3 Rock Lyrics From the 1990s That You’ll Never Forget (Whether You Like It or Not)

Even if you’re not old enough to remember when these songs came out in the 1990s, you’ve probably heard them enough times to have unconsciously memorized the lyrics. But if you were around when MTV played music videos, bands routinely sold CDs, and you also recognize the name Jordan Catalano, then it’s a safe bet to assume you’ll know the lyrics to these 90s rock songs. Whether you like it or not.

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“Wonderwall” by Oasis from ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’ (1995)

Some only know Oasis by “Wonderwall”. And when mentioning Oasis, a nasally Johnny Rotten impersonation usually follows: “I said, maybe.” On the band’s second album, songwriter Noel Gallagher wrote quickly and often repeated lyrics rather than write additional words for additional verses. The repetition seared his tunes into your brain like a Britpop scar, ensuring you would never again forget the words to hits like “Wonderwall”. It’s one of the decade’s most popular songs, but Gallagher doesn’t “particularly like” it. Yet, to this day, it still fills stadiums.

“Jeremy” by Pearl Jam from ‘Ten’ (1991)

There were many grunge singers with low voices, but few inspired more copycats than Eddie Vedder. His vocal style probably seemed more reachable than the impossible screams of Chris Cornell, leading to countless post-grunge bands fronted by lesser baritones. With the help of MTV, “Jeremy” offered a blueprint that the copycats copied. Who could forget the hook to this one? Still, one had to perfect Vedder’s wordless falsetto as well. Ten is full of iconic earworms, and the most important thing the copycats missed was Vedder’s songwriting.

“Hunger Strike” by Temple Of The Dog from ‘Temple Of The Dog’ (1991)

Speaking of Cornell and Vedder, I’ve never counted how many times the duo sings the hook in “Hunger Strike”, but it’s a lot. And with this track, you get the aforementioned low murmur with a rock god wail over it. After Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” broke the alt-rock dam, both Pearl Jam and Soundgarden began selling a lot of records. Then Soundgarden’s record label realized it had a supergroup on its hands. Temple Of The Dog was recorded well before the grunge explosion, and the only noise louder than Cornell’s Robert Plant-like screams must have been Vedder’s empty stomach. When Vedder appears in the beach grass in the video, he keeps telling us how hungry he is.

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