1990 in music: M.C. Hammer prays and Celine Dion is here to stay

I'll admit, neither of these two albums were on my radar at all in 1990. Obviously, I couldn't get away from U Can't Touch This, but I'm not sure I knew much, if anything, about Celine Dion until Beauty and the Beast came around a year later.

Anyway: that's why I'm here, to give a listen, watch, read, etc. of whatever was most lauded or popular in these years - especially if I missed it the first time around.

First up: it's funny in a "now we know better" way to look back on criticisms levied towards Hammer for relying too much on hooks and samples in creating his songs. He was just part of the minority that was ahead of their time, I suppose. I really do remember dismissing U Can't Touch This, but I was intrigued by Pray and his sample of When Doves Cry - but hold up, internet ... you're telling me it also samples Faith No More's We Care a Lot? Huh, I wouldn't have picked that out. 

There are some fun tracks on here. I like the opening Here Comes the Hammer, and Yo!! Sweetness (two exclamation marks are important here), but my top pick is Crime Story because of the heartfelt appeal to let the children be at the end of the song. Please let just one turf war have been brought to a halt as someone was playing it on approach. 

Check it out here: https://youtu.be/pWF2B7V7tR4?t=247

OK, deep breath, and put it in writing: I'm not a big fan of Celine's voice. A great voice it is, but there's something about her earnestness that takes me out of the moment. 

Now, I'm not going to say that Where Does My Heart Beat Now, from this Juno Award winning album, isn't an all-timer of a power ballad because it is, and there are many more to come, I guess I just have to call out a personal preference and say she's not for me. I'm sure she'd be heartbroken.

I will say that I always prefer when she gets a little funky over getting overwrought, so most of my favourites off the album are on Side B: Love By Another Name and I Feel Too Much will give you an idea of what I mean.

And, once more, I'm not taking shots at her just for the sake of being petty. She's a rightful superstar, and learning that this was her first English language album but already her ninth album overall is a ridiculous revelation.