(no subject)

[greghousesgf]

there was a conversation elsewhere online about one hit wonders and I thought I'd share a long list of ones I like a lot. This is in chronological order:

Earth Angel by the Penguins
Chantilly Lace by the Big Bopper
Sea Cruise by Frankie Ford
I Ran All The Way Home by the Impalas
Do You Love Me by the Contours
The Monster Mash by Bobby "Boris" Pickett
Pipeline by the Chantays
Wipeout by the Surfaris
most of the songs on the four Nuggets albums
96 Tears by ? and the Mysterions
For What It's Worth (Stop Children) by Buffalo Springfield
Green Tambourine by the Lemon Pipers
Inagaddadavida by Iron Butterfly
Classical Gas by Mason Williams
Mississippi Queen by Mountain
ooh Child by the Five Stairsteps
All Right Now by Free
One Toke Over the Line by Brewer & Shipley
City of New Orleans by Arlo Guthrie
Walk On the Wild Side by Lou Reed (he did about a zillion great songs but Top 40 wasn't really what Lou was about)
Play That Funky Music (White Boy) by Wild Cherry
Knock On Wood by Amii Stewart
I Don't Like Mondays by the Boomtown Rats
Whip It by Devo
Blinded Me with Science by Thomas Dolby
Electric Ave by Eddy Grant
Mexican Radio by Wall of Voodoo
One Night in Bangkok by Murray Head
You Spin Me Right Round by Dead or Alive
Black Velvet by Allanah Myles
Groove Is in the Heart by Deee-lite
Life is a Highway by Tom Cochrane (figures heavily in a fanfic I wrote)
Jump Around by House of Pain
Cantaloop Flip Fantasia by Us3
I'm Gonna Be 500 Miles by the Proclaimers
What's Up by 4 Non Blondes
I Know by Dionne Farris (also used in one of my fanfics)
Bitch by Meredith Brooks
Tubthumping by Chumbawamba
Mambo # 5 by Lou Bega

Comments

[zvezda9]

I wouldn't call Arlo Guthrie a one hit wonder, if only because that is not his most famous song. That said, I really love Willie Nelson's cover of "City of New Orleans."

[greghousesgf]

Alice's Restaurant has a cult following but it's about half an hour long so I don't think it was ever a single. In the late 60's and early 70's those sort of formats were more important than they are now.

[zvezda9]

I suppose I think of one hit wonders as someone who has only ever been known for one thing. Either way, "City of New Orleans" is a great song, and it always gets stuck in my head!

[wantedonvoyage]

Came here to say this. Arlo Guthrie is a prolific musician. He performs a lot of his father's songs, plus old Dylan and Pete Seeger tunes, but he also writes his own, most famously "Alice's Restaurant" as someone else noted but also "Motorcycle Song" etc. He sold out Carnegie Hall every Thanksgiving Saturday for 50 years.

Also he didn't write "City of New Orleans" ... it's a Steve Goodman song. I only associate it with him because I've seen him perform it live a number of times, but it's not the first song that comes to mind.

Murry Head I think is/was first and foremost an actor. That song is from Chess may favorite musical.

How about "Dream Weaver" by Gary Wright?

[zvezda9]

I knew it was a Steve Goodman song, but some people make covers more famous than the original. ("I Will Always Love You" might be a good example of that, although I still prefer the Dolly version.)

[wantedonvoyage]

That's definitely true. Did he actually record it? I have only heard Arlo and Willie Nelson.

[sparkythegeek]

I recognize almost all of these and highly approve. Haha.

[refuse2shine]

This is an excellent list of music. Alannah Myles has some other great songs from the same album as Black Velvet (Who Loves You is my personal favourite) but that was definitely her hit.

[warriorsavant]

Not big on discussing songs and music tastes (heck, it's all been downhill since Beethoven), but want to add "Radar Love" by Golden Earring.

[prowler_pilot]

I did Black Velvet in singing class, I suggested it to my teacher because it's a song I really like.
It was in the short list for my 2020 recital song before it all went to shit due to covid