Alternative Airplay is a record chart published by the music industry magazine Billboard that ranks the most-played songs on American modern rock radio stations. Introduced by Billboard in September 1988 and named Modern Rock Tracks until June 2009, it was initially compiled based on weighted reports from several national rock radio stations. Starting with the chart dated June 12, 1993, radio airplay data compiled by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems – which electronically monitors various radio stations on a daily basis – was introduced as a factor in determining chart rankings. Modern Rock Tracks later became solely based on Nielsen data, a change that took effect with the chart dated January 22, 1994.
145 songs topped the Modern Rock Tracks chart in the 1990s; the first of these was "Blues from a Gun" by The Jesus and Mary Chain, which spent three weeks at number one from December 1989 to January 1990. The modern rock radio format experienced a substantial growth in popularity during the decade, with the success of Nirvana's 1991 song "Smells Like Teen Spirit" marking a "return of the crossover rock hit". Speaking to Billboard in 1994, chart analyst Max Tolkoff remarked that in previous years, "people didn't care what was a hit on modern rock. Now everybody wants to be involved." The first formal number one debut on the Modern Rock Tracks chart also occurred during the 1990s, with "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" by R.E.M. entering at number one on the chart for the issue dated September 24, 1994.
The Irish band U2 scored the most number-one hits on Modern Rock Tracks during the decade, with six of their songs topping the chart: "The Fly", "Mysterious Ways", "One", "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me", "Discothèque" and "Staring at the Sun". "Scar Tissue" by the American band Red Hot Chili Peppers topped the chart for sixteen consecutive weeks in 1999, the longest time spent at number one by any song during the 1990s. The band themselves spent a record twenty-seven weeks at number one on Modern Rock Tracks during the decade with four chart-toppers: "Give It Away", "Soul to Squeeze", "My Friends" and "Scar Tissue". "All the Small Things" by Blink-182 was the final Modern Rock Tracks number-one hit of the decade.
Number-one songs Key – Billboard year-end number-one song ↑ – Return of a song to number one
Song Artist Reached number one Weeks atnumber one "Blues from a Gun" 3 "House" 3 "Cuts You Up" 7 "Nothing Compares 2 U" 1 "Blue Sky Mine" Midnight Oil 1 "Metropolis" 1 "Enjoy the Silence" Depeche Mode 3 "" 1 "Forgotten Years" Midnight Oil 1 "Here's Where the Story Ends" 1 "Policy of Truth" Depeche Mode 1 "Way Down Now" World Party 5 "Joey" Concrete Blonde 4 "Jealous" Gene Loves Jezebel 1 "I'll Be Your Chauffeur" David J 1 "Jealous" ↑ Gene Loves Jezebel 1 "Stop!" Jane's Addiction 1 "Every Beat of the Heart" 1 "Stop!" ↑ Jane's Addiction 1 "Suicide Blonde" INXS 1 "Never Enough" 2 "Merry Go Round" 1 "Never Enough" ↑ 1 "Been Caught Stealing" Jane's Addiction 1 "Merry Go Round" ↑ 3 "Been Caught Stealing" ↑ Jane's Addiction 3 "More" 5 "Kinky Afro" Happy Mondays 1 "All This Time" Sting 2 "Right Here, Right Now" Jesus Jones 5 "Losing My Religion" R.E.M. 8 "See the Lights" Simple Minds 2 "" 4 "Get the Message" Electronic 2 "Kiss Them for Me" Siouxsie and the Banshees 5 "Rush" Big Audio Dynamite II 4 "Until She Comes" 2 "So You Think You're in Love" 5 "Give It Away" Red Hot Chili Peppers 2 "" U2 2 "Smells Like Teen Spirit" Nirvana 1 "Mysterious Ways" U2 9 "Sax and Violins" Talking Heads 1 "What's Good" 3 "Hit" 5 "One" U2 1 "High" 4 "Teen Angst (What the World Needs Now)" Cracker 2 "Weirdo" 1 "" XTC 2 "Friday I'm in Love" 4 "Good Stuff" 4 "Midlife Crisis" Faith No More 1 "Tomorrow" Morrissey 6 "Digging in the Dirt" 2 "Blood Makes Noise" 1 "Drive" R.E.M. 5 "These Are Days" 10,000 Maniacs 2 "Somebody to Shove" Soul Asylum 1 "Steam" 5 "Not Sleeping Around" Ned's Atomic Dustbin 1 "" Jesus Jones 6 "Feed the Tree" Belly 3 "I Feel You" Depeche Mode 5 "Regret" New Order 2 "Walking in My Shoes" Depeche Mode 1 "Regret" ↑ New Order 4 "Pets" Porno for Pyros 5 "Break It Down Again" Tears for Fears 3 "Soul to Squeeze" Red Hot Chili Peppers 4 "My Sister" 1 "No Rain" Blind Melon 1 "Soul to Squeeze" ↑ Red Hot Chili Peppers 1 "No Rain" ↑ Blind Melon 2 "Heart-Shaped Box" Nirvana 3 "Into Your Arms" 9 "Daughter" Pearl Jam 1 "Found Out About You" Gin Blossoms 1 "All Apologies" Nirvana 2 "Loser" Beck 5 "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm" Crash Test Dummies 1 "God" 2 "" Morrissey 7 "Selling the Drama" Live 3 "Longview" Green Day 1 "Fall Down" Toad the Wet Sprocket 6 "Come Out and Play" 2 "Einstein on the Beach (For an Eggman)" Counting Crows 1 "Basket Case" Green Day 5 "What's the Frequency, Kenneth?" R.E.M. 5 "Zombie" 6 "About a Girl" Nirvana 1 "Bang and Blame" R.E.M. 3 "When I Come Around" Green Day 7 "Lightning Crashes" Live 9 "Good" Better Than Ezra 5 "Misery" Soul Asylum 3 "Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me, Kill Me" U2 4 "You Oughta Know" 5 "J.A.R." Green Day 1 "Tomorrow" Silverchair 3 "Comedown" Bush 2 "Name" Goo Goo Dolls 1 "Hand in My Pocket" 1 "Lump" 1 "Name" ↑ Goo Goo Dolls 3 "My Friends" Red Hot Chili Peppers 4 "Glycerine" Bush 2 "Wonderwall" Oasis 9 "1979" 1 "Wonderwall" ↑ Oasis 1 "Ironic" 3 "Champagne Supernova" Oasis 5 "Salvation" 4 "Mother Mother" 3 "Counting Blue Cars" Dishwalla 1 "Pepper" Butthole Surfers 3 "Standing Outside a Broken Phone Booth with Money in My Hand" Primitive Radio Gods 6 "Who You Are" Pearl Jam 1 "Down" 311 4 "Novocaine for the Soul" Eels 2 "What I Got" Sublime 3 "Swallowed" Bush 7 "#1 Crush" Garbage 4 "Discothèque" U2 4 "Lakini's Juice" Live 1 "One Headlight" 5 "Staring at the Sun" U2 3 "" 3 "Semi-Charmed Life" Third Eye Blind 5 "" 1 "Semi-Charmed Life" ↑ Third Eye Blind 3 "Push" Matchbox Twenty 1 "Fly" Sugar Ray 8 "Walkin' on the Sun" Smash Mouth 5 "Tubthumping" Chumbawamba 7 "Everything to Everyone" Everclear 1 "Sex and Candy" Marcy Playground 15 "" Fastball 7 "Closing Time" Semisonic 5 "Iris" Goo Goo Dolls 5 "Inside Out" Eve 6 2 "One Week" Barenaked Ladies 1 "Inside Out" ↑ Eve 6 1 "One Week" ↑ Barenaked Ladies 4 "Inside Out" ↑ Eve 6 1 "Celebrity Skin" Hole 3 "Slide" Goo Goo Dolls 1 "Celebrity Skin" ↑ Hole 1 "Slide" ↑ Goo Goo Dolls 1 "Fly Away" 2 "Never There" Cake 3 "What It's Like" Everlast 8 "Every Morning" Sugar Ray 1 "What It's Like" ↑ Everlast 1 "Every Morning" ↑ Sugar Ray 5 "My Own Worst Enemy" Lit 11 "Scar Tissue" Red Hot Chili Peppers 16 "Higher" Creed 1 "" Bush 2 "Learn to Fly" Foo Fighters 1 "" ↑ Bush 2 "Higher" ↑ Creed 1 "" ↑ Bush 1 "Higher" ↑ Creed 1 "Re-Arranged" Limp Bizkit 1 "All the Small Things" Blink-182 8
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External links Alternative Airplay at Billboard