Top 5 songs performed by so-called “Supergroups.”
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Every once in a while the stars align in a way that, frankly, puzzles the bejesus out of me. I’m referring to the Supergroup. Sometimes they are created when artists are slumming it. Sometimes they’re made when old band-mates get sick of their dynamic frontman’s obsession with drugs, alcohol and underaged girls, and go their own way. And every so often, a disaster of such monumental and heart-breaking proportions occurs to warrant the brief formation of a supergroup to cobble a song so appalling as to make the actual disaster pale in comparison (think the musical holocaust that was “Voices That Care”). The supergroup category is a perilous box of chocolates, whose taster is sometimes rewarded with the creamy goodness of Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, or the anthrax ripple of U.S.A. for Africa. With that in mind, theFiver presents, in no particular order:

Top 5 songs performed by a Supergroup:

1. “Oh Yeah,” Chickenfoot Those looking for a quirky cover of Yello’s seminal ’80s hit “Oh Yeah” should look elsewhere. One of the newest/oldest groups in rock, Chickenfoot is made up of by former Van Halen members Sammy Hagar and Michael Anthony, drummer Chad Smith (of Red Hot Chii Peppers) and guitar super-virtuoso/Coldplay nemesis Joe Satriani. Complete with corny-as-hell hand signs and a dumpy-looking Hagar rocking out in a Smart Car, the video for “Oh Yeah” (available here) leaves an aural/video aftertaste akin to dunking your head in a pitcher of Cabo Wabo. Gentlemen: Get your mullets ready.

2. “Slither,” Velvet Revolver What happens when you throw G’N'R members Slash, Duff and Sorum; STP’s Scott Weiland and Wasted Youth’s Dave Kushner? Something surprisingly rocking. Things seem to be up in the air for the band since Weiland’s departure, but here’s hoping future supergroups look to Velvet Revolver as an example as to what works.

3. “C-lebrity,” Queen + Paul Rodgers Queen members Brian May and Roger Taylor are very keen on pointing out how irreplaceable Freddie Mercury is, which explains why they viewed their latest incarnation with Free and Bad Company singer Paul Rodgers as a new band. While touring successfully together, their album, “The Cosmos Rocks” and its single “C-lebrity,” was met with a cool reception in the United States. Whatever you think of the lineup, it’s clear that Rodgers keyed into the band’s, and Mercury’s, penchant for being larger-than life.

4. “Do They Know It’s Christmas?” Band Aid No supergroup list would be complete without a nod to the industry’s attempt to feed starving children in Ethiopia. Heavy hitters like Bono and Bowie were among the many, many big-name participants in the project. And as we know, since the 1984 release of “Do They Know It’s Christmas,” there have never been any problems in Africa since.

5. “Handle With Care” and “End of the Line,” The Traveling Wilburys Not so much a supergroup as they were a gift from God, music history was made when Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Tom Petty, George Harrison and Jeff Lynne released 1988’s “The Traveling Wilburys, Vol. 1.” The songs “Handle With Care” and “End of the Line” that more than stand up to the challenge of bookending an album by one of the most beloved supergroups of all time.

Top 5 songs by supergroups