Phee

Worst song ever
By Patrick O'Neil
April 21, 2004

LOVE or hate them you can't get these stinkers out of your head.

Who could forget boot-scooting Billy Ray Cyrus and his amazing hair.

Blender magazine has rated We Built This City as the worst single ever constructed in its list 'The 50 Worst Songs Ever'.

The magazine said the Starship song earned the accolade because it inspired "the most virulent feelings of outrage".

To make the list, each pungent ditty had to be a hit.

Entry was based on unintentionally poor songwriting.

Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder's maudlin duet Ebony and Ivory also featured, as did R.E.M's Shiny, Happy People and John Mayer's Your Body is a Wonderland.

But the inclusion most likely to spark calls of blasphemy is the listing of the Simon and Garfunkel ballad The Sounds of Silence.

"It's the poetry meaningfulness that got our goat," said Blender editor Craig Marks. "With self-important lyrics like, 'Hear my words that I might teach you', it's almost a parody of pretentious '60s folk rock."

Few outside the boot-scooting fraternity would contest the listing of the Billy Ray Cyrus atrocity Achy Breaky Heart at No. 2.

Fallen star Vanilla Ice made it in with perennial dance-floor filler Ice Ice Baby, as did good-times theme song Don't Worry, Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin.

Eddie Murphy's ill-advised foray into music, with the 1985 tragedy Party All the Time, was evidence actors other than J-Lo should not sing. It ranked No. 8.

The 50 Worst Songs Ever

1. We Built This City Starship ... 1985
2. Achy Breaky Heart Billy Ray Cyrus ... 1992
3. Everybody Have Fun Tonight Wang Chung ... 1986
4. Rollin' Limp Bizkit ... 2000
5. Ice Ice Baby Vanilla Ice ... 1990
6. The Heart of Rock & Roll Huey Lewis and the News ... 1984
7. Don't Worry, Be Happy Bobby McFerrin ... 1988
8. Party All the Time Eddie Murphy ... 1985
9. American Life Madonna ... 2003
10. Ebony and Ivory Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder ... 1982
11. Invisible Clay Aiken ... 2003
12. Kokomo The Beach Boys ... 1988
13. Illegal Alien Genesis ... 1983
14. From a Distance Bette Midler ... 1990
15. I'll Be There for You The Rembrandts ... 1995
16. What's Up? 4 Non Blondes ... 1993
17. Pumps and a Bump Hammer ... 1994
18. You're The Inspiration Chicago ... 1984
19. Broken Wings Mr. Mister ... 1985
20. Dancing on the Ceiling Lionel Richie ... 1986
21. Two Princes Spin Doctors ... 1992
22. Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American) Toby Keith ... 2002
23. Sunglasses at Night Corey Hart ... 1984
24. Five for Fighting Superman ... 2000
25. I'll Be Missing You Puff Daddy featuring Faith Evans and 112 ... 1997
26. The End The Doors ... 1967
27. The Final Countdown Europe ... 1987
28. Your Body Is a Wonderland John Mayer ... 2001
29. Breakfast at Tiffany's Deep Blue Something ... 1995
30. Greatest Love of All Whitney Houston ... 1986
31. Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm Crash Test Dummies ... 1994
32. Will 2K Will Smith ... 1999
33. Barbie Girl Aqua ... 1997
34. Longer Dan Fogelberg ... 1979
35. Shiny Happy People R.E.M. ... 1991
36. Make Em Say Uhh! Master P featuring Silkk, Fiend, Mia-X and Mystikal ... 1998
37. Rico Suave Gerardo ... 1991
38. Cotton Eyed Joe Rednex ... 1995
39. She Bangs Ricky Martin ... 2000
40. I Wanna Sex You Up Color Me Badd ... 1991
41. We Didn't Start the Fire Billy Joel ... 1989
42. The Sounds of Silence Simon & Garfunkel ... 1965
43. Follow Me Uncle Kracker ... 2000
44. I'll Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That) Meat Loaf ... 1993
45. Mesmerize Ja Rule featuring Ashanti ... 2002
46. Hangin' Tough New Kids on the Block ... 1989
47. The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You Bryan Adams ... 1996
48. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da The Beatles ... 1968
49. I'm Too Sexy Right Said Fred ... 1992
50. My Heart Will Go On Celine Dion ... 1998


Comments anyone? Songs you'd add? Songs you think shouldn't be there in the first place?

I agree with a lot of them, but then there are others that have me baffled. Eg: how John Mayer could ever end up on a "worst" list is beyond me!!!

*dances away singing "We built this city.....we built this city on rock and roooooolllllllll!"* (Can't believe that song was number 1...surely that honour should have been reserved for Celine, instead of just tacking her on the end. [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img])

~* Blue Angel *~

Firstly, these are my songs on the "So bad, they're actually good" list:
33. Barbie Girl Aqua ... 1997
38. Cotton Eyed Joe Rednex ... 1995
43. Follow Me Uncle Kracker ... 2000
44. I'll Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That) Meat Loaf ... 1993

[img]smilies/lol.gif[/img] Barbie girl by Aqua was what inspired to to buy Aqua's album (Yes, I havent yet been able to throw it out [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img] ), Cotton eye Joe was always on at discos and stuff to do some cowboy/country dancing to, Follow me by Uncle Kracker was a song that I learnt off by heart when I went Florida about 3 years ago. I remembering sitting in the car and singing along and thinking it was by some old man [img]smilies/lol.gif[/img] And Meatloaf...Well, what can I say? He's just great [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

Ooo and also: Awwwww How could The Rembrandts be there!? That song is so catchy! It rules [img]smilies/biggrin.gif[/img]

On a more serious note though: I [img]smilies/love.gif[/img] that Five for fighting song.
I haven't actually heard that John Mayor song but I don't think I'd be wrong in thinking that anything this guy does has got to be good. I can't believe 1 of his tracks is in there.

Anyways, I'm too tired now to post what song's I'd liked to have seen on the list, so I'll probably be back tomorrow [img]smilies/smile.gif[/img]

Jen [img]smilies/angel.gif[/img]

[ 04-21-2004: Message edited ~* Blue Angel *~ ]

Renata M.

this barbie girls sounds funny [img]smilies/lol.gif[/img]

most of the songs i never heard [img]smilies/rolleyes.gif[/img]

alli balli

Ones that don't belong there:

11. Invisible Clay Aiken ... 2003
12. Kokomo The Beach Boys ... 1988
35. Shiny Happy People R.E.M. ... 1991
39. She Bangs Ricky Martin ... 2000
42. The Sounds of Silence Simon & Garfunkel ... 1965
50. My Heart Will Go On Celine Dion ... 1998

Yeah, some of them are cheesy...but I like them! [img]smilies/lol.gif[/img] Particularly The Sound of Silence. I love that song! How could it be on a WORST list!?

Definitely belong there:

1. We Built This City Starship ... 1985
7. Don't Worry, Be Happy Bobby McFerrin ... 1988
28. Your Body Is a Wonderland John Mayer ... 2001
29. Breakfast at Tiffany's Deep Blue Something ... 1995
38. Cotton Eyed Joe Rednex ... 1995
43. Follow Me Uncle Kracker ... 2000
45. Mesmerize Ja Rule featuring Ashanti ... 2002

A lot of the rest I haven't heard. But oh, how I loathe John Mayer. [img]smilies/lol.gif[/img]

Roswellgirl1001

28. Your Body Is a Wonderland John Mayer ... 2001

Hey! And what's wrong with this heart-melting song, exactly? [img]smilies/pout.gif[/img]

And My Heart Will Go On?! Come on! They're just trying to rile us up!

a n d i

Omigod, what is this person deaf or something?
Some of the ones that I've picked I can see why others would hate them but these are the ones that I like/love from the list.

1. We Built This City Starship ... 1985
2. Achy Breaky Heart Billy Ray Cyrus ... 1992
3. Everybody Have Fun Tonight Wang Chung ... 1986
12. Kokomo The Beach Boys ... 1988
14. From a Distance Bette Midler ... 1990
15. I'll Be There for You The Rembrandts ... 1995
16. What's Up? 4 Non Blondes ... 1993
21. Two Princes Spin Doctors ... 1992
25. I'll Be Missing You Puff Daddy featuring Faith Evans and 112 ... 1997
26. The End The Doors ... 1967
29. Breakfast at Tiffany's Deep Blue Something ... 1995
33. Barbie Girl Aqua ... 1997
35. Shiny Happy People R.E.M. ... 1991
38. Cotton Eyed Joe Rednex ... 1995
42. The Sounds of Silence Simon & Garfunkel ... 1965
44. I'll Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That) Meat Loaf ... 1993
47. The Only Thing That Looks Good on Me Is You Bryan Adams ... 1996
48. Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da The Beatles ... 1968
49. I'm Too Sexy Right Said Fred ... 1992

I cannot believe Simon and Garfunkel and The Beatles are on that list!

. : iLLusioNz : .

Right Said Fred was on there but Hanson wasn't? A travesty of a crime!

Oddly enough there wasn't any Spice Girls either. And dude, how on earth could they include Vanilla Ice? I also don't understand what was so bad about Rollin' by Limp Bizkit for it to come 4th. But hey, that's just me [img]smilies/look.gif[/img].

Phee

I think it's a travesty that no Shakira songs made the list. I would have had both "Whenever Wherever" and "Underneath Your Clothes" in the top 10.

FormerGreenDayFan

The End? The End? By The Doors

Ahhhhh. Now I remember why I don't read Blender.

They don't understand the concept of poetry and music.

Notice, none of the less than talented manufactured barbies that grace the covers of Blender have any of their songs on the countdown.

Ugh.

Hood

What the hell?! I can't beleive that Sounds of Silence and What's Up? are there, and no Britney, J.Lo, Justin and hundreds of others!

DobblersGirl

The Beatles do not belong on any worst of anything list. period.

I love John Mayer, but I want to throw up everytime I hear Your Body is a Wonderland... [img]smilies/rolleyes.gif[/img]

Pink Panther Wannabe

Couldn't believe that was on there. *goes to listen to it in defiance* [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

*Juli*

Meh, I love John Mayer and his "worst song ever," though I know there are even a lot of JM FANS who hate the song [img]smilies/lol.gif[/img] I guess it just never got overplayed where I live so I still like it.

My point : screw Blender [img]smilies/wink.gif[/img]

[ 04-22-2004: Message edited *Juli* ]

konstantine

25. I'll Be Missing You Puff Daddy featuring Faith Evans and 112 ... 1997

[img]smilies/rolleyes.gif[/img]

Dixie1903

Most of them I agree with