It wasn’t supposed to be a track that would define a cable tv station.  But one visit by the artist Sting, and into the microphone he belted the famous words “I want my MTV,” and boom, this song would be arguably this band’s biggest hit.  However, like one other artist already, this isn’t their only track in this countdown.  But for now, let’s celebrate the anthem that helped define a generation – at #15 it’s Money for Nothing by Dire Straits.

The second quarter of the top 20 songs turning 30 years old this year begins with this rock track featuring a well-known guitar lick and effect.  This band appeared in last year’s countdown and this track along with a couple others helped solidified them as one of the premier new hard rock acts of the 90s.  Coming in at #15 is December by Collective Soul.

Our second entry by this artist in this 1995 countdown is also our last.  While she may appear again in next year’s countdown, this song helped deliver a solid foundation for her career.  This song would prove that she was an enduring artist to be reckoned with, and its lyric continued to be quoted today.  Appearing at #16 is Hand in My Pocket by Alanis Morissette.

Rounding out the first quarter of the 1985 countdown we come to a surprising entry in this list.  This artist almost hit his zenith during this year for reasons we’ll get to a little later.  But somehow this song manages to find its way into this list, and when you hear it, you’ll understand why.  Arguably one of the power ballads that set the template going forward, coming in at #16 is Heaven by Bryan Adams.

My 1984 countdown had so many heavy hitters that this group sadly failed to make it with one of their biggest songs.  Fortunately, that will be made up now with this track breaking into the list.  It’s amazing how much this song and its anthemic outro has stood the test of time.  Anthemic intro, A/B song, followed by anthemic outro – a simple premise and such a great song.  At #17 it’s Head Over Heels by Tears For Fears.

Here’s a shocker – I completely forgot this group released some popular tracks in 1995, and as a result knocked two songs out of the list (as you can guess now, this is only their first entry).  This song arguably started the craze of frat boys picking up the acoustic and wanting to serenade pretty ladies, and it has remained one of this band’s biggest songs today. Coming in at #17 is Satellite by The Dave Matthews Band.