I was being a bit obnoxious re Eminem, cav, I admit it.
Of course, one person's one hit wonder is another person's cult favorite...
hobitbob wrote:I see your "Safety Dance" and raise you "Come On Eileen" by Dexy's Midnight Runners,
AND "You Spin Me Right Round (Like a Record Baby)" by Dead or Alive!
"You Spin Me..." is being used in a TV commercial for some kind of floor cleaner (with spinning brushes)...
"Kiss Me" by 6p none the richer
"She's Not There" by...uh...was it ? and the Mysterians?
"October Country" by October Country
"Pushin' too Hard" by the Seeds
"I'm a Cranky Old Yank in a Clanky Old Tank on the Streets of Yokhama with My Honolulu Mama Gettin' Those Beat-o, Beat-o, Flat on My Seat-o Hirohito Blues" by Hoagy Carmichael
Hoagy Carmichael was hardly a "one-hit wonder"!
and "She's Not There" was by the Zombies -- again, not one-hit wonders...
"Signs" - The Five Man Electrical Band
Sixpense none the richer had another hit, just last year, Breathe Your Name. They're still recording, too, so don't count them out yet.
Also, Dead or Alive had another one, I can't recall the name off the top of my head. But it was off of the same album. One-hit/Two-hit wonder. . . not much difference, eh?
Mike Oldfield still puts out a lot of albums. Just to stations that no one listens to. I'm a big fan of Tubular Bells, but have no interest in listening to his other stuff.
What, no Toni Basil? "Oh, Mickey, you're so fine, you're so fine you blow my mind, Hey Mickey!"
I think a lot of these one hit wonders were doing other things, and said "Hey, wouldn't it be fun to do a record?" Obviously not other things like flipping burgers, but doing something else in the recording industry.
The guys that did "She Drives Me Crazy" (that one with the falsetto) and I think one other semi-hit were college students, did the recording for a laugh and didn't really see what the fuss was about...
Actually, if it's the song I'm thinking of, those were the Fine Young Cannibals. And they did a couple of good LPs. Roland Gift had a really good voice...
And a fine looking lad to boot.
Corrections and filling some blanks.....
Ah, a pedant's delight, this one .....
Baby It's You was by Reel To Reel (possibly misspelt)
- Depends on each person's definition of a OHW, but this trio of pretty
things from Canada had a minor followup hit with "Let's Get Back Together".
Boots Are Made For Walkin' by Nancy Sinatra
OHW ? What about her duet with Lee Hazelwood ?
(Not sure of title, possibly "I just wonder")
Those Were The Days was first a hit for Mary Hopkin (covered by many others)
Big Bopper had a few other hits.
I'd guess "Blueberry Hill" to be his biggest.
So Tough was by JOK, the great Johnny O'Keefe
, who was about as far from a OHW as is possible to be.
My Boomerang Won't Come Back
I had an idea that was by Frankie Davidson, but may be mistaken
Come On Eileen was not the only hit for Dexys.
They had a smaller hit prior with "Geno".
Yes, pity about Lynard Skynard having their only hit with
probably their least interesting song.
Unfortunately, they are long gone. Five of the members died
in a plane crash in the 70s.
David Essex had a bigger hit with his first international success,
"Gonna Make You A Star"
Mike Oldfield had a number of other hits, including
"Portsmouth" and "Five Miles Out"
Don't Worry, Be Happy by Bobby McFerrin
More one hit wonders
and here's a few from me.....
I was Kaiser Bill's Batman - Whistling Jack Smith
Good News Week - Hedgehoppers Anonymous (Jonathon E King)
Born To Be Alive - Patrick Hernandez
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood - Santa Esmarelda
The Disco Fling - Simon Mac Nette
More corrections
Sorry guys gals and others, I hadn't quite worked out the system when
I posted the first message i.e. that there was more than one page.
Kim Wilde had several more hits e.g. "Cambodia", "View From A Bridge"
... and I remember the lyric as "New York to East California", though
may stand corrected.
Sammy Fox had at least one other hit, but I've succeeded in forgetting
the title(s). Hooray !
Carl Perkins wrote a number of songs. He wrote the terrific
"Boppin The Blues", which was a huge (and OHW) for Aus group
Blackfeather.
The Knack had a couple of followup hits from the same album,
including "Good Girls Don't" and "Heartbeat"
and a couple more for the list
I Will Return - Springwater
Black Is Black - Belle Epoque (original by Los Bravos)
and the greaetst.....
Hell, how could I forget this one .....
The Message - Grandmaster Flash And The Furious Five.
What is it with the Master ? The guy invents rap (and arguably hip-hop and a few other derivatives),
with a stunning effort, then vanishes, leaving the field open to every other
incompetent who's tried (and failed) to rap ever since !
I know the guy is still around and active. Did he despise success or something ?!
Good News Week--I loved that song! Thanks for the reminder, Sharptongue. And you're right about Dexy's--they were a big deal in the UK for a while, but only known in the US (barely) for that one song. I dug their first album, "Searching for the Young Soul Rebels".
Can't touch this - MC Hammer...I know there were others but this was his biggest one...Kinda like Vanilla Ice.
And who could forget Chumbawamba. They had one cd out in the states which was amazingly popular and then they just stopped making cds for the states.
What makes this thread interesting is that a band that was a one-hot wonder in the US may very well have had a real career in the UK. And the converse is also true. Dexy's is one example, and so may be Chumbawamba, though someone from the UK would have to answer that...
