Buddy Holly, Carole King, and Smokey Robinson have written and recorded some of the most enduring, influential songs in all of popular music. According to VH-1, however, their timeless contributions don't stack up to those of Journey, Mariah Carey, and Coldplay.

These are just a few of the oversights and absurdities contained in The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time, a four-night series beginning on VH-1 on Monday, September 6.

Granted, "of all time" really means "of the rock 'n' roll era," but even still, the list—a revision of the one presented by the channel in 1998—excludes too many seminal artists in favor of too many negligible-but-popular ones (in pandering to VH-1's demographic, perhaps) to warrant any serious consideration. Really, who thought so highly of Beyoncé as to rank her at #52, ahead of the likes of Van Morrison, Curtis Mayfield, and Janis Joplin? Did “Bootylicious” really break more creative ground than “Superfly”?

And while perceptions of artists certainly fluctuate over time, the most conspicuous changes here (in comparison to their rank in 1998) come across as revisionist gestures for the sake of ratings rather than genuine reevaluations of talent. Michael Jackson, for instance, climbs from #40 all the way up to #3, the move no doubt inspired by his untimely death last year. He was ranked far too low to begin with, arguably, but suggesting he's more significant an artist than lesser-ranked icons like the Rolling Stones or Elvis Presley seems a bit of a stretch.

Making the biggest (and most outrageous) leap, however, is Madonna, who surges from #86 to #16, eleven spots higher than Aretha Franklin. Who with any appreciative knowledge of music history could actually make a plausible case in defense of that call? Madonna may have sold more records, but is she a more-gifted singer than Franklin? Who's zoomin' who here?

Sure, such lists are subjective and intended to stir debate and discussion, but a vast shortage of informed perspective prevents this year's model of The 100 Greatest Artists of All Time from yielding a credible assessment.