Hello everyone, and welcome back to 1992.

Looking back on my worst list, I have to admit it.  I may have exaggerated the disappointment of the year as a whole.  Yes, 1992 was not as great of a year as I had hoped, since there was a multitude of mediocre hair metal and blues rock songs I had to wade through.  But as a year that effectively kick-started my favorite era in music history, that may have been because I had such lofty ambitions for it.  1992 was still a good year, and there is no better way to explain why than by going through the best songs of the year.

While it hadn’t completely taken over in 1992, the alternative nation had effectively launched its assault on the glam and hair metal genres.  In America, grunge and self-deprecating irony was quickly becoming the order of the day.  While 1992 was not the year the grunge revolution took place, since it was 1991 when “Man In The Box” introduced the world to grunge before it turned the world upside down on “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” 1992 was the year where grunge had effectively become the revolution.  Nirvana’s Nevermind became a diamond-selling album, while Pearl Jam’s Ten overcame a slow start with the success of its singles before it, too, went diamond.  At the end of the year, Alice In Chains would reach their creative and commercial peak on Dirt, and bands like Soul Asylum would begin to expand the grunge sound beyond Seattle.  Meanwhile, in Britain, it became a year that was more about influence than chart success.  After the release of My Bloody Valentine’s Loveless the previous year, bands such as Slowdive, Catherine Wheel, and Ride began appearing on the scene, while Madchester bands continued to hold on.  And finally, 1992 marked the origins of Britpop, a subgenre that would effectively dominate British alternative music in much the same way grunge and post-grunge would influence American rock music.

As a result, while there may have not been as many great songs in rock and alternative music in 1992 as there would be in subsequent years in the nineties, the best songs of the year aren’t just good songs.  They stand as monuments.  They stand as some of the greatest and most iconic rock songs of all time.  Whether or not you’re a rock music fan or a pop chart follower, you know many of the songs I will be discussing today, especially the top four songs.

And for a second time, here are the house rules:

1. The song must have achieved one of the following, based on my rankings of the top rock and alternative songs of 1992:
   1. The Top 75 of the Billboard Modern Rock year-end Chart
   2. The Top 75 of the Billboard Mainstream Rock year-end Chart
   3. The Top 50 ranked rock and alternative songs on the year-end UK Charts
2. If a song became big on both sides of the Atlantic in separate years (such as with “Just A Girl” by No Doubt and “Bittersweet Symphony” by The Verve), the artist’s home country determines which year it will qualify for.  
3. The song cannot have charted on a previous year-end chart.  This leaves four songs ineligible:
   1. “Smells Like Teen Spirit” – Nirvana
   2. “Move Any Mountain” – Shamen
   3. “Top Of The World” – Van Halen
   4. “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen

With those rules in place, it’s time to get the show on the road, because I’ve got a lot to discuss regarding not just the top ten, but also the songs that weren’t eligible for the countdown.

It’s time to open presents!  These are…

THE TOP TEN BEST ROCK & ALTERNATIVE SONGS OF 1992

Sins Of Omission #1-8

Sin Of Omission #9: “The Drowners”

Sin Of Omission #10: The Actual Best Song of 1992

#10. “Pretend We’re Dead”

#9. “Friday I’m In Love”

#8. “Weirdo”

#7. “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door”

#6. “Even Flow”

#5. “Helpless”

#4. “Come As You Are”

#3. “One”

#2. “Under The Bridge”

Honorable Mentions

#1. The Best Song of 1992

I DON’T OWN ANY OF THE IMAGES (And I’m not profiting from them either!)

U2 photo from Billboard