LMFAO
“Party Rock Anthem”
This dance duo wanted to make sure nobody missed the message. They like to party. They like to rock. They want to write a song about how much they liked to do both.
It's hard not to dance to this banger, but eventually dancing gets old and. So did the music that they chose to put on this track. A simple beat, a simple dance, and a simple song. It was undeniably catchy, but so is the common cold. Also, the dance they do during the instrumental part links up to the Mos Eisley Cantina song from Star Wars.
Limp Bizkit
“Rollin' (Air Raid Vehicle)”
Nu-metal finally, finally, finally squeezed its way into the mainstream with “Rollin,'” but its time in the limelight was limited. The song peaked at number 65 on the US Billboard Hot 100, staying on the chart for seventeen weeks.
The problem is, nu-metal just couldn't maintain their foothold, despite everything Limp Bizkit was doing. The genre as a whole, Limp as a band, and the song itself faded before too long, though it's still remembered by fans as a winner.
Train
“Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)”
If you turned Radio Disney on any time during the last twenty years, you probably heard this song a few times. Written in C major with a four-four beat and classic chord progression, it was tailor-made for pop success as well as a recession once people moved on.
Fans like it, and while critics knew it would be a hit, the musical qualities were nothing special. The easy-listening aspect proved a little too easy, and it started slipping through the cracks as people found songs that had something more to offer.
Cher Lloyd
“Swagger Jagger”
No, not THAT Cher. This English singer had the chance to rival the greats when she began her career in 2010 with “Swagger Jagger,” but as the largely negative reviews show, she had a few missteps.
It copied the chorus from “Oh My Darling Clementine,” the beat sounds like something that not even the Black Eyed Peas would use, and one reviewer even compared it to the Christmas carol “Little Donkey.” Weird. After all that, though, “The Guardian” chose it as the best number-one single of 2011.
Fat Les
“Vindaloo”
At first, released as a parody of football chants for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, this song became a chant in its own right, which tells us something about football.
If you're into the footy, you might have some appreciation for this tune, but otherwise, we doubt you're interested. There are even some that suspected the band (this was their first single) of bringing back controversy in order to drum up interest. One way or another, this hooligan anthem is enjoyed by one group only: hooligans.
Ed Sheeran
“The A Team”
For this song, Sheeran got his first single on the Billboard Hot 100, his first Grammy Award nomination, and his first nomination for Best British Single at the 2012 Brit Awards.
It's a man and his guitar, which is bound to pick up some notice, but a lot of people felt like the song was preachy and sophomoric, despite the dark subject matter. Still, lots of people loved it, which is why it got played so much...which is why lots of people started to dislike it. One person said it was like being lectured by a college student.
Dido
“Thank You”
The draw of pop music is usually the music itself, with feel-good chord structure and hummable tunes. The lyrics are sometimes critical, often an afterthought, but it seems like Dido barely even tried, writing lines like “I missed the bus” and “Push the door I'm home at last!”
It might be a nice song to put you to sleep, but that's not what most pop songs aim for. It was still Dido's biggest hit in the United States.
Michael Jackson
“Earth Song”
The King of Pop knows how to write a tune. Some of his songs remain famous even to this day, more than a decade after his passing. “Earth Song” isn't one of them.
It was well-received by virtue of being a Michael Jackson song, but it sounds like a billionaire musing about the environment from his private yacht. Have we lost the trust of the elephants? Who cares?
The Cranberries
“Zombie”
Critics of the alternative rock genre herald “Zombie” as a masterpiece, which means most people won't enjoy it.
The musical elements are all over the place. Perhaps the weirdest part is lead singer Dolores O'Riordan's yodeling. Some critics attempted to give artistic meaning to the unusual singing, but before long listeners were sick of it all. It reached the top of the charts and then started to fall at the same pace.
B*witched
“C'est La Vie”
With a fun upbeat sound and innuendos that parents got but kids couldn't, “C'est la Vie” was a song that appealed to the masses.
However, cracks began to show in the song's quality the more play it got, with people disliking the poor fiddling, the painfully happy lyrics, and even the quality of the singing. B*Witched was on its way to girl group stardom, but even the songs that helped get them there weren't perfect.
Scatman John
“Scatman (Ski-Ba-Bop-Ba-Dop-Bop)”
“Scatting” in music is when you're singing random syllables to the beat and tune, and no one was more naturally gifted at it than Scatman John. Dealing with a bad stutter his whole life, John found his true calling with this song.
The prominent scatting is remarkable, but the song itself isn't anything special. It still got John international acclaim before his death in 1999. His greatest success was in Japan, of all places. Still, if you aren't a fan of scatting, this song brings nothing to the table when you listen.
Mr. Blobby
“Mr. Blobby”
TV shows want to be memorable, even if they're sometimes for the wrong reason. Like soundtracks from “Barney The Dinosaur” or “The Teletubbies,” have some real strange songs. And also like the UK TV show “Noel's House Party,” which has “Mr. Blobby.” It's almost too weird to describe.
The song got to number one in November of 1993. Somehow. But hearing this song more than once seems liable to drive many mad. A mix of classical bombast, house beats, and kiddie singing was one of a kind. Thankfully. It even throws in a little Christmas music.
Lou Bega
“Mambo No. 5”
Yes, we're all wondering when “Mambo No. 6” drops, because we're pretty sick of 5 by now. It wasn't even Lou Bega who originated this tune — that was Cuban artist Dámaso Pérez Prado in 1949.
Bega, a German, grabbed it and made it his own, giving us all something fun to dance to. Of course, just listing all the great girls in his life ended up being grating to many listeners, and people started to turn away from the mambo to look for something else.
Chumbawamba
“Tubthumping”
“Tubthumping” is a bit of an odd duck when it comes to the history of the band that produced it. Chumbawamba was a heavy, political band that wrote songs about deep, angry topics. Most of the time. This time, they wanted to make something fun to attract more listeners. It worked, but only for a while.
Punk fans hated them “Selling out” while non-punks didn't like any of their other songs. The hooligan quality of the song made it fun to party to, but not much else.
The Chainsmokers
“#Selfie”
Truth be told, this song could very well be a parody of vapid, lifeless pop music. It has a trap beat playing while people talk about selfies.
The band themselves even admitted that it was a joke and wasn't really supposed to be released...then how was it released? You don't just accidentally hit a button and the song is out there. It has to be produced! Mixed! Mastered! Sounds like saving face to us. It's barely even a song.
Akon
“Mr. Lonely”
“Mr. Lonely” was the first international hit for Senegalese-American singer and rapper Akon. It was popular in the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Australia, and France.
Lots of people loved it, but some thought it would get dear, departed Bob Marley spinning in his grave. The lyrics are syrupy, the voice modulation is tacky, and the accent that Akon uses doesn't sound all that natural. There were many that thought this was an unexpected Chipmunks song until Akon started singing for real.
Peter Andre
“Mysterious Girl”
Earworms might get much playtime, but they usually aren't all that beloved. Nevertheless, when a one-time real estate agent named Peter Andre hired a Jamaican rapper to help with the song “Mysterious Girl,” they knew they had a real hit on their hands.
The sounds conjured up beaches and palm trees, but critics found the song somewhat derivative. It got plenty of play and people liked it, but the reggae sound was left behind as tastes changed. Good luck hearing it on the radio nowadays.
Berlin
“Take My Breath Away”
Written for the 1986 blockbuster hit “Top Gun,” “Take My Breath Away” is a schmaltzy ballad that made its way to the top of the charts thanks to the power of the movie. Buoyed by that airplay, it won an Academy Award for Best Original Song and a Golden Globe for the same, both in 1986.
The song is undeniably catchy, but when you sit down and think about them, the lyrics just don’t make any sense. Brace yourself for the film's reboot if you’re sick of this song.
Whitney Houston
“I Will Always Love You”
No, we aren’t saying this song isn’t great. It is! For the most part. Thing is, there are lots of songs on this list that are actually great, but if the most wonderful sound in existence plays on radios too much, people will still get sick of them.
Such is the case with “I Will Always Love You” by the irreplaceable Whitney Houston. There are plenty of people out there who, despite loving it, would be happy if they didn’t hear it for a while.
DJ Otzi
“Hey Baby”
He just wants to know if you’ll be his girl! He wants to know so badly that it’s just about the only thing he can ask.
The beat has just enough intricacies, including a little bit of south-of-the-border flair, that it’s listenable, but hear it more than once and you’ll start to wonder if the only thing DJ Otzi can say with any kind of conviction is “Can you be my girl?” Well, if you know, you know. And we all know that we’re sick of this repetitive song.
Westlife
“You Raise Me Up”
What could have come straight from the depths of the driest, most boring contemporary Christian music scene, “You Raise Me Up” was schmaltzy from the very first piano note. Throw in what sounds like bagpipes, a gospel choir, and plenty of smoldering looks from the band, and you have a song that is going to be derided.
Despite the song's “uplifting” message, that's exactly what happened. Even by the time you get to the end of this song, you're going to be rolling your eyes.
Black Lace
“Agadoo”
Depending on your age, you might not be familiar with this one. If you ask someone who does know about it, they're probably going to bury their face in their hands. Check out the video for this one — it shouldn't be missed.
We're not going to ask you to watch it more than once, because you wouldn't anyway. Would you believe this song came out in 1989? Novelty songs might not have a long shelf life, but this song was voted to be the worst song OF ALL TIME by music writers and experts in 2003.
