Modern Rock Tracks No. 1s - The B-52's and "Good Stuff"

Guest author Jami Smith of the superlative newsletter and radio show "Songs That Saved Your Life" talks about The B-52's and their last Modern Rock Tracks chart-topper, "Good Stuff"

The B-52’s - “Good Stuff”

Weeks atop the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart: 4 weeks (July 11 to August 1, 1992)

Billboard Hot 100 chart toppers during this time:

• Sir Mix-A-Lot - “Baby Got Back” (5 total weeks, 7/4/92 - 8/1/92)

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Editor’s note: It gives me great pleasure to welcome

Jami Smith

of the terrific

Songs That Saved Your Life

Substack to this week’s edition of Chart Chat. Songs That Saved Your Life is a Substack publication and radio show that celebrates the queer roots of rock & roll and shines a spotlight on the often overlooked stories in music. We uncover untold stories and explore the impact of LGBTQ+ artists and queer culture on the rock music scene. Jami wrote an excellent piece last year about The B-52’s and “Rock Lobster” from this perspective, so it’s an honor and a privilege to include Jami’s thoughts on this band as we exit Pride Month for 2024 and say farewell to the B-52’s in this space with their last Modern Rock Tracks #1 hit, “Good Stuff.”

Thanks all for reading along, and enjoy! — Matt M.

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I was 10 when “Cosmic Thing” came out and because MTV was my babysitter growing up, so were The B-52’s. You couldn’t turn on the channel without seeing the videos for “Love Shack” or “Roam.” Fred Schneider was like a fun uncle instructing me to bring jukebox money to a dance party in our living room. Three years later, when “Good Stuff” came out, it felt like the same old silly shenanigans. Only this time, I was in high school, and I was now way too cool for shenanigans. I had outgrown my fun babysitters, and it seems as though the rest of the world had too.

“Good Stuff” was the sixth studio album by The B-52’s, released after a grueling 18-month stadium tour of the hit-making juggernaut “Cosmic Thing,” which produced three top-10 singles: “Love Shack,” “Deadbeat Club,” and “Roam.” (Both “Love Shack” and “Channel Z” also topped the Modern Rock Tracks charts.)

To capitalize on the mega-success of “Cosmic Thing,” the band was pressured by their manager to produce an immediate follow-up. But by then, exhaustion had set in and the task felt impossible. Despite its kooky hooks, “Cosmic Thing” was born from intense grief over the loss of founding member, Ricky Wilson, who died of an AIDS-related illness in 1985. Wilson’s death made him one of the earliest celebrities killed by the pandemic. Actor Rock Hudson, who died only two weeks earlier, is considered the first celebrity to have died of the disease.

The band was devastated, especially Wilson's younger sister, Cindy Wilson. The group disbanded for almost three years to grieve. In 1988, drummer Keith Strickland picked up a guitar and began writing riffs that paid homage to Wilson’s signature sound. He invited the rest of the band to his home in Woodstock, and their songwriting collaboration became a journey of healing. “Cosmic Thing” was successful because it was conceived with purpose - to commemorate Wilson’s indelible impact on the band and to collectively heal from that loss.

"We spent a lot of time just talking, and we needed that. We were our own support group after Ricky's passing, which was a very traumatic thing for all of us and, in particular, for Cindy,” Strickland told Rolling Stone in 2018.

“Cosmic Thing” was catharsis. And you can’t recycle that.

By 1992, the band had become a trio. Cindy Wilson had taken leave to continue to mourn her brother and to start a family. Strickland, along with Kate Pierson and Fred Schneider, would soldier on and try to recreate the success of their last album. “Good Stuff” was released to tepid reviews. Its title track would reach the top 40 and the album would go gold, but everybody, including the band, seemed underwhelmed.

The album dished out so many leftovers from the winning “Cosmic Thing” formula, it left a stale taste on the palette. The production costs were just as expensive as the making of “Cosmic Thing.” They even re-hired all-star producers Nile Rodgers and Don Was to re-capture the magic. But without heartfelt inspiration, the songs were reduced to a tired formula.

That’s not to say that the album is a trainwreck. The title track is a highlight, doing its best to capture the lighthearted weirdness that had become a calling card for The B-52’s. Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson were experts at this point at playing to each other’s wacky vocal stylings. The album is worth a listen, and certainly isn’t the worst project the band made (looking at you “Flintstones” soundtrack. Bad things happen when Cindy isn’t there.)

Ironically, “Good Stuff” proves that when you’re not emotionally ready to be creative, you won’t do your best work.

I would rekindle my love for The B-52’s in college. By then, I had come out as queer and was given a proper lecture on their incredible back catalog by the DJ at my art school. I had only known the commercial hits from dancing in my living room, but had no idea how joyfully avant-garde their sound was before mainstream success. These artsy queer kids were my people. When I started a Substack and radio show on exploring rock & roll from a queer lens, The B-52’s were one of the first bands I covered.

Rating: The album gets a 5/10. The single, “Good Stuff,” gets a 7/10. It’s still pretty danceable.

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My thanks to

Jami Smith

for taking the time to write this week’s “Chart Chat” article. Please take a moment to visit her Substack and subscribe:

Songs That Saved Your Life

.

Chart Chat frequently welcomes guest authors to share their thoughts on Modern Rock Tracks #1 hits, while promoting some of the best music writing on Substack. Here’s a list of previous guest authors:

• Mark Blankenship
  of
  The Lost Songs Project
  : Modern Rock Tracks No. 1s - The Sundays and "Here’s Where the Story Ends."

• Matt Fish
  of
  Best Music of All Time
  : Modern Rock Tracks No. 1s - The Cure and "Friday I'm In Love."

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Chart Check: A look at other notable MRT chart songs from this time period

As I get deeper into this project and we get closer to my “alternative music awakening” in 1994, it’s going to become increasingly difficult to pare down the songs that appear in this section. Case in point: There are some tracks here that all played a formative role in my transformation from passive mainstream pop music lover to full-on alt-rock enthusiast, including my earliest memory of watching “Beavis and Butthead.”

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“It’s a Shame About Ray” by The Lemonheads: Future MRT #1 artists The Lemonheads broke through into the alternative rock mainstream in 1992 with “It’s a Shame About Ray,” the lead single off their album of the same name. It peaked at #5 on the MRT charts behind “Good Stuff,” and established the band in the alt-rock space over the next few years.

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“Face To Face” by Siouxsie and the Banshees: Former MRT #1 artists Siouxsie and the Banshees enter the top-10 of the MRT charts for the final time with “Face To Face,” a #7 hit off the “Batman Returns” soundtrack. This band nails the aesthetic of the movie and really delivers a unique and engaging sound, as is their way.

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“Pretend We’re Dead” by L7: L7 shows off their alt-rock chops with “Pretend We’re Dead,” which topped out at #8 behind The B-52’s. The rockers hit their commercial chart peak with this track, which became ubiquitous in video games such as “Grand Theft Auto” and “Rock Band.”

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“Black Metallic” by The Catherine Wheel: English rockers The Catherine Wheel knocked their debut out of the park with “Black Metallic,” the first single off their debut album “Ferment.” This track peaked at #9 on the MRT charts behind “Good Stuff,” but would only be the beginning of the band’s presence on the charts throughout the ‘90s.

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“So What’cha Want” by Beastie Boys: Speaking of songs from “Rock Band,” there’s this Beastie Boys classic from 1992, “So What’cha Want.” Despite its relatively low peak at #22 on the MRT charts, I remember this song fondly from my early MTV-watching days. This song featured prominently on one episode of “Beavis and Butthead” that seemed to air and re-air multiple times. I can’t hear this song without thinking of them saying “gardenia” and laughing.

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