100/25

So, VH1 thinks they've got the list of the 100 best songs from the past 25 years, eh? Boy are they ever wrong.

I usually dismiss these lists, since they are almost always skewed toward more recent songs. Whenever you do a list that starts today and goes back X number of years (to 1978 in this case*), the songs that come to mind first are going to be the ones you hear today, right? Surprisingly, more than a third of the songs on the list are from 1978-1983, the first five years of the period, while only 13 came from the past five years. And of the top 10 songs, six are from the Eighties, three from the Nineties and only one from the Oughties (Naughties?). So it's actually a pretty well distributed selection, possibly even weighted too heavily to the oldest songs.

However, I do take issue, as many others have, at the selections. "Hot in Herre," by Nelly? A novelty song. Same with "Mmm Bop" by Hanson -- who even remembers any lyrics to that one besides the title? Were there lyrics? Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing" over "Love in the Elevator?" Come on. And where's "Bizarre Love Triangle?"

And some of the included songs really should be higher up -- the Clash's "London Calling," #38, should at minimum be above "... Baby One More Time," #28.

Of course, VH1 is just doing a television show, and who knows how they chose this list, other than perhaps video ratings data, so we really shouldn't get all riled up about it. It should also be pointed out that although it's called "The 100 Greatest Songs of the Past 25 Years," it's really the 100 Best Pop songs of the Past 25 Years, "pop" standing for popularity in this case. Sure, there's some rap in there, but no heavy metal or electronica (Metallica's "Enter Sandman" and Madonna's "Ray of Light" do not count) represented. I mean, if Moby's "Southside" isn't one this list, you know at least one genre is getting the shaft (not that that's the best electronica song ever, but it's certainly one of the most popular).

*Meat Loaf's "Paradise By the Dashboard Light," No. 59., was on Bat Outta Hell, which came out in 1977. So technically it shouldn't be included here. Oh well.

Posted by Andrew Huff at June 12, 2003 03:15 PM