# The One-Hit Wonder Appreciation Thread **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 4, 2001, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383 "2001-05-04T19:28:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**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:** [May 7, 2001, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/81 "2001-05-07T01:40:08Z")
I’ve gotta agree that a LOT of the people mentioned here were not one-hit wonders. Jeff Healy had a number of hits, especially in Canada. A-Ha was BIG for a long time around the start of the video revolution. .38 Special has had a number of hits over a 20-year career. So did Stephen Bishop. Here’s a couple more that should qualify: The Starland Vocal Band - “Afternoon Delight” Hamilton, Joe, Frank, and Reynolds - “Don’t Pull Your Love Out” ---
**Author:** ![racinchikki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/eada6e/32.png) [@racinchikki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/racinchikki)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/82 "2001-05-07T01:53:01Z")
> [@](#): > > _AudreyK –_ > Restless Heart, “When She Cries” It’s possible that was their only pop hit (though I doubt it, I was too young then for it to register but I KNOW I knew LOTS of their songs long before I went country), but in the '80s they were big in country. Other songs by them that I knew, at least: “I’ll Still Be Loving You” “Why Does It Have To Be (Wrong or Right)” “Tell Me What You Dream” ---
**Author:** ![OxyMoron](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/e9a140/32.png) [@OxyMoron](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OxyMoron)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/83 "2001-05-07T04:01:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by bordelond \* > **Wang Chung** - They hit the American Top 40 FIVE TIMES. You mean we didn’t learn the first time? We had to take summer school four times? Ok, ok, so I’ve been wrong an almost EVERYTHING I posted to this thread. Let’s start a new thread: Bands that _should’ve been_ one-hit wonders, were there a god. ---
**Author:** ![Mockingbird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c68b51/32.png) [@Mockingbird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mockingbird)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 5:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/84 "2001-05-07T05:06:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by anya marie \* > \*\*this thread would not be complete without 😃 > Kyrie Eleison by Mr. Mister (?) > \*\* The title of that song is just _Kyrie_. They also had hits with _Is It Love_, _Broken Wings_, _Stand and Deliver_, and _Something Real(Inside of You/Inside of Me)_. ---
**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:** [May 7, 2001, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/85 "2001-05-07T06:28:48Z")
Al Stewart - “The Year of the Cat” ---
**Author:** ![Geek\_Mecha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/ecae2f/32.png) [@Geek\_Mecha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geek_Mecha)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/86 "2001-05-07T06:57:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by racinchikki \* > \*\*It’s possible that was their only pop hit (though I doubt it, I was too young then for it to register but I KNOW I knew LOTS of their songs long before I went country), but in the '80s they were big in country. Other songs by them that I knew, at least: > “I’ll Still Be Loving You” > “Why Does It Have To Be (Wrong or Right)” > “Tell Me What You Dream” \*\* Those were by them? Oh my! I’ve heard those songs before but never knew who they were performed by. And I never considered they were all done by the same artist. Neat! ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 8:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/87 "2001-05-07T08:01:18Z")
And she adds: a-ha had a second top-40 song in the US as well: “The Sun Always Shines on TV”. ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 1:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/88 "2001-05-07T13:45:27Z")
**Sam Stone** , I’ve got to bust you TWICE: **Hamilton, Joe Frank, & Reynolds** - Had another, bigger hit after _Don’t Pull Your Love_. That hit was a Billboard #1 in America–_Fallin’ in Love_. **Al Stewart** - ALso went top 20 with _Time Passages_. **Xtnjohnson** , sorry, but I like Wang Chung’s brand of pap. What can I say? Also, for whoever mentioned **Sweet** ’s _Ballroom Blitz_: both _Fox on the Run_ and the AOR classic _Love is Like Oxygen_ were top-ten U.S. hits for Sweet. … Legit one-hitters (AFAIK): **1970s** _Tighter_ by Alive & Kicking _Let Your Love Flow_ by the Bellamy Brothers _All the Young Dudes_ by Mott the Hoople _Rock On_ by David Essex _Fool, If You Think It’s Over_ by Chris Rea **1980s** _Funky Town_ by Lipps, Inc. _Centipede_ by Rebbie Jackson _White Horse_ by Laid Back _Send Me an Angel_ by Real Life _I Wanna Be Where the Boys Are_(title?) by Book of Love _Waiting for a Star to Fall_ by (I forgot! Girl/guy duo) ---
**Author:** ![TommyTutone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c4cdca/32.png) [@TommyTutone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TommyTutone)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/89 "2001-05-07T13:47:49Z")
Falco (R.I.P.) was actually a two-hit wonder (sort of). As mentioned, he hit it big with Amadeus. He ALSO had a hit song with Der Kommisar. It was originally aired in Germany and the US in German. Not too long after, fellow one-hit wonder After the Fire did an American version which is what you really hear anymore. I think most of the ones I was going to mention were mentioned, but a couple that I think were missed (so many threads): The Tubes - She’s a Beauty Animotion - Obsession Biz Markee - She’s Just a Friend (how can you forget his soothing, haunting voice) Bonnie Tyler - Total Eclipse of the Heart Boomtown Rats - Don’t Like Mondays (based on actual events) Corey Hart - Sunglasses at Night Dee Lite - Groove is in the Heart Aqua - Barbie Girl (they had a bit of airplay with a couple of other songs, but nothing compared to this one) EMF - Unbelievable Gary Numan - Cars Harold Faltemeyer - Axel F (from Beverly Hills Cop) Herbie Hancock - Rockit M - Pop Muzik Michael Penn - No Myth Nails - 88 Lines about 44 Women Paul Hardcastle - 19 Slade - Run Runaway (see chameleon lying there in the sun) Knack - My Sherona Vapors - Turning Japanese I have these on CD and compiled them, and many of the previously mentioned 80’s titles on a single CD in MP3 format (170 songs on one CD). Oh, and my usual internet handle is Tommy Tutone =) ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/90 "2001-05-07T13:56:56Z")
**Corey Hart** - Not just _Sunglasses at Night_, but also _Never Surrender_ was a very big hit. **Bonnie Tyler** - Also _It’s a Heartache_ and _Holding Out For a Hero_. **The Knack** - also, _Good Girls Don’t_ hit top 10. ---
**Author:** ![Hometownboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/5e9695/32.png) [@Hometownboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hometownboy)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/91 "2001-05-07T14:00:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Sam Stone \* > \*\* > Al Stewart - “The Year of the Cat” > > \*\* Actually, Mr. Stewart also had \*\*Time Passages \*\*, a #7 hit in 1978, **Song on the Radio** reached #29 in 1979 and **Midnight Rocks** topped out at #24 in 1980 If you like his stuff, I highly recommend finding a copy of the out of print “Rhymes in Rooms” CD, a live show set with Peter White that includes several of the above. On the other hand **Amii Stewart** reached #1 in February, 1979, and didn’t chart again ---
**Author:** ![cmkeller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cmkeller/32/118_2.png) [@cmkeller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cmkeller)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/92 "2001-05-07T14:54:29Z")
Albert Rose: > [@](#): > > Steve Perry had lots of airtime with Journey, but only one hit as a solo artist, Oh, Sherrie. I love that one. He also had “Foolish Heart.” And I’m pretty sure there was another one of his, much later…around 1993 or so, but I can’t recall the title. Chaim Mattis Keller ---
**Author:** ![Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ac91a4/32.png) [@Knighted\_Vorpal\_Sword](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knighted_Vorpal_Sword)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/93 "2001-05-07T18:53:35Z")
Did anyone say **In the Year 2525 (Exordium and Terminus)**, by the popular duo **Zager and Evans**? **Harper Valley PTA** by **Jeannie C. Riley** Perhaps even the song {b]Convoy\*\*, but I can’t think of the singer right now. ---
**Author:** ![Odieman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/a87d85/32.png) [@Odieman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Odieman)\ **Post date:** [May 7, 2001, 7:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/94 "2001-05-07T19:53:21Z")
**CW MaColl** did “Convoy” \*\* Slade \*\* also did the original versions of “Cum on Feel the Noize” and “Mama Weer All Crazee Now” (both of them spelled approximately correctly). As an aside, Robert Hazard wrote “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun”, which was covered by Cyndi Lauper. The ultimate question is can we consider “Western Union” by that bunch of has beens \*\*The Five Americans \*\* a one hit or a none hit band? :flees aha’s wrath; Keith ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2001, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/95 "2001-05-08T04:31:02Z")
The Bellamy Brothers also had hits with: “Old Hippie,” “Kids of The Baby Boom.” If I Said You Had A Beautiful Body… (no need to even finish that double entendre), and I think they’ve gone straight country and have had even more hits in that genre. Sir ---
**Author:** ![brewha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/91b2a8/32.png) [@brewha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brewha)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2001, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/96 "2001-05-08T23:05:11Z")
People, People, you’re missing the best one hit wonder ever. Ice Ice Baby! Don’t laugh, you know you like it! ---
**Author:** ![Saltire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saltire/32/553_2.png) [@Saltire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saltire)\ **Post date:** [May 8, 2001, 11:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/97 "2001-05-08T23:45:08Z")
“Sometimes When We Touch” by Dan Hill “Alone Again, Naturally” by Gilbert O’Sullivan ---
**Author:** ![bordelond](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bordelond/32/150_2.png) [@bordelond](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bordelond)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/98 "2001-05-09T00:33:22Z")
**Brewha, Saltire** : **Vanilla Ice** - honestly, he may as well be a one-hit guy. Technically, however, _Play That Funky Music_ did piggyback _Ice, Ice Baby_ to the #4 slot on the American Top 40. **Gilbert O’Sullivan** : In 1972, the follow-up to _Alone Again (Naturally)_, _Clair_ somehow hit #2 in the U.S… The following year, he had a #7 hit with _Get Down_, a #17 with _Out of the Question_, and a #25 with _Ooh Baby_. But after that, O’Sullivan pulled one of the all-time great disappearing acts. **Dan Hill** : A two-hit wonder. He hit #7 in 1987 in a duet with _Ally McBeal_’s Vonda Shepard titled _Can’t We Try_. … Some more one-hitters: Mountain - _Mississippi Queen_ Vicki Lawrence - _The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgia_ (#1 in 1973, a cover of the Gladys Knight original) B.W. Stevenon - _My Maria_ (#9 in 1973, since covered by Brooks & Dunn) Johnny Lee - _Lookin’ For Love_ (#5 on the AT40 in 1980, from the _Urban Cowboy_ soundtrack) Moving Pictures - _What About Me?_ Danny Wilson - _Mary’s Prayer_ L.A. Guns - _The Ballad of Jayne_ ---
**Author:** ![DKW](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dkw/32/3118_2.png) [@DKW](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DKW)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 7:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/99 "2001-05-09T07:43:01Z")
I hardly think foreign bands who happened to get credit once in the States should count (e.g. Falco, A-ha, Midnight Oil, Los Del Rio). In fact, the ones who produced lots of great music but fell to the whims of a fickle public are highly questionable. And _don’t_ get me started on non-pop bands who have only one “mainstream” hit (hello, Everything But the Girl!) IMHO, a real] one hit wonder is a complete flash in the pan, someone who was _never_ known for anything else. Anyhoo…some of the more memorable ones. Johnny Hates Jazz, Shattered Dreams. Standard bitter breakup song. Even more standard complete fade into oblivion afterward. Sheriff, When I’m With You. Somewhat sappy love song a la REO Speedwagon or Chicago. Dunno why some hit it big and some don’t. Take That, Back For Good. A pretty good pop single from a “boy band” that never caught on. And this was well before the enormous backlash began. After the Fire, Der Komissar. Somewhat confusing Americanized version of Falco’s hit. Never heard from again afterward. (Note: A “kommissar”, in the early 20th century, was a Soviet official assigned to enforce Communism amongst the masses. From what I’ve heard, they weren’t too popular.) Chumbawamba, Tubthumping. The funny thing is, they never even _wanted_ to have a hit 'cause they’re anarchists. Fight the power, don’t accept anything from The Man, etc. The Man deigned to give them their big break regardless. Boy Meets Girl, Waiting For a Star to Fall. Beautiful song. Moving but not sappy and great to listen to. Soul Sister, The Way to Your Heart. Would have never even heard of this song if a couple of radio hosts didn’t have a real fondness for it. I never found any of their albums in any store, and this was the _only_ song of theirs I could ever find anywhere. And before anyone even mentions M.C. Hammer, remember, 2 Legit 2 Quit was a pretty big follow-up to U Can’t Touch This. (I kinda miss him…he was the first rapper I actually liked.) As long as we are pointing out all the two-hit wonders (and there are a lot of them), here are a couple: General Public, Tenderness and I’ll Take You There. Britpop band. Saw about half of the music video for the former once _in my life_. Never heard once on the radio. Heard the latter from a commercial which I don’t even remember. Both songs now on my computer. I love this modern age. 😃 Tracy Chapman, Fast Car and Give Me One Reason. Remarkable mainly because so much time passed between them (same for Never Surrender and Sunglasses at Night). It’s bizarre the kind of songs that become hit… I have eight Aqua songs on my computer right now, and as far as I’m concerned they all absolutely blow Barbie Girl out of the water. I also liked Cross My Heart a lot better than the too-freaking-confusing-to-be-depressing Toy Soldiers. (And HOW the hell is it supposed to be about drug addiction??) Just a footnote: I watched a few one hit wonder specials on VH1. If you have the time to watch one, do; they’re real eye-openers. It’s amazing how many bands had a great thing going and then just broke up for some stupid reason. ---
**Author:** ![Amedeus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@Amedeus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amedeus)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 11:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/100 "2001-05-09T11:37:12Z")
That one song by the French 5 year old (or something of the sorts) Don’t remember the name of the song, but it went something along the lines of Oo-la-la La Baby (Baybay more like) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383.md?page=6)