20 years ago, during my sophomore year of high school, I put together the first of what would become a nearly 20 volume collection of mix tapes, containing my favorite songs that I had gathered either from the radio, a cassette tape, or (eventually) CD. We last looked back at all 20 volumes three years ago to see which of my “favorite” songs still resonated in today’s digital world. Today, we revisit those mix tapes and see how, or if, things have changed in the past 3 years.
Volume 19 stretches from late summer 1995 and into the fall semester of the first of my two senior years of college. Again, it mostly features what was considered alternative music, with Coolio interjecting some street flavor for good measure.
Side A
Tripping Daisy – I Got A Girl
The one hit for Tripping Daisy, who I saw in concert the day after my 21st birthday, managed to nearly double its number of plays in the last 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 3 plays | 6 plays | 11 plays, most recently on 8/13/2018 |
Foo Fighters – This Is A Call
Written a few months after the death of Kurt Cobain, the debut for Dave Grohl’s new venture earned 9 additional plays over the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 13 plays | 17 plays | 26 plays, most recently on 12/28/2018 |
Pearl Jam – Whipping
The final appearance of Pearl Jam on these collections, which received plenty of airplay on Q101 despite not being officially released as a single, quadrupled its listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 plays | 2 plays | 8 plays, most recently on 10/3/2018 |
Hootie and the Blowfish – Only Wanna Be With You
Hootie’s ode to, among other things, the Miami Dolphins added 3 new listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 2 plays | 5 plays | 8 plays, most recently on 12/4/2018 |
Elastica – Stutter
Originally released in November 1993, it was re-released the following year, made its way to radio in 1995, and tripled its listens over the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 plays | 2 plays | 6 plays, most recently on 8/28/2018 |
Cranberries – Ridiculous Thoughts
7 listens for the latest from the Cranberries, mostly due to the untimely death of lead singer Dolores O’Riordan in January 2018.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 0 plays | 2 plays | 9 plays, most recently on 11/30/2018 |
Green Day – J.A.R.
Green Day’s contribution to the Angus soundtrack picked up a mere 3 listens over the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 7 plays | 10 plays | 13 plays, most recently on 1/7/2018 |
Alanis Morissette – Hand In My Pocket
Hitting #4 on the Billboard charts, the second release from the juggernaut that was Jagged Little Pill added only 5 listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 3 plays | 9 plays | 14 plays, most recently on 6/18/2018 |
Side B
Liz Phair – Turning Japanese
The cover of the Vapors hit, with backing by Material Issue, more than tripled its listens over the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 4 plays | 5 plays | 16 plays, most recently on 11/20/2018 |
REM – Crush With Eyeliner
The fourth single from Monster, with backing vocals from Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore, picked up 5 plays over the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 3 plays | 4 plays | 9 plays, most recently on 12/14/2018 |
Silverchair – Tomorrow
Hitting #1 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks and Modern Rock Tracks charts, the debut from the Australian teenagers picked up 5 additional listens over the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 5 plays | 9 plays | 14 plays, most recently on 12/12/2018 |
Foo Fighters – I’ll Stick Around
Dave Grohl’s second post-Nirvana release picked up 10 new listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 13 plays | 15 plays | 25 plays, most recently on 9/23/2018 |
Presidents of the United States of America – Lump
Originally recorded off of Q101, the debut hit from the POTUSA, which peaked at #26 on the Billboard charts, garnered 10 additional listens over the part 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 8 plays | 12 plays | 22 plays, most recently on 12/14/2018 |
Green Day – Geek Stink Breath
The first release from Green Day’s fourth album, debuted live on the December 3, 1994 episode of SNL, more than doubled its listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 play | 6 plays | 13 plays, most recently on 11/5/2018 |
Coolio – Gangsta’s Paradise
Coolio’s monster hit from the Dangerous Minds soundtrack garnered an additional 9 listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 11 plays | 22 plays | 31 plays, most recently on 9/30/2018 |
Alanis Morissette – All I Really Want
The third release from the juggernaut that was Jagged Little Pill, which peaked at #14 on Billboard’s Modern Rock Tracks chart, added only 2 new listens in the past 3 years.
| 2012 | 2015 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|
| 9 plays | 15 plays | 17 plays, most recently on 6/26/2018 |