Blender just published its list of the 50 worst groups of all time.
As expected, no criteria are actually listed for who got on the list.
I think the list is intended just to amuse/annoy. And surely it does.
Some choices are inspired, others idiotic. I am too lazy to reproduce
the entire list here, so I'll just select a few of the more idiotic
choices:

49) Toad the Wet Sprocket.
    Yeah, they were derivative. But the songs are pretty good, especially
    on the 3rd and subsequent albums. 

43) Mike & the Mechanics
    More disappointing than anything else. Mike Rutherford once made a pretty
    good album in the tradition of earlier Genesis: Smallcreep's Day. The M&tM
    material, on the other hand, is clearly aimed at the mainstream and most
    leaves little lasting impression. But worst band? Naw. And I think 
    "The Living Years" IS a good song. 

33) Japan
    Huh? Yeah, their first two albums were pretty lousy, but they got better REAL
    fast after that. In some ways responsible for much of the new romantic movement,
    a movement that probably incites more disdain than most. But heck, if you're
    gonna piss on that movement at least choose a less talented purveyor (did I hear
    Duran Duran or Spandex [sic] Ballet?) Perhaps the most surprising inclusion on the
    list, since critics have generally been very kind to their mid period material.

21) The Alan Parsons Project
    Critics hate them because of the basic bloodless progressive nerdiness. But at times
    it was pretty inspired bloodless progressive nerdiness. Tales of Mystery and Imagination
    (especially) and I Robot were pretty good progressive pop albums, and the next 3-4 albums
    also had their moments.

19) Dan Fogelberg
    He may we a musical wimp, but his first four albums (through Netherlands) were pretty
    solid singer-songwriter stuff, Phoenix was better than that and The Innocent Age
    is something of a forgotten classic of the genre. Then he seemed to lose it. 

6) Kansas
   Another one critics love to hate. But they were pretty good through Point of Know Return
   (their fourth album), and they showed a lot more humanity and attention to songcraft
   than other progressive groups that deservedly gave the genre a bad name.


The number 1 worst group ever, according to the article, is Insane Clown Posse. Well, I can
hardly argue with that :-)

dap