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Year-end consensus · Alternative & Modern Rock · seven countdowns combined

The best alternative rock songs of 1993

Seven radio stations and charts published year-end countdowns for 1993: KROQ, 91X, Live 105, Q101, John Peel (BBC Radio 1), Virgin Radio and Triple J. Combining every list, the top alternative rock song of 1993 is “Cannonball” by The Breeders, which appeared on six of the seven countdowns and was voted number one by one of them. Six different songs were voted number one somewhere: “Plush” by Stone Temple Pilots (2 stations), “Daughter” by Pearl Jam, “Cannonball” by The Breeders, “Enough Is Enough” by Chumbawamba & Credit To The Nation and “Everybody Hurts” by R.E.M. and others. The Smashing Pumpkins was the year’s most-charted artist, with four different songs placing 14 times across the countdowns.

7countdowns
311songs charted
6different #1s

Top 100 songs of 1993

All 311 songs →

Ranked by combined points across every 1993 year-end countdown in this format. How it works.

# Song Strength Lists Best #1s
1 Cannonball The Breeders
561		 6 #1 1
2 Creep Radiohead
522		 6 #2 –
3 Linger The Cranberries
471		 5 #3 –
4 Plush Stone Temple Pilots
468		 5 #1 2
5 No Rain Blind Melon
460		 5 #2 –
6 Soul to Squeeze Red Hot Chili Peppers
438		 5 #9 –
7 Heart-Shaped Box Nirvana
426		 5 #6 –
8 Regret New Order
414		 7 #9 –
9 Pets Porno for Pyros
409		 5 #9 –
10 Are You Gonna Go My Way Lenny Kravitz
403		 5 #3 –
11 Runaway Train Soul Asylum
395		 6 #6 –
12 Today The Smashing Pumpkins
386		 4 #2 –
13 Daughter Pearl Jam
386		 4 #1 1
14 Feed The Tree Belly
383		 5 #19 –
15 Everybody Hurts R.E.M.
382		 5 #1 1
16 Numb U2
375		 5 #19 –
17 Ordinary World Duran Duran
374		 5 #6 –
18 Hey Jealousy Gin Blossoms
357		 4 #6 –
19 Two Princes The Spin Doctors
346		 5 #7 –
20 Low Cracker
343		 4 #9 –
21 I Feel You Depeche Mode
334		 5 #11 –
22 Cherub Rock The Smashing Pumpkins
323		 5 #18 –
23 All That She Wants Ace of Base
314		 4 #16 –
24 Come Undone Duran Duran
301		 4 #5 –
25 Break It Down Again Tears for Fears
291		 4 #12 –
26 What's Up? 4 Non Blondes
281		 5 #10 –
27 Disarm The Smashing Pumpkins
276		 4 #20 –
28 Connected Stereo MC's
275		 4 #11 –
29 Human Behaviour Björk
274		 4 #20 –
30 Lemon U2
246		 4 #7 –
31 Dreams The Cranberries
241		 4 #2 –
32 Go Pearl Jam
234		 4 #8 –
33 Sober Tool
233		 4 #27 –
34 Can't Help Falling in Love UB40
227		 4 #27 –
35 Killing in the Name Rage Against the Machine
225		 3 #6 –
36 Man on the Moon R.E.M.
225		 5 #24 –
37 Purple Haze The Cure
210		 4 #22 –
38 Into Your Arms The Lemonheads
202		 4 #23 –
39 Rooster Alice In Chains
197		 4 #25 –
40 Walking In My Shoes Depeche Mode
195		 3 #19 –
41 Black Pearl Jam
193		 3 #20 –
42 Detachable Penis King Missile
188		 4 #29 –
43 My Sister Juliana Hatfield
187		 3 #33 –
44 All Apologies Nirvana
186		 2 #5 –
45 Loser Beck
184		 4 #12 –
46 Fields of Gold Sting
184		 3 #22 –
47 Butterfly Wings Machines of Loving Grace
182		 3 #29 –
48 Mrs. Robinson The Lemonheads
172		 3 #25 –
49 Killing in the Name of Rage Against the Machine
164		 2 #8 –
50 Push Th' Little Daisies Ween
164		 3 #10 –
51 Rape Me Nirvana
163		 5 #26 –
52 Nearly Lost You Screaming Trees
163		 3 #35 –
53 Laid James
155		 2 #16 –
54 I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles) The Proclaimers
154		 3 #34 –
55 Found Out About You Gin Blossoms
152		 3 #47 –
56 Wicked Garden Stone Temple Pilots
144		 3 #23 –
57 Oh Carolina Shaggy
140		 3 #46 –
58 Asshole Denis Leary
136		 2 #1 1
59 Sister Havana Urge Overkill
136		 3 #16 –
60 Insane in the Brain Cypress Hill
136		 3 #38 –
61 Start Choppin' Dinosaur Jr.
135		 5 #45 –
62 Tones of Home Blind Melon
134		 3 #45 –
63 My Sister Juliana Hatfield 3
129		 2 #36 –
64 Thunder Kiss '65 White Zombie
128		 3 #50 –
65 Dream All Day The Posies
127		 3 #49 –
66 These Are Days 10,000 Maniacs
126		 3 #39 –
67 Can You Forgive Her? Pet Shop Boys
121		 4 #56 –
68 If I Ever Lose My Faith In You Sting
116		 3 #37 –
69 Truganini Midnight Oil
115		 3 #55 –
70 The Ubiquitous Mr. Lovegrove Dead Can Dance
111		 3 #35 –
71 Black Gold Soul Asylum
109		 2 #35 –
72 My Name is Mud Primus
109		 2 #4 –
73 Cursed Female Porno for Pyros
106		 3 #41 –
74 Candy Everybody Wants 10,000 Maniacs
105		 3 #53 –
75 Enough Is Enough Chumbawamba & Credit To The Nation
100		 1 #1 1
76 Crank Catherine Wheel
99		 2 #39 –
77 Believe Lenny Kravitz
99		 3 #45 –
78 Swim Madder Rose
98		 1 #2 –
79 Her Jazz Huggy Bear
96		 1 #3 –
80 Rid Of Me PJ Harvey
94		 1 #4 –
81 Mr. Wendal Arrested Development
94		 3 #49 –
82 Stay (Faraway, So Close!) U2
93		 2 #30 –
83 French Disco Stereolab
92		 1 #5 –
84 The Honeymoon Is Over Cruel Sea
92		 1 #9 –
85 The Crying Game Boy George
92		 2 #38 –
86 Stone Me Into The Groove Atomic Swing
91		 1 #10 –
87 Supermodel Superficial Voodoo Queens
90		 1 #6 –
88 Soul & Fire Sebadoh
88		 1 #7 –
89 Sweet Lullaby Deep Forest
88		 1 #14 –
90 I Held Her in My Arms Violent Femmes
87		 1 #14 –
91 Wild America Iggy Pop
86		 1 #15 –
92 Crazy Mary Pearl Jam
86		 3 #49 –
93 Ohio River Boat Song Palace Brothers
84		 1 #9 –
94 Hits from the Bong Cypress Hill
84		 1 #17 –
95 Go West Pet Shop Boys
83		 1 #18 –
96 Gepetto Belly
83		 3 #48 –
97 Shark Attack The Wailing Souls
83		 2 #61 –
98 Government Administrator Eggs
82		 1 #10 –
99 Trout Neneh Cherry
82		 1 #19 –
100 Sleeping Satellite Tasmin Archer
81		 2 #60 –

Every station’s number one of 1993

StationNumber one songCountdown
KROQ Plush Stone Temple Pilots KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 1993
91X Daughter Pearl Jam 91X Top 91 Songs of 1993
Live 105 Cannonball The Breeders Live 105 Top 105 Songs of 1993
Q101 Plush Stone Temple Pilots Q101 Top 101 Songs of 1993
John Peel (BBC Radio 1) Enough Is Enough Chumbawamba & Credit To The Nation John Peel's Festive Fifty of 1993
Virgin Radio Everybody Hurts R.E.M. Virgin Radio Top 10 Songs of 1993
Triple J Asshole Denis Leary Triple J Hottest 100 of 1993

All 1993 countdowns in this ranking

About the 1993 ranking

Radio stations count down their listeners’ favorite songs at the end of every year. Each station’s list reflects its own audience, so a song that ruled Los Angeles could miss the top ten in Chicago. To find the songs that defined 1993 everywhere, RockLists gives every appearance percentile-based points (a number one earns 100, the last position earns close to zero) and adds them up across all seven qualifying countdowns. Each radio format is ranked separately, so classic rock and hard rock countdowns never shift the alternative results; use the tabs above to switch formats. Read the full methodology.