Sacrilege!
Disclaimer for JB: this post contains titles of songs that may burrow into your brain and refuse to leave. Read it at your own risk. I accept no responsibility for any sudden violent urges you may experience, including the need to hit, maim, or dismember.
My sister suggested I should blog about the Top Five All-time Worst Songs That We Can't Get Enough Of¹. Utterly brilliant idea, right?
What song just popped into your head? The moment Parisa suggested this topic, I exclaimed Meatloaf! Is there a worse song in the history of man than I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That)? I think not. And yet every time I hear it, I can't help but sing along to the lyrics that are (apparently) branded into to the deep recesses of my mind.
Only after the flash of Meatloaf, I couldn't come up with any other songs that might qualify on my top five list, so I googled "worst songs ever" to get some input from other people.
Enter The 100 Worst Songs We Secretly Love, henceforth known as SWSL.
Obviously, I'm not going to reprint the entire list here. I gave you the link above. You're big kids—go look for yourself if you haven't already. I will say some of the songs on SWSL are inspired. Like Mandy by Barry Manilow. And Never Gonna Give You Up by Rick Astley—if that doesn't make you dance in your seat like a white boy while simultaneously groaning, I don't know what will.
However...
Some of the selections on the list were sacrilege. Sacrilege, I tell you. For example, a couple Prince songs made the list.
Please excuse me while I sputter incredulously for a moment.
Okay, I'm back and coherent again. And I'd like to state that artists as talented as the Great Purple One are exempt from being on any worst lists. Even if some of their songs might be questionable, the breadth of their work excuses the occasional lapse. Although there's something to even a song like Darling Nikki.
Elvis Costello is also an exemption for me, and yet Veronica made SWSL. Not the best song he ever did, but one of the worst songs we love of all time? Seriously?
Other songs that made the list, that don't deserve to be there...
- It's Not Unusual by Tom Jones
- Smooth Criminal by Michael Jackson
- Gold Digger by Kanye West
- The Motion of Love by Gene Loves Jezebel
- I Write Sins Not Tragedies by Panic! at the Disco
I admit...
Some people (like Katie, one of my best friends, and Jerry, my boyfriend²) claim that my taste in music (and other things) is sometimes questionable. To that I say, of course, "Pshaw." And so what if it is? It's just my opinion.
Give me your opinion. Maybe you think those songs should be on a "worst of" list. Maybe you have better songs that are oh-so-bad yet oh-so-irresistible. Tell us. We want to know.
¹ Actually, her first idea was Top Five Uses For A Pillow.
² Yeah, I mentioned him again, and I even gave you his name. Make of that what you will.
Groovin'
Are you guys expecting words of wisdom for the new year? Because if you are, you're going to be sorely disappointed. I'm not going to talk about resolutions or starting fresh or even partying safely. Why bother? You guys have heard it all before.
What do I want to talk to you about? Not much. Writing the blog today is just an excuse to sit here and listen to music. If I could, I'd stream what I'm listening to so you could share the experience, but you're out of luck.
... pourtant j'étais très belle—oui—j'étais la plus belle des fleurs dans ton jardin... <— That's me singing along.
I suppose I could tell you what I'm listening to. I had the sudden urge to for a little Khaled, an Algerian singer. Khaled led to Les Negresses Vertes and Natacha Atlas. (I forgot how much I love Natacha Atlas; the lyrics above are from her song Mon Amie La Rose—awesome song.) Then I threw in a couple Ofra Haza songs to complete my playlist.
Consequently, my shoulder keeps twitching to the beat. It's only a matter of time before the rest of my body follows and I start to dance, Persian style.
No, I won't post a video of that.