AllMusic Loves 1999

We love 1999 a whole lot, but maybe not quite as much as we love making lists. Each month (or so), until we have covered every year we can remember (unless we get tired), we will take a look at our favorite albums and singles released during a given year. In the year 1999, Basement Jaxx, Eminem, Mos Def, the Flaming Lips, the Dismemberment Plan, the ageless Tom Jones, the mighty LEN, and dozens of others produced nonperishable goods that would've gotten us through a Y2K drought of just about any magnitude.

Marisa Brown
I heard "Where My Girls At?" on the radio a couple of weeks ago and I still remembered every single word. If that's not a testament to powerful songwriting (or um, limited radio playlists), I don't know what is.

Blackalicious - A2G
The Dismemberment Plan - Emergency & I
The Roots - Things Fall Apart
Eminem - The Slim Shady LP
Aesop Rock - Float
Beth Orton - Central Reservation
Goldie - INCredible Sound of Drum'n'Bass
Rob Swift - The Ablist
Quannum - Quannum Spectrum

702 - "Where My Girls At?"

Stephen Thomas Erlewine
There was a bunch of great music in 1999 -- I can't think of another year in the past decade with so many great singles from all genres of music -- so I decided to whittle my list to the albums and singles I still actively play (although I do admit that the singles are in heavier rotation than the full albums).

Fiona Apple - When the Pawn Hits the Conflicts...
Pavement - Terror Twilight
Eminem - The Slim Shady LP
Paul McCartney - Run Devil Run
XTC - Apple Venus, Pt. 1
Super Furry Animals - Guerrilla
The White Stripes - The White Stripes
Alan Jackson - Under the Influence

LEN - "Steal My Sunshine"
Madonna - "Beautiful Stranger"
Sugar Ray - "Every Morning"
Supergrass - "Pumping on Your Stereo"
Kid Rock - "Cowboy"
Super Furry Animals - "Northern Lights"
Backstreet Boys - "I Want It That Way"
Christina Aguilera - "Genie in a Bottle"
Suede - "Electricity"
Eminem - "Guilty Conscience"

David Jeffries
At the end of the year, Billy Joel promised to never play pop music again. Had he kept this promise, it would have been the best year ever. I also wish I could have fit Eiffel 65 or the Vengaboys on the list but the boss told me to keep it to ten.

Cut Chemist & DJ Shadow - Brainfreeze
Underworld - Beaucoup Fish
Beanie Sigel - The Truth
Tom Jones - Reload
Pharoahe Monch - Internal Affairs
Mos Def - Black on Both Sides
The Fall - The Marshall Suite
The Chemical Brothers - Surrender
Eminem - The Slim Shady LP
Basement Jaxx - Remedy

Mr. Vegas - "Heads High (Kill Dem Wid It)"
Ol' Dirty Bastard - "Got Your Money"
Q-Tip - "Vivrant Thing"
Mr. Oizo - "Flat Beat"
Buccaneer - "Bruk Out"
Armand Van Helden - "U Don't Know Me"
Groove Armada - "At the River"
Foxy Brown - "Hot Spot"
Capleton - "Jah Jah City"
Terrance & Phillip - "Uncle F**ka"

Andy Kellman
Basement Jaxx - Remedy
Mos Def - Black on Both Sides
Everything But the Girl - Temperamental
Prince Paul - A Prince Among Thieves
Pharoahe Monch - Internal Affairs
Innerzone Orchestra - Programmed
Ian O'Brien - Gigantic Days
Burning Airlines - Mission: Control!
Drexciya - Neptune's Lair
Kelis - Kaleidoscope
Lootpack - Soundpieces: Da Antidote!
Aril Brikha - Deeparture in Time
The Roots - Things Fall Apart
Gas - Königsforst
The RZA - Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Super_Collider - Head On
Stewart Walker - Stabiles
Dettinger - Intershop
Brendan Perry - Eye of the Hunter
Bows - Blush

Theo Parrish - "Summertime Is Here"
Pépé Bradock - "Deep Burnt"
Kelis - "Caught Out There"
Basement Jaxx - "Red Alert"
Metro Area - "Atmosphrique"
Farben - "Live at the Sahara Tahoe, 1973"
Moodymann - "Shades of Jae"
Vladislav Delay - "Huone"
Lauryn Hill - "Ex-Factor"
Extended Spirit - "Caprice"
Donell Jones - "U Know What's Up"
Cristian Vogel - "General Arrepientase"
Da One Away - "The Mind"
Ol' Dirty Bastard - "Got Your Money"
Tiny Trendies - "The Sky Is Not Crying"
Q-Tip - "Breathe and Stop"
Andrés - "Material World"
Amel Larrieux - "Get Up"
Quasimoto - "Microphone Mathematics"
Mustang - "Transitions"

Andrew Leahey
Wilco - Summerteeth
The Waking Hours - The Waking Hours
Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers - Honky Tonk Union
Kate Rusby - Sleepless
Jimmy Eat World - Clarity
Fountains of Wayne - Utopia Parkway
Drive-By Truckers - Alabama Ass Whuppin'
Beck - Midnite Vultures

Roger Clyne & the Peacemakers - "Green & Dumb"
The Waking Hours - "Dolores"
Jimmy Eat World - "Lucky Denver Mint"
Madonna - "Beautiful Stranger"
Kate Rusby - "The Unquiet Grave"
Fountains of Wayne - "The Valley of Malls"

Jason Lymangrover
Mr. Bungle - California
Sigur Rós - Ágætis Byrjun
Handsome Boy Modeling School - So...How's Your Girl?
The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin
The Roots - Things Fall Apart
Beulah - When Your Heartstrings Break
Built to Spill - Keep It Like a Secret
The Dismemberment Plan - Emegency & I
Fantastic Plastic Machine - Luxury
Pavement - Terror Twilight

James Christopher Monger
The Negro Problem - Joys & Concerns
XTC - Apple Venus, Pt. 1
Agalloch - Pale Folklore
The Gourds - Ghosts of Hallelujah
Waterson:Carthy - Broken Ground
Tom Waits - Mule Variations
Nightmares on Wax - Carboot Soul
Dolly Parton - The Grass Is Blue
The Auteurs - How I Learned to Love the Bootboys
The Flaming Lips - The Soft Bulletin

Heather Phares
Add N to (X) - Avant Hard
Basement Jaxx - Remedy
The Dismemberment Plan - Emergency & I
Gorky's Zygotic Mynci - Spanish Dance Troupe
Jim O'Rourke - Eureka
Royal Trux - Veterans of Disorder
Smog - Knock Knock
Stereo Total - My Melody
Super Furry Animals - Guerrilla
The White Stripes - The White Stripes

Tim Sendra
These poptastic songs are guaranteed to rub you the right way, get your game on, and be friends forever. These songs are strong enough, as high as Cleopatra, Joan of Arc, and Aphrodite, and if you're lucky, they might just kiss you beneath the milky twilight. None of these songs are also known as a buster, none will hang out the passenger side of their best friend's ride, and they will never, not ever, steal your sunshine. And yes, we like butter tarts!

LEN - "Steal My Sunshine"
Cher - "Believe"
Smashmouth - "All Star"
Sugar Ray - "Every Morning"
Tal Bachman - "She's So High"
Sixpence None the Richer - "Kiss Me"
TLC - "No Scrubs"
Christina Aguilera - "Genie in a Bottle"
Vitamin C - "Graduation (Friends Forever)"

Some of the recordings listed above are technically 1998 releases, but they made more of an impact in 1999.