Getting the chance to grow up as an impressionable teenager in the 90's was pretty darned awesome. Not even going to front. Especially considering the explosion of good music that was happening in the wake of Nirvana's success.
To give context, we were literally discovering new bands every week. Normally the artists that the big ones would cite as their musical influences, or bring along as opening acts for their tours would be the ones we immediately had to seek out.
But long before You Tube, the Internet or DVD's, there was something special about just catching a band live on TV. I'd wait up for 120 Minutes on MTV (back when they actually played music videos) or the MTV Music Video Awards, or David Letterman, or hell - the Jon Stewart Show! He had a great little talk show on MTV long before The Daily Show days where he'd get so many great up and coming bands to perform. Because they were always struggling to fill seats for the Jon Stewart Show, which filmed in New York City, my friends and I would go regularly for free. I got to see L7 on one episode in person. Maggie Estep on another. The luck of the draw was usually pretty strong for us in terms of musical guests when we went.
The unpredictable nature of live TV also added to the strange excitement of watching one of your favorite bands perform, as you'll see in some of my examples below. Now, I don't want this to come across as me reminiscing about the good ol' days or anything. Sure, I can distinctly remember seeing all of the below as they happened and still have them on VHS tapes in boxes in my closet. What I find amazing is how easily accessible these performances are these days on places like You Tube. Our natural inclination to tape them as they happened was because of a strange sense to preserve what was happening, not realizing in the moment that this stuff was destined to live on in future formats. I mean, there are gigs I remember being at very specifically, and 20 years later, I can watch a bootleg clip of it on You Tube from a completely different angle. It's truly amazing.
Nowadays, as soon as an act performs live on the Late Show, we can jump on You Tube or Hulu the next day and see it. That's why I like the low-fi quality of the following. It reminds me of a time when I felt like if you missed it, you missed out! I wanted to try to share that feeling with all of you. So from that era, here are some of my absolute favorite live performances from the 90's.
THE BEASTIE BOYS "Sabotage" Live from the David Letterman Show (1994)
I was sitting in the Chinese Theater earlier this summer enjoying STAR TREK BEYOND in 3D IMAX. And now with this new incarnation of Star Trek, The Beastie Boys most famous track "Sabotage" has become synonymous with the franchise. But quite frankly, the way they incorporated it into STAR TREK BEYOND is probably the best usage we'll ever get of the track! That, coupled with the recent interview I conducted with Money Mark for my new documentary project, put this particular performance back in my brain. They played a lot in support of "Ill Communication," but there's a vibrant punk rock energy & aesthetic to this David Letterman performance that has remained unmatched. They played "Sabotage" again a few months later on the MTV Music Video Awards, and it was good, but this is by far their best performance of this song. Check it!
NIRVANA "Rape Me/Lithium" MTV Music Awards (1992)
This is one of those examples of the unpredictable nature of live TV! All future airings of this particular performance were edited, but thankfully, it's on You Tube and a part of rock history. Nirvana had hit big with "Smells Like Teen Spirit," which was up for several award nominations here. And they'd already released music videos for "Come As You Are" and "Lithium," which had just debuted on the network. They wanted to come out and perform a brand new song "Rape Me." MTV apparently freaked and forbid them for doing so, threatening to pull the plug if they play anything other than "Teen Spirit" or "Lithium." After much reluctance, the band had opted to play their latest single. Behind-the-scenes, in the back stage area prior to the show, the members of Nirvana had gotten into an altercation with Guns N Roses. So when this originally aired, Nirvana played the first few chords of "Rape Me" before switching into "Lithium." I remember this was the first time I heard "Rape Me" and thought, "whoa, what song is THAT?!" At the end of the performance, Chris Novoselic did his infamous bass toss and for the first time in the band's history, missed and hit himself in the head, hard! Dave Grohl, still angry about their Guns N Roses scuffle, is pounding the drums harder than he ever has, and while Kurt destroys his gear, comes up to the mic to call out Axel Rose on live TV! All of this was cut out later, but watching it live was truly something else. Have a look for yourself.
PEARL JAM "Animal" MTV Music Awards (1993)
Pearl Jam were in a similar situation as Nirvana the year prior where they wanted to play their cover of The Dead Boys "Sonic Reducer" and were forced by MTV execs to instead perform "Jeremy," their big hit at the time. A whole lot can change in the span of a year! By 1993, they were given carte blanche to do whatever they wanted, so they debuted a brand new song from their upcoming album "Five Against One," which was at the last minute changed to VS. As soon as they wrapped "Animal," they brought out Neil Young and performed "Rockin' In The Free World" with him. While that's cool too, I was more blown away by the furiosity of this "Animal" song! Plus, Mike McReady plays a completely different solo here than what ended up on the official studio recording, and I like this solo better, especially when the final chorus kicks in. This actual performance was released as the B-side to a cassingle (that'd be a cassette single for you youngans out there), but I can't recall the A side, and I've since sadly lost that tape. This still remains one of my favorite by the band from this era.
L7 "Pretend We're Dead" Live From David Letterman (1992)
There's something hilarious about watching David Letterman's band, led by Paul Shaffer, play along with the riotous L7 on their hit single "Pretend We're Dead." I mean, very few bands at that time rocked as hard as L7 did. And I saw them several times, so I know! But this in particular always stood out as my favorite performance by them, complete with Letterman's quirky jokes about hoping that "the girls aren't neglecting their studies." Don't worry, Dave! They weren't. I've gotten to know Jennifer in the last year and a half and she's one of the smartest, most well-versed people I've ever been friends with. Oh, and her and the girls rock harder than just about everyone.
HUM "Stars" Howard Stern Show / 120 Minutes (1995)
This is a two-parter because they go hand in hand and are both just beyond awesome. I remember first hearing HUM's single "Stars," and just being blown away by it. I also remember speculating with my friend (and bandmate at the time) Pete that there's no way they could sound as good live as on the recording. We figured there would be feedback galore, and the heaviness would get lost in distortion. And boy were we wrong! I caught them playing the track on 120 Minutes (below) and they were the real deal! But also strange and of note, their biggest fan was Howard Stern! I listened to Howard in those days and his tastes were always a bit puzzling, but I loved how much he loved this band, and in particular the song "Stars." So he had them on his morning talk show, and although it was not even remotely set-up for a proper live performance, he insisted they play "Stars" live on the air. So below is that performance, with the members of HUM literally scattered throughout different rooms of the studio. It's a bit messy considering their set-up, but the heart is all there. So below are both the Stern appearance and 120 Minutes performance.
OASIS "Live Forever" at Glastonbury (1995)
Ah, Oasis! I've always loved them. From the moment I read about them and heard the track "Supersonic," I knew this was right up my alley. They came across as The Beatles meets The Sex Pistols and had tremendous attitude before they were rock stars! I bought the "Supersonic" single before "Definitely Maybe" came out, and also on that CD5 was the track "Live Forever," which immediately became one of my all time favorite pop rock tunes. With the exception of their first NY gig at the Wetlands, I caught every single one of their New York shows and watched them outgrow The Academy, then Roseland, then Jones Beach and ascend to Madison Square Garden. They really hit their peak when they released "(What's The Story) Morning Glory?" and got a new drummer. The first single before that 2nd album came out was "Roll With It," and the B-side was this live version of "Live Forever" from Glastonbury. Now, I'd never seen this performance until putting together this blog, but I used to listen to it over and over, because the way drummer Alan White elevated this track and turned it into an arena rock anthem is astonishing. Just listen to his drum roll fills leading into each chorus! Magnificent. They were always a stellar live band, in particular when you got to hear an entire audience belt out "Don't Look Back In Anger," but this recording of "Live Forever" is my personal fave.
THE TOADIES "Possum Kingdom" Live on 120 Minutes (1995)
Despite being considered a "one-hit wonder" from the grunge era for this particular song, The Toadies were so vastly underrated. Hell, they are probably the only band I've seen live that could cover "Where Is My Mind?" by The Pixies and give the original song a run for it's money! I also loved bassist Lisa Umbarger, a bad-ass that usually would wear a hockey Jersey and just rock the F out. To see just how good they were, here they are performing "Possum Kingdom" on 120 Minutes. (Side-note: ever notice how darned creepy and weird the lyrics are? Pretty sure it's from the perspective of a serial killer. Just sayin'!)
JAWBOX "Savory" Live on 120 Minutes (1994)
One of those bands in the mid-90's that never got their proper due, and yet were so highly influential, let's give it up for Jawbox, shall we? And although "Savory" was their "single," there were so many epic tracks between their 2 Atlantic Record releases that I liked more. However, in recent years, I've grown to appreciate this as a perfectly written and executed post-hardcore "indie" song. Members of The Deftones and FAR later did a kick-ass cover of this, but really, you can't top Jawbox! I also recall a performance of "Motorist" from this same live studio session, but sadly it's nowhere to be found on You Tube. One of these days, I'll transfer all of my VHS tapes to digital and share. But until then, check out this version of "Savory" live!
SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE "In Circles" 120 Minutes / "Seven" The Jon Stewart Show (1994)
The forefathers that were credited with inventing "emo," nothing compares to the original incarnation of Sunny Day Real Estate!!! I used to order random 7 inch singles from the Sub Pop store, even if I'd never heard of the band, because I figured a few bucks to sample 2 tracks from an up and coming band was a low-risk gamble. And I'll never forget when "Thief Steal Me A Peach" by Sunny Day Real Estate showed up at my door. It came with an elaborate booklet, and the tracks were simply titled "Song #8" and "Song #9." There was a raw intensity to the band that I immediately called over my friends and told them, "you have to hear this!" We were lucky enough to see them a few times during their initial run. And although they got back together with the original line-up a few years back, it was a whole different animal in 94-95. The energy in the room was intense. It felt like a band, seething with all this animosity for each other, barely able to keep themselves together. Let alone, in tune! And yet, it hit the audience like a ton of bricks when they actually played. Below are two examples, "In Circles" live from 120 Minutes and then "Seven" live from the Jon Stewart Show.
SMILE "Jack Shrimp" Live at Brownies, NYC (1995)
Now we're delving into bands that I sadly never got to see, but later got to vicariously enjoy via the magical world of You Tube! For example, SMILE! I was only 19 years old when they performed in NYC in support of their epic debut album "Maquee." And Brownie's was a NYC bar with a very strict "21 and over" only policy. So I was crushed that I never got to see SMILE until only a few years ago on their reunion tour opening for OZMA. Alas, I stumbled upon this video from the very show I remember being so bummed I had to miss, and nothing quite matches the manic energy of "Maquee." They went "surf rock" for their follow up album "Girl Crushes Boy," which I don't really like nearly as much as their first record, but I mean, look at them. This drummer is insane! And they were one of the biggest influences on my band at the time Pretty Polly.
FAILURE "Smoking Umbrellas" Live 1997
Another band I completely missed out on was Failure. "Fantastic Planet" was this amazing concept album from start to finish filled with dreamy, catchy rock songs. It also became a huge influence on myself and my bandmates because it was beyond what anyone was doing at the time. I got to see them perform that album last week as part of it's 20th anniversary celebration, but before that, I had to watch the below clip in awe. So glad they're back together. If you don't know them, seek out "Fantastic Planet" asap. A Perfect Circle covered the track "The Nurse Who Loved Me," and we can thank Maynard from TOOL for getting them back together. He apparently asked them to reform and play at his 50th birthday bash.
THE MUFFS "Agony" Live at CBGB's 8/23/95
For everyone, there are probably 5 or so shows that will forever stand out in your mind as the most epic things you've ever been able to experience as a music fan. For me, one of those gigs will always be the first time I saw punk-pop trio The Muffs at CBGB's. I was up front when the drummer Roy McDonald asked me if I'd run across the street and pick them up a few bottles of bottled water, in exchange for a T-Shirt. I complied! And the thing is this, I loved The Muffs on record. But I had no idea just how raunchy and punk rock they would be live! So when they took the stage, lead singer/guitarist Kim Shattuck was spitting all over the place and screaming like a banshee. Bassist Ronnie Barnett fell backwards into the crowd during the 2nd track. I will never, ever forget the experience of standing there and being blown the F away by the sheer punk rock power of The Muffs. Cut to 20 years later, I'm prepping for an interview with Kim for my doc, and going down the You Tube rabbit hole. Low and behold, I find the exact show I was at, only from a different angle! And it's so surreal to have this memory for 2 decades and then to get the opportunity to relive it all these years later when the thought never crossed my mind that you could do that. Below is that entire show, but I'd recommend at the very least watching the first 2 songs from the set list, "Agony" and "Lucky Guy."
THE BREEDERS "Cannonball" MTV Studios 1993
Really, what can I say about The Breeders? I came to them thanks to constant mentions from Nirvana. Loved their first album "Pod." Loved "Last Splash" even more. And forever had a crush on Kim Deal from the moment I first caught the music video for "Cannonball." She reminded me so much of my friends older sister that I also had a crush on, and I think that's basically who she was to a lot of impressionable teenagers in the 90's. That cool older sister your friend had that everyone was in love with. Here's their 2 singles "Cannonball" and "Divine Hammer," the perviest single to ever play on MTV!
CONCRETE BLONDE "Heal It Up" Live on The Jon Stewart Show
This is top of my list in terms of performances. I loved Concrete Blonde, but sometimes, you come across a voice that just makes your soul ache because it's that great. Johnette Napolitano was that voice. From the moment I heard her belt out the chorus to "Heal It Up," I knew I had to up my game as a singer, and then realized I just suck compared to this amazing woman. "Heal It Up" could be in my top 5 songs of all time and it's all because of Johnette's emotional performance. See for yourself!
STABBING WESTWARD "Shame" Live at the MTV Studios 1996
I literally can go on and on and on with examples of more live performances from this era, but I've got to try be productive with my day in other areas! So I'm going to wrap it up with a slightly off-kilter choice. And who knows? Maybe I'll do a "Part Two" to this eventually. Stabbing Westward were kind of a Nine Inch Nails knock-off in the mid 90's. They were pretty darned good, even if now in retrospect, the lyrics are a bit silly and immature angst-ridden non-sense. But I'll tell you one thing, they were amazing live. I got to see them do a tiny club gig at Coney Island High (RIP) in NYC in celebration of their 3rd album "Darkest Days," and when they got to their encore of "Shame," the place was pure pandemonium. I recall distinctly a guy jumping up on stage and headbanging along with singer Christopher Hall before joining him in screaming the chorus into the mic. I wish a video of that gig existed somewhere but sadly it does not, unless someone shot it and is holding out! But instead, here they are performing "Shame" on 120 Minutes.
Hope you enjoyed this stroll down memory lane, and perhaps we'll do it again! I still get lost occasionally in the You Tube rabbit hole, so if there are any performances you remember from this time period that had as profound an impact on you as some of these did for me, please feel free to comment them below so I can check them out! Until next episode...
