friday random ten, 1996 edition

1. Spice Girls, "Wannabe." I have no idea what I'd think now, but I actually liked Spiceworld: The Movie when I saw it back in the day.

2. E-40, "Rapper's Ball." Rappers make a habit of guesting on each other's albums, and since E-40 is one of the kings of the Bay Area, his cameo friends are often locals. This time it's Too Short. Also K-Ci from Jodeci ... 40's always had connections to the South.

3. Fugees, "Ready or Not." Spice Girls are "just" pop, E-40's a regional sensation (or was in 1996), but the Fugees were "great art." I resist the notion, but this was a pretty great album, just the same.

4. Fiona Apple, "Criminal." For some reason, I've always thought Apple was from some other country, like Australia, which shows I'm not paying attention ... I suspect if I did, I'd suss out her Broadway roots without too much trouble.

5. Busta Rhymes, "Who Ha!! Got You All in Check." My son and I were driving to the BART station on our way to the Giants game last weekend, and he played me the Nas song "Fried Chicken." I loved it because Busta Rhymes does an entire verse about how much he loves to eat pork.

6. The Prodigy, "Firestarter." This was their tenth single. It's a sign that I'm getting old, I suppose ... it's the first one I paid much attention to.

7. DJ Shadow, "Midnight in a Perfect World." The true follow-up to Paul's Boutique. The album made the Guinness Book of World Records for First Completely Sampled Album.

8. Sleater-Kinney, "Call the Doctor." I love them so much, I can't really bear to listen anymore, so it's good when they turn up on shuffle play ... I don't usually play them on my own because I start missing them again.

9. Sheryl Crow, "If It Makes You Happy." I never loved her, so I have no problem listening to her.

10. Beck, "Where It's At." I saw Beck in a solo gig at the Bridge Concert the year before this. He didn't play "Loser," so I didn't pay attention ... I was waiting for Bruce. Bruce played the only poor set I've ever seen from him. Beck became a big star. Youneverknow.

Bonus track: