Side A
Lauryn Hill-Superstar
Nas-It Ain't Hard To Tell
Seal-Whirlpool
Phil Collins-In The Air Tonight
New Radicals-You Get What You Give
Nirvava-Come As You Are
The Prodigy-Firestarter
Poe-Angry Johnny
Primus-My Name Is Mud
Seal-Violet
Side B
Infamous Syndicate-Here I Go
Lauryn Hill-Lost Ones
2 Skinnee J's-Riot Nrrrd
Korn-Got The Life
House of Pain-Jump Around
The Beatles-Come Together
Isaac Hayes-Theme From Shaft
Ricky Martin-Cup Of Life
Toni Braxton-I Don't Want To
Sixpence None The Richer-Kiss Me
Jay-Z feat. DMX-Money, Cash, Hoes
Lauryn Hill-Tell Him
Once a week in Spanish class at school, we would go to the audio room in the Foreign Language department. We had several rows of cubicles and in each one was a cassette player with headphones attached, which had an intended purpose for exercises and such. During these weekly trips, I often let some of my classmates listen to my mixtapes, mainly because when you're a teenager, you want to do anything besides pay attention in class. I would always have at least a few on me at a given time, so it became a bit of regular thing for people to expecting me to have music. I think they mostly fast forwarded to the album tracks I had from some of the hip hop albums of the day, but it was still gratifying in a way to have my peers come to me for music.
All of this probably started happening around Vol. 15 since I can clearly remember someone discovering a song from here and wanting to talk about it after class (a little more on that later). It honestly slipped my mind that this was how we spent our time and this tape brought back those memories.
Just to show you how little I've changed, I've been using the same exact Walkman I had during those years to revisit these mixtapes when I'm on the go. I find that it's very convenient for me this way since I have to schedule 90 minutes to listen to one while I'm at home and it's already a chore trying to keep up with current happenings in music as is. Here are some pictures of it. And yes, the part that covers the batteries has either been lost or of no use since 1999.
Song I feel could be a hit today: New Radicals - You Get What You Give
I think the falsetto here was what initially turned me off to it. It wasn't something that I was used to hearing on rock radio, plus there was just a lacking cool factor all around. Luckily, I eventually came to my senses and appreciated the 70s pop influences that were going on, which were not really in vogue in 1999. Each successive listen in my adulthood has left me impressed with how good it sounds, not just for its period, but how easily it could fit in to any other one.
Song that someone from my Spanish class really liked: Lauryn Hill - Tell Him
If you could believe it, there were kids during the spring of 1999 who had yet to hear The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, including me until I had bought it that March. With three appearances from Ms. Hill on Vol. 15, I was obviously very pleased with the album. One of the main memories I have from passing out mixtapes in Spanish class is when a friend excitedly told me how much "Tell Him" had a struck a chord. He appreciated that there was a sense of ambiguity about whether it could have been about a guy or God. I thought it was enlightening to get that perspective because I hadn't really thought to include God in what Lauryn was talking about. Even now to this day, I approach this song from both angles.
Song I can thank JC Chasez for turning me on to: Seal - Violet
In just about every issue of Rolling Stone around this time, there would be a small item where an artist was asked to list some of their favorite songs for a playlist. This was an extra learning tool for me because there was still a world of music out there I had yet to hear. If it was an artist I was a fan of, it lent their picks a heavier weight and made the matter to listen to them that more urgent. I never really had anything against 'N Sync around this time, except that I wasn't too fond of most of their singles from the debut (plus, I felt that BSB had better songs and harmonies). For this issue of Rolling Stone that I happened to purchase, JC Chasez was chosen to give some of his picks. Most of them were pop and R&B tracks I was already familiar with, but one selection piqued my interest. He had chosen Seal's "Violet" and described it as a tune that was perfect for riding around late at night to. I had given Seal's first album a listen about a few months prior, but it hadn't connected with me except for a few songs. Not that I held Chasez in such high regard then (that wouldn't come until "Bye Bye Bye" and "Blowin' Me Up With Her Love"), but his description encouraged me to revisit the song. As it turned out, Chasez was pretty damn spot-on that I nearly felt ashamed for not realizing its greatness on my first listen.
Song I feel that too few people know about: 2 Skinne J'S - Riot Nrrrd
One thing about listening to the radio for about 4-5 hours each day is that stuff rarely falls through the cracks. You're bound to catch every song that is in rotation at a station at one point or another. I think that these tapes are representative of that since they capture a lot of songs that the general public has mostly forgotten. One of those songs that hasn't quite made its way out of the 90s is "Riot Nrrrd." Part of the reason why I still dig this song is because of that very reason: its sound is undeniably 90s. With the success of Beck and the Beastie Boys consistently expanding their palette, it paved the way for a lot of acts who had varied CD collections and a fondness for hip hop. "Riot Nrrrd" switched things up so giddily and so often that it made it hard to define, which has always been the type of music I've been drawn to.
Song that I honestly forgot existed until I listened to this volume again: Poe - Angry Johnny
I'll tell you how shoddy my memory is with this song: I don't even remember if it was released around this time or if it was from her debut album back in '95. I instantly remembered the hook because it definitely stood out on alternative radio. Part of me wants to say that this received steady airplay in '99, but I just keep thinking of seeing this video back when I still had cable, which was pre-1996. Regardless, I'm glad to have it back in my life.
Song that had me conflicted and confused because of how glossy and gritty it sounded: Jay-Z feat. DMX - Money, Cash, Hoes
Fans of Jay-Z could obviously tell he was leaning towards a mainstream sound on In My Lifetime Vol. 1, but with Vol. 2...Hard Knock Life, there was no disguising it. Not to say that the man couldn't still crank out a banger. This track was probably one of the top bangers of '98 (honestly, what song with DMX wasn't a banger around this time?), but it sounded kind of pretty to me. I think it might have been the sliding keys in the higher register that gave the song some of its candy coating, but whenever the beat dropped the and verses started flying, it all became serious. In my head, I knew that "Money, Cash, Hoes" was great for breaking bottles against people's heads, but it would be perfectly acceptable if they were Cristal bottles.
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