20 classic albums you won’t believe turn 20 in 2014

Recently, as we were finishing this year’s 100 Bands You Need To Know special (AP 309, on sale March 4), our annual look forward at what the newest noise in our scene is, we noticed a whole bunch of publications were looking back, specifically at one album: Green Day’s Dookie, which celebrated its 20th anniversary Feb. 1. While that album was a massive gamechanger for both punk rock and rock ’n’ roll at large, it wasn’t alone: In this humble writer’s opinion, 1994 was one of the finest years guitar-based music has ever seen. Allow us to flip through our big, black CD booklets stuffed full of some of the most classic records of 1994, so we can remind you just how well this stuff holds up two decades later.

GREEN DAY
Dookie
RELEASED: February 1, 1994

The inspiration for this list and still a stone-cold classic, 20 years after the fact. And if you don’t agree, F.O.D.

JAWBOX
For Your Own Special Sweetheart
RELEASED: February 8, 1994

Three decades into his career as a musician, J. Robbins has yet to make a bad record—but he’s never made one greater than Jawbox’s major-label debut.

PAVEMENT
Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain
RELEASED: February 14, 1994

It takes serious effort to sound this lazy, and Pavement nailed it on their second (and best) album.

JAWBREAKER
24 Hour Revenge Therapy
RELEASED: February 15, 1994

It’s pretty wild to think that two of the Bay Area’s most influential punk bands released their most acclaimed albums in the same 14-day span. For the record, Blake > Billie Joe—and we’re pretty sure Billie Joe would agree.

BECK
Mellow Gold
RELEASED: March 1, 1994

It’s almost criminal Beck never ended up on the cover of AP in the mid-’90s. He was the poster child for “alternative” music that truly was an alternative to the grunge crap major labels were already shoving down everyone’s throats. Sorry for skipping you over, Mr. Hansen!

NINE INCH NAILS
The Downward Spiral
RELEASED: March 8, 1994

Now here’s a guy we never skipped over: Trent Reznor has been on the cover of AP a whopping nine times, and none were more deserved than when we wrote about the creation of this industrial-rock masterpiece. >>>

SOUNDGARDEN
Superunknown
RELEASED: March 8, 1994

Including this solely in honor of former AP employee Tim Karan, who continues to worship the ground Chris Cornell walks on, no matter how many collaborations with Timbaland the guy does.

MORRISSEY
Vauxhall And I
RELEASED: March 22, 1994

Sure, he’s a bit of a curmudgeon these days (albeit with impeccable hair), but Morrissey has earned a lifetime of goodwill thanks to all sorts of classic records, this one included.

PANTERA
Far Beyond Driven
RELEASED: March 22, 1994

Not only is this the 20th anniversary of this landmark groove-metal record, December 8, 2014 is also the 10-year anniversary of guitarist “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott being shot to death onstage in Columbus, Ohio. RIP, Dime.

THE OFFSPRING
Smash
RELEASED: April 8, 1994

Be honest: The second you saw that album artwork, you started into Dexter Holland’s profanity-laden monologue in “Bad Habit.” (Don’t worry, we did too.)

HOLE
Live Through This
RELEASED: April 12, 1994

Released just four days after the body of Kurt Cobain was discovered in the home he shared with Hole frontwoman Courtney Love, Live Through This somehow managed to not be overshadowed by the most tragic death of a musician since John Lennon. Kudos to you, Courtney, for writing some seriously powerful songs.

SUNNY DAY REAL ESTATE
Diary
RELEASED: May 10, 1994

If you came onto this record at any point in the past decade or so, you might’ve said to yourself, “Hey, this sounds like a lot of current bands.” Of course, once you saw the 1994 copyright on the back cover and realized that, whoops, this came out way before everything else you like, was when you realized just how important Diary was and still is.

WEEZER
Weezer
RELEASED: May 10, 1994

The Blue Album is an absolutely perfect record. Many have tried to dethrone it, but none have succeeded. Here’s to 20 more years of the catchiest pop songs ever still stuck inside your head. >>>