As a youngster, I first heard of Smashing Pumpkins when they were featured on the "Singles" soundtrack for "Drown." As soon as "Siamese Dream" was released in 1993, I bought it and if I could have worn out the grooves on a CD, I would have. Then "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" came out in 1995, and despite having some lows, the two-CD album had some of the greatest music of the 1990s. Coupled with the 1996 release of the five-CD box set of "The Aeroplane Flies High" in 1996, it was incredible to comprehend how Billy Corgan and company could come up with some many great songs. I first saw the band in 1998 at Dodger Stadium when they opened up for KISS on Halloween night, and the Pumpkins came onstage as The Beatles and thrashed through an early Beatles tune before playing "Drown" and other songs. The next time I saw them was when Corgan's "Smashing Pumpkins" played at In The Venue a year or two ago and despite him being the only remaining member of the classic line-up, it was great.
Then, for some reason or another, they never reached the same heights.
Among the many great songs on "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness" was "Muzzle," which was not released as a single but remains a poignant reflection on who Corgan had become and how the public then saw him.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DsJgjUvws9k
And here are two acoustic versions: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_wboMEHnHKU and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEnCtQQc_Ew&feature=related
And, just because it is a Monday, here is the full version of "Drown": http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=iv&annotation_id=annotation_270402&v=pGDzsds4Ll0&src_vid=3Mn-3EqaO0E
