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One-Hit Wonders of the ’60s, ’70s, and ’80s
I don’t think we’ve had enough arguing recently on Ricochet. So here are my picks for best one-hit wonders for three decades. I’m sure you will all agree. Or not.
1960s
Talk Talk by The Music Machine. One minute and fifty-six seconds of attitude. This was a very competitive decade (see, for instance, Gloria by The Shadows of Knight, Hey Little Girl by The Syndicate of Sound, Tighten Up by Archie Bell & The Drells, Rescue Me by Fontella Bass, Dirty Water by The Standells, 96 Tears by ? & The Mysterians and, of course, I Had Too Much To Dream by The Electric Prunes).
My social life’s a dud/My name is really mud
1970s
Patti Smith has a long and successful career but only one hit single, Because The Night, and it is magnificent. She took a song originally written by Bruce Springsteen and rewrote the verse lyrics while waiting for a call from her boyfriend. Admittedly, my choice raises serious metaphysical issues – can someone be a one-hit wonder if they’ve had a long and successful career? Some may dispute whether my choice is correct but since I believe we can all self-identify with our own truth and declare our pronouns, I’m saying it is.
1980s
Jenny/867-5309 by Tommy Tutone. Perhaps the greatest one-hit wonder of them all.
I tried to call you before, but I lost my nerve/I tried my imagination, but I was disturbed
.
Published in General
In 1972, “Popcorn” by Hot Butter hit #9 on the Billboard 100 Chart. I am not sure Hot Butter is even a pop band as they don’t have a singer.
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Great choices. Here’s my additions:
Walk Away, Renee – The Left Banke – ’60’s
Self Control – Laura Branigan – 70’s
Blinded Me with Science – Thomas Dolby -80’s
Walk Away Renee is a gorgeous song. The Left Banke had a minor hit with the followup, Pretty Ballerina (another melancholy tune), before the group broke up.
Did that make the top 40? I was vaguely aware of it. Best trivia entry in this category would be Jimi Hendrix – Purple Haze, his only song in the top 40.
I think the guy was with The New Christy Minstrels and then went solo. If he had another hit beyond Eve of Destruction, I missed it. Barry McGuire.
Love Walk Away, Renee. A very different song for the time
Gloria by Brannigan was for some inexplicable reason adopted as a fight song by the St. Louis Blues during their run to the Stanley Cup last year, when defeating the vastly classier Boston Bruins. It destroyed all my fond memories of Flashdance.
Wrecking Crew on the backing and written by sometimes member P.F. Sloan (RIP).
He actually recorded John & Michelle Phillips’ California Dreamin’ before the Mamas and Papas released it.
Four songs I recognize in a row! I’m a dork but not always a hopeless dork!
And, I thought Pachelbel was a one-hit wonder, too, until I stopped tuning out the organ postludes at church. Poor organists, they know even their greatest fans tend to tune out the postludes.
A-Ha was not a one hit wonder! The Sun Always Shines on TV, Train of Thought, Cry Wolf, and I’ve Been Losing You were also popular. Take On Me gets way overplayed.
Yes, I am a die hard A-Ha fan. They’re coming in concert to the U.S. this year. They’re booked solid for three days. Their new stuff is awesome! I’ve been following them for 30 years.
You Light Up My Life was originally by Debbie Boone.
Indeed.
That is true of others who have been mentioned.
Gloria totally slipped my mind. Maybe there should be a thread for two hit wonders. I know Peter Frampton wrote Baby I Love Your Way one morning, and I Want You To Show Me The Way in the afternoon, and made a pretty good living off the day’s work. Todd Rungren had a similar experience with Hello It’s Me and I Saw The Light.
99 Luftballons, if you please.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La4Dcd1aUcE
(Fargin’ video won’t embed…blergh)
That was 1982.
WTWP – all Pachelbel, all the time.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WTWP_Classical_Talkity-Talk_Radio
Profanity in the vid title?
What an outrage!
Plus, that movie is excellent!
Which do you have in mind, ‘Hant?
Don’t forget about these two:
“Ride Captain Ride” by Blues Image-1970
“Tubthumping” by Chumbawumba-1997
Yeah, yeah….. I know. You guys are all like: “We’re conservatives! We don’t want none of your young people’s crazy hippity-hops.
Whatever, says I! This song is great.
Precious and few by Climax (1972).
The song only had about 3 or 4 lines of lyrics, repeated over and over, but the singers voice made up for it.
More evidence of how horrible the 70s were.
call and raise:
I began to suspect things were getting out of hand with the multiple Pachibel comments but now it’s definitely gone too far – posting Precious & Few! The horror.