One-Hit Wonders?

[Antilocal123]

One-hit wonders are usually artists who have a single track that outshines their other works in both popularity and profit, and these guys are a plenty in the music scene.

Do you guys have a favourite one-hit wonder? Maybe one you believe doesn't deserve the label or one whose other music deserves a glance?

I know it’s such a basic and boring opinion, but Gotye has a decent catalogue deserving of a glance.

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

This one was just great:

 

[No-Bo-Dy]

 

[Antilocal123]

Incredible album too.

 

[Tonberry]

Always the first one that comes to mind for me:

I've had it on repeat my entire life.

 

[PhrawzT]

 

[RunicOrangejuice]

Video killed the Radio Star

 

[Octopus]

I guess they do have like one other hit song, but it's primarily this that they're known for.

Post automatically merged: Feb 18, 2025

Video killed the Radio Star

The fact that this is the first song/video ever played on MTV is hilarious irony.

 

[Strategist's icon Strategist Strategist]

I guess they do have like one other hit song, but it's primarily this that they're known for.

Post automatically merged: Feb 18, 2025

Nah, this song was a huge hit around 2001-2002. Probably even bigger than Kryptonite.

 

[Octopus]

Nah, this song was a huge hit around 2001-2002. Probably even bigger than Kryptonite.

Fair enough, maybe it's some personal bias; I love the chorus riff in Kryptonite.

Behold; the greatest one-hit wonder.

(I'm joking)

 

[Suicidepenguin]

Hi
This song was for a long time the main theme of the weather forecast on a Chilean television channel.

 

[Strategist's icon Strategist Strategist]

I had to google it because I don't have a clue what counts as a one hit wonder.

Mostly because of the video and the sweet falsetto.

 

[bjork]

They had more success elsewhere, but in the US, Haircut 100 could be considered a one-hit wonder. They also live in my head 24/7 because I'll just be minding my own business and my brain goes, "ay ya ya ya ya" for like an hour

 

[Dyne]

Even if he only had one real hit, this one is still the best.

 

[Strategist's icon Strategist Strategist]

Even if he only had one real hit, this one is still the best.

That one hit counts for a thousand.

 

[cjl8336]

 

[bjork]

Even if he only had one real hit, this one is still the best.

Together Forever was #1 as well in several regions, but same album

 

[Bonkers225]

PSY

Hi
This song was for a long time the main theme of the weather forecast on a Chilean television channel.

Huh? They had a number of hits from Absolute, Wood Beez, Word Girl and Perfect Way. The song you posted did worse than those aforementioned songs. They're in no way a one-hit wonder.

Anyways, my picks are

PSY - Gangnam Style
Christie - Yellow River
Ram Jam - Black Betty
OMC - How Bizarre
The Verve - Bittersweet Symphony

 

[Dyne]

Together Forever was #1 as well in several regions, but same album

This is true!

 

[Strategist's icon Strategist Strategist]

This is true!

Just a unique talent. Looks like Wally Beaver but with the voice of Barry White.

 

[Dyne]

Just a unique talent. Looks like Wally Beaver but with the voice of Barry White.

definitely not as deep as Barry White LOL
(but I get what you're saying)

 

[PaleFolklore]

I'm not really sure if at this point, she could really be considered a "one-hit wonder", but at least as far as the West is concerned, Mariya Takeuchi definitely blew up with "Plastic Love", there's no arguing that.

Crazy to think City Pop blew up as a genre around 40 years ago. There are still so many tracks that just sound so...fresh. Good production'll do that, I guess.

 

[Nidoking's iconNidoking]

Fun little story about this. Once "Song 2" by Blur was on and I mentioned to @Mr. Daddy that I thought it sounded like 2D from the Gorillaz. He didn't hear it, but I was so convinced... looked it up and it is him.

 

[Ian Naxieas]

Who the hell knows who Babylon Zoo was? Well at least one of you because it was just talked about yesterday, but still! Their 1996 song Spaceman was a pretty big hit, especially in the UK, but none of the other songs from The Boy with the X-Ray Eyes really made much of an impact. It's an okay album and has a few good tracks, but Spaceman is easily the highlight. Their second and final album, King Kong Groover, was a critical and commercial flop and I can see why, though I do like the song Hey Man. They broke up in 2000 and that's it for them. I think they might have been able to do some more good stuff if given the chance, but it was not to be.

Goodbye Horses by Q Lazzarus is actually a big favorite song of mine. If you heard it, it was probably from The Silence of the Lambs or one of the shows/movies that referenced/parodied it. So little of her music was actually released that you could just call her an "only song wonder" and she died in 2022 having not made any new music, which is a shame, because if Goodbye Horses was any indication, she had some good talent. There is apparently a documentary about her called "Goodbye Horses: The Many Lives of Q Lazzarus" that has a bunch of her unreleased music, which was also released as a CD, vinyl and digital download, so I'll have to give that a looksie sometime.