One of my favorite CDs of the 1990s was 99.9 F° by Suzanne Vega. And I don't mean it in the way that means I sometimes took it out and played it on Saturdays while I did laundry or occasionally listened to it in my car and so now I have fond memories and consider it a favorite. No. Not like that.
What I mean is that for a period of about two years, I listened to that CD at least once a week. And then one day I never listened to it again. I would bet that less than five of my closest friends ever knew I even did this. This situation would be considered a true "guilty pleasure" because I enjoyed her music but would feel ashamed if my "cool" friends found out about it. (I don't care what people think about my music taste now. It's a big whateva these days.)
I would probably never name 99.9 F° on a "Favorite Albums of the 90s" list but if I had to make a list based on total minutes listened, this one would show up near the top. I don't know why I liked it so much! Still. To this day. And it's not like she isn't cool. She is way cool. But cool enough for a man in his late 20s to obsessively listen to one of her lesser albums for years? No. No. No.
I used to be able to sing along to almost every track and recollect that my favorite songs were:
Blood Makes Noise - "So just forget it doc. I think it's really cool that you're concerned but we'll have to try again after the silence has returned."
When Heroes Go Down - "When heroes go down, they go down fast so don't expect any time to equivocate the past."
99.9 F - "It could be normal but it isn't quite. Could make you want to stay awake at night."
The best part? The CD came out in 1992 but I didn't "get into" it until probably 1996-98. Lay-hame.
But I just found out recently that she released a new album last year after an 11 year break and my heart leapt. I'll have to check it out.
What are some of the CDs you listened to ALL the time that maybe your friends never knew about ... your true guilty pleasures?
