). I would never judge Mmmbop since I'm actually a current Hanson fan (haha, and I am totally comfortable being judged about that at this point).

Anyway, great list. I will definitely be recreating it for my next road trip, coming up in about two weeks. =)

Melanie's Randomness said...

You just made my day. I loved like everyone of these!!! Omg I still have NOW 1 in my car. lol. I loved 5, LFo, spice girls, savage garden...oh my I loved them all. Great music!! great post!!

have a good weekend!!

ali said...

Huh, I only recognize about half of these. On the list of all the great 90s things, well, most of the music just doesn't make the cut (for me). I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) is amazing though, no argument there. Of course, now it always makes me think of How I Met Your Mother.

Christy said...

I listened to almost ALL of these songs!!! I especially loved Savage Garden. I totally forgot about 5ive!

jenn said...

i love every single song on this list. not only am i not judging you - i'm JEALOUS of your road trip!!!

thegamerswife said...

Ahhh you take me back! Never Ever! Summer Girls! Wannabe! Ahh I was a total pop fan freak, and still am. You should see me singing Wannabe on Band Hero.. I so miss all of these songs! I definitely need to make a 90s playlist on my iPod! Have a good holiday!

Yankee Girl said...

500 Miles is an awesome song!

The hubs and I always make a mixed CD for every road trip. They are fun memories to have!

Sarah said...

Wow, major high school flashbacks with this post. I, too, love Jumper. Whenever I hear the song, I always remember that episode of Road Rules where the team introduced 3rd Eye Blind for...some reason. I don't know why. And then the band played that song.

Emily said...

Oh, man...I so want to be a teenager again after reading your list!

By the way, I think "havering" means to babble nonsense. :)

Amanda said...

I don't have to put it on my iTunes...ALL of those songs are already there. And I have no shame ;)

Heather Taylor said...

Loved that Savage Garden song. That brings back lots and lots of memories and no shame, I do have it on my iPod.

Katie said...

Best playlist ever. I may go download a couple of these on iTunes right now. And I say a couple because I've already got most of them.

Shoshanah said...

I love pretty much all your picks. This would be a pretty awesome road trip for me!

Karen said...

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU for reminding me of 2ge+her and LFO!!! Put a huge smile of my face. And I have specific memories about times I heard those songs or they were playing in the background. Brought me right back to high school. So thank you (always) for the great memories!

Laura said...

This whole list just made my day. That is a great mix tape for a road trip - I hope you enjoy it!

rachaelgking said...

Little known secret... I listen to "When the Lights Go Out" at least once during every workout.

;-)

Anonymous said...

Yes to 5ive and Hanson! They were awesome and Hanson still is! Great song choices. I agree with all the songs I've heard on your list.

Carlito86 said...

Ah, the best songs ever! That was my fave 5ive song, I loved Ritchie! xx

Kristen said...

Am I the only one who always thought Savage Garden was saying "chicken cherry cola" in that song? Even my orthodontist once stopped in the middle of fixing my braces to question the lyrics.

Anonymous said...

I was immediately transported back in time when I saw C'est La Vie by B*Witched on here. I loved that song when I was a kid. You have no idea how fiercely I loved that song. My mom is an Irish step dance and teacher, so anything Irish has always held a special place in my heart. My mom loved it because in the beginning part the girl says "Everyone says I look like my da!" in this wonderful Irish accent.
This was on that one Disney channel movie, the one about the doll who turns into a human because Lindsey Lohan was trying to get back her dead mom. I searched for this song for days when I was a kid, and I could never find it anywhere. Now it is proudly in my iTunes folder! I've been listening to it on repeat the entire time I typed this.
Thank you so much for reminding me of this! :D
Also, something about the Bare naked Ladies: They sang a song for a Disney movie, and Disney was constantly playing it on their TV channel. Of course, they couldn't refer to the group as "Bare Naked Ladies", as that wasn't Disney-appropriate. So, they always referred to them as BNL. My best friend at the time was (is) very naive, and she was raised by a very conservative family. She didn't know the group's real name. I still remember the look of shock and horror on her face as she came running up to tell me that BNL actually stood for Bare Naked Ladies! She was so offended and weirded out by it.

Anonymous said...

I was a little bummed when I found out the lead singer of Savage Garden was gay. Not because I don't like gay people (very, very on the contrary) but because you always kind of felt like you wished he was talking about YOU when he was singing but in reality, well obviously he WASN'T LOL

AnthonyMorgan said...

And what's special about this playlist? I would make a playlist much better and more interesting than this junk.

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RED ARROW said...
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