# Bands with the most material, known only for one song **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 28, 2017, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324 "2017-07-28T14:27:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![x-ray\_vision](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/x-ray_vision/32/351_2.png) [@x-ray\_vision](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/x-ray_vision)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/21 "2017-07-28T16:13:51Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > I would think Rush would have to be the poster child for this. After 40 years and twenty-something albums, ask most people to name a song by Rush and I’ll bet the vast majority would say “Tom Sawyer” That may be their most popular song, but I wouldn’t say that they are “known only for” that song. They are known for so much more. I think one hit wonder bands with lots of other material fit in better with what you’re asking for. > [@](#): > > (maybe with “The Trees” coming in a distant second). Not in my neck of the woods. They are more well known for a lot of songs before that one - “Limelight”, “Red Barchetta”, “Fly by Night”, “Closer to the Heart”, etc. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/22 "2017-07-28T16:21:31Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > Not in my neck of the woods. They are more well known for a lot of songs before that one - “Limelight”, “Red Barchetta”, “Fly by Night”, “Closer to the Heart”, etc. ^Ditto here. I know all those (plus “Working Man”, “YYZ,” “Spirit of Radio”) , but didn’t hear “The Trees” until a few years ago, playing one of those Rock Band or Guitar Hero games. I hate to say this, but maybe I just didn’t pay much attention to Rush lyrics before, but the lyrics just cracked me up. Maybe if I had heard it in my teenaged years, they wouldn’t seem so corny and hamfisted. I didn’t realize that it was a much beloved Rush song until later, when I was talking about this song to some Rush fans. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/23 "2017-07-28T16:25:49Z")
> [@x-ray\_vision](#): > > That may be their most popular song, but I wouldn’t say that they are “known only for” that song. They are known for so much more. I think one hit wonder bands with lots of other material fit in better with what you’re asking for. > Not in my neck of the woods. They are more well known for a lot of songs before that one - “Limelight”, “Red Barchetta”, “Fly by Night”, “Closer to the Heart”, etc. Spirit of Radio. ---
**Author:** ![Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@Ellis\_Aponte\_Jr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellis_Aponte_Jr)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/24 "2017-07-28T16:38:30Z")
22 studio albums for Motörhead, but I only ever hear “Ace of Spades” - don’t know if it’s different in the UK where they had actual chart hits (That’s crazy about Saga - I had assumed they split up decades ago!) ---
**Author:** ![Clothahump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/51bf81/32.png) [@Clothahump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Clothahump)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/25 "2017-07-28T16:42:16Z")
Al Stewart. A huge amount of fascinating and beautiful work, but he’s known primarily for Year Of The Cat and Time Passages. ---
**Author:** ![Patx2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/73ab20/32.png) [@Patx2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patx2)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/26 "2017-07-28T16:53:40Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > I was going to say “Saturday in the Park” myself. Oddly, going by Billboard, do you know what their biggest single was? “Look Away” from 1988. I know that song, having just hit my teenaged tears at the time, but I had no idea until just now looking them up that it was by them. > > ETA: sorry, its one of three number one hits. The others being “Hard to Say I’m Sorr,” and “If You Leave Me Now,” which I’m > Having difficulty conjuring up in my mind. Saturday in the Park Color My World Beginnings Wishing You Were Here Hard to Say I’m Sorry If You Leave Me Now Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is You’re the Inspiration I was a huge fan! I still love them! ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/27 "2017-07-28T17:02:09Z")
KISS maybe? “Rock and Roll All Night” is almost their only song on the radio…maybe once in a blue moon you might hear “Beth”… ---
**Author:** ![blindboyard](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blindboyard/32/2833_2.png) [@blindboyard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blindboyard)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/28 "2017-07-28T17:05:00Z")
Chumbawamba, known for Tubthumping, released sixteen albums. They Might Be Giants, known in America for Istanbul (Not Constantinople) and in the rest of the world for Birdhouse In Your Soul, have nineteen albums. ---
**Author:** ![casdave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@casdave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/casdave)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/29 "2017-07-28T17:09:49Z")
Rennaisance - 13 Studio albums plus live albums and various collections, but you will only know them from Northern Lights There will probably be some unexpected muso around here who know this other one from them [![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/upIlhve5r-g/hqdefault.jpg "Renaissance - Carpet Of The Sun") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upIlhve5r-g) Their other stuff is well worth a listen- Annie Haslam has a great voice How about Steely Dan? They had quite a few singles, but I’ll bet most folk know them from only 2 tracks, ‘Reelin’ in the years’, and ‘Ricki don’t lose that number’ [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zv-tjDsdduc) [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKvSuJ1I1nA) ---
**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:** [July 28, 2017, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/30 "2017-07-28T17:15:38Z")
> [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](#): > > Does anybody _really_ know what one it is? Does anybody _care?_ If so, I can’t imagine why; we’ve all got time enough to die… I remember hearing that one back in the old days, good times I remember, fun days, filled with simple pleasure. > [@Patx2](#): > > Saturday in the Park > Color My World > Beginnings > Wishing You Were Here > Hard to Say I’m Sorry > If You Leave Me Now > Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is > You’re the Inspiration > > I was a huge fan! I still love them! I’m addicted to them, baby. They’re a hard habit to break. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/31 "2017-07-28T17:24:18Z")
> [@casdave](#): > > How about Steely Dan? They had quite a few singles, but I’ll bet most folk know them from only 2 tracks, ‘Reelin’ in the years’, and ‘Ricki don’t lose that number’ Steely Dan has a whole bunch of songs that get regularly played on Classic Rock stations - Peg Deacon Blues Black Friday Do It Again Kid Charlemagne … ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/32 "2017-07-28T17:24:39Z")
**Deep Purple** - 20 albums (according to Wikipedia) but do any non-metalheads know anything besides _Smoke on the Water_? ---
**Author:** ![Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/marvin_the_martian/32/2898_2.png) [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marvin_the_Martian)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/33 "2017-07-28T17:28:49Z")
> [@Patx2](#): > > Saturday in the Park > Color My World > Beginnings > Wishing You Were Here > Hard to Say I’m Sorry > If You Leave Me Now > Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is > You’re the Inspiration > > I was a huge fan! I still love them! Meh. They started to slide from rock to pop after Chicago V, and completely jumped the shark when Terry Kath died. ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/34 "2017-07-28T17:29:50Z")
How about Los Lobos, with _La Bamba_? ---
**Author:** ![Sparky812](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eb9ed0/32.png) [@Sparky812](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sparky812)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/35 "2017-07-28T17:37:50Z")
> [@Max\_Torque](#): > > Probably not at the top of the list, but I bet most people would only be able to name “Aqualung” if you asked them to name a Jethro Tull song (of people even able to name one song). I’d say “Cross-eyed Mary” would be mentioned just as much but after that… My nomination would be The Scorpions 53 years, 18 albums… some may know “Wind of Change” but **everyone** knows “Rock You Like a Hurricane”… … put me down as another “The Trees”!? One of my favorites but I don’t even think it would even be a close 10th ---
**Author:** ![NDP](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ndp/32/55_2.png) [@NDP](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NDP)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/36 "2017-07-28T17:38:18Z")
> [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](#): > > **Deep Purple** - 20 albums (according to Wikipedia) but do any non-metalheads know anything besides _Smoke on the Water_? How about _Hush_, _Highway Star_, _Woman from Tokyo_, and their cover of _Kentucky Woman_? ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 5:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/37 "2017-07-28T17:59:16Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > ^Ditto here. I know all those (plus “Working Man”, “YYZ,” “Spirit of Radio”) , but didn’t hear “The Trees” until a few years ago, playing one of those Rock Band or Guitar Hero games. I hate to say this, but maybe I just didn’t pay much attention to Rush lyrics before, but the lyrics just cracked me up. Maybe if I had heard it in my teenaged years, they wouldn’t seem so corny and hamfisted. I didn’t realize that it was a much beloved Rush song until later, when I was talking about this song to some Rush fans. Yeah, it’s a parable, but it’s a little heavy-handed. A while back I heard them playing it on Sirius XM, and after the song the DJ comes on to announce it and he calls it “their statement on the environment.” And I was practically screaming at the radio “No, you idiot! That’s _not even close_ to what it’s about!” :smack: ---
**Author:** ![BlankSlate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blankslate/32/80_2.png) [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/38 "2017-07-28T18:12:11Z")
> [@Patx2](#): > > Saturday in the Park > Color My World > Beginnings > Wishing You Were Here > Hard to Say I’m Sorry > If You Leave Me Now > Does Anybody Really Know What Time It Is > You’re the Inspiration > > I was a huge fan! I still love them! But you left out their best single, _Feeling Stronger Every Day._ ---
**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:** [July 28, 2017, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/39 "2017-07-28T18:16:41Z")
> [@Marvin\_the\_Martian](#): > > Meh. They started to slide from rock to pop after Chicago V, and completely jumped the shark when Terry Kath died. I’d say they jumped the shark when Diane Warren started writing their songs and Pete Cetera left the group. As always, YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![Wilson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/96bed5/32.png) [@Wilson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wilson)\ **Post date:** [July 28, 2017, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324/40 "2017-07-28T18:24:06Z")
Who knew Procul Harum were still around? And how many people can name a song by them besides _A Whiter Shade of Pale_? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bands-with-the-most-material-known-only-for-one-song/792324.md?page=3)