Music Of My Years-The Relics Years 1991-1998

Ah the 90's.  The last true good decade of good music.  Prior before this decade I had a good memory of what was going on in the music world, MTV was still playing videos but moving toward the reality garbage they are now today.  Downtown Julie Brown's pop disco show which the cool people were bump and grinding to somewhat listenable music and Headbangers Ball and 120 Minutes still a part of the programming.  I remember Ben Sidran doing a jazz show on VH1 for a few years and seeing Enya on it.  Memories.

At that point in my life, I was working and hanging out at a music store called Relics in Cedar Rapids which opened in 1990 when Jerry Scott decided to break away from Jim Henson and Rock n Bach and opened his own music store.  And for the first few years I worked as a part part timer, which means I got to man the cash register while Jerry or Erin or Carol went to the bathroom.  At that time, I was still into the classic rock format but was beginning to hear the upstarts known as Grunge, the Seattle sound.  Flannel rock from Pearl Jam and the punk rock railings of Nirvana although I have to say I didn't get into their music all that much.  I was listening to more new music but in the form of cutouts at Camelot Music, back when they had music stores in the malls.  Disc Jockey and Camelot was also up in Waterloo at the Crossroads Mall.  But in the cutouts at Camelot I came across stuff from The Raindogs, and brought Border Drive In Theater simply of cool name.  At that time Camelot was getting cutouts from Warner Music Group to which was the easiest way of getting Roxy Music, all but two of their albums came from the cutouts.  But for the most part, my second home was Relics  by Collins/1st Avenue, later became a good friend of Bruce Stanley on the other Relics store close to downtown CR.  At that time, CR boasted 10 decent music stores, Co Op even had a place at Town & Country.  And in the malls, if all else fails, there was Sam Goody/Musicland.

During the CD boom years, Relics was the place to hang out.  I remember the midnight music sales of Metallica Black Album, Pearl Jam Vs and one day Rob Halford while in the band Fight came out and hung with the people one night before performing at Dillon's (or 3rd Street Live as it was called).  The alternative  music was Erin's department, she was a young teen just out of high school that Jerry hired and she would be into the newer bands.  The Greenberry Woods who became Splitsville, she was such a fan that the band made her head of their fan club.  Carol, was into The Grateful Dead and reggae music, Bruce was into Steve Earle and The Replacements, but these folks were our answer to the MTV VJ's of the 80s, I knew basically what time to go up there and knew who would be there working but mostly I hung with Jerry and traded music ideas and when I went to Arizona to pick up albums, I would leave most of them there with him which was a bad thing since I never did get much trade value for them.  In fact,  I traded a box of my albums one day to get the Led Zeppelin 4 CD box set and been kicking myself ever since doing that since I traded my Exile On Main Street 2 LP set as part to sweeten up the deal.

Somewhere around 1992, having gotten sick and tired of hearing the same classic rock songs over and over, I decided to do a make over and started listening to the new music.  At that time, I was in Arizona at the old Chuy's Hideaway on Mill in Tempe thinking I was going to see The Sidewinders which at that time was the best known AZ band outside of the Meat Puppets only to see Echo House opening up for some band called the Gin Blossoms.  This bar they had sofa's up front and I shared part of mine with some of the Echo House dudes, who sounded like an Alternative Journey but never made it, but the Gin Blossoms would become a focal point of my favorite bands.  I became a fan and bought New Miserable Experience when it came out a couple weeks later.  And bought more off the wall stuff that Relics had as promo copies although I remember Van Halen FUCK album came out, somebody came in and traded it in a couple days later.  I discovered Killing Joke that way, their Pandemonium came out in 1994, nobody bought it so decided to take it home an listened to it for smiles and giggles and ended up being a fan of their music.  I also into the Madchester music scene with The Charlatans UK, The Dylans, Ride and later through the pawnshop The Primitives and Lush. It was perhaps the last decent music period, the early 90s and seemed like that when Kurt Cobain ended his life and Nirvana, the music begin to spiral out of control to nothingness till either Universal bought out Polygram or Limp Bizkit went gold which was when the day the music actually died.  But even then I managed to find some highly great albums that nobody knew about.  1997 gave us Big Back Forty Bested, one of the albums that have stood up the test of time and still gets played a lot in this house.  In fact, I got to see them play live Gabe's as they opened up for The Honeydogs one late November night and gotten to seen Sean Beal hanging close by to myself as he and the other guys shouting along to Can't Take My Eyes Off You by The Honeydogs.  I saw The Honeydogs three times in the late 90s when they made their way to Gabe's.  Another highlight was seeing Cary Hudson and Blue Mountain with Kevin Salem opening up. In fact they did a acoustic show at BJ's Records in 95.  Another good moment was Primus/Rush during the Counterparts tour to which Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson would introduce their new songs as new country songs.

It was this time in 1994 that I took my first trip up to Madison to check out their music stores and became such a fan of those music stores that every year I seem to go up there at least twice a year.  At that time we heard about the internet but it remained a mystery till Steve at work got me online one night and thus changed my way of thinking forever and became a internet junkie.  But around 1996, the Relics that I once knew and cherish was changing.  Jerry couldn't get the latest music for me and one day told me to head to Best Buy to pick up It's Alive by The Ramones.  Something was up indeed.  The last day I was there I picked up Freedy Johnston's Never Home and Less Than Jake's Losing Streak and that was it.  There was no mention of Relics closing up for good.  The next week, I returned to an empty building and that was it.   Four months later, Relics opened up under Steve Bray in Hiawatha and then Marcus then bought that and moved it next door to Yanda's before the owner complained about that Hippie place selling demon music and it was moved to another place down the road.  But for me the end of the original Relics was the ending of a part of my life.  A part of wasting three hours a day bullshitting with Jerry or Bruce or Carol or Erin about new music.  Sometimes I see Jerry Scott from time to time at Best Buy while he's checking out the new music or even at Half Priced Books and we say hi but it's not the same.  Bruce works at Siegel's Pawnshop, Erin got into catering for a while and then formed Alter Ego Comic Books in 1997 to which she did sell music till she gave that up and now sells comic books.  She says it's less hassle than dealing with the major labels.

At that time, the music stores were moving on too.  Camelot closed up their music store around 1998 and Rock and Bach managed to outlive Relics and then Jim Henson went to online only but for the most part, I spent a lot of time there talking with Jim Kibler on the Saturday Nights before heading next door to DeSotos.  As for the Relics store itself, the strip mall that it used to sit would be bulldozed and made into a parking lot for the brand new Best Buy, as for the second time in ten years taking away a part of my history in favor of a bigger and better store.  In the place of Relics, Cd Warehouse sprouted up next door to Best Buy and CD's Plus (opened in 1991 to counter against the Hippiedom that was Relics) remained.  But the times were changing for the music hunter and not for the best either.  The Universal/Polygram merger was the death knell of music and if it wasn't that, it certainly ended with the arrival of the crappy Nu-Metal spawned by Limp Bizkit in 98.  To which we conclude this era on a ominous note.  However, in 1996 while going to Siegel's in downtown C.R. and seeing their used CD section, it ushered in a new era in my life to which I call the Pawn Shop Years and discovering the cheap cd and the forgotten cheap Cd artists of that time. Rick Parker would be pleased but that's for another time and blog.

The Music of this era.

Gin Blossoms: Dusted, New Miserable Experience, Congratulations I'm Sorry
Killing Joke-Pandemonium, Democracy
Green Day-Kerplunk, Dookie, Insomniac, Nimrod
Ride-Nowhere, Smile, Going Blank Again, Tarantula
The Dylans, Spirit Finger
The Charlatans UK-Some Friendly, Between 10th & 11th, Up To Our Hips, S/T, Telling Stories
Jason & The Scorchers: A Blazing Grace, Clear Imperious Morning
The Bottlerockets: S/T, The Brooklyn Side, 24 Hours A Day
James McMurtry: Candyland, Where'd You Hide The Body, It Had To Happen
Screaming Trees: Sweet Oblivion, Dust
Meat Puppets: Forbidden Places, Too Far To Care, No Joke
Rush: Roll The Bones, Counterparts, Test For Echo
Drivin n Cryin: Fly Me Courageous, Smoke, Wrapped In Sky, S/T
Alice In Chains: Dirt, Sap, Jar Of Flies, S/T
Pearl Jam: Ten, Vs, Vitalogy
Nirvana: Nevermind, In Utero
Foo Fighters: S/T, Colour And The Shape
Metallica: S/T, Load
Big Back Forty: Bested
Train Hits Truck: Never Been There
Sand Rubies: S/T, Night Of The Living Dead, Release The Hounds
Mach Five
Handsome
Helmet: Strap It On, Meantime, Betty
Little Village
John Hiatt: Perfectly Good Guitar, Best Of The A & M Years
Greenberry Woods: Rapple Dapple, Big Money Item
Tripmaster Monkey: Goodbye Race, Practice Changes
Blackhawk
Four Horsemen: Nobody Said It Was Easy
Black Crowes: Shake Your Money Maker, Southern Harmony..., Amorica, Three Snakes & One Charm, By Your Side.
Big Country: The Buffalo Skinners, Why The Long Face?
ZZ Top: Antenna, Rhythmeen
Dramarama: Hi Fi Sci Fi, Vinyl, 18 Big Ones-The Best Of Dramarama
Chris Knight
John Mellencamp: Whatever We Wanted
Dwight Yoakam: If There Was A Way, Gone, This Time, A Long Way Home
Too Much Joy: Son Of Sam I Am, Cereal Killers, Mutiny, Finally.....
Voice Of The Beehive: Let It Bee, Honey Lingers
The Stairs: Mexican RnB
Eric Clapton: From The Cradle
Stone Temple Pilots: Core, S/T, Tiny Music & Songs From The Vatican..., No.4
Talk Show
Foghat: Return Of The Boogie Men
Blue Oyster Cult: Heaven Forbid
Elton John: Made In England, The Big Picture
Live: Mental Jewelery, Throwing Copper
Blues Traveler: S/T, Four
Tom Petty: Into The Great Wide Open, Wildflowers, She's The One Soundtrack
Sponge: Rotting Pinata
Velvet Crush: Teenage Symphonies To God
Oasis, Definitely Maybe, What's The Story Morning Glory, The Masterplan
Offspring: Smash, Ixnay On The Hombre, Americana
Suicide Machines:  Destruction By Definition
Arc Angels
Doyle Bramhall II-Welcome
Reef: Glow
Motorhead: 1916
Neil Young: Harvest Moon, Sleeps With Angels, Mirror Ball, Broken Arrow
Bob Dylan: Time Out Of Mind
Blue Mountain: S/T, Dog Days, Home Grown
Dan Baird: Love Songs For The Hearing Impaired, Buffalo Nickel
Masters Of Reality: S/T, Sunrise On The Sufferbus
Robert Plant: Fate Of Nations
I Love You: S/T, All Of Us
Less Than Jake: Losing Streak, Hello Rockview
The Why Store: S/T, Two Hearts
Train
Catherine Wheel-Ferment, Chrome
Pink Floyd: The Division Bell
King's X-Faith Hope Love, S/T, Dogman, Ear Candy, Tape Head
Smithereens: A Date With The Smitereens
Deep Purple: The Battle Rages On, Perpendicular, Abandon
Chimeras/Pistoleros: Mistaken For Granted, Hold On To Nothing
Jayhawks: Blue Earth, Hollywood Town Hall, Tomorrow The Green Grass.
Fastball: Make Your Momma Proud, All The Pain Money Can Buy
Kyuss: Blues For The Red Sun, Sky Valley (aka S/T)
Mighty Mighty Bosstones: Question The Answers, Let's Face It
Collective Soul: Hints Allegations..., S/T, Disciplined Breakdown, Dosage
Hootie & The Blowfish: Cracked Rear View, Musical Chairs
Kentucky Headhunters: Electric Barnyard, That'll Work, Rave On, Stompin Grounds
Blue Rags: Rag & Roll, Eat At Joe's
Ned's Atomic Dustbin-Godfodder, Are You Normal?, Brainbloodvolume
Pete Droge: Necktie Second, Find A Door, Spacey & Shakin
Senseless Things: The First Of Too Many

PS, As Drew mentioned in his comments that there was a lot more music that I left off and he's certainly right.  At that time, I didn't paid much attention to REM and the Out Of Time and Automatic For The People till I found them in the clearance bins at the pawnshop years later. I think Alternative rock was at its best in the early to mid 90s but some bands I didn't hold much interest, Red Hot Chili Peppers or Korn, Marlyn Manson fall into that category.  Some bands I didn't include of the fact that I wasn't into them at that time (Sister Hazel, Eagle Eye Cherry, Mighty Joe Plum had great singles on the radio but the albums were blah at best although Sister Hazel has grown upon me as the year progressed). Of course Jennifer Trynin Cockamanie which came out in 1994 had the great Better Than Nothing and was poised to take over the alt music world till Alanis Morrisette topped her with You Oughta Know which I heard for the first time in the Las Vegas Strip and thinking this was going to be big.  Trynin made one more decent album for Warner and then disappeared.

A lotta great local bands had decent albums out.  Head Candy made one for Link/Elektra in 1991, These Days, gave us Carnival in 1994 and Doctor Jones From The Basement To Your Brain in 92 were the local faves.  Then again I overlooked Cedar Falls very own House Of Large Sizes.  So for part two, I add a few more forgetten favorites and why I overlooked Uncle Tupelo can be blamed on my Alzheimer's. In other words, too much music, and too little memory.  Here goes the rest that I remember and if I forget any, you can comment later.  I'm sure I will omit a few..

Candlebox: S/T, Lucy
Big Head Todd & The Monsters: Sister Sweetly, Live Monsters, Beautiful World
Uncle Tupelo: No Depression, Still Feel Gone, Andoyne
Wilco: AM
Son Volt: Trace, Wild Swing Tremolo
Backsliders: Throwing Rocks At The Moon
Bo Ramsey: In The Weeds
Cry Of Love: Brother
Webb Wilder: Doo Dad, Acres Of Swede
Goo Goo Dolls: Hold Me Up, Superstar Car Wash, Boy Named Goo, Dizzy Up The Girl
Brian Eno/John Cale: Wrong Way Up
Raindogs: Border Drive In Theatre
Electric Boys: Groovious Maximus
Unwritten Law
311: S/T, Transistor
Gov't Mule: Dose
Allman Brothers: Seven Turns, Where It All Began
Brother Cane: S/T, Seeds, Wishpool
Ministry: The 1992 Album
Melvins: Houdini, Stonerwitch
Whiskeytown: Strangers Almanac, Faithless Street, Rural Free Delivery
Refreshments: Fizzy Fuzzy Big & Buzzy, Bottle & Fresh Horses
Big Sugar: 500 Pounds
Urge Overkill: Saturation
King Missle: The Way To Salvation, Happy Hour, S/T
Smile-Maqee
Better Than Ezra: Deluxe
Paul Westerburg-14 Songs
Dio-Strange Highways
Del Amitri-Waking Hours, Change Everything, Some Other Suckers Parade, Twisted
Rolling Stones-Voodoo Lounge
Mick Jagger-Wondering Spirit
Down By Law-Last Of The Sharpshooters
Bad Religion: Gray Race, Stranger Than Fiction, No Substance, The New America
Rage Against The Machine: Evil Empire, Battle Of  Los Angeles
Dada: Puzzle, Sonic Highway Flower, S/T
BBM: Around The Next Dream
Denis Leary: Lock & Load, No Cure For Cancer
Bloodhound Gang: Use Your Fingers
The Poorboys: Pardon Me
Kevin Salem: Soma City
Blur: Leisure, Modern Life Is Rubbish, Parklife, The Great Escape, Blur
Social Distortion: Somewhere Between Heaven & Hell
Goldfinger

And many many more.