With the weather being hot ‘n buggy outside – it was a nice evening to lounge on the couch and pretend to know things about ’90s music! I have quite a lot of “knowledge gaps” when it comes to ’90s music – (’80s music is more my “wheelhouse”). I kind of stopped paying attention to current music around the mid 1990s, went through a “classic rock” phase where I was getting into Pink Floyd, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Neil Young and some CCR – rather than paying attention to what Mariah Carey was screeching about in ranges that only dogs could hear – and let’s say that the Spin Doctors’ music may have caused me to go into a semi-homicidal rage (still does) and I “may” have referred to Alanis Morrissette’s singing style as being akin to “tone-deaf caterwauling.”

That is certainly not to say I hated ALL music from the 1990s! The Cure, U2 and Depeche Mode were among my favorites who managed to transition from the 1980s to the 1990s without having to sell all of their possessions, I was into the “alternative” music scene in the early 1990s (anyone remember Matthew Sweet), Lenny Kravitz and Tori Amos were among my favorite college artists, would buy nine inch nails albums as soon as they were released, I went to a few concerts, went through a short-lived Marilyn Manson phase, loved seeing Trent Reznor spinning around on meat hooks in that one video with the blindfold on…

But those aren’t the things you’re likely to be quizzed about in most ’90s music themed trivia games! But that’s…OK! This trivia topic is more Kim’s wheelhouse for sure – and what kind of music trivia “pardner” would I be if I left her to try answering these questions all by herself (to be honest – she pretty much can answer 99 percent of these questions correctly by herself)! My only contribution in this game was checking her on a question about a 1995 movie soundtrack!

Long story short? It was all in good fun and I didn’t have to think too much!

Here are the questions as presented to us:

2. TV Casts – The cast of “Friends” appears in the music video for what 1995 single by the Rembrandts?

2. One-Word Titles – Name two of the three top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart by singer-songwriter Natalie Merchant that have one-word titles, all of which came out in the mid 1990s. Speaking of tone-deaf caterwauling…Thankfully Kim was all over this. Yes, maybe…just MAYBE Cat Stevens slash Yusuf Islam deserved to be on the “do not fly list” (I for one do not think he did), but Natalie Merchant deserved so much worse for her having attempted to cover “Peace Train” when she was with 10,000 Maniacs (sorry some sins cannot be atoned). Shiver in my bones just thinking about her singing voice! Sorry not sorry for that little rant!!!

3. Country – What country artist had five #1 albums on the Top Country Albums chart in the 1990s, including “Livin’ It Up,” “Lead On,” “Blue Clear Sky,” “Carrying Your Love With Me,” and “One Step At a Time?” After I emphatically said “Not it,” Kim did her best with this…miss for low points.

4. 1960s to 1990s – What song that recounts the events of a fatal car crash was a hit for J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers in 1964 and for Pearl Jam in 1999? Me? Again, rock on for Kim knowing this…I wasn’t really paying attention to PJ’s late 1990s stuff…

5. First Singles – What late 1990s song by Fatboy slim, his first single to chart in the U.S., contains the lyrics, “Right about now, the funk soul brother?” Kim said she knew this because of its tie in with “She’s All That.” Then she mentioned a movie having a couple of sequels, and I misunderstood her to be saying that “She’s All That” was the movie to have generated sequels. Which made me think that “She’s All That and a Bag of Chips” would be a fantastic name for a sequel to this movie! Don’t ask me what the plot would be!

6. Cover Songs – What band released a 1993 album of cover songs titled “The Spaghetti Incident” which included tracks originally by the New York Dolls, the Stooges and Charles Manson, among others?

7. Lead Singers – What is the last name of the lead singer of the band that had hits in the 1990s with “One Headlight” and “The Difference?”

8. Rock Ballads – What rock ballad, which appeared on Metallica’s self-titled 1991 album, spawned sequels on their albums “ReLoad” and “Death Magnetic?”

9. Soundtracks – Whitney Houston, Toni Braxton, Aretha Franklin and Mary J. Blige are among the artists featured on the Grammy Award nominated soundtrack to what 1995 film?

10. Greatest Hits – What rapper’s 1998 Greatest Hits album opens with the track “Keep Ya Head Up?” Neither of us had a clue…but we were on the right track thinking about rappers who had died shortly beforehand. Miss.

Mystery – One Hit Wonder Lyrics

Name the song by a 1990s One Hit Wonder based on a portion of its lyrics.

M1 – “Trying to make ends meet, you’re a slave to the money then you die.”

M2 – “We love the all the all of you. Where lands are green and skies are blue.”

M3 – “And then there she was. Like double cherry pie. Yeah there she was.”

M4 – “Don’t let go. You’ve got the music in you.”

Missed #2 (just didn’t think of this group, and when the answer was revealed, I wondered who the hell they were…)

Don’t remember what place we were in going into the final, but the category was:

Music Videos

This category worried me a bit. I didn’t really pay attention to music videos much in the 1990s. But in my defense, MTV pretty much stopped being a place to watch music videos after…1994?

I was right to be worried…

In 1993, Entertainment Weekly wrote that actress Heather LeLoach stole the show at that year’s MTV Video Music Awards.

She is probably best known for her appearence in the music video for what 1993 single?

She would also later appear in the music video for “Bedrock Anthem” by Weird Al Yankovic.

Yes, this one of those questions that stumps you…then when they reveal the answer, you’re like –

“Why didn’t I think of that?”

Ah…all I can do is pour some cocktails for two…and speak my point of view – but it’s not sane.

This is probably it for this week’s trivia battles. As always, Go Pods, and stay classy, Tupac Shakur!