# No Hit Wonders **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 8, 2004, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165 "2004-07-08T20:02:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2004, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/61 "2004-07-11T22:53:58Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > What about reggae? Did Bob Marley or Peter Tosh ever make the Top 40? [Yep.](http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&uid=UIDMISS70407090034551317&sql=TPuyr9kext7q7q~C) Bob and the Wailers’ best album results were Rastaman Vibration, which peaked at #8 on the Pop chart, and Exodus (#20). Also noteworthy: Legend (the posthumous best-of) hit #55 on the Billboard chart, and Songs of Freedom got to #86. Keep in mind that that’s a four-disc set. Their highest-charting single was Exodus - #19 on the black charts. I think if figures from England and other countries were included the results would look more impressive. They still top the reggae charts, apparently. ---
**Author:** ![ZebraShaSha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/eada6e/32.png) [@ZebraShaSha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZebraShaSha)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2004, 10:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/62 "2004-07-11T22:59:54Z")
Moby Grape? Camper Van Beethoven (Take the Skinheads Bowling was probably fairly high on college charts)? Yo La Tengo? Jets to Brazil? Le Savy Fa? Neutral Milk Hotel? Jefferson Airplane? Hot Tuna? CS&N/CSN&Y (How high did “Ohio” get?)? Flogging Molly? Massive Attack? Barry McGuire? Blood, Sweat, and Tears? Butthole Surfers? The Cure? Poco? Harry Neilson? Rod McKuen? Joan Baez? Ralph McTell? Roberta Flack? Rod Mckuen? Godspeed You Black Emperor!? What about Kinks, Guess Who, Arlo Gutherie, Woody Gutherie, Pete Seeger, CCR, Burt Bacharach, Cheap Trick, Collective Soul, Doobie Brothers, Donovan, Doors, Jethro Tull, Manfred Mann, Loudon Wainwright III, Peter Townsend, Yes, Ten Years After, The Band, Jefferson Airplane, and Joni Mitchell? What type of success have they had since I know that they were all semi-popular? ---
**Author:** ![Live\_Better\_Electrically](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/46a35a/32.png) [@Live\_Better\_Electrically](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Live_Better_Electrically)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2004, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/63 "2004-07-11T23:03:49Z")
Most of this thread is like listening to people who don’t have dictionaries debate about what words might be left out of one. ---
**Author:** ![Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/5fc32e/32.png) [@Bad\_News\_Baboon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bad_News_Baboon)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/64 "2004-07-12T04:17:51Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Just out of curiosity, who did they influence? I thought I’ve had most of my musical bases covered for the 90s, but I’ve never even heard of these guys. What style are they? I think they would be classified as Alternative Rock. Their most popular album is their final one, Fantastic Planet. Bands that are inter-related (meaning that Failure band mates either participated in them or were produced by Ken Andrews or have that sound or have band mates that really really love failure) A perfect circle (they do a rendition of a Failure song “The Nurse who loved me” on their last album) Self Hum Castor Shiner On Tool Deftones Air Blinker the star Creeper Lagoon Queens of the Stone age there are a lot more, really. My mind is just kind of mush at the end of the day. here’s an article: [http://entertainment.msn.com/artist/?artist=123075](http://entertainment.msn.com/artist/?artist=123075) ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 11:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/65 "2004-07-12T11:09:30Z")
> [@ZebraShaSha](#): > > What about Kinks, Guess Who, Arlo Gutherie, Woody Gutherie, Pete Seeger, CCR, Burt Bacharach, Cheap Trick, Collective Soul, Doobie Brothers, Donovan, Doors, Jethro Tull, Manfred Mann, Loudon Wainwright III, Peter Townsend, Yes, Ten Years After, The Band, Jefferson Airplane, and Joni Mitchell? What type of success have they had since I know that they were all semi-popular? That’s a long list, and I can only tackle a few. For the Kinks I know that “You Really Got Me”, “All Day and All of the Night”, “Lola”, and “Come Dancing” made the Top Ten in the US. Don’t know if they ever had an American #1, but they had at least one in the UK with “You Really Got Me”. The Guess Who had lots of hits in Canada, and their “American Woman” hit #1 in the US. (Apparently because few people realized how insulting it was towards American women and America in general!) The **American Woman** album also made the US Top Ten. They’d had a previous US Top Ten single with “These Eyes”, and I believe several of their other singles charted in the US. Pete Townshend as a solo artist never achieved the success he’d had with The Who, but he did have two bona-fide US hit singles: “Let My Love Open the Door” made the Top 10, as did the **Empty Glass** album it came from, and “Face the Face” hit the Top 40. When I saw the VH1 special on one-hit wonders it bothered me a bit that the whole thing was based on US chart positions. Okay, I guess the US is the biggest music market in the world, but I remember there were some acts on the list that apparently had hit after hit in their native UK or Canada but only one in the US. Doesn’t seem like such artists should really be considered in the same category as those who only ever had one hit _anywhere_. Another interesting category to consider is that of artists with long, fairly successful careers but whose only or biggest hits are unrepresentative of their body of work. **The Great Zamboni** has already suggested that The Who’s only US Top Ten single was their most annoying song, although I think they produced some far worse than “I Can See For Miles”. I love The Who, but they recorded a few losers in their time. A clearer case is the also already-mentioned Iggy Pop. Imagine the wrong impression one might form if one only knew him from his sole Top 40 single, “Candy”! Pearl Jam’s never had a studio album fail to make the Top Five, but their biggest hit single by far was their cover of “Last Kiss”. It hit #2 and stayed in the charts for what seemed like forever at the time. I think they did about as good a job of it as is possible, but “Last Kiss” is neither typical Pearl Jam nor a particularly good song. (Although that hasn’t stopped it from being a hit several times with versions by several artists!) However, Pearl Jam is an unusual case on the singles front because when they were at the height of their popularity they chose not to release singles commercially in the US. The singles charts are calculated using a formula that combines radio airplay with sales, so most of Pearl Jam’s biggest hits come out lower on the charts than you’d expect. Apparently “Jeremy”, which must be their most famous song, never made the Billboard Hot 100 at all. ---
**Author:** ![kidchameleon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/898d66/32.png) [@kidchameleon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kidchameleon)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/66 "2004-07-12T13:03:28Z")
> [@sturmhauke](#): > > They get occasional airtime here in the Bay Area, since they’re from here and all. Once I saw a Jeep with the license plate “XPRIMUSX”, and I’ve always wondered if it belonged to one of the band members. You saw a license plate with 8 characters? ---
**Author:** ![plnnr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@plnnr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/plnnr)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/67 "2004-07-12T13:30:19Z")
> [@Ol'Gaffer](#): > > The **Grateful Dead** also only had one (maybe two) Top 40 hits - _Touch of Grey_ and _Truckin’_ (not sure about the latter). > **Howard Jones**. “This next number went straight to the top of the charts in Turlock, California…numbero uno…and stayed there for a week or two. They love us in Turlock, and we love them fo rthat…” ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/68 "2004-07-12T14:40:45Z")
> [@bnorton](#): > > Two of my favorites, Leonard Cohen and John Prine, have huge, devoted followings but no Top 40 hits that I can think of. I’ve been listening to a lot of Cohen lately but know almost nothing about the man or his career, and your post inspired me to look up some bios on the Web. Interesting guy! Anyway, as best as I can tell you’re right – he’s never had a Top 40 single or album in the US. He apparently didn’t have a hit album in Canada either until the 2001 release of **Ten New Songs** (#4). Since his songs has been covered by just about _everyone_ it’s possible that one has made the charts that way, but there are too many to look them all up and none of the ones I can remember ever hearing on the radio made the Top 40. ---
**Author:** ![sturmhauke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e47c2d/32.png) [@sturmhauke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sturmhauke)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 4:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/69 "2004-07-12T16:42:09Z")
> [@kidchameleon](#): > > You saw a license plate with 8 characters? Yeah, it’s not very common but they do exist. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/70 "2004-07-12T18:15:22Z")
If we’re talking about the American Top Forty, the I think we can also add: **The Smiths** (and **Morrissey** as a solo artist) **The Pogues** ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/71 "2004-07-12T18:23:42Z")
Oh yes, and **The Sex Pistols** Also, did **Devo** ever have a hit? I’m not sure that even “Whip It” Cracked the Top 40. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/72 "2004-07-12T18:58:16Z")
> [@betenoir](#): > > I was thinking, the Ramones. They’re a Budweiser commerciel without, that I know of, having a hit. > > I guess Iggy Pop would count too. Going by the "Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (2000 edition): Ramones: No hits. Iggy Pop: “Candy” (#28, 1991) > [@Rube E. Tewesday](#): > > Ramblin’ Jack Eliot no hits > [@](#): > > I think (thank the baby jesus that you asked this in the Cafe and not in GQ!) that Led Zeppelin only cracked the US top 40 once with Fool in the Rain. > > The Grateful Dead also only had one (maybe two) Top 40 hits - Touch of Grey and Truckin’ (not sure about the latter). Zep: 6 top 40 hits, including “Fool in the Rain” Dead: “Touch of Grey” (#9, 1987) Howard Jones: 9 top 40 hits. > [@Mystery Dog](#): > > They Might Be Giants no hits, although this book WAS released in 2000 > [@fishbicycle](#): > > Oh, lessee… King Crimson, Hawkwind, (Hawkwind spinoff) Motorhead, PFM, Harmonium, Mark-Almond (two '70s US guys, not the '80s English guy), and Status Quo (huge in Europe for almost 40 years, one hit in the US in '67, then nothing) come to mind right off the top of my head. King Crimson: no hits Hawkwind: no hits Motohead: no hits PFM: no hits Harmonium: no hits Mark-Almond: no hits Status Quo: “Pictures of Matchstick Men” (#12, 1968) > [@Cisco](#): > > Primus no hits > [@ultrafilter](#): > > Morbid Angel no hits > [@Finagle](#): > > Jimmy Buffett 5 top 40 hits > [@Chunky Bum](#): > > Big Star no hits > [@Live Better Electrically!](#): > > I’d also nominate Eugene Chadbourne and Neu, although I can’t say for certain the latter never reached a popularity chart somewhere in the world. EC: no hits Neu: no hits > [@pulykamell](#): > > Velvet Underground no hits > [@Bad News Baboon](#): > > Failure no hits > [@Mr. Miskatonic](#): > > ELO, Pixies, Breeders ELO: 20 top 40 hits Pixies: no hits Breeders: no hits > [@InternetLegend](#): > > Sonic Youth no hits by 2000 > [@pepperlandgirl](#): > > The Who 16 top 40 hits > [@](#): > > Husker Du, Replacements, Rush Husker Du: no hits Replacements: no hits Rush: “New World Man” (#21, 1982) Gotta go, finish later… ---
**Author:** ![interface2x](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c0e974/32.png) [@interface2x](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/interface2x)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/73 "2004-07-12T23:01:40Z")
> [@ZebraShaSha](#): > > The Cure? I don’t know the rest, but the Cure have done just fine. Just last week, their self-titled album opened at #7 on the Billboard charts, and “Wish” opened up at #2. They’ve also had hits with “Just Like Heaven”, “Lovesong”, and “Friday I’m in Love”, I believe. There might even be more. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/74 "2004-07-12T23:09:01Z")
**Echo and the Bunnymen** **X** **Widespread Panic** ---
**Author:** ![KGS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/90ced4/32.png) [@KGS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KGS)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/75 "2004-07-12T23:43:50Z")
> [@scotandrsn](#): > > Going by the "Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (2000 edition): I really need to get that book. This is off the top of my head: **Yes** had at least two top 10 hits, including “Owner of a Lonely Heart” which reached #1. I forget if the second one is “Roundabout” or “Your Move”… **The Cure** reached #2 with “Lovesong”, dunno if any of their other singles charted. **CSN(& sometimes Y)** has had several hits; so have **The Doors** **Jethro Tull** had a big hit with “Living in the Past”, but that might have been just in the UK. (Morbid Angel?!?) **Dream Theater** has had no top 40 hits, although “Pull Me Under” did receive its fair share of airplay & MTv rotation. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d26b3c/32.png) [@Mr.Blue\_Sky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Blue_Sky)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2004, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/76 "2004-07-12T23:53:55Z")
> [@KGS](#): > > **Yes** “Leave It” - #24 “Love Will Find a Way” - #30 “Owner of a Lonely Heart” - #1 “Rhythm of Love” - #40 “Roundabout” - #13 “Your Move” - #40 > [@](#): > > **Jethro Tull** “Bungle in the Jungle” - #12 “Living in the Past” - #11 ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Miskatonic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr.miskatonic/32/310_2.png) [@Mr.Miskatonic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Miskatonic)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2004, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/77 "2004-07-13T11:26:52Z")
> [@Lamia](#): > > When I saw the VH1 special on one-hit wonders it bothered me a bit that the whole thing was based on US chart positions. Okay, I guess the US is the biggest music market in the world, but I remember there were some acts on the list that apparently had hit after hit in their native UK or Canada but only one in the US. Doesn’t seem like such artists should really be considered in the same category as those who only ever had one hit _anywhere_. The VH1 special had very mercurial standards which basicly said to me “if we thought it was cheesy, it was getting on there one way or another”. Some bands that barely cracked the top 40 were shoved on their due to the drama that went with their tale. Others had later hits that were mentioned but ignored. Flock of Seagulls came to mind, they did have a hit after their first one. But they seemed flash in the pan since their hairdoos plant them squarely in 80’s territory. ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2004, 12:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/78 "2004-07-13T12:27:02Z")
What a fantastic thread! Too bad Rush doesn’t qualify on account of their one Top 40 hit (and a crappy one at that): they would have been the perfect example. One of the best selling bands in the world, with one lousy single (semi) hit. Whilst we wait for **scotandrsn** ’s follow-up, I’d like to tackle a few of the suggestions. **KGS** : Dream Theater came to mind for me, too, but I guess they’re not mainstream enough to qualify as a no-hit-wonder. But hey, last week whilst driving through Phoenix, Alice Cooper played _Pull me Under_! What a fantastic band they were and still are. **scotandrsn** , I have some doubts about some of your results there. I know for a fact that **The Pixies** ’ _This monkey’s gone to heaven_ was definitely a Top 40 hit over here (Holland), as was **The Breeders** ’ _Cannonball_. The latter was even a top 10 hit here, and that would be highly unlikely if it did nothing at all in the US. Are you sure about those two bands? **spoke-** , surely _Fairytale of New York_ must have been Top 40 material for **The Pogues**? If not that, then _Fiesta_. **ZebraShaSha** , you asked for it. 😃 I’ll just pick those that haven’t been mentioned yet. **Massive Attack** : _Unfinished Sympathy_ was top 5 material on this side of the pond - surely it made the Top 40 in the US? **The Cure** : tons of chart hits in Europe. I’m sure at least one made the US Top 40. **Poco** : _Call it love_ was a big hit here - and Poco never was huge on this side of the pond. I can only imagine the song got big here riding on its US success. **Cheap Trick** : their live version of _I want you to want me_ charted not once, but twice over here. **Doobie Brothers** : _Listen to the music_ and _Music is the doctor_ were chart hits here. Surely the first was one in the US, too? **Doors** : whether it was posthumously or not, they charted bigtime when the movie came out in the early 90’s. _Riders on the Storm_ comes to mind, specifically. **Pete Townsend** : _Face to Face_ was Top 5 material over here. **The Band** : although officially under **Robbie Robertson & The Band** , _Somewhere down the Crazy River_ was a top 10 hit. _pant pant pant_ 🙂 Oh, I think **Leonard Cohen** had a minor hit here with _First we take Manhattan_, but it could have just been a tip parade thing. ---
**Author:** ![scotandrsn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a4c791/32.png) [@scotandrsn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scotandrsn)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2004, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/79 "2004-07-13T16:05:27Z")
More from the Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits (2000 edition) (which I should mention only covers the period 1955 and after) > [@This Year's Model](#): > > ``` > I'm fairly sure Richard Thompson has never hit the charts in the U.S., though I believe Fairport Convention may have in the U.K. > > ``` Richard Thompson: no hits Fairport Convention: no hits > [@RealityChuck](#): > > The Bonzo Dog Band, Livingston Taylor, Otis Taylor, Paul Butterfield, Al Kooper, Roomful of Blues, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, Howlin’ Wolf, Charlie Musselwhite, Muddy Waters, B. B. King Bonzos: no hits Livingston: 2 top 40 hits Otis Taylor: no hits Paul Butterfield: no hits Al Kooper: no hits Roomful of Blues: no hits John Lee Hooker: no hits Buddy Guy: no hits Junoir Wells: no hits Howlin’ Wolf: no hits Charlie Musselwhite: no hits Muddy Waters: no hits B. B. King: 6 top 40 hits between 1964 and 1974 > [@Nutty Bunny](#): > > Tragically Hip no hits > [@vl\_mungo](#): > > Minutemen no hits as of 2000 > [@ChockFullOfHeadyGoodness](#): > > Violent Femmes no hits > [@Inigo Montoya](#): > > Little Feat no hits > [@bnorton](#): > > Leonard Cohen, John Prine, Yanni Leonard Cohen: no hits John Prine: no hits Yanni: no hits > [@Sam Stone](#): > > Warren Zevon Werewolves of London (#21, 1978) > [@Qwertyasdfg](#): > > Wilco no hits as of 2000 > [@Little Nemo](#): > > Bob Marley, Peter Tosh Bob Marley: no hits Peter Tosh: no hits Reggae (looking some up off the top of my head): Jimmy Cliff: 2 top 40 hits UB40 (the horror…the horror): 6 top 40 hits Ziggy Marley: Tomorrow People (#39, 1988) > [@ZebraShaSha](#): > > ``` > Moby Grape? Camper Van Beethoven (Take the Skinheads Bowling was probably fairly high on college charts)? Yo La Tengo? Jets to Brazil? Le Savy Fa? Neutral Milk Hotel? Jefferson Airplane? Hot Tuna? CS&N/CSN&Y (How high did "Ohio" get?)? Flogging Molly? Massive Attack? Barry McGuire? Blood, Sweat, and Tears? Butthole Surfers? The Cure? Poco? Harry Neilson? Rod McKuen? Joan Baez? Ralph McTell? Roberta Flack? Rod Mckuen? Godspeed You Black Emperor!? > > ``` > > What about Kinks, Guess Who, Arlo Gutherie, Woody Gutherie, Pete Seeger, CCR, Burt Bacharach, Cheap Trick, Collective Soul, Doobie Brothers, Donovan, Doors, Jethro Tull, Manfred Mann, Loudon Wainwright III, Peter Townsend, Yes, Ten Years After, The Band, Jefferson Airplane, and Joni Mitchell? What type of success have they had since I know that they were all semi-popular? Holy crap! Moby Grape: no hits (releasing 8 songs off your debut will do that to ya) Camper van Beethoven: no hits Yo La Tengo (this always brings to mind the Onion headline: “19 Record Store Clerks Injured During Riot at Yo La Tengo Concert”): no hits Jets to Brazil: no hits Le Savy Fa: no hits Neutral Milk Hotel: no hits Jefferson Airplane/Jefferson Starship/Starship: 17 top 40 hits Hot Tuna: no hits Crosby, Stills, Nash, Freud, Marx, Engels and Young: 9 top 40 hits, including “Ohio” (#14, 1970) and their highest-charting hit “Just a Song Before I Go” (#7, 1977) Flogging Molly: no hits Massive Attack: no hits Barry McGuire: Eve of Destruction (#1, 1965) Blood, Sweat and Tears (post Al Kooper): 6 top 40 hits Butthole Surfers: Pepper (#26, 1996) (DAMN! I wish I’d been listening to the radio to hear Casey Kasem announce THAT one!) Cure: 3 top 40 hits Poco: 4 top 40 hits Harry Nilsson( I assume that’s who you mean): 8 top 40 hits on his own, and wrote buttloads of hits for others. Rod McKuen: no hits Joan Baez: 2 top 40 hits Ralph McTell: no hits Roberta Flack: 11 top 40 hits Rod McKuen: I SAID NO HITS! Godspeed You Black Emperor: not hits Round two Kinks: 12 top 40 hits Guess Who: 14 top 40 hits Arlo Guthrie: City of New Orleans (#18, 1972) (Yes, you heard me!) Woody Guthrie: no hits Pete Seeger: no hits CCR: 17 top 40 hits, including, notoriously, 5 #2’s, and no #1’s Burt Bacharach: no hits under his own name, obviously many for others Cheap Trick: 8 top 40 hits Collective Soul: 3 top 40 hits Doobie Brothers: 16 top 40 hits Donovan: 12 top 40 hits Doors: 8 top 40 hits Jethro Tull: 2 top 40 hits Manfred Mann: 7 top 40 hits Loudon Wainwright III: Dead Skunk (#16, 1973) Pete Townshend: 2 top 40 hits Yes: 6 top 40 hits Ten Years After: I’d Love to Change the World (#40, 1971) The Band: 2 top 40 hits (not counting anything they did with Dylan) Jefferson Airplane: I SAID 17 top 40 hits! Joni Mitchell: 5 top 40 hits That’s it! I’m posting! ---
**Author:** ![Coldfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/a587f6/32.png) [@Coldfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Coldfire)\ **Post date:** [July 13, 2004, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165/80 "2004-07-13T16:19:35Z")
Thanks for the awesome research, **scotandrsn**! Impressive work. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/no-hit-wonders/254165.md?page=5)