Favorite One-Hit Wonders of the AT40 Era

[Matt Cameron]

Just like to know what some of your favorite One-Hit Wonders of the AT40 Era are and why. For the sake of this topic, I'll define a One-Hit Wonder as an artist that placed exactly one song on American Top 40 for at least one week - not an artist known primarily for one hit (i.e. Tommy Tutone). Here's my short list:
-"Come On Eileen" by Dexy's Midnight Runners, 1983. Stopped Michael Jackson from having consecutive number one hits ("Billie Jean" and "Beat It"). Catchy as anything, still gets played to death 21+ years after its initial success.
-"Breaking Away" by Balance, 1981. An absolutely perfect example of early 80's pop music. Great vocal by Peppy Castro and a great hook.
-"Float On" by the Floaters, 1977. Corniest song ever to hit #2. And maybe the most irresistable.
-"Tighter, Tighter" by Alive & Kicking, 1970. Love the two lead vocalists' voices together. Tommy James later said he should've kept this song for himself.
-"Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-lot, 1992. If you know the words to only one rap song, chances are it's this one. One of the best songs of the 90's.
-"Video Killed the Radio Star" by the Buggles, 1979. When I hear the opening keyboard riff from this song on the radio, the knob goes up to 10.
-"Don't Disturb This Groove" by the System, 1987. Great lead vocal, great groove.
Chime in with your choices, guys.

[Hervard]

I second "Video Killed The Radio Star". One of those songs that always cheers me up when I hear it.

How about "Smoke From A Distant Fire" by the Sanford-Townsend Band? One of my favorite hits that I heard quite a lot on Sunny 101.5 in South Bend back in 1990 (even though the song was from the summer of 1977).

[WisEric]

I second "Come on Eileen" by Dexy's Midnight Runners. It always seems to get a crowd going at any 80's cover band shows.
This song is still played pretty often, on the two 80's stations here in Milwaukee.

[Deleted]

good grief! 2 80's stations?! Where was "I'm Too Sexy" on this list?!

[Matt Cameron]

Not one of my favorites, but to each his own. I like "Distant Fire", too. I can remember having that track on a K-tel compilation LP!! Couldn't beat K-tel and Ronco for bargain basement-priced comps!!

[JLBass]

My favorite one hit wonder is a song that probably none of you even remember(but I could be wrong):

Love You Like I Never Loved Before-John O'Bannion. Peaked at #24 on AT40 in April-May 1981. That song was being played when my girlfriend moved away and I missed her. Kind of a sappy type of song but I constantly listened to it all through the early 1980s.

John

[Jeffster]

Biz Markie, "Just A Friend"
Digital Underground "The Humpty Dance"
Geto Boys, "Mind Playing Tricks On Me"
Tasmin Archer, "Sleeping Satellite"
Joe Public, "Live And Learn"
Queensryche, "Silent Lucidity"
Jane Wiedlin, "Rush Hour"
The Lightning Seeds, "Pure"
Sheriff, "When I'm With You"
Jimmy Harnen & Synch, "Where Are You Now?"
Giant, "I'll See You In My Dreams"
Deon Estus, "Heaven Help Me"
Jeff Healy Band, "Angel Eyes"
Kix, "Don't Close Your Eyes"
Sybil, "Don't Make Me Over"
Steelheart, "I'll Never Let You Go"
Keedy, "Save Some Love"
Chesney Hawkes, "The One And Only"
Riff, "My Heart Is Failing Me"

ahh memories...

[Matt Cameron]

Forgot a couple:
-"More Than Just the Two Of Us" by Sneaker, 1981
-"You Don't Know" by Scarlett and Black, 1988
-"Digging Your Scene" by the Blow Monkeys, 1986
-"Hot Child in the City" by Nick Gilder, 1978
I think we've got a decent CD box set going here! Someone call Rhino! ;D

[nenad]

Here are the songs I didn't see on anyones lists, which I would put on my fav.list:

(definitly Don't disturb this groove )

Device - Hanging on the heartattack (only reached #35 in 1986, but it was a great one!)
Co*k Robin - When your heart is weak (didn't do so much in USA, but a huge hit in Europe & one of my absolute favorites)
Sly Fox - Let's go all the way
The Nylons - Kiss him goodbye
Boys Club - I remember holding you
Concrete Blonde - Joey (although I really like all of their other songs more...)

[not really sure how well these fit into AT40, but they were a great one-hit wonders on CT40]
Mishale - Andru Donalds
Fade into you - Mazzy Starr
Bizarre love triangle - Frenté

[Matt Cameron]

Great list, nenad! I want to add another I forgot from 1980, "Take Your Time (Do It Right)" by the S.O.S Band. Fantastic lead vocal!!

[mstgator]

JLBass said:

My favorite one hit wonder is a song that probably none of you even remember(but I could be wrong):

Love You Like I Never Loved Before-John O'Bannion. Peaked at #24 on AT40 in April-May 1981.

I definitely remember that song, and loved it (I think I still have an old tape from when I recorded it off a Jacksonville radio station back then... The Wave, maybe? Pretty sure there was a "V" in the call letters). Same tape, I've also got another favorite and forgotten One-Hit Wonder: "Just So Lonely" by Get Wet.

ETA: Did a search, and it was WAIV that I taped those from... man, hearing the voice of Smokin' Joe Hager again just washed a huge wave of nostalgia over me.

[Deleted]

mstgator said:

I definitely remember that song, and loved it (I think I still have an old tape from when I recorded it off a Jacksonville radio station back then... The Wave, maybe? Pretty sure there was a "V" in the call letters). Same tape, I've also got another favorite and forgotten One-Hit Wonder: "Just So Lonely" by Get Wet.

ETA: Did a search, and it was WAIV that I taped those from... man, hearing the voice of Smokin' Joe Hager again just washed a huge wave of nostalgia over me.

wow...another original Jacksonvillian, one more and we can become the AT40 Message Board version of the 4 Horsemen.

[mstgator]

Paul said:

wow...another original Jacksonvillian, one more and we can become the AT40 Message Board version of the 4 Horsemen.

Hehe... well, I never actually lived in Jacksonville (although my sister does now). But did grow up mostly around Gainesville (except for six years elsewhere in Florida), so my first taste of Top 40 radio on FM was out of Jax (WAIV and Y-103).

Incidentally, my curiosity sent me searching the web, where I found Smokin' Joe did a brief stint at WFLZ in Tampa (while they were an oldies station), which led me to an amazing site dedicated to the history of that station (and how it brought the legendary Q105 crashing to the ground). Airchecks galore: www.thepowerpig.com/

[Nickycd]

once of the above posts mentions two one hit onders that are wrong on the BB Hot 100 Both The Geto Boys and Digital Underground had hits peak at #40 Digital Underground With kiss You Back and Geto Boys with Six Feet Deep Witch samples Easy by the Commadores

some of my favorite one hit wonders are
1. Putting On The Ritz - Taco (I recently found a mint copy of the LP yes LP)
2 Put It In A Magazine - Sonny Charles
3 Hooked On Classics- Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
4 Theme From Chariots Of Fire - Vangelis
5. 19 - Paul Hardcastle
6 I Wanna be A Cowboy - Boys Don't Cry
7 Living In A Box - Living In A Box
8 Rappers Delight - Sugarhill Gang
10 Sugar Don't Bite - Sam Harris (first winer of star search with pre dated American Idol)
11 Tomarrow People - Ziggy Marley
12 Touch Of Gray - Grateful Dead (Hard To believe)
13 People Are Stil Having Sex - Latour
14 I.G.Y. - Donald f*gan (His Only Solo Hit)
15 Downtown - One 2 meny
16 She Blinded me With Science - thomas Dolby
17 Love Is On The Way - Seigan Kick
18 Angel Eyes - Steelheart
19 back In the Day - Ahmad
20 Whoomp (There It Is) - 95 South/Tag Team
21 New World Man - Rush (Also hard To believe)
22 All i need - Jack Wagner
23 Centipede - Rebbie jackson
24 Come out And Play - offspring
25 Jump Jive An Wail - Brian Setzer Orchestra (Great Only Solo Hit for leader of Stray Cats)
26 What is Love - Haddaway
27 Missing - Everything But The girl
28 Nobody Knows - Tony Rich Project
29 Axel F - Harold Faltermyer
30 Lilly Was Here - David A Stewart And Candy Dulfer
31 Save Tonigtht - Eagle Eye Cherry
32 Lullabye - Shawn Mulens
33 Angel baby -Angelica
34 Nu Nu - Lidell Townsell
35 Too blind To See it - kim Syms
36 Bitter Sweet Symphony - The Verve
37 Sex And Candy - Marcy Playground
38 Achy Breaky Heart - Billy Ray Cyrus
39 Lost In You - Garth brooks As Chris Gains (His O nly Pop Hit On The Hot 100)
40 Savannah Nights - Tom Johnston/So Wrong - Patrick Simmons (Two only solo hits for memebers of the great Doobie Brothers and on par with some of the best Doobies stuff.

There are more but these ae some of my favorites

[Karstens]

I was reading this post and it was amazing to find that someone listed a song that I was singing "out LOUD" early Saturday morning, 2 a.m. The most funny thing is that I haven't even heard this song in years. It just popped into my head.

John O'Banion's "Love You Like I Never Loved Before"

I guess, the toughest thing about making a list is what really is a one-hit wonder. If a song makes the Hot 100 but not the Top 40 or played by a local radio station in rotation, does that count as a hit?

For example, KCLD 104.7 was hot on "Falling In Love" by Balance & "Silver Mine" by Diesel. Yes, the days when PDs weren't so heavy into market research. Should their songs count?

Boney M's "Rivers Of Babylon" is a case of one Top 40 hit, 3 Hot 100 hits & mobile DJ pick "Rasputin'". Biil James of Canada says he plays "Rasputin'" all the time.

I remember students at local high school dances were requesting to hear "Jump On It" by Sir-A-Lot (maybe '95?). I even gave it a few spins a couple of months, so is "Baby Got Back" really a one-hit wonder?

Criteria is always tough.