1991 is in the discussion for best year in music for any decade when you consider how many classic albums and songs came out that year. Since there are an incredible amount of them, recognizing three at a time feels feasible. Below are three great albums from thirty years ago.

Cypress Hill – Cypress Hill

Thirty years ago, hip hop got smacked in the face with a new group out of Los Angeles called Cypress Hill. They immediately garnered attention from fans and hip hop enthusiasts alike with B-Real’s incredibly distinctive nasally flow giving our ears a new sound. With classic jams like “Hand on the Pump,” “The Phuncky Feel One,” and “How I Could Just Kill a Man,” Cypress Hill would become legends of L.A. hip hop. And yes, that is a young Ice Cube making a cameo in their first music video just before a beef over a stolen beat created a riff between the two icons.

Cooleyhighharmony – Boyz II Men

This fantastic quartet from Philly burst onto the scene in ’91 with the release of their positive, uptempo, “Motownphilly,” giving everyone a dose of what was to come. The album includes a beautifully sung, “It’s So Hard to Say Goodbye to Yesterday” that really highlights the group’s stellar vocals. Boyz II Men would become one of the greatest R&B groups of all time and it all started thirty years ago.

Blood Sugar Sex Magik – Red Hot Chili Peppers

From legends of Los Angeles hip hop to icons of Los Angeles rock, the Red Hot Chili Peppers are easily one of the greatest rock bands to hail from the City of Angels. Some would argue this is their finest albums, a terrific one by the way, with its collection of hit singles such as “Give it Away,” “Suck My Kiss” and the timeless “Under the Bridge.” This is the album that catapulted the Chili Peppers to worldwide stardom for good reason. It’s exceptional.