Side projects/supergroups charting higher than original acts

[jlthorpe]

While out shopping today, I heard the song "Sea of Love" by the Honeydrippers and I came to realize that that song had charted higher on the Hot 100 (#3) than members Robert Plant and Jimmy Page did with Led Zeppelin ("Whole Lotta Love" was #4). I also heard "Only Time Will Tell" by Asia, and realized that their song "Heat of the Moment" (#4) charted higher than Carl Palmer's previous act Emerson, Lake and Palmer ("From the Beginning" reached #39). And then there's the biggest supergroup of all in terms of star power, USA for Africa, where several members (Bruce Springsteen, Bob Dylan, and Steve Perry, among others) hit #1 as part of that group when they never hit #1 otherwise. It's interesting that these less famous and, in some cases, temporary groups did better on the charts than the groups/individual members which are much more famous.

[Mike]

Bad English.

While John Waite had already hit #1 solo, that didn't happen when he was with his previous bandmate Jonathan Cain in The Babys (whose best showing was #13 for "Isn't it Time" and "Every Time I Think of You"), and the same applies to Ricky Phillips. Nor did it happen with Cain or Neal Schon in Journey ("Open Arms" stopped at #2).

Deen Castronovo didn't chart with a band until Bad English, I don't think - not on the Hot 100 anyway.


d**n Yankees, for Jack Blades of Night Ranger and Ted Nugent. "High Enough" went to #3, while NR's best showing was the #5 "Sister Christian". As for Ted - it looks like his best previous showing was #16 with the Amboy Dukes (1968's "Journey to the Center of the Mind").

For Tommy Shaw, this doesn't work since Styx had the #1 "Babe", and for Michael Cartellone this was his first outing.

[dth1971]

Do one time benefit groups Band Aid, USA for Africa, Artists United Against Aparthied, West Coast Rap All Stars, and Voices that Care count?

[jlthorpe]

Yep, my original post mentioned USA for Africa. The other acts you mentioned will include some examples.

[Mike]

I'm not sure if I'd call them "supergroups", but it's hard not to think of benefit one-off projects such as those as "side projects", even if that's not necessarily the standard vernacular.

A more-commonly-used "side project" would be Mike & The Mechanics as it compares to the "original band" for its founder Mike Rutherford - that being Genesis. (Wiki seems to also consider them a "supergroup", but it's commonly-accepted that the Mechanics were a side project, yes?) But since both bands hit #1, he doesn't count for this. Paul Carrack I'm not sure would qualify either, only because...he sang for two other bands as well (Ace and Squeeze) in addition to solo - so, how do we really parse what qualifies as a "side project" for him and what doesn't? It'd be easier if he just had his solo career to compare to.

There is one MATM member who would qualify, however - Paul Young (not the solo singer). Young concurrently sang for Sad Cafe, whose two Hot 100 appearances never got out of the 70s. Just one of the Mechanics' Top 40 hits is enough to do it for him.

Neither of the other two 80s Mechanics (Peter Van Hooke, Adrian Lee) charted Stateside outside of them.

[freakyflybry]

Gorillaz.

Damon Albarn's original band, Blur, barely made a dent on top 40 radio ("Girls & Boys" barely made R&R's top 40, which was used for Casey's Top 40... not sure if it made AT40 in Shadoe's run), but this animated side project had bigger success.

[Mike]

Mar 6, 2021 23:28:22 GMT -5 freakyflybry said:

("Girls & Boys" barely made R&R's top 40, which was used for Casey's Top 40... not sure if it made AT40 in Shadoe's run)

Even more barely - a single week at #40.

[pb]

Foreigner. Mick Jones had been in Spooky Tooth, Lou Gramm in Black Sheep and original member Ian McDonald in King Crimson, but none of the bands had AT40 success.

[dth1971]

Mar 6, 2021 21:15:44 GMT -5 jlthorpe said:

Yep, my original post mentioned USA for Africa. The other acts you mentioned will include some examples.

Sorry, I didn't notice...