Showing posts with label Tracy Chapman. Show all posts

Friday, September 16, 2022

Top 100 Modern Folk Songs: 1980-2022

Modern Folk Songs, 1980-2022:

Top 100 Songs

Songs on this list fall under various banners including folk, folk-rock, modern folk, alt-country, and Americana. Most genre lists at Dave’s Music Database are created by aggregating best-of lists from multiple sources. In this case, it was difficult to find lists focused on modern folk. As such, this list was compiled by pulling together any acts from 1980 forward who appeared on any best-of folk or folk rock song lists and folk/Americana album lists. Those applicable songs were then listed in order of overall ranking on Dave’s Music Database.

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

1. Tracy Chapman “Fast Car” (1988)
2. Johnny Cash “Hurt” (2003)
3. The Lumineers “Ho Hey” (2012)
4. Jeff Buckley “Hallelujah” (1994)
5. Passenger “Let Her Go” (2012)
6. Suzanne Vega “Luka” (1987)
7. Tracy Chapman “Give Me One Reason” (1995)
8. Shawn Colvin “Sunny Came Home” (1996)
9. Mumford & Sons “I Will Wait” (2012)
10. k.d. lang “Constant Craving” (1992)

11. Kacey Musgraves “Follow Your Arrow” (2013)
12. Grateful Dead “Touch of Grey” (1987)
13. Leonard Cohen “Hallelujah” (1984)
14. Indigo Girls “Closer to Fine” (1989)
15. Neil Young “Harvest Moon” (1992)
16. Jeff Buckley “Last Goodbye” (1994)
17. Tracy Chapman “Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution” (1988)
18. Mumford & Sons “Little Lion Man” (2009)
19. Ray LaMontagne “You Are the Best Thing” (2008)
20. Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova as The Swell Season “Falling Slowly” (2007)

21. Brandi Carlile “The Joke” (2017)
22. The Soggy Bottom Boys “Man of Constant Sorrow” (2001)
23. Bruce Springsteen “Atlantic City” (1982)
24. The Lumineers “Ophelia” (2016)
25. Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard “Pancho and Lefty” (1983)
26. Leonard Cohen “You Want It Darker” (2016)
27. Shawn Colvin “I Don’t Know Why” (1992)
28. The Lumineers “Stubborn Love” (2012)
29. Mumford & Sons “Believe” (2015)
30. Chris Stapleton “Tennessee Whiskey” (2015)

31. Bob Dylan “Things Have Changed” (2000)
32. Mumford & Sons “Guiding Light” (2018)
33. Bruce Cockburn “If I Had a Rocket Launcher” (1984)
34. Mumford & Sons “The Cave” (2009)
35. Beck “Lost Cause” (2002)
36. Tracy Chapman “Crossroads” (1989)
37. Indigo Girls “Galileo” (1992)
38. Tracy Chapman “Baby Can I Hold You” (1988)
39. Brandi Carlile “The Story (I Was Made for You)” (2007)
40. Loreena McKennitt “The Mummer’s Dance” (1997)

41. Kacey Musgraves “Justified” (2021)
42. Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit “If We Were Vampires” (2017)
43. The Lumineers “Gloria” (2019)
44. Chris Stapleton “Broken Halos” (2017)
45. Bon Iver “Holocene” (2011)
46. Bruce Cockburn “Lovers in a Dangerous Time” (1984)
47. The Head and the Heart “All We Ever Knew” (2016)
48. Suzanne Vega & Joe Jackson “Left of Center” (1986)
49. Kacey Musgraves “Rainbow” (2018)
50. Indigo Girls “Power of Two” (1994)

51. Fleet Foxes “White Winter Hymnal” (2008)
52. Bright Eyes “First Day of My Life” (2005)
53. Bruce Springsteen “The Ghost of Tom Joad” (1995)
54. The Highwomen “Crowded Table” (2019)
55. Kacey Musgraves “Space Cowboy” (2018)
56. Lucinda Williams “Righteously” (2003)
57. Bon Iver “Skinny Love” (2007)
58. Indigo Girls “Hammer and a Nail” (1990)
59. Tracy Chapman “Telling Stories (There Is Friction in the Space Between)” (2000)
60. Bruce Springsteen “Devils & Dust” (2005)

61. The Avett Brothers “Ain’t No Man” (2016)
62. Chris Stapleton “Starting Over” (2020)
63. The Head and the Heart “Missed Connection” (2019)
64. The Lumineers “Life in the City” (2019)
65. Sharon Van Etten “Seventeen” (2019)
66. Mumford & Sons “The Wolf” (2015)
67. Neko Case, k.d. lang, & Laura Veirs “Atomic Number” (2016)
68. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss “Please Read the Letter” (2007)
69. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss “Gone Gone Gone (Done Moved On)” (2007)
70. Sufjan Stevens “Chicago” (2005)

71. Bob Dylan “Everything Is Broken” (1989)
72. Leonard Cohen “Everybody Knows” (1988)
73. Bruce Springsteen “We Shall Overcome” (1998)
74. Suzanne Vega “Solitude Standing” (1987)
75. Bob Dylan “Mississippi” (2001)
76. Suzanne Vega “Tom’s Diner” (1987)
77. Sturgill Simpson “In Bloom” (2016)
78. Neko Case “Hold on Hold On” (2006)
79. The Head and the Heart “Lost in My Mind” (2011)
80. Neil Young “Philadelphia” (1994)

81. Ray LaMontagne & the Pariah Dogs “Beg, Steal or Borrow” (2010)
82. Shawn Colvin “Steady On” (1989)
83. Brandi Carlile “Right on Time” (2021)
84. Tracy Chapman “All That You Have Is Your Soul” (1989)
85. Indigo Girls “Get Together” (1987)
86. Bob Dylan “Dignity” (1994)
87. Shawn Colvin “Round of Blues” (1992)
88. Shawn Colvin “Diamond in the Rough” (1989)
89. The Avett Brothers “Kick Drum Heart” (2009)
90. Fleet Foxes “Helplessness Blues” (2011)

91. The Lumineers “Cleopatra” (2016)
92. Mumford & Sons “Lover of the Light” (2012)
93. Sharon Van Etten & Angel Olsen “Like I Used To” (2021)
94. The Head and the Heart “Rhythm & Blues” (2016)
95. Willie Nelson “City of New Orleans” (1984)
96. Ray LaMontagne “Strong Enough” (2020)
97. Neko Case “Last Lion of Albion” (2018)
98. Jason Isbell “24 Frames’ (2015)
99. Josh Ritter “Getting Ready to Get Down” (2015)
100. Robert Plant & Alison Krauss “Can’t Let Go” (2021)

Resources/Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: “Other Genre/Category Song Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “The Top 100 Folk/Folk Rock Songs (up through 1979)”
Dave’s Music Database: “The Top 100 Folk/Americana Albums of All Time”

First posted 9/11/2022; last updated 9/16/2022.

Sunday, July 23, 2000

In Concert: Sting and Tracy Chapman

image from sting.com

Venue: Sandstone Ampitheatre; Bonner Springs, KS
Tour: Sting’s Brand New Day Tour
Opening Act: Tracy Chapman

Tracy Chapman’s Set List:

1. It’s OK
2. Baby, Can I Hold You
3. Wedding Song
4. Crossroads
5. For My Lover
6. Less Than Strangers
7. The Promise
8. Fast Car
9. Speak the Word
10. Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution
11. Telling Stories
12. Give Me One Reason

Sting’s Set List:

1. A Thousand Years
2. If You Love Somebody Set Them Free
3. After the Rain Has Fallen
4. We’ll Be Together
5. Perfect Love...Gone Wrong
6. All This Time
7. Seven Days
8. Fill Her Up
9. Fields of Gold
10. Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic
11. Moon Over Bourbon Street
12. Tomorrow We’ll See
13. Englishman in New York
14. Brand New Day
15. Roxanne
16. Desert Rose
17. When the World Is Running Down You Make the Best of What’s Still Around

Encore 1:

18. If I Ever Lose My Faith in You
19. Every Breath You Take

Encore 2:

20. Message in a Bottle
21. Fragile

Friday, December 31, 1999

Lilith Fair: Top 100 Songs

Lilith Fair:

Top 100 Songs

Lilith Fair wasn’t exactly a genre, but a celebration of female artists in the late 1990s. Discouraged by radio programmers and concert promoters who didn’t think it was commercially viable to have two female artists perform back to back, Sarah McLachlan launched the Lilith Fair festival in the summer of 1997. The concept was to feature only female artists or female-led bands. More than 30 dates featured over 70 performers. The festival was successful enough to spawn follow-ups in 1998 and 1999.

The initial list was generated by taking all those artists who performed from 1997 to 1999 and ranking their songs. This included songs by 10,000 Maniacs and ‘Til Tuesday even though they weren’t performers because their lead singers, Natalie Merchant and Aimee Mann respectively, were performers at Lilith Fair.

I also ceated a definition of the Lilith Fair genre that disqualified some of the performers from this list. I decided to focus on artists who broke between 1985 and 1999. That excluded Lilith Fair performers such as the Pretenders and Pat Benatar who emerged in 1979. I did make exceptions for artists like Bonnie Raitt and Lucinda Williams whose careers began prior to 1985 but reached their artistic and commercial peaks in the “Lilith Fair era.”

I also decided to limit the list to artists who fit more into an alternative-rock or folk-rock vibe. That excluded rap and R&B performers at Lilith Fair such as Missy Elliott and Erykah Badu. In addition, acts generally considered country, such as the Dixie Chicks or Mary Chapin Carpenter, were excised from the list. Again, however, this is subjective as I decided to keep k.d. lang in the mix since she was a traditional country artists but found an audience in the early ‘90s along the lines of other Lilith Fair artists.

I also added artists such as the Cranberies, Melissa Etheridge, Alanis Morissette, and No Doubt, that met my criteria but weren’t actually performers at Lilith Fair.

Finally, I imposed one last restriction. I decided not to feature more than four songs by any artist since some acts, like Sheryl Crow and Alanis Morissette, threatened to overwhelm the list and keep lesser-known artists from appearin on the lists.

Click here to see other genre-specific song lists.

Spotify Podcast

Check out the Dave’s Music Database podcast episode Lilith Fair: The 25th Anniversary which references songs on this list. Premiered September 6, 2022.

Spotify Playlist

You can listen here to a Lilith Fair Spotify playlist that includes the songs below and more.

DMDB Top 1%:

1. Sinéad O’Connor “Nothing Compares 2 U” (1990)
2. No Doubt “Don’t Speak” (1996)
3. Natalie Imbruglia “Torn” (1997)
4. Alanis Morissette “You Oughta Know” (1995)
5. Tracy Chapman “Fast Car” (1988)
6. Alanis Morissette “Ironic” (1995)
7. Sheryl Crow “All I Wanna Do” (1993)

DMDB Top 2%:

8. Alannah Myles “Black Velvet” (1989)
9. The Cranberries “Zombie” (1994)
10. Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories “Stay (I Missed You)” (1994)

11. Jewel “You Were Meant for Me” (1995)
12. Suzanne Vega “Luka” (1987)
13. Tracy Chapman “Give Me One Reason” (1995)
14. Shawn Colvin “Sunny Came Home” (1996)
15. 4 Non Blondes “What’s Up?” (1992)
16. Joan Osborne “One of Us” (1995)
17. Sixpence None the Richer “Kiss Me” (1997)
18. Sarah McLachlan “Building a Mystery” (1997)
19. k.d. lang “Constant Craving” (1992)
20. Alanis Morissette “You Learn” (1995)

21. Jewel “Foolish Games” (1995)
22. The Cardigans “Lovefool” (1996)
23. The Breeders “Cannonball” (1993)

DMDB Top 5%:

24. The Cranberries “Linger” (1993)
25. Elastica “Connection” (1994)
26. Macy Gray “I Try” (1999)
27. Bonnie Raitt “Something to Talk About” (1991)
28. Divinyls “I Touch Myself” (1991)
29. Alanis Morissette “Head Over Feet” (1995)
30. Indigo Girls “Closer to Fine” (1989)

31. Dido “Thank You” (1999)
32. Hole “Doll Parts” (1994)
33. Meredith Brooks “Bitch” (1997)
34. Sinéad O’Connor “Mandinka” (1987)
35. Bonnie Raitt “I Can’t Make You Love Me” (1991)
36. Paula Cole “I Don’t Want to Wait” (1996)
37. Tori Amos “Silent All These Years” (1991)
38. Veruca Salt “Seether” (1994)
39. Sarah McLachlan “Angel” (1997)
40. The Sugarcubes “Birthday” (1987)

41. Sheryl Crow “If It Makes You Happy” (1996)
42. Suzanne Vega with DNA “Tom’s Diner” (remix, 1990)
43. Jewel “Who Will Save Your Soul?” (1995)
44. No Doubt “Just a Girl” (1995)
45. Mazzy Star “Fade into You” (1993)
46. Garbage “Only Happy When It Rains” (1995)
47. Edie Brickell & New Bohemians “What I Am” (1988)
48. Sheryl Crow “My Favorite Mistake” (1998)
49. The Cranberries “Dreams” (1992)
50. Tori Amos “Cornflake Girl” (1994)

51. PJ Harvey “Down by the Water” (1995)
52. ‘Til Tuesday “Voices Carry” (1985)
53. Portishead “Sour Times (Nobody Loves Me)” (1994)
54. Bonnie Raitt “Love Sneakin’ Up on You” (1994)
55. Sheryl Crow “Strong Enough” (1993)
56. Fiona Apple “Criminal” (1996)
57. K’s Choice “Not an Addict” (1996)
58. Bonnie Raitt “Nick of Time” (1989)
59. Paula Cole “Where Have All the Cowboys Gone?” (1996)
60. Tori Amos “Me and a Gun” (1991)

61. 10,000 Maniacs “Like the Weather” (1987)
62. Tracy Chapman “Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution” (1988)
63. Sarah McLachlan “I Will Remember You” (1995)
64. Hole “Violet” (1994)
65. Concrete Blonde “Joey” (1990)
66. Tori Amos “God” (1994)
67. Billie Myers “Kiss the Rain” (1997)
68. Melissa Etheridge “I’m the Only One” (1993)
69. Loreena McKennitt “The Mummer’s Dance” (1997)
70. Garbage “Stupid Girl” (1995)

71. Hole “Malibu” (1998)
72. Sinéad O’Connor “Troy” (1987)
73. Sarah McLachlan “Possession” (1993)
74. Melissa Etheridge “Bring Me Some Water” (1988)
75. Merril Bainbridge “Mouth” (1994)
76. Tracy Bonham “Mother Mother” (1996)
77. Melissa Etheridge “Come to My Window” (1993)
78. Cowboy Junkies “Sweet Jane” (1988)
79. Sinéad O’Connor “The Emperor’s New Clothes” (1990)
80. 10,000 Maniacs “These Are Days” (1992)

DMDB Top 10%:

81. Sophie B. Hawkins “Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover” (1992)
82. Shawn Colvin “I Don’t Know Why” (1992)
83. Heather Nova “Walk This World” (1995)
84. Natalie Merchant “Wonder” (1995)
85. No Doubt “Spiderwebs” (1995)
86. Tasmin Archer “Sleeping Satellite” (1992)
87. Letters to Cleo “Here and Now” (1995)
88. Indigo Girls “Galileo” (1992)
89. Toni Childs “Don’t Walk Away” (1988)
90. Dido “Here with Me” (1999)

91. Luscious Jackson “Naked Eye” (1996)
92. Tracy Chapman “Crossroads” (1989)
93. Lone Justice “Ways to Be Wicked” (1985)
94. Natalie Merchant “Carnival” (1995)
95. Suzanne Vega with Joe Jackson “Left of Center” (1986)
96. Michelle Shocked “Anchorage” (1988)
97. The Sundays “Here’s Where the Story Ends” (1990)
98. Alana Davis “32 Flavors” (1997)
99. Aimee Mann “Save Me” (1999)
100. Belly “Feed the Tree” (1993)

Resources/Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: “Other Genre/Category Song Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “Lilith Fair: Top 50 Albums”
Wikipedia: “Lilith Fair”

First posted 6/24/2022; last updated 1/12/2025.

Sunday, November 19, 1995

Tracy Chapman “Give Me One Reason” single released

Give Me One Reason

Tracy Chapman

Writer(s): Tracy Chapman, Don Gehman (see lyrics here)

Released: November 19, 1995

First Charted: January 20, 1996

Peak: 3 BB, 2 CB, 2 GR, 1² RR, 3 AC, 1⁸ A40, 3 AA, 35 RB, 95 UK, 1¹ CN, 3 AU, 4 DF (Click for codes to charts.)

Sales (in millions): 1.1 US, -- UK, 1.17 world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): 0.7 radio, 177.3 video, 284.83 streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

Tracy Chapman burst out of the gate so strongly with her 1988 debut album that it seemed clear the Ohio-born singer/songwriter would never reach such heights again. The album, which featured the iconic top-ten hit “Fast Car,” reached #1 in the United States and went six times platinum. Her next outing, 1989’s Crossroads, peaked at #9 and sold a million copies. By her third album, 1992’s Matters of the Heart, she was starting to look like an also-ran. The album went gold but stalled at #53.

She’d also failed to crack the Top 40 again after “Fast Car.” Matters of the Heart didn’t even produce a charting single. Chapman, however, was not done. In 1995, she released the album New Beginning, which Pitchfork’s Eric Torrest said “brightened the corners of her folk music with an eye toward renewal and environmentalism.” ^PF It peaked at #4 in the U.S. and went five times platinum. Even more startling, however, was the success of single “Give Me One Reason,” the album’s “bluesy highlight.” ^PF The platinum-selling single actually outdid “Fast Car” commercially, getting to #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and going platinum.

In Pitchfork magazine’s ranking of the 250 best songs of the 1990s, Eric Torres said, the song was about “the push and pull of loving someone who can’t give you what you need.” ^PF In the UK magazine Music Week, Alan Jones said the song was “less intense and somewhat looser” ^MW than “Fast Car.” He also said the song “perfectly mixes her folksy style with traditional R&B qualities, intelligent lyrics and that edgy distinctive voice.” ^MW

The song won a Grammy for Best Rock Song and received nominations for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Best Female Rock Vocal Performance.

Resources:

^MW Music Week (3/22/1997). “Talking Music” by Alan Jones. Page 8.
^PF Pitchfork (9/27/2022). “The 250 Best Songs of the 1990s” by Eric Torres.

Sunday, December 31, 1989

Dave’s Faves: My Album Collection in 1989

Dave’s Faves:

My Album Collection in 1989

By year’s end, this was what my collection looked like. Albums acquired in 1989 are marked with an asterisk.

Aerosmith Greatest Hits (compilation: 1973-79, released 1980) *
Aerosmith Pump (1989) *
Aha Hunting High and Low (1985)
Aha Scoundrel Days (1986)
Aha Stay on These Roads (1988)
Air Supply Lost in Love (1980)
Air Supply The One That You Love (1981)
Alabama Greatest Hits (compilation: 1980-86, released 1986)
Alabama The Touch (1986)
Alabama Live (live, 1988)
Asia Asia (1982)
Asia Alpha (1983)
Asia Astra (1985)
Bad Company 10 from 6 (compilation: 1973-81, released 1985) *
Bangles All Over the Place (1984)
Bangles Different Light (1986)
Bangles Everything (1988)
The Beatles Yesterday…and Today (1966)
The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (1967)
The Beatles Magical Mystery Tour (1967)
The Beatles Hey Jude (1968)
The Beatles 1962-1966 (compilation: 1962-66, released 1973)
The Beatles 1967-1970 (compilation: 1967-70, released 1973)
The Beatles 20 Greatest Hits (compilation: 1962-70, released 1982)
Pat Benatar Crimes of Passion (1980)
Pat Benatar Get Nervous (1982)
Pat Benatar Live from Earth (live, 1983)
Pat Benatar Tropico (1984)
Pat Benatar Seven the Hard Way (1985)
Berlin Pleasure Victim (1983)
Berlin Love Life (1984)
Berlin Count Three and Pray (1986)
Berlin Best of (compilation: 1979-88, released 1988) *
Blondie Parallel Lines (1978)
Blondie Eat to the Beat (1979)
Boomtown Rats In the Long Grass (1984)
Boston Boston (1976) *
Boston Third Stage (1986)
David Bowie ChangesOneBowie (compilation: 1969-76, released 1976)
David Bowie Never Let Me Down (1987)
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars (1988) *
Kate Bush The Sensual World (1989) *
Paul Carrack One Good Reason (1987)
Paul Carrack The Carrack Collection (compilation: 1974-85, released 1988) *
Tracy Chapman Tracy Chapman (1988)
Tracy Chapman Crossroads (1989) *
Chicago Chicago 16 (1982)
Chicago Chicago 17 (1984)
Toni Childs Union (1988)
Eric Clapton Time Pieces (compilation: 1970-78, released 1982) *
Eric Clapton Crossroads (box set: 1963-87, released 1988) *
Lloyd Cole Mainstream (1987) *
Phil Collins No Jacket Required (1985)
Elvis Costello Spike (1989) *
Robert Cray Strong Persuader (1986)
Robert Cray Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (1988)
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young American Dream (1988) *
Crowded House Crowded House (1986)
Crowded House Temple of Low Men (1988)
Terence Trent D’Arby Introducing the Hardline… (1987)
Terence Trent D’Arby Neither Fish Nor Flesh (1989) *
David + David Boomtown (1986)
Def Leppard Pyromania (1983)
Def Leppard Hysteria (1987)
John Denver Greatest Hits (compilation: 1969-72, released 1973)
Dennis DeYoung Desert Moon (1984)
Dennis DeYoung Back to the World (1986)
Dennis DeYoung Boomchild (1989) *
Dire Straits Brothers in Arms (1985)
Neil Diamond The Jazz Singer (soundtrack, 1980)
The Doors The Best of (compilation: 1966-71, released 1987) *
Bob Dylan Biograph (box: 1962-81, released 1985) *
Eagles Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 (compilation: 1971-75, released 1976)
Eagles Greatest Hits Volume 2 (released 1982)
Melissa Etheridge Melissa Etheridge (1988)
Melissa Etheridge Brave and Crazy (1989) *
Eurythmics In the Garden (1981)
Eurythmics Sweet Dreams Are Made of This (1983)
Eurythmics Touch (1983)
Eurythmics 1984 (For the Love of Big Brother) (1984)
Eurythmics Be Yourself Tonight (1985)
Eurythmics Savage (1987)
Everything But the Girl Idlewild (1988)
The Fixx One Thing Leads to Another: Greatest Hits (compilation: 1982-86, released 1989) *
Fleetwood Mac Greatest Hits (compilation: 1975-88, released 1988) *
Dan Fogelberg Greatest Hits (compilation: 1972-82, released 1982)
Foreigner 4 (1981)
Foreigner Records (compilation: 1976-82, released 1982)
Foreigner Agent Provocateur (1984)
Foreigner Inside Information (1987)
Peter Gabriel Plays Live (live, 1983)
Peter Gabriel So (1986)
J. Geils Band Freeze Frame (1981)
Bob Geldof Deep in the Heart of Nowhere (1986)
Genesis Genesis (1983)
Genesis Invisible Touch (1986)
Grateful Dead In the Dark (1987)
Guns N’ Roses Appetite for Destruction (1987) *
Guns N’ Roses G N’ R Lies (1988) *
Daryl Hall & John Oates H₂O (1982)
Daryl Hall & John Oates Rock ‘N’ Soul Part I (compilation: (1973-83, released 1983)
Jimi Hendrix The Essential (compilation: 1966-70, released 1978) *
Don Henley Building the Perfect Beast (1984)
Don Henley The End of the Innocence (1989) *
Hooters Nervous Night (1985)
Hooters One Way Home (1987)
Hooters Zig Zag (1989) *
Indigo Girls Strange Fire (1987) *
Indigo Girls Indigo Girls (1989) *
INXS Kick (1987)
Michael Jackson Off the Wall (1979)
Michael Jackson Thriller (1982)
Michael Jackson Bad (1987)
Billy Joel Turnstiles (1976)
Billy Joel The Stranger (1977)
Billy Joel The Nylon Curtain (1982)
Billy Joel An Innocent Man (1983)
Billy Joel Greatest Hits Volume I & II (compilation: 1973-85, released 1985)
Billy Joel The Bridge (1986)
Billy Joel Storm Front (1989) *
Journey Captured (live, 1981)
Journey Escape (1981)
Journey Frontiers (1983)
Journey Raised on Radio (1986)
Journey Greatest Hits (compilation: 1978-87, released 1988) *
Kansas Best of (compilation: 1974-84, released 1984) *
Kingdom Come Kingdom Come (1988)
Shona Laing South (1988) *
Cyndi Lauper She’s So Unusual (1983)
Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin IV (1971)
Huey Lewis & the News Sports (1983)
Little River Band Greatest Hits (compilation: 1975-82, released 1982)
Little River Band Monsoon (1988)
Living Colour Vivid (1988) *
Loverboy Big Ones (compilation: 1980-89, released 1989) *
Lynyrd Skynyrd Innyrds (compilation: 1973-77, released 1989) *
Barry Manilow Greatest Hits (compilation, released 1978)
Marillion Script for a Jester’s Tear (1983)
Marillion Fugazi (1984)
Marillion Real to Reel (live, 1984)
Marillion Misplaced Childhood (1985)
Marillion Brief Encounter (EP, 1986)
Marillion Clutching at Straws (1987)
Marillion B’Sides Themselves (archives: 1982-88, released 1988)
Marillion The Thieving Magpie (live, 1988) *
Marillion Seasons End (1989) *
Paul McCartney All the Best! (compilation: 1970-87, released 1987) *
Paul McCartney Flowers in the Dirt (1989) *
Maria McKee Maria McKee (1989) *
John Cougar (Mellencamp) American Fool (1982)
John Cougar Mellencamp Uh-Huh (1983)
John Cougar Mellencamp Scarecrow (1985)
John Cougar Mellencamp The Lonesome Jubilee (1987)
John Cougar Mellencamp Big Daddy (1989) *
Men at Work Business As Usual (1981)
Men at Work Cargo (1983)
Men at Work Two Hearts (1985)
Mike + the Mechanics Mike + The Mechanics (1985)
Mike + the Mechanics Living Years (1988)
The Moody Blues This Is the Moody Blues (compilation: 1967-72, released 1974)
The Moody Blues Voices in the Sky (compilation: 1967-82, released 1984)
The Moody Blues The Other Side of Life (1986)
Olivia Newton-John Greatest Hits (compilation: 1971-76, released 1977)
Olivia Newton-John Totally Hot (1978)
Olivia Newton-John/Electric Light Orchestra Xanadu (soundtrack, 1980)
Olivia Newton-John Physical (1981)
Olivia Newton-John Olivia’s Greatest Hits Vol. 2 (compilation: 1978-82, released 1982)
Olivia Newton-John Soul Kiss (1985)
Olivia Newton-John The Rumour (1988)
Olivia Newton-John Warm and Tender (1989) *
Stevie Nicks The Wild Heart (1983)

Sinéad O’Connor The Lion and the Cobra (1987)
Alan Parsons Project I Robot (1977)
Alan Parsons Project Eve (1979)
Alan Parsons Project The Turn of a Friendly Card (1980)
Alan Parsons Project Eye in the Sky (1982)
Alan Parsons Project The Best of (compilation: 1977-83, released 1983)
Alan Parsons Project Ammonia Avenue (1984)
Alan Parsons Project Vulture Culture (1985)
Alan Parsons Project Stereotomy (1986)
Alan Parsons Project Gaudi (1987)
Alan Parsons Project Best of, Vol. 2 (compilation: 1977-87, released 1988)
Steve Perry Street Talk (1984)
Pink Floyd The Dark Side of the Moon (1973)
Pink Floyd The Wall (1979)
Pink Floyd The Final Cut (1983)
Pink Floyd A Momentary Lapse of Reason (1987)
Robert Plant Now and Zen (1988)
The Police Outlandos D’Amour (1978)
The Police Reggatta De Blanc (1979)
The Police Zenyatta Mondatta (1980)
The Police Ghost in the Machine (1981)
The Police Synchronicity (1983)
The Police Every Breath You Take – The Singles (compilation: 1978-1986; released 1986)
Prince 1999 (1982)
Prince & the Revolution Purple Rain (1984)
Prince & the Revolution Around the World in a Day (1985)
Prince & the Revolution Parade (1986)
Prince Sign ‘O’ the Times (1987)
Prince Batman (soundtrack, 1989) *
Psychedelic Furs All of This and Nothing (compilation: 1980-88, released 1988) *
Queen Greatest Hits (compilation: 1973-81, released 1981)
Queen Hot Space (1982) *
Queen The Works (1984) *
Queen A Kind of Magic (1986) *
Queen The Miracle (1989) *
Gerry Rafferty City to City (1978)
Gerry Rafferty North and South (1988)
The Rainmakers The Rainmakers (1986)
The Rainmakers Tornado (1987)
The Rainmakers The Good News and the Bad News *
Lou Reed New York (1989) *
R.E.M. Life’s Rich Pageant (1986)
R.E.M. Document (1987)
R.E.M. Green (1988) *
REO Speedwagon Hi Infidelity (1980)
REO Speedwagon Wheels Are Turnin’ (1984)
REO Speedwagon The Hits (compilation: 1976-88, released 1988)
Lionel Richie Can’t Slow Down (1983)
Lionel Richie Dancing on the Ceiling (1986)
Kenny Rogers Greatest Hits (compilation: 1977-80, released 1980)
The Rolling Stones Hot Rocks 1964-71 (compilation: 1964-71, released 1971)
The Rolling Stones The Singles Collection: The London Years (box set: 1963-71, released 1989) *
The Rolling Stones Rewind (compilation: 1971-84, released 1984)
Todd Rundgren Anthology (compilation: 1968-85, released 1989) *
Todd Rundgren Nearly Human (1989) *
Rush All the World’s a Stage (live, 1976)
Rush Moving Pictures (1981)
Rush Exit…Stage Left (live, 1981)
Rush Hold Your Fire (1987)
Charlie Sexton Pictures for Pleasure (1985)
Shooting Star Touch Me Tonight: Best of (compilation: 1979-89, released 1989) *
Paul Simon Graceland (1986)
Simple Minds Street Fighting Years (1989) *
The Smiths Louder Than Bombs (archives: 1983-87, released 1987)
The Smiths Strangeways, Here We Come (1987)
Bruce Springsteen Darkness on the Edge of Town (1978)
Bruce Springsteen Born in the U.S.A. (1984)
Bruce Springsteen Live 1975/1985 (live box set, 1986)
Bruce Springsteen Tunnel of Love (1987)
Squeeze Cool for Cats (1979)
Squeeze Argybargy (1980)
Squeeze East Side Story (1981) *
Squeeze Sweets from a Stranger (1982)
Squeeze Singles: 45s and Under (compilation: 1977-82, released 1982)
Squeeze Cosi Fan Tutti Frutti (1985)
Squeeze Babylon and On (1987)
Squeeze Classics (compilation: 1978-87, released 1988)
Squeeze Frank (1989)
Steely Dan A Decade of Steely Dan (compilation: 1972-80, released 1985) *
Rod Stewart Storyteller (box: 1964-89, released 1989) *
Sting The Dream of the Blue Turtles (1985)
Sting Bring on the Night (live, 1986)
Sting Nothing Like the Sun (1987)
Styx Styx I (1972)
Styx Styx II (1973)
Styx The Serpent Is Rising (1973)
Styx Man of Miracles (1974)
Styx Best of Styx (compilation: 1972-74)
Styx Equinox (1975)
Styx Crystal Ball (1976)
Styx The Grand Illusion (1977)
Styx Pieces of Eight (1978)
Styx Cornerstone (1979)
Styx Paradise Theater (1981)
Styx Kilroy Was Here (1983)
Styx Caught in the Act (live, 1984)
Supertramp Famous Last Words (1982)
Supertramp Brother Where You Bound (1985)
Supertramp Classics/The Autobiography of Supertramp (compilation: 1974-85, released 1986) *
Tears for Fears The Hurting (1983)
Tears for Fears Songs from the Big Chair (1985)
Tears for Fears The Seeds of Love (1989) *
Toto Toto IV (1982)
Traveling Wilburys Traveling Wilburys Vol. 1 (1988) *
Triumph Classics (compilation, released 1989) *
U2 War (1983)
U2 Under a Blood Red Sky (live, 1983)
U2 The Unforgettable Fire (1984)
U2 The Joshua Tree (1987)
U2 Rattle and Hum (studio/live soundtrack, 1988)
Van Halen Diver Down (1982) *
Van Halen 5150 (1986)
Van Halen OU812 (1988)
Suzanne Vega Solitude Standing (1987)
Violent Femmes Violent Femmes (1983)
Violent Femmes Hallowed Ground (1984)
Violent Femmes Blind Leading the Naked (1986)
Violent Femmes 3 (1989) *
Roger Waters Radio K.A.O.S. (1987)
Whitesnake Whitesnake (1987)
The Who Who’s Next (1971)
The Who Greatest Hits (compilation: 1965-78, released 1983)
The Who Who’s Better Who’s Best (compilation: 1964-80, released 1988) *
John Williams (composer) Star Wars IV: A New Hope (soundtrack, 1977)
XTC Skylarking (1986)
XTC Oranges and Lemons (1989) *
Yes The Yes Album (1971)
Yes Fragile (1971)
Yes Classic Yes (compilation: 1971-77, released 1981)
Yes 90125 (1983)
Yes Big Generator (1987)
ZZ Top Afterburner (1985)
Various Artists:
Brimstone and Treacle (soundtrack, 1982)
Flashdance (soundtrack, 1983)
Footloose (soundtrack, 1984)
K-Tel: High Energy (1979)
K-Tel: Starflight (1979)
K-Tel: Wings of Sound (1979)
Legend (soundtrack, 1986)
No Small Affair (soundtrack, 1984) *
Party! Party! (soundtrack, 1982)
Pretty in Pink (soundtrack, 1986)
Rock for Amnesty (1986)
The Secret Policeman’s Other Ball (soundtrack, 1982)
She’s Having a Baby (soundtrack, 1988)
Some Kind of Wonderful (soundtrack, 1987)
The Songs of Lennon and McCartney (1986)
St. Elmo’s Fire (soundtrack, 1985)
Tequila Sunrise (soundtrack, 1988) *
Two of a Kind (soundtrack, 1983)
A Very Special Christmas (1987)
Vision Quest (soundtrack, 1985)
We Are the World (1985)
When the Wind Blows (soundtrack, 1986)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database: “My Album Collection” (see where it stood in different years)
Dave’s Music Database (3/24/1979). “My First Album Purchase: K-Tel: High Energy”
Dave’s Music Database (9/25/1982). “The Columbia House Record Club”
Dave’s Music Database: “Dave’s Faves: My Top 100 Albums”
Dave’s Music Database (9/18/1982). “My First Personal Song Chart”
Dave’s Music Database: “Dave’s Faves: My Top 100 Songs”

First posted 2/13/2022.

Tuesday, October 3, 1989

Tracy Chapman “All That You Have Is Your Soul” released