My 14 Favorite Albums (In My Collection) of 1993

[@HD-cp1fg]

Ty. Good reason to give all these gems another listen.

[@electricavenuemusic9282]

Oh gosh you keep cranking these out and I am falling behind! Between work and getting ready for Black Friday and the gd election (fingers crossed), I've been remiss here. Great set of choices and kudos for choosing that Depeche Mode album. I used to not really vibe with that one as I loved Violator so much and the more electronic sound of that record, and now I go back and forth between that and this. It's hard to say I love it since Dave was getting strung out on drugs which nearly killed him during it's recording, but I love everything about it now. It also includes one of my favorite Martin Gore songs, One Caress, which ironically doesn't feature the band at all but an orchestra. What an epic song and vocal from Mart. Love a few things here like the Cocteau (beautiful) and the Sarah (also beautiful), but I think this might be the year we diverged more than usual. There were SO MANY good records in 93! One of my very favorite albums of ALL TIME...VERY by Pet Shop Boys, was released in October 93. Not a single duff track, every song COULD have been a single (and half of them were). Truly one of their most spectacular efforts, from the energy to the package...it was an unexpected jolt to what had been a rather predictable set of career choices so far. The dunce caps and orange suits OMG! LOVE it. Another great record: Suede's self titled debut. Both of these records were somewhat ignored in the US compared to the UK, but particularly the Suede. They were the band that bridged 80's UK jangle like the Smiths and Britpop like Blur, but done with a very Bowie-esque meets Floyd flair. Their debut was a fully formed glam masterpiece that the US sort of slept on, and while Brett's voice can be a bit of an acquired taste, once you get past that, it was a stunning debut. Also in 93, The The's Dusk, an album Matt Johnson wrote and played with Johnny Marr and Co, featured one of my favorite songs of all time, "Love is Stronger Than Death", written for the loss of Matt's young brother. Brilliant record, and again, not a blockbuster in the US. Other favorites of mine: Saint Etienne--So Tough (their amazing sophomore effort), Bjork--Debut (her debut!), Divine Comedy--Liberation (this record passed me by the first time but now I am a huge fan of Neil Hannon's stuff retroactively. Fantastic and VERY British record...maybe not the best place to start with him, but great nonetheless), Blur--Modern Life is Rubbish (a 90's template for Britpop), Dead Can Dance--Into the Labyrinth (DCD goes a bit world music), Julee Cruise--The Voice of Love (the 2nd and final record she would make with David Lynch), and Curve--Cuckoo (Garbage would take their ideas and make them more commercial but this album made by DM mixer Alan Moulder's wife Toni Halliday and Eurythmics' bass player Dean Garcia and co. rocked hard when it needed to over Toni's steely vocals). 93 was such an incredible music year, it's hard to squeeze it all in! Love your list!! Oh...and I see someone else chose OMD's Liberator and New Order's Republic. I also loved PM Dawn's The Bliss Album and Duran Duran's Wedding Album! ACK! SO many!!

[@dannserv]

So cool to see your picks from The Ocean Blue, The Lemonheads, Janet, and Juliana. I saw The Ocean Blue back in January and it was so great because they did their first two albums in their entirety and then did a Pet Shop Boys cover (“West End girls”) and a New Order cover (“Love Vigilantes”) during the encore.

[@CraigsVinylPlethora]

@@dannserv I would love to see The Ocean Blue! Sounds like an amazing show.

[@onmyturntable7036]

Fumbling Towards Ecstacy I played nonstop for months: I still give it a listen every year. I remember The Ocean Blue. 'If'..one of my favorite J Jackson tunes. I've seen a lot of Cowboy Junkies mentioned across various channels lately. Possibly somewhat subliminal messaging to buy some! 😎🎶 Great video as always, Craig.

[@CraigsVinylPlethora]

@@onmyturntable7036 I adore Cowboy Junkies. Do you have any?

[@onmyturntable7036]

@CraigsVinylPlethora Only 'The Trinity Sessions' on CD from back in 1988. I didn't realize the volume of their discography until I read up on them again recently.

[@txhimlauj]

I don’t have a lot from’93. Other than the ones you mentioned, Suede self-titled, Sugar - Beaster, New Order - Republic, OMD - Liberator, Björk - Debut, U2 - Zooropa,Type O Negative - Bloody Kisses, the Breeders - Last Splash, Dead Can Dance - Into the Labyrinth, PSB - Very, INXS - Full Moon, Dirty Hearts. Also Prince’s Hits compilation, if those count.

[@RekkidTalk]

I got the yellow translucent version of Become What You Are rather than "the drummer peed on the record" variant that you got.

[@CraigsVinylPlethora]

@@RekkidTalk 🤣🤣🤣

[@daniafterdark]

Ace of Base! Such a great album!