1. Robyn – "Show Me Love"
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Before her mid-2000s resurgence with dance hits "Call Your Girlfriend" and "Dancing On My Own," Robyn and 25-year-old songwriter Max Martin collaborated on this 1995 chart-topper. Oh, and as for Max Martin, he was only a few years away from writing hits for the Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears, and two decades away from collaborating with Taylor Swift on "Shake It Off."
2. Dionne Farris – "I Know"
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Probably best known for providing vocals on few Arrested Development songs (including "Tennessee"), Dionne Farris has a surprise hit of her own with this 1995 single. She didn't release another solo album for 12 years, by which time "I Know" was already mostly forgotten.
3. Tal Bachman – "She's So High"
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This 1999 song was basically the ode to the Manic Pixie Dream Girl before the term was officially coined. It sort of makes you want to throw on your choker necklace and run to the nearest airport/train station to convince your high school crush not to leave because, well, YOU LOVE THEM. DON'T GOOOOOO.
4. Des'ree – "You Gotta Be"
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Why are the 90s so fondly remembered for their optimism? Likely because we had "You Gotta Be" playing in every movie and TV show for at least half of the decade. Des'ree, we need more life-affirming songs like this for the 2010s.
5. Shawn Mullins – "Lullaby"
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What, you've never heard of 1998's "Lullaby"? What if I called it "Rock-a-by"? Ahhh yes, there it is.
6. Del Amitri – "Roll to Me"
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This is one of those songs where you have no idea what it's called or who sings it, but you recognize it immediately. Cheesy pop-rock? Definitely, but that vocal hook is undeniable. This has 1995 written all over it.
7. Eagle Eye Cherry – "Save Tonight"
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How to win the presidency in 2016: Pledge that you'll force acoustic guitar-toting college idiots to learn how to play 1997's "Save Tonight" instead of "Wonderwall." BOOM. President.
8. Dishwalla – "Counting Blue Cars"
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You probably forgot this 1996 alt-rock pop jam because both "Dishwalla" and "Counting Blue Cars" and incredibly forgettable names of anything. Dishwalla was part of that wave of bands in the mid-90s that was sorta grunge bands, in that they kept an Eddie Vedder voice but produced extremely polished pop that your mom would probably dig.
9. Duncan Sheik – "Barely Breathing"
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Though he's been consistently releasing albums since 1996, Duncan Sheik's never been able to match the success of his first single, "Barely Breathing." And how could he? It has a chorus that is impossible to understand but very easy to mutter along to. Pop perfection.
10. Shanice – "I Love Your Smile"
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The photoshoot-themed music video should have never gone away. It's the one thing from 1991 would should have held onto with all our might. Luckily we still have "I Love Your Smile" which we can look fondly upon. Do-do-do-do-dooo-do-doo....
11. US3 - "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasia)"
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The trumpet had a brief iconic resurgence in 1993 thanks to this song by US3. It even features a trumpet solo! While it sounds a bit anachronistic now, that piano riff still sounds incredibly fresh today.
12. The Wiseguys – "Start the Commotion"
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Like US3, The Wiseguys had a 90s hit with a strange sample-heavy hip-hop/dance track. And like "Cantaloop (Flip Fantasy), it was cherished very briefly for its novelty before being forever relegated to a rarely accessed part of 90s kids' memories.
13. Crash Test Dummies - "MMM MMM MMM MMM"
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Perhaps best know for its chorus which songs like it was written while CTD singer Brad Roberts was getting a massage, people seem to forget that Roberts pronounces "girl" as "GARRRL". This is way more jarring today for some reason.
14. Positive K – "I Got A Man"
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This entire 1992 song is a two-way conversation, which is really impressive. They don't even switch off by verse! It's by stanza! (Though it's kind of a bummer when you find out Positive K is rapping both the male and female part.)
15. Superdrag – "Sucked Out"
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"Sucked Out" is the kind of immensely catchy pop-rock anthem that could only originate from sometime in the mid-90s. The 1996 hit is best known today as a conversation starter in bars. For example: "Wait, remember that one song that went, 'Who sucked out the feeeliiin'? You know, the guy kinda yells it at the end?'"
16. Deadeye Dick – "New Age Girl"
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You know this song from the Dumb and Dumber soundtrack, but you likely had no idea what it was called or who performed it until right now. And you'll likely forget these facts by the time you hit the end of this list.
17. Harvey Danger – "Flagpole Sitta"
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1997's "Flagpole Sitta" is the rare 90s novelty song that's getting a second life because, well, it's actually a really great song. It's safe to say its original inclusion on the first volume of Now That's What I Call Music! helped cement its legacy as a karaoke staple almost two decades later.
18. Nada Surf – "Popular"
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While many of you are likely familiar with Nada Surf's long and consistently great indie rock career, more of you probably only know this silly 1996 tribute/satirical take on the American high school social caste system. Really, Nada Surf is so much better than this song! I promise.
19. K's Choice – Not An Addict
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Heroin was very in chic in 1995, as were songs about doing it a lot for some reason. Belgium-based K's Choice successfully followed the formula with "Not An Addict," which sort of sounds A LOT like Smashing Pumpkins' "Today."
20. Sneaker Pimps – "6 Underground"
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You didn't think we'd get through this whole list without a trip-hop song, did you?
Sneaker Pimps' "6 Underground" sounds like it forever belongs playing on loop in a 90s salon where your hair stylist has 20 piercings, a bright pink mohawk and shiny leather pants.
21. Republica – "Ready to Go"
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This video is the most 90s thing ever. Oversized prop? Check. Seizure-inducing? Check. Bright colors? Check. Totally silly looking now? Oh yeah, megacheck. "Ready to Go" is still the perfect anthem for kicking off a sporting event or, perhaps more appropriately, kicking off the dancefloor at a 90s party.