We can all think of our share of one-hit wonder bands, and have posted several threads along that theme; what about though, TWO-hit wonder acts?
I’m talking about singers/bands who have had two and only two recognizable hits -no more no less.
First I thought I could come up with one from each decade but I couldn’t think of any from the 60’s. Ergo, I’ll start with the 70’s and make it up by listing, appropriately enough, two acts.
First there is Blue Öyster Cult who did “Don’t Fear the Reaper” and “Burnin’ For You” and apparently, absolutely nothing else. Don McLean is of course associated with “American Pie” and to a much lesser extent, “Starry, Starry Night (Vincent)” which is the sum total of every song he is known for.
From the 80’s I submit the Stray Cats who hit it big with “Stray Cat Strut” and “Rock this Town”. That really is pretty much it. I know Brian Setzer would again hit the big time decades later with his “Jump Jive an’ Wail” but as for the Stray Cats -purely a two-hit act.
For the 90’s I nominate Sinead O’Connor who had a number one hit with the Prince-written song “Nothing Compares 2 U.” The other song, which I can’t for the life of me remember the title of, but it had that stupid, cloying “Doo doo DOOD it, doo doo DOOD it etc.” (you know what song I’m talking about) and that’s it. Her only other claim to fame is her pope-picture-tearing incident from SNL.
O.K., what other two-hit wonders can we come up with? Also, what the hell WAS the name of the Sinead O’Connor song I couldn’t remember?
Uhmm, i think you are confusing Sinead with Suzanne Vega here.That Songs name is “Toms Diner” and has been a Hit as a Remix from some peeps called DNA back in 1990.
“I am sitting in the morning in the diner on the corner /
I am waiting at the counter for the man to pour the coffee/
and he fills it only halfway/
but before i even argue/
he is looking at the window at somebody coming in …”
and so on
Slaughter Work All Night, Sleep All Day Fly to the Angels
Extreme More Than Words Whole Hearted
[aside]Extreme actually has some pretty interesting stuff, if you’ll give it a listen. I especially like the clasically-inspired guitar riffs in Do You Want to Play.[/aside]
Lou Bega Mambo #5
and to a lesser extent, Tricky Tricky
Kansas Carry on Wayward Son Dust in the Wind
–I don’t know if any of Kansas’ other great songs ever “charted,” but these two are the only ones I ever hear on my local “classic rock” station.
Really??? We ARE talking about the same song I presume. I was thinking of the Sinead O’Connor song that has the video in which she is featured “dancing” around barefoot in what appears to be a doorjamb. For some odd reason, this image is still indelibly etched into my brain. Well, that really was the second of the two songs which I thought she was famous for that I was referring to. (yeah, that sentence makes sense)
As for rastahomie I actually thought about America but I do believe they had some modest success (ALL of their songs were “modest successes”) with “The Tropic of Sir Gallahad” thus giving them a whopping THREE hits which will surely be the topic of some future thread.
And, of course, the aforementioned Suzanne Vega, who had “Luka” and the DNA remix of Tom’s Diner. One of my favorite artists, despite her two-hit wonder status. (I prefer the original, a capella “Tom’s Diner”, myself.)
Add Looking Glass to the list of two-hit wonders with Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl) and their much lesser known hit Jimmy Loves Mary-Anne. If fact, altough Jimmy peaked at number 33 in September 1973 only eleven months after Brandy made #1, almost nobody seems to remember. I’ve heard Looking Glass called a one-hit-wonder on syndicated radio programs like Solid Gold that ought to know better.
And you can take Don McLean off the list, as in addition to American Pie and Vincent he also had a top 40 hit (#34) with Castles in the Air in 1981, giving him at least three American hits.
“Dream Police” charted for them, as well as “Surrender” and “She’s Tight”. And they also did a cover of “Don’t Be Cruel” that played non-stop during 1987.
Don McLeans biggest hit after “American Pie” was not “Vincent” but the rather whiny “Crying,” which peaked at #5 back in January 1981. He had 7 top-40 songs, btw.
Remember Men Without Hats? “The Safety Dance” was one of the goofiest songs ever in an era filled with goofy songs, only to be topped by their follow-up, “Pop Goes the World,” a song that deserves a :rolleyes: if any song does!
Mike and the Mechanics also had “Taken In” and “The Living Years”
As far as the hair-metal, I couldn’t tell you what was a hit and what wasn’t; I’d buy a tape and wear the thing out. For me, 80s hair-metal never died…I loved it all, and still do. And I’m not afraid to admit it! looks around to see if anyone’s watching
