# 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:** 6
**Author:** ![BobSchroeck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@BobSchroeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobSchroeck)\ **Post date:** [May 9, 2001, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/101 "2001-05-09T12:33:19Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Balance \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by anya marie \* > > \*\*this thread would not be complete without 😃 > > Kyrie Eleison by Mr. Mister (?) > > \*\* > > I’ve always wondered how many people actually knew what he was singing. I suspect it was all Greek to most people. :D\*\* \ Okay, lessee… I was making a list as I read this thread and kept crossing things off as other folks mentioned them. What I have left – although I’m sure I’ll think of others later: _Spiders and Snakes_ – Jim Stafford _Midnight at the Oasis_ – Maria Muldaur _Heart and Soul_ – T’Pau _Stuck in the Middle With You_ – Stealer’s Wheel _Hooked on a Feeling_ – Blue Swede (Ooga-chaka, ooga-chaka!) _I Think We’re Alone Now_ – Tiffany _Seasons in the Sun_ – Terry Jacks _(I Just) Died In Your Arms_ – Cutting Crew _Beach Baby_ – First Class ( **The** summer song, in my opinion, btw.) _Rock and Roll Hootchie-Koo_ – Rick Derringer _Undercover Angel_ – Alan O’Day (or something like that) Songs for which I don’t remember the performers: _Eres Tu_ _Ariel_: “Away on the other side of the Hudson/Deep in the bosom of suburbia,/I met a young girl, she sang mighty fine,/‘Tears on My Pillow’ and ‘Ave Maria’…” _Billy, Don’t Be A Hero_ _Life Is A Rock and the Radio Rolled Me_ _My Girl Bill_ – an early 70s sniggering, “look, we sound like we’re talking about two gay guys” song with a lame trick ending. – Bob ---
**Author:** ![kawliga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ea666f/32.png) [@kawliga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kawliga)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2001, 7:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/102 "2001-05-10T07:38:28Z")
> [@](#): > > _Spiders and Snakes_ – Jim Stafford > > _My Girl Bill_ – an early 70s sniggering, “look, we sound like we’re talking about two gay guys” song with a lame trick ending. > > – Bob \*\* “My Girl Bill” was recorded by the very same Jim Stafford. ---
**Author:** ![BobSchroeck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@BobSchroeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobSchroeck)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2001, 12:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/103 "2001-05-10T12:00:14Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by kawliga \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > _Spiders and Snakes_ – Jim Stafford > > _My Girl Bill_ – an early 70s sniggering, “look, we sound like we’re talking about two gay guys” song with a lame trick ending.\*\* > > “My Girl Bill” was recorded by the very same Jim Stafford. \*\* Ah. Forget him, then. Did a little research – _Billy, Don’t Be A Hero_ was by Bo Donaldson and the Heywoods, and after digging through my little sister’s old 45 collection (which for some inexplicable reason I now own) to find it, I found that its B-side was a version of Paper Lace’s _The Night Chicago Died_, oddly enough. – Bob ---
**Author:** ![Who\_me\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/958977/32.png) [@Who\_me\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Who_me_1)\ **Post date:** [May 10, 2001, 1:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/104 "2001-05-10T13:39:28Z")
Actually if you check, I believe I remember that the Bo Donaldson B-side was actually done before the Paper Lace version. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2001, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/105 "2001-05-11T12:32:59Z")
“Indiana Wants Me” by R. Dean Taylor. A parody regarding Timothy McVeigh’s execution keeps running through my head, and I cannot stop it. Damn this stupid brain of mine! Speaking of parodies, I first heard Andrew Lloyd Webber’s “Viva the Beautiful Game” during the Subway Series. That became “Viva the Yankees and Mets” with very little effort. ---
**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 11, 2001, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/106 "2001-05-11T13:55:31Z")
**Bob** , I’m not positive, but didn’t she have another fairly popular song, something about “I’ve got a brand new pair of roller skates, you’ve got a brand new key?” ---
**Author:** ![jharding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e480ec/32.png) [@jharding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jharding)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2001, 3:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/107 "2001-05-11T15:08:15Z")
Napster kicking into high gear. How much room have I got on my hard drive now? ---
**Author:** ![rackensack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e5b9ba/32.png) [@rackensack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rackensack)\ **Post date:** [May 11, 2001, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/108 "2001-05-11T15:28:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Knighted Vorpal Sword \* > \*\ ***Bob** , I’m not positive, but didn’t she have another fairly popular song, something about “I’ve got a brand new pair of roller skates, you’ve got a brand new key?” \*\* No, that would be the immortal **Melanie** , whose “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)” with the Edwin Hawkins Singers went to number 6 in the US in 1970, a year or so before “Brand New Key”, and who eventually did the theme music for the TV series _The Beauty and the Beast_ in one of her many comebacks. ---
**Author:** ![BobSchroeck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@BobSchroeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobSchroeck)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2001, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/109 "2001-05-12T04:02:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by rackensack \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Knighted Vorpal Sword \* > > \*\ ***Bob** , I’m not positive, but didn’t she have another fairly popular song, something about “I’ve got a brand new pair of roller skates, you’ve got a brand new key?” \*\* > > No, that would be the immortal **Melanie** \*\* You beat me to it – thanks. Just as a side note, I’m pretty fond of “Lay Down (Candles in the Rain)” – it’s one of those songs that came out of Woodstock, written about what she saw from the stage on the rainy night she performed there… – Bob ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2001, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/110 "2001-05-12T15:09:37Z")
In the Year 2525 has already been mentioned, but I am deeply ashamed to say that I learned from Casey Kasem that they were the greatest one hit wonders in rock history. The above pretentious, “heavy” piece of dreck spent like 20 weeks at number 1. They never cracked the top 100 again. I really liked Relax, by Frankie Goes to Hollywood. It was in the movie Body Double, and made a very 70s glam rock video. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![bernse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@bernse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bernse)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2001, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/111 "2001-05-12T18:11:28Z")
Geez, I did a read of this list and much to my suprise did not see: **Sly Fox - Lets go all the way** Or am I blind…? ---
**Author:** ![headchecked](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/258eb7/32.png) [@headchecked](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/headchecked)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2001, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/112 "2001-05-12T18:28:55Z")
“Tubthumping” by Chambawamba and the song that everybody sings late at night when they’re drunk: “Louie, Louie” by Kingsmith ---
**Author:** ![dantheman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dantheman/32/9421_2.png) [@dantheman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dantheman)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/113 "2001-05-13T02:09:54Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by headchecked \* > \*\*“Tubthumping” by Chambawamba > and the song that everybody sings late at night when they’re drunk: > > “Louie, Louie” by Kingsmith \*\* The Kingsmen, actually. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/114 "2001-05-13T02:42:04Z")
It seems no one has mentioned the song “They’re going to take me away, haha” by Napoleon XIV. That quote is about the only lyric in the song. ---
**Author:** ![Amedeus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9de0a6/32.png) [@Amedeus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amedeus)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 10:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/115 "2001-05-13T10:30:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by KarlGrenze \* > \*\*It seems no one has mentioned the song “They’re going to take me away, haha” by Napoleon XIV. That quote is about the only lyric in the song. \*\* No way! You are remembering it all wrong. here ya go: [http://www.letssingit.com/lyrics/n/napoleon-xiv/](http://www.letssingit.com/lyrics/n/napoleon-xiv/) ## Chorus: ## They´re coming to take me away, Haha, they´re coming to take me away, Ho ho, hee hee, ha ha, To the happy home with trees and flowers And chirping birds and basket weavers Who sit and smile and Twiddle their thumbs and toes And they´re coming to take me away, HAHAAAAAAAAA ---
**Author:** ![KarlGrenze](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/dbc845/32.png) [@KarlGrenze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KarlGrenze)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/116 "2001-05-13T13:12:37Z")
Thanks for the lyrics. But it was a one-hit wonder, right? ---
**Author:** ![Hamadryad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6de8d8/32.png) [@Hamadryad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamadryad)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 1:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/117 "2001-05-13T13:47:19Z")
I’m pretty sure no one’s mentioned “Welcome to the Boomtown” by David & David. There was also a song called “Cry,” though I can’t remember who did it. It got quite a lot of airplay in…1985? The video …never mind, it was by Godley & Creme (from which corner of my butt I pulled that name, I do not know)…anyhow, the video involved faces morphing into one another. Michael Penn had moderate success with a follow-up to “No Myth” called “This and That,” which heartily sucked. He also has a song on the “Boogie Nights” soundtrack, which also sucked. It’s a shame…I love “No Myth.” I don’t know if anyone’s mentioned “Right Here, Right Now” by Jesus Jones. I don’t know if that counts because of “Real, Real, Real,” which may have hit the charts. Perhaps I should do **any research at all** before I post, wotwot? “Life is a Rock But the Radio Rolled Me” is by Reunion. I also put in a bid for “In the Summertime” by Jerry Mungo. And I have to argue with the Tubes as one-hit wonders…yeah, “She’s a Beauty” did pretty well, but they also had success several years later with “White Punks on Dope.” ---
**Author:** ![Hamadryad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/6de8d8/32.png) [@Hamadryad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hamadryad)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/118 "2001-05-13T13:49:50Z")
Several years EARLIER. I say, I say **EARLIER**. I never preview. Never. What a good job on me that I never make mistakes. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![flodnak](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/838e76/32.png) [@flodnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flodnak)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/119 "2001-05-13T14:15:57Z")
So can anybody dig up another hit by **Christie** of “Yellow River” fame? Once when fella bilong missus flodnak and I were having supper at a Vietnamese restaurant, we heard a cover version of the song in what I assume was Vietnamese, with a female singer. If you think that song sounds weird in English, you should try listening to it in a language you don’t understand at all… ---
**Author:** ![BobSchroeck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/13edae/32.png) [@BobSchroeck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobSchroeck)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2001, 3:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383/120 "2001-05-13T15:50:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Hamadryad \* > **I also put in a bid for “In the Summertime” by Jerry Mungo.** Mungo Jerry, actually. I think he lifted it from TS Eliot’s Mungojerrie. – Bob [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-one-hit-wonder-appreciation-thread/64383.md?page=7)