90's Guilty Pleasures #34: Lisa Loeb & Nine Stories "Stay (I Missed You)" (1994)

I used to really love "Tempted" by Squeeze. I still do to an extent, but it's more difficult for me to hear after I finally saw Reality Bites a few years ago. There's one particular scene that felt like needles digging into my soul where Winona Ryder and Janeane Garofalo sing "Tempted" loudly and horribly while driving. For this reason alone, I would not feel comfortable recommending this movie to anyone. I mention this as it seemed fitting to suggest that fans of "Stay" are likely also fans of Reality Bites. However, I'm finding far more similarities between "Stay" and My So-Called Life, as they present similar paradoxes.

Pop culture history dictates this being one of those cases where song and video are very closely linked. Both are awkward, yet compellingly sincere; there's so much cuteness, and yet it's SO annoying. All these years later, I have to say I'm really happy she never took off her glasses, proving that it wasn't just a gimmick; it was really her. That was Rivers Cuomo's 1st big mistake... shoulda left on those glasses.