As far as musical identities go, the ’90s are kind of all over the place. The ’50s, ’60s, ’70s and ’80s are a breeze to stereotype – but the slacker decade doesn’t make it so easy. When you think of “’90s music,” what comes to mind? It was an era of grunge and gangsta rap, Britpop and boy bands, alt-rock revolution, mainstream metal and something called Chumbawamba. Meanwhile, pumpkins were smashed, machines were raged against and everything smelled a little like Teen Spirit.

Gibson.com recently called upon its editors, writers and – most importantly – you, the readers, to weigh in on the greatest albums of that decade. When the dust settled, we were left with the Top 50 Albums of the ’90s. After revealing #50-41, #40-31, #30-21 and #20-11, we’re ready for the epic conclusion. Here are Gibson.com’s Top 10 Albums of the ’90s.

 10. The Bends, Radiohead (1995)

 Hopes were high that Radiohead’s 1995 album The Bends, the band’s second studio album, would be a strong follow-up to their Pablo Honey album, and the band did not disappoint. Produced by John Leckie, The Bends is a sonic masterpiece of multilayered rock and mysterious lyrical landscapes. Featuring five charting singles, including “Street Spirit (Fade Out),” Radiohead’s first Top 5 hit in the U.K., The Bends drew universal love from critics, even as some lamented that singer Thom Yorke’s darker lyrics were indicative of his growing depression – proof that he quite possibly was careening down that sad road toward rock ’n’ roll martyrdom (thankfully, they were mistaken). Compared to their excellent debut album, there is a marked increase in maturity in The Bends, despite Yorke’s continuing exploration of the ills of society. This wonderful album cemented Radiohead’s status as Britain’s premier “indie” rock band.-Sean Patrick Dooley

9. Grace, Jeff Buckley (1994)

As with Jimi Hendrix and Kurt Cobain, there can be a morbid pull to over-analyze musicians who died early. And Jeff Buckley went very early: Grace was the only album he ever completed. That aside, Grace still stands as an astonishing album. Buckley was, to some, a pretentious diva – covering Benjamin Britten, Nina Simone and Leonard Cohen one minute, grunge-rocking the next – but his ’94 album shines with musicality. His voice was extraordinarily elastic, his guitar playing lithe (he graduated from L.A.’s Musicians Institute at age 19), his ambition admirable. Jimmy Page was a huge fan. He told this writer, “Jeff was astonishing, he could have done anything.” Grace lives on, be it via the delicacy of “Mojo Pin,” the strident title track, the hard-riffing “Eternal Life,” the soaring “Last Goodbye” and “Dream Brother,” which closed Grace with the lyric “Asleep in the sand with the ocean washing over.” Buckley drowned in 1997, at age 30. – Michael Leonard

8. Time Out of Mind, Bob Dylan (1997)

 It’s remarkable that Bob Dylan could produce this masterpiece more than 30 years since he first appeared on the rock and roll scene. One of music’s most distinctive voices and creative minds, Dylan’s output over the decades has covered numerous pop genres, but every now and then all the styles and idioms blend into the perfect “Dylan” album. Time Out of Mind is such an album. “Love Sick” is one of the great Dylan tunes while “Standing in the Doorway” is not just a great Dylan tune, but one of the best songs of all time. Time Out of Mind is a remarkable collection of moving, haunting and intensely personal songs lashed together with all the joy, anger, bluster and sensitivity that a musical master can deliver at will. – Andrew Vaughan

7. Metallica, Metallica (1991)

 Metallica were already huge on the metal scene when they released …And Justice For All in 1988. That album’s harsh mix and progressive song structures pushed the band’s trademark precision thrash just about as far as it could go in terms of abrasiveness and aggression, so the band turned to producer Bob Rock to emphasize their pure heaviness and power on their 1991 self-titled fifth album. Rock’s tough gave the album a radio-friendly sheen which somehow allowed Metallica’s still-heavier-than-thou riffage to infiltrate the airwaves and turn them into bona fide superstars. Rock stripped the band of its self-indulgence and steered them towards tighter arrangements (the 55-second lead-up to the “Enter Sandman” main riff notwithstanding) and led James Hetfield into a more melodic vocal direction. Rock would later be blamed for the misfired moments on Load and Re-Load and he bore the brunt of the fan backlash over St. Anger, but for that one undeniably epoch-redefining album, the partnership of Metallica and Rock was king. – Peter Hodgson

6. Ten, Pearl Jam (1991

Pearl Jam’s Ten is the album responsible for bringing the flannel-drenched grunge movement to the masses. While Nirvana’s Nevermind came first, the appeal of Ten proved much broader, and, as a result, we can thank Eddie Vedder and company for solidifying the then-burgeoning alternative rock crusade. It’s not difficult to see why Pearl Jam connected with a large audience: mega hits “Jeremy,” “Alive” and “Even Flow” borrowed the best aspects of classic rock, recalling the delicate guitar grains, classic melodies and anthemic sound of greats such as Led Zeppelin and The Doors. Add to that serious song subjects about gun violence, homelessness and personal turmoil, and you’ve got an intense, honest zeal that got a generation not only singing along, but also thinking and debating with a fervor never seen before. –Anne Erickson

5. Automatic for the People, R.E.M. (1992)

 Following the baroque feel of Out of Time, R.E.M. were looking to rock on their eighth studio album – but that would have to wait until the next record. When the guys got together in the studio, they found that their best new tunes had a folk bent, lacked drums and conveyed a pervasive feel of melancholy – which guitarist Peter Buck later described as “that sense of turning 30.” The quartet followed their muses to create what many consider R.E.M.’s masterpiece. Sweeping and beguiling melodies are often enhanced by strings arranged by John Paul Jones and brought home by Michael Stipe’s empathetic and emphatic vocal delivery. Lyrics range from the beautifully basic (“Everybody Hurts) to the cleverly suggested (“Monty Got a Raw Deal”) and deal with losing your mind (“Man on the Moon”), losing your youth (“Nightswimming”) and losing your way (“Find the River”). But there’s hope. After all the heartbreak and hardship, R.E.M. assures us, sweetness follows. – Bryan Wawzenek  

4. Definitely Maybe, Oasis (1994)

 It was the biggest-selling U.K. debut ever when it was released in 1994 – yes, surpassing even The Beatles. Definitely Maybe was the perfect album for the perfect moment in time, when kids were ready once again for guitar anthems (“Live Forever,” “Slide Away”), lager tunes (“Cigarettes & Alcohol,” “Supersonic”) and full-out rock stompers (“Rock ‘n’ Roll Star,” “Bring It on Down”). The album established Noel Gallagher as the class of the new generation of English songwriters and brother Liam as the epitome of sneering, rock and roll frontman. NME declared this the greatest album of all time. Noel and the boys make a compelling argument. —Michael Wright

3. Achtung Baby, U2 (1991)

Bursting out of Ireland courtesy of Bono’s pomp and majesty and The Edge’s orgy of guitar sounds, U2 owned the 1980s. The Joshua Tree and Rattle and Hum albums established them as the biggest relevant rock and roll band in the universe. And it was deserved, too – nobody worked harder at their craft than U2. More than that, Bono and crew understood the business. Get too big and the art gets left behind. So, just as Bruce Springsteen once left the bluster behind, U2 toned things down and went the more intimate route. Given that collaborators were alternative icons Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno, the new sound was in good hands and the album was a revelation. “The Fly” rocked, “One“ hurt and “Ultra Violet (Light My Way),”moved and affected in a way few would have imagined U2 capable. – Andrew Vaughan

2. OK Computer, Radiohead (1997)

 Radiohead are the Pink Floyd of this generation. They’re a band that’s capable of being wildly experimental and yet extremely accessible (code words for “weird” and “good”). OK Computer, the British band’s third album, found the boys in transition from the stadium-sized riffs of The Bends to the bedroom blips of Kid A. It’s an incredibly dense album, sonically, that’s able to conjure some amazing atmospheres. It reveals different details depending on if you’re listening on headphones, in your car or on your living room stereo. Of course, all that would be for nothing if the band didn’t write great tunes – from the sweeping, mini-epic “Paranoid Android” to the music box twinkle of “No Surprises.” And then, there’s the album’s overarching theme – Thom Yorke’s vision of a society that struggles with becoming less connected emotionally as it gets more connected digitally. Guitar tandem Jonny Greenwood and Ed O’Brien make sure that you don’t just hear the unease in Yorke’s voice, but feel it in their ominous, even sinister, playing. The end result: one of the best albums of the ’90s, and an all-time classic.  – Bryan Wawzenek

1. Nevermind, Nirvana (1991)

 Nirvana’s 1991 masterpiece Nevermind changed everything – and the radical 180-degree turn the music industry experienced in the wake of Nevermind’s immediate impact happened in a blink of an eye. Before the phalanx of spandex-clad glam bands that had dominated the ’80s knew what two-by-four had just smacked them upside their Aquanet-lacquered coifs (that two-by-four being Nevermind’s first single “Smells Like Teen Spirit”), it was out with pointy guitars, eyeliner – and some might argue musicianship ­– and in with angst, anger and a whole lot of flannel. Produced by Butch Vig, Nevermind had very low commercial expectations when it was released in September of ’91. So meteoric was Nevermind’s rise, however, that it dethroned the King of Pop’s Dangerous album barely three months after its release. This was the very moment alternative rock became mainstream, and the music industry has never been the same. Easily one of – if not the – most influential albums in the history of recorded music. – Sean Patrick Dooley

-gipson.com

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