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ALTHOUGH the programme always offers enjoyable blasts from the past, true music fans can’t help but get frustrated with the choice of songs on VH1’s (channel 323) Final Countdown programme.

The show is broadcast on Saturdays at 4pm, with a repeat on Thursdays at 7pm, and is a themed top 50. But instead of being based on statistical evidence (such as airplay or sales), the positions instead seem to be some sort of thumb-suck from those working at the channel. Take this past Saturday, where the theme was the top 50 voices of all time. Many eyebrows must have been raised when Frank Sinatra only crept into the mid-30s on the countdown. It seemed all the more strange when Michael Stipe from REM and Eddie Vedder from Pearl Jam came in immediately above the legendary crooner. But the list got more and more bizarre, particularly when Oceana, a brand new German singer who has only released one minor hit called Cry Cry, somehow landed at number 12, above iconic singers like James Brown and Sam Cooke.

Joe Cocker, whose voice is instantly recognisable, but not one you would necessarily rate as “great” also made the top 20.

The list was topped by Aretha Franklin. While she is a highly successful singer, one has to wonder how high she would have ended up had a public vote decided the chart positions.

This weekend the theme will be one-hit wonders. This theme is always controversial because it depends which country’s charts you are looking at to decide how many hits a group had.

Oh well. It will be entertaining, even if it’s not accurate.