School Of Fish release their debut album, which includes the modern rock track “Three Strange Days”.
U2 release Achtung Baby
REM releases “Out Of Time” in March. The idiosyncratic mandolin-driven arrangement of “Losing My Religion” becomes an MTV playlist staple throughout the spring and summer, helping propel the single to #4 on the pop charts. “Shiny Happy People”, easily the band’s most commercial attempt to date, peaks at #10 on the US singles chart.
Bryan Adams’ “Everything I Do (I Do It For You)” from the Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves soundtrack spent 17 weeks at No. 1 on the US Hot 100 Singles Sales chart in With hindsight, it seemed much longer than that. .
The Replacements are officially disbanded, as are Wang Chung, NWA, and
After leaving the EMI ship to sign a lucrative deal with Warner Brothers, Red Hot Chili Peppers release Blood Sugar Sex Magic, which features the hit single “Under The Bridge” (#2) as well as popular rock radio tracks. modern “Give It Away” and “Breaking The Girl”.
Kiss drummer Eric Carr dies of complications from leukemia in November.
After spending the previous two years enjoying success with the Traveling Wilburys and as a solo artist, Tom Petty returns to work with the Heartbreakers. They release the Jeff Lynne-produced album “Into The Great Wide Open” and enjoy moderate chart success with the single “Learning To Fly” which peaked at number 28.
“Wicked Game,” originally released in 1989, became a Top 10 hit in January after being used prominently (as an instrumental) in the David Lynch film “Wild At Heart.” An Atlanta DJ, enamored with the film’s use of the song, began playing the original album version. Other stations followed suit, giving the song a new lease on life.
Though released the year before, “More Than Words,” an acoustic ballad by heavy metal band Extreme, hits No. 1 on the US charts. The follow-up single, “Hole-Hearted”, would chart in the Top 5 later in the year.
Oasis play their first concert in August. A few months later, Noel leaves his job as a roadie for Inspiral Carpets to join the band with his brother Liam.
Metallica release their fifth self-titled album. Unofficially known as “The Black Album”, it featured production by Bob Rock, who focused on the band’s songwriting and metal leanings, while developing the band’s arrangements. The result was a sound that did not sit well with longtime fans who felt the band had “burned out”. The success of the album was undeniable, reaching number 1 in its first weeks of release. Most notably, the album’s first single, “Enter Sandman”, was a US Top 20 single.
After growing rumors that he had AIDS, Queen’s Freddie Mercury dies of complications from the disease in November.
Form of Rage Against The Machine in Los Angeles.
Big Audio Dynamite II, with only ex-Clash guitarist Mick Jones remaining from the original lineup, scores a Modern Rock #1 hit with the single “Rush” from the album “The Globe.”
Paula Abdul released her second album, “Spellbound,” which, while not as successful as her debut, sold over three million copies. It included the number one single “Promise Of a New Day” and “Blowing Kisses In The Wind” (#6).
Contemporary Christian artist Amy Grant is enjoying platinum mainstream success with her album “Heart In Motion” (#10), which includes the #1 hit “Baby Baby” as well as “Every Heartbeat (#2),” That’s What Love is For” (#7), “Good For Me” (#8), and “I’ll Remember You” (#20).
Garth Brooks releases “Ropin’ The Wind,” which becomes the first album in history to debut at No. 1 on both the US Country and Pop charts, selling more than nine million copies.
Pat Benatar releases “True Love”, a blues album featuring members of Roomful Of Blues. It is the last Top 40 album of his career.
The Smithereens released their sixth studio album, “Blow Up.” Despite scoring a Top 40 single with the song “Too Much Passion”, the album failed to make a dent in the Top 100.
Jane’s Addiction singer Perry Farrell hosts the first ever Lollapalooza festival, featuring main stage acts from Jane’s Addiction, Siouxsie & the Banshees, Living Colour, Nine Inch Nails, Ice T & Body Count, Butthole Surfers, Rollins Band, Violent Femmes, Fishbone
Crowded House, now a four-piece with the addition of Neil Finn’s brother Tim (also ex-Split Enz), release their fourth album, “Woodface”. While a huge hit in the UK, the album fared only moderately in the US despite featuring perennial fan favorites “Weather With You” and “Fall At Your Feet”.
U2 released “Achtung Baby” in November, scoring an immediate Top 10 hit with the song “Mysterious Ways.” The album would continue to sell thanks to the subsequent hits “One”, “Even Better Than The Real Thing” and “Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses?”. The album’s title was borrowed from a line in the Mel Brooks film, “The Producers”.
Madonna’s “Truth or Dare” tour film, most notable for scenes including her fellatio in an empty bottle and a visible loss of interest in then-boyfriend Warren Beatty, opens in theaters in May.
Def Leppard guitarist Steve Clark dies in January from a lethal mix of prescription drugs and alcohol.
As perhaps the first major casualty of the burgeoning digital recording boom that spawned smaller project studios capable of creating album-quality results, the legendary Record Plant recording studio (most notable as the studio in which “Hotel California” by the Eagles and “Rumors” by Fleetwood Mac were recorded) closes.
Swedish duo Roxette continue to triumph with their second US hit album, “Joyride”. The album’s title track reached number 1 in ten countries (including the US).
Legendary New York Dolls guitarist Johnny Thunders died in April under mysterious circumstances. While not the cause of death, an autopsy reportedly revealed that Thunders was suffering from advanced leukemia.
Epic Records releases Pearl Jam’s debut album, “Ten”, on August 27, 1991.
Geffen Records releases Nirvana’s “Nevermind” on September 24, 1991.
Eric Clapton’s 4-year-old son, Conor, died in a fall from the 53rd floor of a New York apartment building in March. A devastated Clapton writes and records the song “Tears In Heaven” in tribute to Conor. The song would appear on the soundtrack of the movie “Rush”. Clapton would stop performing the song in 2004, citing that he had finished grieving and that he was no longer emotionally attached to the sentiments that had inspired the song.
In October, the Pixies release their fourth (and last) studio album, “Trompe le Monde”. While it reached the Top 10 in the UK, the album barely cracks the Top 100 in the US.
(“Right Now” video)
Van Halen enjoys a huge hit single with the song “Right Now,” which is fueled by a popular music video that gets heavy rotation from MTV. The song is later used in advertisements to promote the colorless Crystal Pepsi soft drink.
British group On A Friday signs a six-album deal with EMI. At the behest of the label, the band changes their name to Radiohead (taken from a Talking Heads song).
