Donald Fagen: Kamakiriad
The Donald Fagen solo album Kamakiriad is released, featuring the single “Tomorrow’s Girls”.
Sting: Ten Summoners’ Tales
Sting releases the solo album Ten Summoners’ Tales, featuring the singles “If I Ever Lose My Faith In You” and “Fields Of Gold”.
Jellyfish: Spilt Milk
Power pop supergroup Jellyfish releases its debut album Spilt Milk through Charisma Records. Though generally considered to be an even stronger album than Bellybutton, Spilt Milk marks the end of Jellyfish’s studio career; the band splinters after it is released.
Ralf Illenberger: Soleil
The Ralf Illenberger album Soleil is released, featuring the single “You And I”.
Crowded House: Together Alone
Crowded House releases Together Alone, the final studio album featuring its original lineup (though no one is aware of this at the time), in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Europe. Produced by Neil Finn and Youth (a departure from the group’s “producer in residence” Mitchell Froom, who oversaw the first three albums), the album has a unique sound in the band’s catalogue. Multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Mark Hart formally joins the group’s studio lineup, having toured with them since 1989. In America, the album is ensnared by a change of label management and remains unissued for almost a full year as a result.
Raymond Scott: Reckless Nights and…
The Raymond Scott album Reckless Nights and Turkish Twilights, a collection of remastered archive recordings of Scott and his 1950s jazz combo, is released.
Space Age soundtrack
Narada Records releases a CD of Star Trek: The Next Generation composer Jay Chattaways’s music from the PBS documentary series Space Age. Though more percussive than his Star Trek scores, the documentary soundtrack bears strong similarities to his work on the hit science fiction series.
Star Trek: TNG Volume 3 soundtrack
GNP Crescendo Records releases the third CD of Star Trek: The Next Generation soundtrack music, containing Dennis McCarthy’s music from the episodes Yesterday’s Enterprise, Unification, and Hollow Pursuits.
Star Trek Volume 3 soundtrack
GNP Crescendo releases a CD of music from the original Star Trek television series, presenting selections from the episodes The Naked Time by Alexander Courage and Shore Leave by Gerald Fried.
Roy Orbison: King Of Hearts
The posthumous Roy Orbison album King Of Hearts is released, featuring a variety of singles, soundtrack songs, and collaborations with other artists not previously collected as an album. The single “I Drove All Night” is also released. (Orbison died in 1989.)
Peter Gabriel: Us
Peter Gabriel releases the solo album Us through his own RealWorld label, including the singles “Digging In The Dirt” and “Steam”. The album reflects Gabriel’s past experiences with primal scream therapy.
Warner Bros. Records releases ELO Part II: Greatest Hits Live
ELO offshoot band Electric Light Orchestra Part II releases its second album, Live With The Moscow Symphony Orchestra. The live album is released at the behest of the group’s management, despite some flaws in the recorded performances by both the band members and the guest orchestra.
Lindsey Buckingham: Out Of The Cradle
Lindsey Buckingham‘s solo album Out Of The Cradle is released, featuring the single “Don’t Look Down”.
Tori Amos: Little Earthquakes
Tori Amos‘ first album, Little Earthquakes, is released, featuring the singles “Silent All These Years” and “Crucify”.
JFK soundtrack
Elektra Records releases an album of music from John Williams‘s soundtrack from the controversial Oliver Stone movie JFK.
Star Trek VI soundtrack
MCA Records releases an album of music from Cliff Eidelman‘s soundtrack from Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
Until The End Of The World
The soundtrack from the movie Until The End Of The World is released, featuring songs by U2, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Lou Reed, Talking Heads, R.E.M., Depeche Mode and others; the CD contains only a few short sections of Graeme Revell’s instrumental score.
Moody Blues: Keys of the Kingdom
The Moody Blues release the album Keys Of The Kingdom, featuring the single “Bless the Wings (That Bring You Back).” This is the group’s first album of the 1990s, and the last studio album of new material until 1999.
Star Trek Volume 2 soundtrack
GNP Crescendo releases a CD of music from the original Star Trek television series, presenting selections from the episodes The Doomsday Machine by Sol Kaplan and Amok Time by Gerald Fried.
Star Trek: TNG Volume 2 soundtrack
GNP Crescendo Records releases the second CD of Star Trek: The Next Generation soundtrack music, containing Ron Jones’ music from the fan favorite two-part story The Best Of Both Worlds.
Electric Light Orchestra Part II
ELO offshoot band Electric Light Orchestra Part II releases its self-titled debut album (with the placement of “Part II” on the cover no doubt leaving some confusion as to whether or not this is the original band; it’s actually a new group formed by former ELO drummer Bev Bevan).
New Music For Films Volume 1
Christopher Franke’s soundtrack compilation CD New Music For Films Volume 1 is released on Varese Sarabande Records.
Alien Nation soundtrack
GNP Crescendo releases a CD of music from the soundtrack of the short-lived Fox series Alien Nation.
Twin Peaks soundtrack
Warner Bros. releases Angelo Badalamenti’s soundtrack from the surprise midseason TV hit Twin Peaks, featuring the show’s signature dreamy jazz-synth-driven score and songs with vocals by Julee Cruise (including the theme tune, “Falling”). Shortly after its release, and for quite some time afterward, this album is the best-selling TV soundtrack album ever.
The Carl Stalling Project
Catalogued, restored, remastered, and released for the first time ever, The Carl Stalling Project is released by Warner Bros. Records. The album is the first-ever release of the original soundtrack recordings from Stalling’s scoring sessions for the Warner Looney Toons and Merrie Melodies cartoons from the 1930s through the 1950s, featuring many of Stalling’s variations on tunes originally written by Raymond Scott (including the famous manic “Powerhouse” cue). Classic cartoon fans snap the album up and demand more.
Jellyfish: Bellybutton
Power pop supergroup Jellyfish releases its debut album Bellybutton through Charisma Records, including the hit singles “The King Is Half-Undressed” and “That Is Why”. Steady touring helps the group build an ardent fan base, especially in Japan.
ELO: Afterglow
Four years after the band’s formal breakup, CBS Records releases (with cooperation from frontman Jeff Lynne) a three-CD Electric Light Orchestra box set, Afterglow. Serving primarily as an elaborate greatest hits collection, the primary draw is the third disc, featuring many previously unheard songs that were “orphaned” when the group’s 1983 album Secret Messages was cut down from a double album to a single LP shortly before publication.