FEATURE:
Where Love Lives
Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton
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NEXT week…
IMAGE CREDIT: BBC
I am going to be writing about various aspects of what is happening in today’s music. In 2020, things are like we have never seen them before in terms of how live gigs have practically become extinct, and many artists’ livelihoods have haemorrhaged. In terms of music sales, things have been pretty healthy, and the quality of sounds released has been immense! I am going to write a feature ranking my top-ten albums of 2020, as I think there has been so many world-class albums released. For those of us who were alive thirty years ago when the 1990s began, it is almost a polar opposite now in terms of optimism and looking forward! I was six when the Nineties began, but I could sense then that something exceptional was shaping up; this was reflected in the music and culture. In terms of cross-pollination and experimentation, music was being taken to new heights and, even at a base level, Pop music at its simplest was so fun and uplifting. One can see why so many artists of today look back on the ‘90s as a source of inspiration and mentorship. Now more than ever, radio has become a source of relief and companionship. I have been enjoying the podcasts that have sprouted up and, at a time when creativity is providing something akin to catharsis and community, there has been so much gold put out.
IMAGE CREDIT: BBC
One series that ties into my absolute love and devotion of the 1990s is Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton (there is an unofficial Spotify playlist that is a nice guide). I would encourage anyone with even a passing interesting in the decade to check it out, and it is a shame that the episodes are not kept – the BBC keep them live for about thirty days and then they are no longer available. I guess there is only so much room for shows on their site, and I guess it costs them to keep stuff live and active. It is a shame there is not a YouTube channel or they can transfer the show to Spotify, as I have loved what Fearne Cotton and her guests have put out over the weeks. In the episode that went out on Friday, Cotton was joined by Ronan Keating and Florence Given to talk all things ‘90s. Before the end of the year, I will put out a big piece regarding the variation and layers of the 1990s; the sheer weight of brilliance that was around. There is an argument as to whether a lack of technology and social media – the Internet was still quite new by the end of the ‘90s – helped and whether, I guess, a sense of privation was a bonus. To me, I think there was a simplicity for the time and a real sense of change in the air!
No decade has ever been care-free and overly-optimistic, but I feel there was a lot in the 1990s that sort of dropped since. There were scenes and genres that compelled competition and rivalry; there was so much going on, and it is a shame that there is not really the same sort of composure and dynamic now as there was in the 1990s. Pop music, largely, was synonymous with energy, whereas it is much more introverted and less pumped than back in the 1990s - there has been some change recently but not that much. Also, I think it is unfair to call Fearne Cotton’s show ‘nostalgic’. Yes, there is an element of that for those of us who lived through the decade, but there are many younger people who are listening because they want a guide to the 1990s. As I said, artists now are incorporating music from the 1990s into their repertoire and palette, and huge acts like Dua Lipa are combining tones of the 1980s and 1990s and creating something new. In a way, Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton allows us to learn as much about music today as it does what was being created almost thirty years ago! I shall not bore people with my recollections of the 1990s and why it is so special to me, but I think the greatest thing about that time was the sense of joy and optimism that ran alongside genres like Grunge and Alternative – which were a bit darker and more introverted.
Whilst many of the tracks on Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton concentrates on Pop and more mainstream sounds, it has compelled me and others to fully explore the decade. I love that Cotton has a lot of love for the ‘90s, and I hope her BBC Radio 2 series continues and we will be able to get all of the episodes through Spotify. Maybe, as things are so tough and there is a way to go until we can return to normal, there is something extra-appealing about Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton. I have loved hearing from artists who were around in the 1990s and others who recall the decade fondly. For such a broad and busy decade, the selection of songs for each episode is actually pretty good – whilst I said Pop rules on the series, quite a few genres are covered! -, and it has been great listening in! If you want a blast of the greatest decade of music ever, or you just want to listen to some terrific songs that will definitely put you in a better mood, then take a listen to the Sounds of the 90s with Fearne Cotton episodes. It will be sad to hear them end but, as many have responded so positively to Cotton’s series, maybe there will be more, or she will investigate the decade deeply and from different angles down the line. In any case, I love listening through playlists of the best tunes of the 1990s and, on her show, we have heard some of the very best…
FROM a wonderful time!