With The List, American Songwriter details the best, the brightest, the most enduring, the worst, the most hated, and the most surprising songs ever–among many other qualifiers. If you’re looking for our definitive rankings on music, you’ll find them below.
American Pop musician Lionel Richie plays piano as he rehearses on stage at NBC Studios in Rockefeller Center for an appearance on the Saturday Night Live television show, New York, New York, December 10, 1982. (Photo by Gary Gershoff/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS – MARCH 20: Uncle Tupelo performs at First Avenue nightclub in Minneapolis, Minnesota on March 20, 1994. (Photo by Jim Steinfeldt/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Elvis Presley and Scotty Moore (left) performing on The Milton Berle Show at NBC's Hollywood studio, Los Angeles, California, 5th June 1956. Presley performed 'I Want You, I Need You, I Love You' and 'Hound Dog'. Press reaction to his performance was largely negative with his gyrating movements during 'Hound Dog' proving particularly controversial. (Photo by Bettmann Archive/Getty Images)
Singer-songwriter Joni Mitchell provides backing vocals during the recording of Carole King's album 'Tapestry' at A&M Records Recording Studio in January 1971 in Los Angeles, California, United States. (Photo by Jim McCrary/Redferns)
Spanish music group Las Ketchup at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2002, at the Palazzo Sant Jordi. (Photo by Anthony Harvey – PA Images/PA Images via Getty Images)
NEW YORK – 1965: L-R: David Ruffin, Melvin Franklin, Paul Williams, Otis Williams and Eddie Kendricks of the R&B group "The Temptations" pose for a portrait in 1965 in New York City, New York. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
Singer, actress choreographer and dancer Toni Basil performs on an episode of American Bandstand that aired on November 13, 1982 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Ron Wolfson/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)
