Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (October 2016)

Although I'm not someone who vehemently resists change, my subconscious somehow didn't get that memo.  Out of the ten songs from last month's countdown, five of them have returned for this month's list in their original form while another one has haunted me in an alternative form.  Out of those six songs, the beginning of this month's cycle began with a three-horse race between Ralph Tresvant, Silk and Sherrick for pole position, but if Simone Manuel's historic accomplishment taught us nothing, the initial leaders or favorites don't always win in the end.  (I know...hella dramatic.)  Of course, we always have to talk about the losers.  Mariah Carey's "Vision of Love" greeted me ferociously one morning as I reminisced about the summer of 1990, but she didn't make it past noon.  Even with Jermaine Jackson's "Two Ships" hitting me at two different points of the month, perhaps the waves from the passing ships didn't make enough of a splash in my mind.  "The Love I Lost" by Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes harassed me at work for a day or two, but my brain may have lost love for it.  Finally, discussing Babyface's brilliance on the Waiting to Exhale soundtrack immediately brought Mary J. Blige's "Not Gon' Cry" to mind.  However, her awkward rendition of Bruce Springsteen's "American Skin (41 Shots)" to Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in a promo for her upcoming series on Apple TV, The 411, may have quickly unseated one of my faves from the Queen of Hip Hop Soul from the rotation.  So enough of the rambling about nonentities and on with the cut makers...

Scribbler's "Get Out of My Brain!" Countdown of the Month (September 2016)

You never know how a month's worth of random songs being lodged in the corners of your mind will work.  Once the last batch of brain invaders left the scene of the crime, the first culprit looking to raid was "In My House" by the Mary Jane Girls.  Truth be told, I can't even tell you what made me think of that song recently because as much as I've always liked it, I don't think about it very often.  Hence, I had a feeling neither "In My House" would make the cut nor "Put It In Your Mouth" by Akinyele, "Tonight, I Celebrate My Love" by Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack", "My Dad's Gone Crazy" by Eminem nor "The Lovers" by Alexander O'Neal.  Guy's "Goodbye Love" had three opportunities to make the list--twice on its own and once via sampling on Mary J. Blige's "Don't Go"--but still didn't make it despite a strong resurgence.  Of all people, Rihanna nearly made "Get Out of My Brain!" history with three entries including "Sex With Me" and "Needed Me", but you will soon see which one endured.  Now that the losers have been accounted for, let's talk about the winners...

Scribbler's Rave & Favorite Five: Ninetysomething Days of Summer, #4 Summer of '93

Considering how meh the first half of the year was, 1993 improved exponentially in the second half.  However, even with the ninth grade signaling a sea change in the social aspect of my academic career, no season was more enjoyable than the summer.  Although it resembled the summer of '87 with good weather and great music--despite nothing holding a candle to The System's "Don't Disturb This Groove"--the 94 days of the summer of '93 involved more advancement of my strongest academic talents in fun and engaging ways, great field trips, pretty girls and exploration of my wacky teenage hormones.  So to all of y'all who absolutely love the 90s, get ready to take a trip down memory lane as we get into my No. 4 favorite summer of all time and the five things that made the summer of '93 so dope...