no cite sorry, but I think Last Kiss was their first and only #1 single.
Jethro Tull is widely known for Aqualung but it was not their best work.
Strangely enough their #1 Charting Album, Thick as a Brick, isn’t as reknowned.
BTW, I would have thought Alison is the song most people would associate with Elvis Costello; and it’s a decent enough song.
It peaked at #2 on Modern Rock Tracks, but it’s their highest-charting single. Jeremy got as high as #5.
Mrs. Robinson by Simon & Garfunkel
I think Steely Dan definitely has a place within this thread.
As far as I know, they are most famously known for three songs: Do It Again, Reelin’ In The Years, and {i]Rikki Don’t Lose That Number*. All three were from early in their career, when they were still a ‘band’, per se. From parts of Pretzel Logic (on which Rikki appears)to throughout the rest of their career, however, they adopted a more profound, sophisticated sound that, were it not for Donald fagen’s distinctive vocals, I find very distinguishable from what I know them for: the entire Katy Lied album, Aja, Hey Nineteen, and many others.
I think you’re mistaken here. Bonnie Raitt is not R&B.
Emerson, Lake and Palmer’s best-known song would probably be “Karnevil Number 9” (“Welcome my friends to the show that never ends…”). Also add “Lucky Man” and “From the Beginning”. They’re all good songs, but the band members in ELP demonstrate their musical talents better in their lesser-known songs.
A lot of people probably only know Genesis from “Turn It On” and forward. The earlier days of Genesis were much better, IMO.
A quick jaunt to allmusic.com reveals that “Veronica” and “The Other Side of Summer” are his only #1 Billboard hits, both on the Modern Rock Tracks chart. “Everyday I Write the Book” hit #36 on Pop Singles. The only other songs that show up are “…This Town…,” “13 Steps Lead Down,” “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood,” “From a Whisper to a Scream,” and “The Only Flame in Town.”
I suspect that most people who’ve heard much Costello know “Alison” and some of his other early hits best, but the average music fan knows him for “Veronica.” Which is odd, to me, but there you go.
Dancing Queen by ABBA
Zappa’s Don’t Eat The Yellow Snow. I still like it, mind you.
Also, J. Geil’s Angel in the Centerfold and Freeze Frame. I had an 8-track* of their first album, and it is way, way different than that stuff.
*My first car, an '81 Dodge Mirada, had an 8-track player. And by gum, I used it 'till it broke.
“Last Kiss” made it higher in the charts (thanks in part to greater crossover appeal) than any of Pearl Jam’s other songs. However, with Pearl Jam this is a more complicated issue than it is with most bands, as many of their songs were never released commercially as singles in the US in the first place. “Last Kiss” was originally a fan club only single, but was made available to the general public as a charity fundraiser.
But since the question is most famous, not highest charting, song, “Jeremy” probably is the one most readily associated with Pearl Jam. I doubt many people think Pearl Jam as “That band that covered ‘Last Kiss’”.
The members of the band aren’t crazy about it, either. They were forced by the record company to record it, I believe.