Welcome to another installment of Way Back Wednesday, where I remind you of some classic groups from way back…

Jodeci just dropped a new album this week, their first in 20 years — The Past, The Present, The Future! If you're like me, the '90s-era group was a big part of your music collection as a teenager, and their blend of R&B, soul, and New Jack Swing dominated the airwaves at the time.

Several soon-to-be superstars were associated with the Charlotte, N.C. boys before they became a legendary group. Uptown Records intern Sean "Puffy" Combs along with Heavy D, Father MC and Andre Harrell all helped launch the group's career. After landing a record deal with Uptown in 1991, Jodeci released their full-length debut, Forever My Lady. It was a huge success. While Teddy Riley was responsible for the birth of New Jack Swing, Jodeci helped introduce it to a broader audience while taking it to a new level. Mixing hip-hop fashion with seductive lyrics and unique production qualities, Jodeci pushed the boundaries of conventional R&B. In 1993, they released their sophomore album, Diary Of A Mad Band, and almost left Uptown for the infamous Death Row Records due to a label feud, but was later resolved. "Cry For You" and "Feenin" were huge hits off that album and spent many weeks on the Billboard charts; both are considered classics to this day. The Show, The After Party, The Hotel dropped in 1995 and capped off their third album in five years. It was once again another platinum album and produced the hit singles, "Freek'n You," "Love U 4 Life" and "Get On Up," further cementing Jodeci into R+B hall of fame

"Forever My Lady"

https://youtube.com/watch?v=k5ZagNG-CoI

"Cry For You"

"Feenin"

"Get On Up"

*****

The early '90s saw the rise of a new undeniably popular sub-genre: grunge. Stone Temple Pilots were among the bands that sprung from the era hawking this sound with a first LP, Core, that earned both praise and criticism. Since they didn't hail from Seattle like so many others in the genre — STP was spawned in San Diego — the band received a lot of backlash from and were labeled "grunge impersonators" by their detractors. None of this seemed to matter to STP fans; the album was a huge success and still their best-selling effort to date with several hits that still play on the airwaves today: "Creep," "Sex Type Thing," "Wicked Garden" and "Plush."

STP began touring and opening for heavy-hitters like Megadeath and Rage Against The Machine in 1993. In 1994, the band released second LP Purple. STP seemed eager to shed the grunge label earned with Core and infused the record with more elements of psychedelic and classic rock. Often troubled, but very talented lead singer Scott Weiland started using heroin during the recording of Purple, and "Interstate Love Song" reflected his new habit. "Vasoline" and "Big Empty" were both huge hits for the band, the latter tapped for The Crow soundtrack. Tiny Music…Songs From The Vatican Gift Shop was released in 1996 and No.4 in 1999. Both albums were received well, even with the drastic sound change of Tiny Music, but were marred by Weiland's constant run-ins with the law and his problems with drug addiction.

At present, he seems to have conquered his demons and is heading up a new solo project, Scott Weiland & the Wildabouts, which released their debut full-length on Tuesday.

"Plush"