Jamwise #46 · Years · 1994 (Part 1)
Best Albums of 1994 (Part 1)
The best albums of 1994, revisited three decades later — Soundgarden, Green Day, Jeff Buckley, Nas, Portishead, Oasis, Weezer, and more. No rankings, just great records.
1994 is widely considered one of the best-ever years in music. There are classic debuts, genre-definers in the midst of gaining their now-legendary status, not to mention the powerful nostalgia we tend to feel for music when it turns 30. It was impossible to choose a reasonable amount of great albums to start with, so I just started with the ones I felt most like listening to. I’m not even going to try to rank these albums - this is going to be more like a survey because of the sheer volume of stuff to get through.
As always, I’d love your recommendations! I fully expect to be bowled over by all the music from this year. Woe is me.
Superunknown — Soundgarden
Soundgarden’s breakthrough to the mainstream via the top of the charts was a long-deserved cashing in of all the hard work they’d put in.
Dookie — Green Day
Green Day had such a good feel for album construction. You wouldn’t guess it from their pop-punk sound (or some of their later albums) - they act like they DGAF, but musically they very much GAF.
Grace — Jeff Buckley
Another great album that Rolling Stone dismissed when it came out. Am I just 30 years late in realizing they seem to hate anything that’s not already a platinum-seller?
Dummy — Portishead
There’s no doubt that if I’d known about this album as a kid, my musical trajectory would have changed completely.
Illmatic — Nas
Last week I said I was becoming a West Coast hip hop guy. Nas must have heard me, because this one made me question my loyalties completely.
Definitely Maybe — Oasis
I want to preface this by saying that I love this album as much as anyone. It’s good-time rock ‘n roll, and it’s impossible to hate in my opinion.
Weezer — Weezer
Weezer’s debut album is geeky, self-aware, and completely unforgettable.