James Lileks: Worst Rock Song Ever? Give This a Spin

The Minneapolis/St Paul Star Tribune ^ | April 25, 2004 | James Lileks

[L.N. Smithee]

I would say Phil's music is total crap (old SNL skit awarded him Most Meaningless Songwriter Award) but he wrote "It's No Fun Being An Illegal Alien" which frees him from Streisand's level of BAD. One of the funniest songs ever. I think people should flood 80's stations with request because IT IS POLITICALLY INCORRECT to play the song. Anything to tweek the PC police!

"Illegal Alien" is on the Blender list, and I think it belongs there. I don't believe there is any intrinsic value in political incorrectness, which seems to be an opinion shared by South Park and Family Guy fans.

I like Phil's early solo stuff and think he's among pop music's greatest drummers. But he has a tendency to steal hooks and song titles from other artists. Just one example: "Sussudio" was nearly a note-for-note knockoff of Prince's "1999."

[One_American]

As a child of the 70's I fondly remember nominating the song "There's a Dead Skunk in the Middle of the Road" as our grammar school graduating class song. Of course it didn't go over too well with the girls and we ended up with "Color My World" which was about as nauseating as actually eating a dead skunk in the middle of the road.

[sully777]

"'Illegal Alien' is on the Blender list, and I think it belongs there. I don't believe there is any intrinsic value in political incorrectness..."

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No intrinsic value in political incorrectness? Funny, I find no intrinsic value in PC. WE HAVE A "MEXICAN STAND-OFF" AT THE FR! LOL

BTW, I hate South Park. Yes, my friend, I've said "YES to hate" when it comes to anything South Park.

[Arkinsaw]

I'll give a dishonorable mention to "Don't Bring Me Down" by the Electric Light Orchestra. It's not that it's among the very worst songs ever; it's just that this grating travesty came from a group that produced so much genuinely brilliant material. (If you don't like ELO's hit songs, which were never their best material, listen to their first five or six albums and get back to me.)

"Time" was a brilliant concept album in my opinion, until you get to "Hold on Tight" which was just thrown in there to have another cruddy bubble-gum pop ELO radio song. Its like going to an opera and halfway through somebody comes out with banging on a trash can lid. Jarring.

ELO did that on every album, lots of good stuff and then WHAM! crap, right between the eyes. They always released the drivel as the "hit" single.

[BOBWADE]

In the late eighties there was a song called "fast car" That I absolutely hated! Worst song I ever heard. Tracy Chappman I believe.