My favourites from that era are probably 'I Try' by Macy Gray and 'You Get What You Give' by the New Radicals (released at the end of '98, but received most of it's airplay in '99).

Other notables hits included 'Pretty Fly For A White Guy' by The Offspring, 'Genie In A Bottle' by Christina Aguilera and 'Steal My Sunshine' by Len. All really good pop songs. I was 18 at the time. and so was Christina, and I would've married her. Sadly, it wasn't to be. And while Britney Spears probably was and is more of a generational and cultural icon, I thought Christina was better musically. I remember being really impressed by the chorus to 'Genie In A Bottle'.

Of course, in '99 I was mostly listening to The Holy Bible, probably 3 or 4 times a day. It provided a bit of light relief after a hard day at college. Some people find the album hard going and depressing, for obvious reasons, but I always felt it was really uplifting. Lyrically, it's the sound of Richey Edwards excoriating humanity and losing hope, but musically, it's the sound of James Dean Bradfield trying to fight back (not necessarily against Richey, just in general). And I think I enjoyed it musically more than I did lyrically.

In general though, I find the veneration of pop stars quite troubling. Look at David Bowie, for example. No end of tributes to him when he died, including from militant leftists. But there are credible allegations that he was a child rapist.

And yet, seemingly because he was a good song writer and physically attractive, he gets a free pass for it. Again, *including from militant leftists*, who otherwise are rock solid on calling out abuse and exploitation. I'm sorry, but if child rape is bad, then it's bad whether you're a Joe Nobody like my Dad, or a superstar like Bowie. Have a good think about that one, Bowie fans, and if you come out of it still idolising Bowie, please stop pretending to be against child abuse.