# 50 ONE-HIT WONDERS OF THE 80s-fixed **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** music\ **Created:** [January 19, 2021, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849 "2021-01-19T06:16:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![wolfman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/a8b319/32.png) [@wolfman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfman)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/1 "2021-01-19T06:16:01Z")
I was curious how many of these people know people know. [- YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dn7GsAO4JP4)[poll type=regular results=always chartType=bar] _Poll ([view on site](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/1))_ ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 7:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/2 "2021-01-19T07:00:15Z")
Yep, I listened to them all. I knew 21. Patrick Swayze I knew as an actor, but not really the song. At least one (maybe more) I only knew because of Weird Al’s polka medleys. Born in '75 fwiw. ETA: I reckon I’d do much better on a 90s list, much worse on a 10s list, and about the same on a 00s list. ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/3 "2021-01-19T07:13:31Z")
1. I suspect this was a European-oriented list, based on the groups I never heard of. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 7:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/4 "2021-01-19T07:37:47Z")
36 of them. Though a couple I hadn’t heard since the 80s. It’s interesting how some songs can be a big hit in one country and slip completely “underneath the radar” in others. [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/EVrVERNeCPE/hqdefault.jpg "Underworld - Underneath the Radar") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EVrVERNeCPE) ---
**Author:** ![Kamino\_Neko](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kamino_neko/32/34_2.png) [@Kamino\_Neko](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kamino_Neko)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 8:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/5 "2021-01-19T08:12:09Z")
24…some of them I haven’t thought of in ages, but remembered them when they came up, some I never knew the title and/or the band although I knew the song…but I knew 24 of the songs, in any case. But were Berlin really a one-hit-wonder? I remember them having a few big ones other than Take My Breath Away… ---
**Author:** ![kitap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b9e5f3/32.png) [@kitap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kitap)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 8:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/6 "2021-01-19T08:34:37Z")
1. I’ve never heard of some of these groups. But also I didn’t get cable until 1992 or so and if they never were on the radio station I listened to but were big on MTV I’d’ve missed them that way. Also, I know **Funkytown** mostly from the Pseudoecho cover. ---
**Author:** ![Pardel-Lux](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pardel-lux/32/20182_2.png) [@Pardel-Lux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pardel-Lux)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 8:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/7 "2021-01-19T08:37:32Z")
It must be true that you did not really live the 80s if you remember them, I only recognized 18 songs. Don’t know if that is good or bad ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 9:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/8 "2021-01-19T09:05:10Z")
45, that was my era and the radio was a constant companion for me throughout the 80’s so no real surprise. In fact, had you given me a list of song titles I’d have been able to sing and tell you the artist for 40 of them. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 9:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/9 "2021-01-19T09:13:06Z")
I thought I knew my '80s cheese, but I only recognized 18 of these songs. As an aside, I question the editor’s choice to identify Murray Head and the Romantics as “one-hit wonders”. ---
**Author:** ![Kimble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kimble/32/19185_2.png) [@Kimble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimble)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/10 "2021-01-19T09:21:32Z")
29 out of 50. I lived through the US hits, but by and large never went back and listened to the UK/Euro stuff. Either I’d know the title and artist in the second or so before it actually appeared or I’d’ve never heard of them – except for Stan Ridgway (who I’d heard of, but didn’t realize he was the Wall of Voodoo guy) and Visage (who also had a song titled “The Damned Don’t Cry” that I remember from MTV because it had a dirty-to-a-10-year-old word in the title). ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 9:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/11 "2021-01-19T09:46:36Z")
22 I think. There is only one song on there that I have listened to, by choice, in the last several years - [Mary’s Prayer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7hqgC3W9GUI) by Danny Wilson. The Scottish trio got their name from a 1952 Sinatra film, _Meet Danny Wilson_. Their album of that name is a great forgotten example of lush beautifully arranged 80s pop. ---
**Author:** ![Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fiendish_astronaut/32/3295_2.png) [@Fiendish\_Astronaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fiendish_Astronaut)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 9:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/12 "2021-01-19T09:59:30Z")
35 - I love this sort of stuff. The ones I didn’t know were by and large the US ones. ---
**Author:** ![kk\_fusion](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kk_fusion/32/15276_2.png) [@kk\_fusion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kk_fusion)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 10:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/13 "2021-01-19T10:19:19Z")
There were 13 that I didn’t immediately recognize from the clips. Some of them were quite short and non-representative though. For example, I’d certainly recognize the full version of [Dolce Vita](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXmABxvHTG4). ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 12:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/14 "2021-01-19T12:01:51Z")
I recognized 20 of them. I even remember the videos for them as most of them were on heavy rotation. Who doesn’t know _The Safety Dance_ or _Believe It or Not_? ---
**Author:** ![WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wookinpanubv.2/32/3260_2.png) [@WOOKINPANUBv.2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WOOKINPANUBv.2)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 1:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/15 "2021-01-19T13:20:41Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > 45, that was my era and the radio was a constant companion for me throughout the 80’s so no real surprise. In fact, had you given me a list of song titles I’d have been able to sing and tell you the artist for 40 of them. Same here on all points. What a nice stroll down memory lane. Even the “lame” songs made me smile. ---
**Author:** ![solost](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/solost/32/11776_2.png) [@solost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/solost)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/16 "2021-01-19T13:38:02Z")
Thought I’d do better, but only came up with 20 for sure, maybe 22-- a couple names sounded familiar, but I wasn’t sure. As others have mentioned the list was a bit too Eurocentric for my knowledge. And I just scanned through the list- if I had listened to them all I might have recognized a few more. ---
**Author:** ![hogarth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hogarth/32/1773_2.png) [@hogarth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hogarth)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/17 "2021-01-19T13:42:20Z")
I recognized most of the songs from the US charts and don’t recognize most of those from the UK/Germany charts. ---
**Author:** ![bryanmaguire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/d07c76/32.png) [@bryanmaguire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bryanmaguire)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/18 "2021-01-19T13:52:23Z")
47 for me. Very euro-biased for sure. One I didn’t get was Frank Stallone that looked like it was from a John Travolta film. Is that Sly’s brother? ---
**Author:** ![Rebo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rebo/32/13005_2.png) [@Rebo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rebo)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/19 "2021-01-19T13:56:42Z")
18, but not really my era. I was a teenager in the 70’s. This one song I didn’t know, but two dudes were singing and the band same was Soulsister? Two white guys named Soulsister was kind of odd. ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2021, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849/20 "2021-01-19T14:07:15Z")
> [@bryanmaguire](#): > > One I didn’t get was Frank Stallone that looked like it was from a John Travolta film. Is that Sly’s brother? Yes, he is Sly’s younger brother. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/50-one-hit-wonders-of-the-80s-fixed/930849.md?page=2)