Open Culture:
So Consequence of Sound has posted a list of The 100 Best One-Hit Wonder Songs, and before we dive in, we should point out that they’ve really tried to do their best in the face of history.
If American chart success is a judge, the CoS writers says, Beck would be a one-hit-wonder along with Radiohead. No, what we’re really gunning for are artists who really only have one bona fide hit to their name, and afterwards pretty much disappeared into the ether.
Great playlist but I’d disagree with categorizing some of these bands as “one hit wonders”. While they may not be as good as their one song inclusions on this list, some had long and successful careers.
I don’t know if they’re following it, but there’s a definition of one hit wonders that really does leave some great bands on the wrong side of the line. It doesn’t mean they weren’t great, it just means they didn’t catch on very well. Bands like A-ha, The Buggles… the industry seems really good at forgetting people.
(I have to admit I haven’t tried the playlist yet. I will later, but I’m in an open office at the moment.)
I could not fine a link but did find the playlist in Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/user/cabal76/playlist/22n99E7NoliWEskUJXJJHM?si=VmrcpRIFQ4awI3-4kjJsag
So they have heard of In A Big Country but not Fields of Fire or Chance?
And A Flock of Seagulls without mentioning Photograph of You (or “A Bunch of Turkeys” as NME was wont to call them)?
The Church? I don’t think so.
Look, King, “Jesus Was Way Cool” just wasn’t a hit for King Missile, okay?
(Equally I can’t think of a Second Hit from any one of those bands, even the ones I really like.
A one hit wonder does not preclude a “long and successful career”. It just means they never had another stint of mass popularity or another hit song.)
“Heard of” doesn’t matter. Charts do.
Billboard says Fields of Fire peaked at #52. That’s “not a hit”.
But number 10 in the UK (better than In A Big Country). Chance peaked at No 9 in the UK. Look Away (not referred to in the article)was no 5 in the US, no 1 in Ireland and no 7 in the UK. There is no credible definition(one hit then vanished without a trace) by which Big Country were one, or even two, hit wonders on the articles own terms. Pro tip: “Heard of” means “Having written themselves a really flexible rule book, they didn’t finish their research.”