Which one-hit wonders actually have great songs and deserved more credit?

Submitted by Ok_World_8819 t3_125z0cs in Music

Semisonic is a great band with better songs than Closing Time. My favorite is definitely Chemistry.

Not technically a one-hit wonder (they had other pop hits) but for some reason people don't seem to remember Third Eye Blind past Semi-Charmed Life, maybe Jumper but that's about it. Songs like Graduate, Motorcycle Drive By and Anything are better than those two.

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BreadPanda92 t1_je6n872 wrote

Some people label Jimmy Eat World as a one hit wonder even though they have three S-tier albums and a LOT of great songs.

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Notinyourbushes t1_je6ohfv wrote

The Vapors
Dada
Superdrag
Drivin' n' Cryin'
Hum
Slobberbone

All not only have other great songs but usually at least two or three amazing albums that deserved way more attention than they got.

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Airwolf_BDTW t1_je6p5kg wrote

That debut Third Eye Blind album is incredible. There are so many just excellent, infectious, and perfectly-crafted "alterna-pop" songs on that album.

In terms of your question, I can think of two 80s synth-pop/New Wave acts that are thought of as one hit wonders that actually have a bunch of great songs: Talk Talk (It's My Life) and A Flock of Seagulls (I Ran - So Far Away).

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hilgi t1_je6qy1b wrote

Devo.

Only "Whip it" made the top 40.

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VlaxDrek t1_je6s4lz wrote

Peter Schilling is a synth-pop guy who had a massive world-wide hit in 1982 with a song called "Major Tom (Coming Home)" which lyrically owed a fair bit to Bowie's "Space Odyssey". It was huge here in Canada, as was the album Error in the System. The song was a hit in the U.S. as well, hitting #14.

I thought the album as a whole was outstanding, and it's follow-up "Things to Come", but on the latter point I appear to be the only person in North America who had that opinion. I'm not sure that anyone other than myself actually bought a copy....+

In the U.S., The Tragically Hip are a band that is probably considered a no-hit wonder. They had a couple of songs chart on the Mainstream Rock charts, but they are a truly legendary band here in Canada. Songs like "Ahead by a Century", "Bobcaygeon", "New Orleans is Sinking", "Little Bones" and many more have been staples of Canadian rock radio for decades. Look them up on Youtube and give them a listen.

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UncontrolableUrge t1_je6sosn wrote

Men Without Hats made the US Top 40 twice, but few people know what the second song was. They did a lot of good music, especially their first three (Folk of the 80s/Rhythm of Youth/Folk of the 80s Part III)

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Ok-Impress-2222 t1_je6u7i6 wrote

The Verve.

If you haven't heard "The Drugs Don't Work", go listen to it right now.

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lowfreq33 t1_je6ucy0 wrote

Sophie B Hawkins had a HUGE hit with Damn I Wish I was Your Lover, and then just nothing. A big part of it was her coming out as bisexual during an interview, which most people didn’t really care about, but the label got cold feet and pretty much just left her hanging. She’s still around, but I think she’s independent of any record label at this point.

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sorengray t1_je6utqa wrote

Thin Lizzy. "The boys are back in town" is a tiny slice of how great a band they are, and not at all their best song.

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Bluemeadey61 t1_je6vgav wrote

Actually Secret Smile was the first one I liked … Closing Time was great though

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cynical_genx_man t1_je6vxsq wrote

Well, I'm not sure if they fit the "One Hit Wonder" definition, but I'd rate the Boomtown Rats as a band that deserves a lot more attention than they got.

Other than "(Tell me why) I Don't Like Mondays" they didn't have any so-called hits (that I can recall). But the entirety of The Fine Art of Surfacing is filled with gems. In fact, their first three albums are awesome.

I suppose I could add both The Plimsouls and Dramarama to this list as well.

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Devadander t1_je6vzn7 wrote

Blind Melon. Known for the bumblebee girl song, but the rest of their album is so much better than that one. Just not as ‘pop’

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AgentFlatweed t1_je6wahr wrote

I refuse to call them a OHW (they had songs that charted and even reached #1 on the rock charts, just not the Hot 100), but Blind Melon were an excellent rock band of their era taken from us too soon.

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icanucan t1_je6wr3e wrote

Stating the obvious, Push 'em Daisies is not representative of Ween's massive body of work. It might even be their worst song?

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Ok-Pressure-3879 t1_je6xhqr wrote

VAST had Touched as their only real hit that registered but have a really solid discography.

Smoking Popes is another although technically maybe they had 2 hits?

David Gray had Babylon as his big hit but put out some amazing work. (That might be a US thing as he is probably more popular everywhere else)

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Jackattack736 t1_je6ykgs wrote

Replying to UncontrolableUrge (#2,460,292)

It's usually more rare for a One Hit Wonder to be a true One Hit Wonder. Usually there's at least one, lesser remembered hit due to momentum of the main hit or earlier success. On YouTube Todd in the Shadows has a great series called One Hit Wonderland, exploring the histories of the people behind One Hit Wonders and there usually is a modest amount of success either before or after the big one.

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WorkInPr0g t1_je7ao8u wrote

Berlin. They're way more than "Take My Breath Away".

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BrazilianAtlantis t1_je7bx1f wrote

Wall Of Voodoo, The Blues Magoos, The Standells, The Music Machine, Lou Reed, The Dream Academy

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simmypom t1_je7g0ws wrote

L.A. Guns is way better than Ballad of Jayne

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reesesbigcup t1_je7l4q3 wrote

Blue Oyster Cult, a 2 hit wonder with Dont Fear the Reaper and Burning For You. Many other great songs on their albums, the latest released in 2021.

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17miab t1_je871gh wrote

Fastball. The Way was a big hit but the whole album "All The Pain Money Can Buy" is good all the way through

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kmill0202 t1_je8q611 wrote

Replying to MDS1138 (#2,465,165)

Their big hit, 'Popular', was a little before my time. But I picked up the album High/Low at a thrift shop on a whim sometime around 2008. I enjoyed the entire album and immediately checked out the rest of their discography. I'm a big fan. 'Popular' is fine, I like the sarcasm and progressively manic delivery of the lines. But they have better songs and a much bigger discography.

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buzzkill007 t1_je8vx6d wrote

Warren Zevon is way more than that Werewolf song!

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sharksnut t1_je95bvg wrote

"Rupert Holmes" (David Goldstein) had a hit for himself with "Escape" (the Pina Colada song) plus wrote "Timothy" for The Buoys

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terryjuicelawson t1_je95c43 wrote

The Boo Radleys are mostly known for Wake Up Boo but they have such depth to their music, some excellent shoegaze early on, experimental weirdness in Giant Steps, bittersweet pop in Kingsize.

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nickthetasmaniac t1_je9fddv wrote

Spiderbait and Gotye were two Aus artists that both had great discographies but seem to get written off as one-hit-wonders overseas.

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CrossbarTandem t1_je9kruw wrote

Information Society is mainly remembered for "What's on your Mind" in the 80s, but they still release the occasional album and have a bunch of other great stuff if you're into synthpop.

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BlitheringEediot t1_je9ol7d wrote

Toni Basil - "Mickey" (nobody remembers "Shopping From A to Z").

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