# Biggest one-hit wonder ever? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 7, 2003, 11:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643 "2003-12-07T23:21:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Moo\_the\_Magic\_Cow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ebca7d/32.png) [@Moo\_the\_Magic\_Cow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Moo_the_Magic_Cow)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/41 "2003-12-09T00:09:21Z")
In case someone hasn’t yet mentioned it, people of all ages love “Happy Together” by the Turtles to this day. Now someone’ll tell me they had 7 hits I’ve never heard of, or it never hit #1 but blahbitty blah blah blah. ---
**Author:** ![KidCharlemagne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ed8c4c/32.png) [@KidCharlemagne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KidCharlemagne)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/42 "2003-12-09T00:16:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by The Gaspode \* > **That would be Kajagoogoo** I knew that looked wrong. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/43 "2003-12-09T00:21:42Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Cabbage \* > \*\*For my own contribution, how about _Tainted Love_ by Soft Cell? I remember that being a _huge_ hit back around '82; I’m not sure if it went to #1 (though I expect it did), but I remember it stayed on the charts forever, and I still hear it fairly frequently. \*\* Nope, it never did hit #1, but it did set records for chart longevity. ---
**Author:** ![Cabbage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f07891/32.png) [@Cabbage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cabbage)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/44 "2003-12-09T00:25:44Z")
> [@](#): > > Now someone’ll tell me they had 7 hits I’ve never heard of,… Very well anticpated! 😉 - 1 (#8)…It Ain’t Me Babe-1965 - 2 (#29)…Let Me Be-1965 - 3 (#20)…You Baby-1966 - 4 (#1)…Happy Together-1967 - 5 (#3)…She’d Rather Be With Me-1967 - 6 (#12)…You Know What I Mean-1967 - 7 (#14)…She’s My Girl-1967 - 8 (#6)…Elenore-1968 - 9 (#6)…You Showed Me-1969 [http://members.aol.com/oldies1/turtles.htm](http://members.aol.com/oldies1/turtles.htm) Thanks, **Earl Snake-Hips Tucker** , I thought it had set some record, longevity wise. ---
**Author:** ![SmackFu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/53a042/32.png) [@SmackFu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SmackFu)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/45 "2003-12-09T00:59:54Z")
Can’t this actually be a factual question? As in, there is a way to quantify “biggest” for records, and also to measure whether someone is a “one hit wonder”. ---
**Author:** ![Lisa-go-Blind](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7c8e57/32.png) [@Lisa-go-Blind](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lisa-go-Blind)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 1:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/46 "2003-12-09T01:30:15Z")
I remember hearing about five years ago that Toni Basil (“Mickey”)was the only one-hit-wonder from the 1980s in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Don’t know how much that counts, though. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/47 "2003-12-09T01:42:57Z")
I almost had a heart attack thinking that Toni Basil was in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame until I googled and found out that it was just a temporary exhibit of one-hit wonders. This [Classic Rock](http://classicrock.about.com/library/weekly/aa110597.htm) page has some commentary about what constitutes a one-hit wonder, and the accompanying page has a long listing. ---
**Author:** ![asterion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/4da419/32.png) [@asterion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/asterion)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 3:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/48 "2003-12-09T03:34:01Z")
Is it just me, or do a lot of one-hit wonder songs get played at sporting events? ---
**Author:** ![doctordoowop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecc23a/32.png) [@doctordoowop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/doctordoowop)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/49 "2003-12-09T03:38:44Z")
As a former DJ,I recall just TWO groups or solo artists w/a #one hit & Never reaching the top 100 again. Both were in 1958-the Elegants w/ "Little Star’- the well known Mozart nursery rhyme, & the Silhouettes “Get a Job.” Sha Na Na took their name from the refrain in the latter. Lesley Gore was from 1963,not 50s. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/50 "2003-12-09T04:32:12Z")
How about **Macarthur Park** by Richard Harris? It has the double whammy effect of also being the worst song ever recorded, IMO. ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/51 "2003-12-09T04:50:21Z")
This has been tickling the back of my mind for the last 2 days and it finally came to the forefront. What about Soeur Sourire a.k.a. the Singing Nun with her single hit “Dominique”? While I wasn’t even born at its release, apparently it was popular around the world. The Master mentions her in [this column](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a4_078.html). ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 5:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/52 "2003-12-09T05:59:56Z")
Well, in the book “Hottest Hot 100 Hits,” Billboard lists the top-selling singles by “One Hit Wonders”: 1. Zager & Evans: “In the Year 2525” 2. Singing Nun: “Dominique” 3. USA For Africa: “We Are the World” 4. Jennifer Paige: “Crush” 5. Elegants: “Little Star” 6. Heights: “How Do You Talk to an Angel?” 7. Silhouettes: “Get a Job” ---
**Author:** ![hlanelee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/3bc359/32.png) [@hlanelee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hlanelee)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 9:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/53 "2003-12-09T09:02:52Z")
Did Don Mclean sing anything but **American Pie**? ---
**Author:** ![Dragon\_Phoenix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Dragon\_Phoenix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragon_Phoenix)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 9:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/54 "2003-12-09T09:06:47Z")
:eek: Albums full. I’m pretty sure **Vincent** was a hit as well in the USA. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 9:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/55 "2003-12-09T09:28:29Z")
What about Johann Pachelbel? Does he qualify as a one-hit wonder? ---
**Author:** ![Dragon\_Phoenix](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@Dragon\_Phoenix](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dragon_Phoenix)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 10:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/56 "2003-12-09T10:59:38Z")
Or Franz Gruber of Silent Night fame? ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 12:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/57 "2003-12-09T12:31:44Z")
Valley Girl - Frank Zappa ---
**Author:** ![Frank\_2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8c91f0/32.png) [@Frank\_2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank_2)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/58 "2003-12-09T14:43:34Z")
Frank Zappa? A one-hit wonder? Hardly. Don’t Eat the Yellow Snow reached #4 in 1974 Dancin’ Fool reached #8 in 1979 Valley Girl reached #12 in 1982 Not to mention the albums that reached the charts plus his classical works. ---
**Author:** ![Olentzero](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/90ced4/32.png) [@Olentzero](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olentzero)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/59 "2003-12-09T16:16:27Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Dragon Phoenix \* > \*\*:eek: > Albums full. I’m pretty sure **Vincent** was a hit as well in the USA. \*\* A little [something](http://www.maakies.com/archive/mb26b.gif) for the Don McLean crowd… ---
**Author:** ![ccwaterback](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/df705f/32.png) [@ccwaterback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ccwaterback)\ **Post date:** [December 9, 2003, 6:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643/60 "2003-12-09T18:13:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Frank #2 \* > \*\*Frank Zappa? A one-hit wonder? Hardly. \*\* I know Frank was great, I saw him several times and I have many of his albums. I didn’t realize he had other “mainstream” hits though. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/biggest-one-hit-wonder-ever/217643.md?page=4)