# bands or musicians who used to be popular, then were mediocre or forgotten, then hit it big again **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 13, 2019, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478 "2019-04-13T01:35:39Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/21 "2019-04-13T08:10:30Z")
Tom Jones kind of disappeared for a while, and did a “hip irony” thing with Prince’s “Kiss.” ---
**Author:** ![Toxylon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/f05b48/32.png) [@Toxylon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Toxylon)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/22 "2019-04-13T09:39:25Z")
Sparks had a string of hit songs and albums in the mid-70’s, were critically lauded, and were featured everywhere, from the Top of the Pops to Teeny Magazine covers. By the 80’s they were pretty much forgotten, even though they kept on putting out (mostly mediocre) albums. Come 2002, and Sparks released an album that Record Collector later described as: > [@](#): > > it really does feel like one of the best albums ever made Ever since, Sparks has enjoyed hefty cult popularity, touring for packed out mid-sized venues all over Europe, and still putting out albums that do get noticed and do sell well. ---
**Author:** ![Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b2d939/32.png) [@Go\_Arachnid\_Laser\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Go_Arachnid_Laser_1)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 10:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/23 "2019-04-13T10:21:36Z")
Kylie Minogue. From one hit wonder with\* I Should Be So Lucky\* in 1987, back when she was a teen soap actress in Australia, to being pretty much remembered with slight embarrassment as an eighties thing, to her resurgence as an electropop diva in 2001 with hits like _Can’t Get You Out Of My Head_ or _Slow_. ---
**Author:** ![RTFirefly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/c77e96/32.png) [@RTFirefly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RTFirefly)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/24 "2019-04-13T10:44:59Z")
> [@ZonexandScout](#): > > OK, I have just been properly chastised by my wife. She reminded me that “The Voice” from _ **Long Distance Voyage** _r was very big in 1981. My defense is that it was generally considered to be a one-off from a band past its prime. I still maintain that the Moodies weren’t “back” until 1986. Huh. As a big Moodies fan myself, I’d regard “Your Wildest Dreams” pretty much the same way as you (and I) regard “The Voice.” They were really mostly a legacy band by the late 1980s. I caught them at Wolf Trap in 1987, IIRC, and sure, they played a good deal of their more recent stuff before intermission, but the real draw was the songs from their classic period that ended after _Seventh Sojourn_. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 12:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/25 "2019-04-13T12:18:42Z")
> [@Frank\_Burly](#): > > The Grateful Dead had a resurgence in popularity near the end of their run with Touch of Grey. It was no where near the end of their run. Jerry died ten years after that song became a hit. ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/26 "2019-04-13T13:06:49Z")
Aerosmith has been mentioned already. Alice Cooper had a rough go of it in the early 80’s with a couple of albums that only the diehards love. New wave kind of fucked him up, he sounded like he was struggling to fit in. (Plus fighting an alcohol problem.) When Metal got big, Alice found his new home. ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_Burly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frank_burly/32/24_2.png) [@Frank\_Burly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_Burly)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/27 "2019-04-13T13:24:11Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > It was no where near the end of their run. Jerry died ten years after that song became a hit. In the Dark was the 12th out of 13 studio albums, not including the album with Bob Dylan. Jerry died in '95, eight years later. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/28 "2019-04-13T13:33:09Z")
Bob Dylan was popular in the early 1960’s folk scene, crashed his motorcycle and went into seclusion in 1966, then hit the comeback trail as a totally different type of musician in the 1970’s. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/29 "2019-04-13T13:35:59Z")
> [@Frank\_Burly](#): > > In the Dark was the 12th out of 13 studio albums, not including the album with Bob Dylan. Jerry died in '95, eight years later. So not nearly at the end of their run. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/30 "2019-04-13T13:45:27Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > The Beach Boy were considered has-beens by 1969. Brian Wilson’s projects were delayed and he withdrew from the band. I went to see them about that time and they couldn’t even draw 150 people to a free outdoor concert. They switched record labels in 1970 and then rebranded themselves as a nostalgia act and had a rebirth. Granted, but as far as I can tell they only had one Top Ten hit in the 1970s: their cover of **Rock and Roll Music** , which made it to #5. Near as I can tell, that was the only time they cracked the Top Ten from the start of ‘67 to the end of ‘87. But then, in ‘88, they hit #1 with **Kokomo**. ---
**Author:** ![Royal\_Nonesutch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecb155/32.png) [@Royal\_Nonesutch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Royal_Nonesutch)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/31 "2019-04-13T13:45:46Z")
> [@Frank\_Burly](#): > > In the Dark was the 12th out of 13 studio albums, not including the album with Bob Dylan. Jerry died in '95, eight years later. Since this is the Straight Dope, and it is apparently de rigueur here to out-nitpick each other on trivial minutiae, “Touch Of Grey” was written by Garcia/Hunter back in the early 1980’s and first played live by the Grateful Dead in 1983, even though the hit album “In The Dark” that the song became the standout single on wasn’t released until Summer 1987. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/32 "2019-04-13T13:55:25Z")
Not a band, but Andrew Lloyd Webber’s first show Joseph went nowhere, he and Tim Rice hit it big with Jesus Christ Superstar, he and Alan Ayckborn’s show Jeeves totally flopped, he and Rice did well with Evita. THEN he did CATS and became a theatre composer superstar. ---
**Author:** ![E-DUB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/e-dub/32/403_2.png) [@E-DUB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/E-DUB)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 1:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/33 "2019-04-13T13:58:32Z")
Think that Neil Sedaka deserves a mention here. ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_Burly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frank_burly/32/24_2.png) [@Frank\_Burly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_Burly)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/34 "2019-04-13T14:14:45Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > So not nearly at the end of their run. If you think that one more studio album and touring with a declining Jerry Garcia who could barely sing by the 90’s didn’t mean they were near the end, there’s nothing I can say to you. ¯\_(ツ)\_/¯ ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/35 "2019-04-13T14:57:58Z")
> [@Toxylon](#): > > Sparks had a string of hit songs and albums in the mid-70’s, were critically lauded, and were featured everywhere, from the Top of the Pops to Teeny Magazine covers. By the 80’s they were pretty much forgotten, even though they kept on putting out (mostly mediocre) albums. > > Come 2002, and Sparks released an album that Record Collector later described as: Ever since, Sparks has enjoyed hefty cult popularity, touring for packed out mid-sized venues all over Europe, and still putting out albums that do get noticed and do sell well. Their resurgence came earlier than that. The delightfully-titled _Gratuitous Sax & Senseless Violins_ came out in 1994, and got quite a bit of airplay as I remember. ---
**Author:** ![Treppenwitz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treppenwitz/32/3445_2.png) [@Treppenwitz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Treppenwitz)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/36 "2019-04-13T16:17:18Z")
I’m amazed that the only mention of David Bowie here is as the man who revived Mott The Hoople’s career. What about the man himself? Nothing between Space Oddity in 1969 and Starman in 1072 (not counting Oh! You Pretty Things as recorded by Peter Noone, which was a hit in the UK at least). Roxy Music fit the pattern of successful, broke up, reformed, successful again. But the one that I find most interesting is Ian Dury, because it was all on merit. After modest success in Kilburn and the Highroads, suddenly a star with Sex and Drugs and Rock and Roll et al, huge for a couple of years (77-79), lost his way completely. And then with Mr Love Pants (1998) an unexpected return to form and modest success cut short by illness and his untimely death. That’s Rock n Roll for you. j ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 4:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/37 "2019-04-13T16:54:21Z")
> [@Covfefe](#): > > Cher. Maybe the biggest resurgence ever from an American pop star? Cher’s carrer has been quite resilient. Sometimes she took a detour into television or movies. But her music has always remained popular. She had a minor hit slump in the early eighties and then blew away the charts with If I Could Turn Back Time in 1989. Walking in Memphis in 95, and then Believe hit number 1 in 1998. > **[Cher singles discography](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cher_singles_discography)** > > American entertainer Cher has released 80 official singles, 24 promotional singles and appeared in 22 other songs. On the Billboard Hot 100, she has achieved: 4 number 1 singles, 12 Top 10 singles, 22 Top 40 singles and a total of 34 charted singles as a solo artist. Combined with the entries she had as part of Sonny & Cher: 5 number 1 singles, 17 Top 10 singles, 32 Top 40 hits and a total of 52 singles which charted on the Billboard Hot 100. > Cher is the fifth-ranked female artist with the mo... ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/38 "2019-04-13T17:46:49Z")
Do the Eagles count since they broke up for a while? ---
**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:** [April 13, 2019, 7:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/39 "2019-04-13T19:05:53Z")
> [@UltraVires](#): > > Do the Eagles count since they broke up for a while? They didn’t break up. They just took a 14 year vacation. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/les_espaces_du_sommeil/32/308_2.png) [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Les_Espaces_Du_Sommeil)\ **Post date:** [April 13, 2019, 8:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478/40 "2019-04-13T20:33:17Z")
> [@Treppenwitz](#): > > I’m amazed that the only mention of David Bowie here is as the man who revived Mott The Hoople’s career. What about the man himself? Nothing between Space Oddity in 1969 and Starman in 1072 (not counting Oh! You Pretty Things as recorded by Peter Noone, which was a hit in the UK at least). Three years isn’t that long, many artists have had such a hiatus. You could make a case for his late, 10-year silence (2003-2013), though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-or-musicians-who-used-to-be-popular-then-were-mediocre-or-forgotten-then-hit-it-big-again/832478.md?page=3)