I am not the first, nor shall I be the last, to observe that you can have 100 channels and still find nothing on TV on a weeknight. In our desperation, we resorted to Vh1's Top 100 Songs of the 1990s which, though less than authoritative, at least keeps moving.
As Vh1 has discovered to their profit, nostalgic list shows are good for ratings in targeted demographics, so they keep producing them. Of course we will disagree with them in the particulars, but I think the most glaring omission is "1979," by Smashing Pumpkins. Vh1 once ranked 1992's "November Rain" by Guns N' Roses the best video of all time, so I can't really see how the swansong of the hair-band era got left off the list. Then there are the minor quibbles about Dave Matthews, Sting, Offspring, and even the Gin Blossoms, for that post-grunge Tempe sound.
Obvious omissions aside, I couldn't fail to notice something in the list: a remarkable number of the songs had been parodied, or polka'd, by Weird Al Yankovic. Weird Al is a master of his art, and I think we tend to take him for granted. Not only can he reduce a song to its most elemental absurdity, but he is almost infallible in his song-selections.
01. Nirvana "Smells Like Teen Spirit": Smells Like Nirvana
03. Backstreet Boys "I Want It That Way": eBay
08. TLC "Waterfalls": Phony Calls
09. R.E.M. "Losing My Religion": Polka Your Eyes Out
12. Alanis Morissette "You Oughta Know": The Alternative Polka
15. Red Hot Chili Peppers "Under the Bridge": Bedrock Anthem
16. MC Hammer "U Can't Touch This": I Can't Watch This
18. Metallica "Enter Sandman": Polka Your Eyes Out
20. Hanson "MMMBop": Polka Power!
22. Beck "Loser": The Alternative Polka
25. Soundgarden "Black Hole Sun": The Alternative Polka
29. Vanilla Ice "Ice Ice Baby": Polka Your Eyes Out
33. Spice Girls "Wannabe": Polka Power!
34. Third Eye Blind "Semi-Charmed Life": Polka Power!
61. Sheryl Crow "All I Wanna Do": The Alternative Polka
65. Digital Underground "The Humpty Dance": Polka Your Eyes Out
72. Barenaked Ladies "One Week": Jerry Springer
73. Marcy Playground "Sex and Candy": Polka Power!
87. Billy Ray Cyrus "Achy Breaky Heart": Achy Breaky Song
98. EMF "Unbelievable": Polka Your Eyes Out
100. Gerardo "Rico Suave": Taco Grande
That's 21 of VH1's top 100 songs of the 1990's. There are a lot of other songs where you could have picked one of several from a given artist, and Al just picked a different one. For example, Vh1 picked the Beastie Boys' "Sabotage" at least partially based on its video. Weird Al went with "Intergalactic" instead.
Vh1's website lists another 50 songs that didn't make their cut. Weird Al gets 5 more of those:
Nine Inch Nails "Closer": The Alternative Polka
Coolio "Gangsta's Paradise": Amish Paradise
Divinyls "I Touch Myself": Polka Your Eyes Out
Chumbawamba "Tubthumping": Polka Power!
Semisonic "Closing Time": Polka Power!
I assume Weird Al would agree with me on the omission of Smashing Pumpkins. He covered "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" in his "Alternative Polka."
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