Mt. Rainier and Lenticular Clouds - Dec. 2008 copyright: JMM

May 13, 2007

One Hit Wonders

This afternoon I got sucked into VH-1's "Top 100 One-Hit Wonders". I think they are moving into hour 4 or 5 right now. But what kind of cracked me up is that nearly every song that they showed, I said out loud to Brian, "I have that album," or "I have that 45", or "We have that CD". I got to see and hear some of my fave rave tunes of all time, including "Bittersweet Symphony" by the Verve, "Turning Japanese" by the Vapors which will ALWAYS remind me of Holly who taped it off the radio in 1980 and played it for me....and I always had the big time hots for lead singer David Fenton. Oh, and who could forget coming in at #25, "Too Shy" by Kajagoogoo who I absolutely adored in the mid-80's. The bass player, Nick Beggs, even had the courtesy and kindness to handwrite responses to my gushing fan letters. I got 3 letters from him. Then in 1995 when they did a "where are they now" thing on VH-1, I wrote to Nick again, and he wrote back and sent me a picture.

Here is a list of One-Hit Wonders from the 1960's, 1970's & 1980's that I would have also included, had I been running the show. I'm not sure what the criteria was to be a "hit", i.e., top 100, top 75, top 40 or top 20, because some of my picks probably didn't even make the top 100, but they were played on the radio or had their videos on MTV, and for a time, were somewhat popular. This list has been culled from my stash of vinyl albums and 45's:

After the Fire - Der Kommissar
Animotion - Obsession
Baltimora - Tarzan Boy
Blackbyrds - Walkin' in Rhythm
Blue Swede - Hooked on a Feeling
Blow Monkeys - Digging Your Scene
Boys Don't Cry - I wanna be a Cowboy
Bronski Beat - Smalltown Boy
Brothers Johnson - Strawberry Letter 23
Cock Robin - When Your Heart is Weak
Julian Cope - World Shut Your Mouth (former lead singer of The Teardrop Explodes)
Cyrkle - Red Rubber Ball
Diesel - Sausalito Summer Nights
Double - Captain of her Heart
Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band - Cherchez Le Femme
Dream Academy - Life in a Northern Town
Edison Lighthouse - Love Goes Where My Rosemary Goes
Eurogliders - Heaven
The Firm - Radioactive
First Class - Beach Baby
Five Man Electrical Band - Signs
Flash & the Pan - Hey St. Peter
General Public - Tenderness (former members of The English Beat)
Georgia Satelites - Keep Your Hands to Yourself
Go West - Call Me
Paul Hardcastle - 19
Murray Head - One Night in Bankok
Hipsway - The Honeythief
HooDoo Gurus - I Want You Back
Icicle Works - Whisper to a Scream
Industry - State of the Nation
Donnie Iris - Ah Leah!
It's a Beautiful Day - White Bird
Jigsaw - Sky High
JoBoxers - Just Got Lucky
Korgis - Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime
Lemon Pipers - Green Tambourine
Level 42 - Something About You
The Look - I am the Beat
Love & Rockets - So Alive
LTD - Back in Love Again
Major Harris - Love Won't Let Me Wait
Gwen McCrae - Rockin' Chair
Scott McKenzie - San Francisco
Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes - Bad Luck
Allison Moyet - Love Resurrection (former lead singer of Yaz)
New England - Don't Ever Wanna Lose Ya
Oxo - Whirly Girl
Ozark Mountain Daredevils - Jackie Blue
Partland Brothers - Soul City
Pilot - Magic
Records - Starry Eyes
Reunion - Life Is a Rock But the Radio Rolled Me
Rock & Hyde - Dirty Water (not a remake of the Standell's song from the 60's)
Roman Holliday - Stand By
Peter Schilling - Major Tom
Scritti Politti - Perfect Way
Feargal Sharkey - A Good Heart (former lead singer of The Undertones)
Shirley & Company - Shame Shame Shame
Small Faces - Itchycoo Park
Sniff & the Tears - Drivers Seat
Split Enz - I Got You
Steam - Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye
Talk Talk - It's My Life
R. Dean Taylor - Indiana Wants Me
Ali Thomson - Take a Little Rhythm
Thunderclap Newman - Something in the Air
Johnny Wakelin & His Kinshasa Band - Muhummad Ali
Matthew Wilder - Break My Stride
Yello - Oh Yeah (best known from "Ferris Buehler's Day Off")

11 comments:

  1. It's a Beautiful Day - White Bird

    A favorite. Went to see IABD this past June at the Ranco Nicasio.

    Talked to David at length after the show. Great people.

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  2. That list is like revisiting old friends... :-)

    Alison Moyet is still singing,last thing I know she did was appear in "Chicago" in the West End.Have you heard her sing "Mr Blue"? It's one of my favourites and gets put on repeat on my mp3 a lot.

    Eliza xxxxx

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  3. After the Fire - Der Kommissar
    I like the English version better.

    Animotion - Obsession
    I always loved this song!

    Baltimora - Tarzan Boy
    He dies,poor thing...made me very sad.


    Boys Don't Cry - I wanna be a Cowboy
    Makes me laugh...

    Bronski Beat - Smalltown Boy
    Because Jimmy is a countertenor we have lots of BB and JS as well,although my favorite countertenor is Bejun Mehta....he is HOT!

    Brothers Johnson - Strawberry Letter 23
    That reminds me of being VERY young.I loved it VERY much and it always reminds me of my favorite uncle.I don't know why,it just does.


    Dream Academy - Life in a Northern Town
    This song makes me VERY sad.Reminds me of time in ND with my sister,it was tough for her,her first hubby as an SOB of the highest rank and this reminds me of how sad she was.

    The Firm - Radioactive

    JIMMY!!!!!

    Georgia Satelites - Keep Your Hands to Yourself
    My god,more Southern than me.Reminds me of my own roots.


    Murray Head - One Night in Bankok
    My god how I LOVED this song.I always liked the exotic....even if it was pop about chess.


    Icicle Works - Whisper to a Scream
    Reminds me of my sister again.She and my brother had lots of IW,though it again,makes me sad,because it feels dated enough to just remind me of time I can't get back.


    Level 42 - Something About You
    L42 is an AWESOME band,well work anyone's time,very jazz pop.


    Love & Rockets - So Alive
    L&R ROCKS!highly underrated.

    Gwen McCrae - Rockin' Chair
    Sexy song,I always liked it.
    Allison Moyet - Love Resurrection (former lead singer of Yaz)
    You KNOW I know Yazoo!!Vince Clarke second band....the man knows how to create AMAZING music!



    Peter Schilling - Major Tom
    For a long time this song creeped me out,the idea of dying alone in space was just too much,as is Bowie's "Space Oddity".Now,I can handle Schilling but still not the Bowie.

    Scritti Politti - Perfect Way
    Reminds me of that "Short Circuit" film.



    Matthew Wilder - Break My Stride
    Damn song drove me nuts!

    Yello - Oh Yeah (best known from "Ferris Buehler's Day Off")
    Matthew B. is all I ever see when I think of this,cute as pie.I couldn't decide who I had the biggest crush on him or Cameron.I am more like Cameron but Ferris is just...cool.

    I watched the show too...I DVR-ed the last two hours.Some I watched and screamed "They were NOT one hit wonders!"

    I loved Faith No More and they had other hits after the one on the countdown!

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  4. wow! that's quite a collection you got there! that's fun stuff, i luv revisiting old songs like that, brings back so many memories....great post joj;)

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  5. 'Life Is A Rock But The Radio Rolled Me'....What a hoot!

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  6. Tess - Even if I knew all the words, I don't think I could ever sing it that fast.

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  7. Anonymous8:54 PM

    julie...

    wahoo-quite a list there JoJo. I have the Vapors' Turning Japanese 45 too.

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  8. mmmh, to be honest i don't know most of the songs by reading their titles. i guess i have to hear them to remember. but i do know the first song "der kommissar". is that the same song as sung by falco? early 80's, austrian singer? i suppose that he was the original, but he also could have covered someone else. guess that's more unlikely.

    but i got one more really cheesy 80's song: patrick swayze - she's like the wind. don't know if it ever made it to nr 1 though. but everytime that song is on the radio i have to scream: "Ohhhh, Patrick Swayze sings!" ;D
    but i guess the top100 list would look different in germany anyway ;)

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  9. Actually Tamara, "She's like the wind" made it to VH-1's Top 100 "one hit wonder" countdown! So did "99 luftballons".

    Yes, I believe Falco did "Der Kommissar" first, but they played the After the Fire version on the radio here. Falco scored a hit with "Rock me Amadeus" over here, which was also on the one hit wonder show.

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  10. here the most voted one hit wonder is Rick Astley...

    I think the only one I knew is Alison Moyet; as eliza says, still going strong here I believe.

    what an amazing and eclectic mix of music you collect... wow

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  11. oh i watched that show as i was gettin my hair braided. i may be a youngin but a i recognized a majority of those songs :)

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