Late last week, the Gamer Advisory Panel (a subset of opt-in PlayStation Underground members) was asked to vote on the first of three surveys that would determine some of the songs that would presumably make it into the next-gen version of SingStar. It's entirely possible that this is just a formality, but given that this first poll, titled "Cranking Out the Hits: The Rock Music Survey" is obviously rock-focused, and SingStar Rocks!, the rock-themed version of the sing-along, is already out (the next PS2 offering, SingStar Pop doesn't really fit), it would seem these are the first steps toward building the SingStore for the PS3 version.

Back during the oh so eventful E3 2006 Press Conference, SCE Worldwide Studios head cheese Phil Harrison demoed a work-in-progress version of the PS3's SingStar offering, but admitted that they weren't really sure how the whole process was going to work when the series moved to next-gen. See, traditional PS2 SingStar releases have carried 30 songs apiece, but with the PS3 being always connected, and Sony eager to monetize an online-enabled game, there's ample opportunity to extend the game beyond the initial purchase.

But how to do it? Examples given were offering some pre-loaded songs onto the disc and a possible stipend for everyone who buys the game to download anywhere from a few to half of the songs from the SingStore (yes, that's really what they're calling it), but we wouldn't rule out a completely downloadable version of the game that gave you 30 or so free tracks to build your own version of the game -- especially since it could be seen as an online killer app for the PlayStation Store.

Of course, this is all purely wishful thinking on our part, but the sheer number of possible songs in the survey (which asked users to pick thirty songs from the absolutely massive list of rock offerings) would indicate that Sony isn't exactly messing around when it comes to locking down a decent variety of day one songs. Add to this the fact that there are still two more surveys, likely genre-specific like this one and hopefully just as hefty, and there's potential for a huge suite of titles to help thicken up what's offered when you plunk down your $60.

Keep in mind that none of these songs are in any way confirmed, but take a gander at the kind of songs that folks can vote for -- and bear in mind too that there was a space for up to three more songs that were on the list to be suggested. Can you pluck 30 songs from this list that you'd like to see?

30 Seconds to Mars - The Kill (Bury Me)
A Perfect Circle - Weak and Powerless
Aerosmith - Dude (Looks Like a Lady)
AFI - Miss Murder
Alanis Morissette - You Oughta Know
Alice in Chains - Would?
Audioslave - Cochise
Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Takin' Care of Business
Bachman-Turner Overdrive - You Ain't Seen Nothing Yet
Bad Company - Can't Get Enough of Your Love
Bad Company - Feel Like Makin' Love
Beastie Boys - Brass Monkey
Beck - Loser
Black Sabbath - Iron Man
blink 182 - I Miss You
Blue Oyster Cult - Don't Fear the Reaper
Bob Seger - Old Time Rock & Roll
Bon Jovi - It's My Life
Bon Jovi - Livin' on a Prayer
Boston - More Than a Feeling
Cheap Trick - I Want You to Want Me
Cheap Trick - Surrender
Chuck Berry - Johhny Be Good
Chuck Berry - Roll Over Beethoven
Cream - White Room
Creedence Clearwater Revival - Born on the Bayou
Creedence Clearwater Revival - Fortunate Son
Dave Matthews - Crash Into Me
David Bowie - Changes
David Bowie - Let's Dance
David Lee Roth - California Girls
Def Leppard - Pour Some Sugar on Me
Derek and the Dominos - Layla
Doors - Break on Through
Elvis - Jailhouse Rock
Faith No More - Epic
Foo Fighters - Best of You
Foo Fighters - Miracle
Foreigner - Hot Blooded
Free - All Right Now
Guns N' Roses - Paradise City
Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child O'Mine
Guns N' Roses - Welcome to the Jungle
Huey Lewis - Heart of Rock n' Roll
Huey Lewis - Power of Love
Iggy Pop - (Real Wild Child) Wild One
Iggy Pop - Candy
Incubus - Drive
INXS - Need You Tonight
Jane's Addiction - Been Caught Stealing
Journey - Don't Stop Believing
Journey - Wheel In the Sky
Judas Priest - You've Got Another Thing Comin'
Kansas - Carry On My Wayward Son
Kinks - Lola
Kiss - Rock-n-Roll All Night
Lenny Kravitz - Are You Gonna Go My Way?
Lenny Kravitz - Fly Away
Linkin Park - Numb
Lost Prophets - 4 AM Forever
Lou Reed - Sweet Jane
Lou Reed - Walk on the Wild Side
Michael Jackson - Beat It
Motley Crue - Dr. Feelgood
Motley Crue - Girls, Girls, Girls
Motorhead - Ace of Spades
Nickleback - Photograph
O.A.R. - Love and Memories
Ozzy Osbourne - Bark at the Moon
Ozzy Osbourne - Crazy Train
Pearl Jam - Alive
Pearl Jam - Better Man
Pearl Jam - Life Wasted
Poison - Every Rose Has Its Thorn
Queens of the Stone Age - Go With The Flow
Quiet Riot - Cum On Feel the Noize
Radiohead - Creep
Ramones - Blitzkrieg Bop
Rolling Stones - Beast of Burden
Rolling Stones - Satisfaction
Rolling Stones - Start Me Up
Santana feat. Rob Thomas - Smooth
Scorpions - Rock You Like a Hurricane
She Wants Revenge - Tear You Apart
Sheryl Crow - All I Wanna Do
Skid Row - 18 and Life
Skid Row - Monkey Business
Steppenwolf - Born to be Wild
Stevie Nicks - Edge of Seventeen
Stone Temple Pilots - Creep
Stone Temple Pilots - Vaseline
Styx - Come Sail Away
Sublime - Santeria
Taking Back Sunday - Makedamnsure
Talking Heads - Burning Down the House
Talking Heads - Psycho Killer
The Black Crowes - Hard to Handle
The Clash - London Calling
The Killers - When You Were Young
Tom Petty - Free Fallin'
Tom Petty - Refugee
U2 - Sunday Bloody Sunday
Whitesnake - Here I Go Again
Whitesnake - Still of the Night
Yeah Yeah Yeahs - Gold Lion
Yes - Owner of a Lonely Heart
ZZ Top - Gimme All Your Lovin'
ZZ Top - Legs

We'll be sure to update you on what the other surveys have to offer, but now the whole office is singing Bowie songs, and we might just have to get a little SingStar going here in a few minutes. Check back soon!