Interestesting List of "One-hit Wonders"

The site doesn't seem to agree with my computer - froze at Jimi. Which is as well, because I can't stomach Jimi being labelled a one-hit wonder. ;)
 
I remember reading a similar list a while ago though - of genuine one hit wonders and, also quite interesting, a list of chart toppers who'd filled for bankruptcy, among which, the Goo-Goo Dolls.
 
Hard to conceive that you be left w/o a penny after writing a hit like Iris...

I cannot hear "one hit wonder" without thinking of this....
 

dubdisciple
Regarding the latter part of your post, i actually understand it since it happens so often.  look at people like Croce and the all the many other great songwriters/performers who died broke.  Most music contracts suck and have mostfly been heavily favored towards the label.  fortunately Croce's widow, i believe, was able to recoup income after his passing.

Yup, that I'm a bit familiar with and I can see exactly how it happens. When an artist makes millions, usually it's because others have already made a fortune on his/her back. 
 
At first sight, it just seem incredibly "unfair", as reluctant as I am to dabble with the concept of "fairness", especially when something involves $.

 

Rain

dubdisciple
Regarding the latter part of your post, i actually understand it since it happens so often.  look at people like Croce and the all the many other great songwriters/performers who died broke.  Most music contracts suck and have mostfly been heavily favored towards the label.  fortunately Croce's widow, i believe, was able to recoup income after his passing.

Yup, that I'm a bit familiar with and I can see exactly how it happens. When an artist makes millions, usually it's because others have already made a fortune on his/her back. 
 
At first sight, it just seem incredibly "unfair", as reluctant as I am to dabble with the concept of "fairness", especially when something involves $.

 
it is terribly sad but i have watched the progression a few times firsthand.  Obviously not on that level.  When an artists goes from performing at coffee houses and dive bars for beer money to that first advance it seems awesome.  having YOUR record on the radio and fans cheering for you it seems great but sooner or later tha tcontract seems awful when you realize that the percentage that looked so great when you were makming peanuts does not look so great when you are selling millions of records.  Since the average pop star fizzles within 7 years there is not time to sign a better contract when the initial crappy one expires.  the artists that  sign the meg-adeals with guaranteed figures of megamillions like the madonnas, beyonce, marish careys of the world either bucked the odds and had longer careers than typical or had a contract expiring when they were actually increasing in popularity and able to call their own shots.  Even the veteran bands from the classic rock error made exponentially more from huge tours built off of loyal  baby boomer fans than they did off the record sales of their early hits. the changing distribution methods may help improve these things, but for now, trust me when i say many of these rappers driving maybachs and bragging about money are broke!! Even that jewelry is purchased on advance money tha twill be sucked up by record label out of what little cut they actually get from sales.

I love one hit wonders. And I love lists like these even more. Most folks...including my ownself..."mis-remember" that many of their favorites never did that well on the charts.

But I still think Randy's "I Love LA" cracked the top forty as well.

Wrong...of course...only 110.

Does a remake/cover qualify as a hit?
 
Really?

bapu
Does a remake/cover qualify as a hit?
 
Really?

Yes, if it charts properly.  in fact some of the biggest hits in music history were covers. I think the average person remembers marvin gaye's version of "heard it through the grape vine " more than original.  I don't think anyoen but the avid Prince fan knew 'Nothing Compares 2 U" before Sinead O'connor (another one hit wonder) made it a hit.

I would say that those aren't one hit wonders by any commonly accepted definition.
 
And I don't find anything particularly surprising that artists whose genre wasn't pop music/singles wouldn't regularly show up on the pop singles charts.
 
So the whole thing is a contrivance. Move along.