# Is this the most obscure #1 Billboard hit song? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 15, 2015, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953 "2015-08-15T23:34:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 3:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/41 "2015-08-16T03:52:19Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > “Little Willy.” By Sweet. #3 in 1972. B Side = Blockbuster. Loved that song. Little Willy Willy won’t - go home! Silly song, but Desolation Boulevard by The Sweet is a fucking great album. Fox on the Run. Ballroom Blitz. No You Don’t (covered by Pat Benatar). The Six-teens. AC/DC (covered by Joan Jett with a great video with Carmen Electra). The Sweet rocked. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/42 "2015-08-16T04:01:59Z")
I would say “Ringo” by Lorne (“Bonanza”) Greene is more obscure then “Billy…” #1, 1964, I have no idea how it goes. ---
**Author:** ![BeeGee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5a626/32.png) [@BeeGee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeeGee)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 4:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/43 "2015-08-16T04:09:12Z")
Trip back with me to 1975 when Silver Convention had an international #1 hit with “Fly, Robin, Fly.” Fly robin fly up up to the sky. That’s the lyrics. All of them. ---
**Author:** ![drad\_dog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@drad\_dog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drad_dog)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 4:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/44 "2015-08-16T04:11:14Z")
> [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](#): > > I would say “Ringo” by Lorne (“Bonanza”) Greene is more obscure then “Billy…” #1, 1964, I have no idea how it goes. You wouldn’t. It’s spoke sung, with TV backing musicians playing upbeat vaguely western music and each verse ends with a deeply intoned “Ringo…” kind of like in “Big Bad John” by Jimmy Dean. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/45 "2015-08-16T04:14:02Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > You wouldn’t. It’s spoke sung, with TV backing musicians playing **upbeat vaguely western music** and each verse ends with a deeply intoned “Ringo…” kind of like in “Big Bad John” by Jimmy Dean. _There’s_ a category I’d like to tally. 😃 Do you think Mr. Greene charted again? ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 4:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/46 "2015-08-16T04:19:38Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > B Side = Blockbuster. > > Loved that song. Little Willy Willy won’t - go home! > > Silly song, but Desolation Boulevard by The Sweet is a fucking great album. Fox on the Run. Ballroom Blitz. No You Don’t (covered by Pat Benatar). The Six-teens. AC/DC (covered by Joan Jett with a great video with Carmen Electra). > > The Sweet rocked. Ev…ry…bo…dy…wants…a…piece of the. ACTION!ACTION!ACTION!ACTION!ACTION!ACTION!ACTION! ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/47 "2015-08-16T06:29:20Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > It’s not uncommon for even the biggest hit songs to sometimes fade away into obscurity – for example, when was the last time Olivia Newton-John’s “Physical” got played on the radio? I heard it just last week here in Little Rock though I can’t remember the last time I’d heard it before that. I can’t remember the last time I heard Elvis on the radio. It’s been at least ten years I think. I guess it just depends on what station you listen to. ---
**Author:** ![Odesio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/odesio/32/20003_2.png) [@Odesio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odesio)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/48 "2015-08-16T06:35:57Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > Quickly perusing the list of Billboard Hot 100 #1’s from 1978 onward, I came across [“Shake You Down” by Gregory Abbott](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shake_You_Down), a rare example of me never having heard of the song OR the artist before. Sorry for the double reply. I remember the song but I don’t think I’ve heard it since the late 80s. Had no idea who sang it though. ---
**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:** [August 16, 2015, 11:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/49 "2015-08-16T11:11:47Z")
> [@WordMan](#): > > Dude, go back and find **Smapti’s** pop song ranking thread for 1974. That song isn’t obscure; it is simply awful. And 1974 owns awful. I was _born_ in 1974 :mad:. ---
**Author:** ![kiz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/7feea3/32.png) [@kiz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kiz)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/50 "2015-08-16T11:17:42Z")
What, no love for Neil Sedaka’s “Laughter In The Rain”? Or…anything by Barry Manilow? :boggle: Rock The Boat, Fly Robin Fly, and The Hustle were my favorites from that era, btw. Oh, and I loved “The Night Chicago Died”. I think I still have the 45. I didn’t like/understand the album-oriented groups back then. Most guys I knew at that time were crazy for Led Zeppelin because they WERE album-oriented. My feeling was, “If I can’t dance/sing to it, then what’s the use?” ---
**Author:** ![GrumpyBunny](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bc8723/32.png) [@GrumpyBunny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrumpyBunny)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/51 "2015-08-16T12:47:51Z")
> [@nearwildheaven](#): > > The year before, Starland Vocal Band (how’s that for the worst band name ever?) took “Afternoon Delight” to #1, and that became a variety show that lasted several episodes, and had David Letterman on a few times. :o That song was really amazingly awful. Much of the 70s was amazingly awful. I now know why my mom usually had on either classical, jazz, or NPR. ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 1:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/52 "2015-08-16T13:33:21Z")
> [@Les\_Espaces\_Du\_Sommeil](#): > > I was _born_ in 1974 :mad:. Any idea what was playing on the radio at the time? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/53 "2015-08-16T14:07:25Z")
> [@drad\_dog](#): > > Thats not even the half of it. Billy dont be a hero was a Paper Lace original. They got covered by Bo Donaldson for the American hit, and then released the night Chicago died on us all all in the same summer. [snip] I didn’t know that. Thanks for the info. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Leo\_Krupe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ebca7d/32.png) [@Leo\_Krupe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leo_Krupe)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/54 "2015-08-16T14:09:35Z")
> [@BeeGee](#): > > Trip back with me to 1975 when Silver Convention had an international #1 hit with “Fly, Robin, Fly.” Fly robin fly up up to the sky. That’s the lyrics. All of them. Not a 70s album, but I think it was released in the early 80s…Neil Young released “Reactor” with the song “T-bone”. The entire set of lyrics is “Ain’t got no T-bone…got mashed potatoes.” But in my opinion, it’s a pretty good guitar jam. ---
**Author:** ![jrbor76](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9e8a1a/32.png) [@jrbor76](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jrbor76)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/55 "2015-08-16T14:15:48Z")
I keep picturing all of you talking to yourselves as you’re posting, like you’re ID’ing the songs you’ve named on the radio in your best Steven Wright voices. Dammit, I really want to watch Reservoir Dogs now. ---
**Author:** ![Bricker](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/977dab/32.png) [@Bricker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bricker)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/56 "2015-08-16T14:37:00Z")
> [@Leo\_Krupe](#): > > I always couple the OP’s song with Paper Lace’s “The Night Chicago Died,” although I won’t say that went to #1, but I heard them on the radio about the same time frame. It was a good time in my life, although the music pretty much sucked. But good memories going to sleep listening to Hues Corporation’s “Rock the Boat.” 🙂 “The Night Chicago Died,” did go to #1. So did Rock the Boat! ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/57 "2015-08-16T14:43:53Z")
Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polkadot Bikini, by Brian Hyland. #1 in 1960. ---
**Author:** ![burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/burpo_the_wonder_mutt/32/365_2.png) [@burpo\_the\_wonder\_mutt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/burpo_the_wonder_mutt)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/58 "2015-08-16T14:58:06Z")
> [@Chefguy](#): > > Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polkadot Bikini, by Brian Hyland. #1 in 1960. I dunno, **Chefguy** , it’s still pretty popular for beach commercials and the like. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/59 "2015-08-16T15:19:13Z")
I knew there was one time years ago that we discussed “Billy, Don’t Be a Hero”, but it took me a long time to find it: > **[Family Disagrees About "Billy, Don't be a Hero". Help!](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=341234)** > > You all know the premise of the song, right? Billy goes off to war after being warned by his “young and lovely fiancee” warns him not to be a hero. Not that it’s pertinent to my question, but he ends up being a hero and dying and she throws the... ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [August 16, 2015, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953/60 "2015-08-16T16:00:14Z")
And who can forget the alien woman on helium singing “Daydream Believer”? No, not a cover of the Monkees’ Sixties hit… _Cheer up, sleepy Jean, oh what can it mean To a daydream believer and a homecoming queen? Cheer up, sleepy Jean, oh what can it mean To a daydream believer and a homecoming queen?_ [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-this-the-most-obscure-1-billboard-hit-song/727953.md?page=4)