The Top 500 One-Hit Wonders of the Rock Era Revisited: #230-221

Glad you've joined us!  We're ready to present 10 more memorable songs.

This is a section of many of the great instrumentals on The One-Hit Wonders*:

    #230:  Chantays--"Pipeline"       

When high school friends Bob Spickard  and Brian Carman (guitars), drummer Bob Welch, bassist Warren Waters and pianist Rob Marshall decided to start their own band, the Chantays were born.  The five were all students at Santa Ana High School in California.

Just one year later, the Chantays recorded and released "Pipeline", which peaked at #4 in the United States and #16 in the U.K. and became one of The Top 100 Instrumentals of the Rock Era*.  "Pipeline" has been covered by many artists and has been featured in many movies, commercials, television programs and on numerous compilation albums.  The group recorded their debut album Pipeline, followed by Two Sides of The Chantays in 1964.  

The Chantays toured the United States and Japan and were the only rock and roll band to perform on The Lawrence Welk Show.  The group were honored with a star on the Hollywood Rock Walk and are included in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio.  "Pipeline" is listed as one of the 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

The Chantays have four albums and eight singles to their credit.

We're up to the artist who gave us this memorable song of the 60's:

    

#229:  J. Frank Wilson & the--"Last Kiss"  Cavaliers              

Guitarist Sid Holmes, bassist Lewis Elliott, saxophonist Rob Zeller, drummer Ray Smith and lead singer Alton Bair formed the Cavaliers in 1955.  Baird was drafted into the United States military shortly afterwards so the group brought in J. Frank Wilson in 1962.

The group hired Sonley Roush as their manager, who brought them a Wayne Cochran song called "Last Kiss".  The song that wouldn't say "quit" was first released on LeCam Records, then on Tamara, before finally becoming a hit in 1964 on Josie Records.  The song was a #2 smash and sold over one million copies.

In the ultimate tragic irony, while driving in Ohio later that year, Roush fell asleep and died in a head-on collision with another car.  J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers recorded other songs, but the next best they could do was #85 with "Hey Little One".

This artist paid his dues, then cashed in for a big hit in 1972:

  

#228:  Billy Paul--"Me And Mrs. Jones" 

Paul began singing at age twelve on local radio shows in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He attended Temple University, West Philadelphia Music School and Granoff School of Music for formal vocal training.

Billy attracted a following on the underground music circuit, which led to appearances in clubs and college campuses across the United States.  Soon, Paul was opening for artists such as Roberta Flack, Sammy Davis, Jr., Miles Davis, Dinah Washington and the Impressions.

Paul formed a trio and recorded "Why Am I" on Jubilee Records before being drafted into the Armed Forces.  Following his discharge, Paul was a temporary member of the Blue Notes with Harold Melvin.  Paul released the albums Feeling Good at the Cadillac Club, Ebony Woman and Going East.

But it was his 1972 album 360 Degrees of Billy Paul that struck paydirt.  The lead single was "Me and Mrs. Jones", which reached #1 in the United States and #12 in the U.K., sold over two million copies and won a Grammy Award.

Paul toured internationally and released 13 career albums, but was never able to provide a follow-up hit.

At #227, the group that gave us one of the instrumental smashes of the Rock Era:

   

#227: Tornadoes--"Telstar"  

The Tornadoes were the backing group for many of producer Joe Meek's productions and for singer Billy Fury.  Rhythm guitarist George Bellamy, bassist Heinz Burt, lead guitarist Alan Caddy, drummer Clem Cattini and Roger Lavern on keyboards formed the Tornadoes.  Ray Randall played bass after Burt left the group.  

The group released their first single, "Telstar", in 1962.  It not only reached #1 for three weeks but became one of The Top 100 Instrumentals of the Rock Era*.

The group's single "Globetrotter" made it to #5 in the U.K. but once the Beatles arrived on the scene and changed music forever, instrumentals were not as popular as they once were.  By 1965, the group fell apart.

Bellamy is the father of Matthew Bellamy, lead singer of Muse.  The Tornadoes released 14 singles in their career.   

Hard to believe that this many talented artists had just one big hit but for those of you who have never tried, it takes a monumental amount of work, talent, and luck just to get as far as these 500 artists.  We began at the first of the month, presenting 10 artists per day, and we're now up to #226 in The Top 500 One-Hit Wonders*:

Up  next, an artist who reminds us...are the record companies really more of a problem than they're worth:

    

#226:  Steve Forbert--"Romeo's Tune"  

Forbert signed a recording contract with Nemperor Records in 1978 and released his debut album Alive on Arrival.  In 1979, he released the album Jackrabbit Slim.  Forbert released the single "Romeo's Tune", which earned the #11 position in the United States.

In 1984, Forbert had problems with his record company, which not only prevented his next album from being released, but also prevented Steve from recording for several years.  He eventually signed with Geffen Records and released the 1988 album Streets of This Town.  But the momentum was gone.

Forbert continued to record, and in 2004, he was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk for his album Any Old Time.

Just ahead of Forbert, a rock veteran who scored a big solo hit in 1979:

   

#225:  Nick Lowe--"Cruel To Be Kind"

Lowe went to Woodbridge School in Suffolk, England.  He began his musical career in 1967, when he joined the group Kippington Lodge with his friend Brinsley Schwarz.  The group released a few singles on Parlophone Records before renaming the band Brinsley Schwarz in 1969.

Lowe played guitar, bass, piano, harmonica and sang lead vocals for the group until 1975.  He then joined Dave Edmunds in the group Rockpile and released the single "So It Goes" on Stiff Records, where Nick was the in-house producer.  Lowe continued to produce albums for Stiff and other labels, and co-wrote "Milk and Alcohol" for Dr. Feelgood, which reached the Top 10 in the U.K.  

Since Lowe and Edmunds had recording contracts with different record labels, Rockpile albums were credited to either Lowe or Edmunds.  These included Lowe's Labour of Lust and Edmunds' Repeat When Necessary, which were in essence albums by Rockpile.

In 1978, Lowe released the single "I Love The Sound Of Breaking Glass", which hit #7 in the U.K. but was unable to break through in any other country.  

"Cruel To Be Kind" was co-written with Iam Gomm and originally recorded when Lowe was with Brinsley Schwarz.  The song was re-recorded and included on the album Labour of Lust.  After being released as a single, "Cruel To Be Kind" hit #12 in the United States, the U.K., Canada and Australia.

After Rockpile split, Lowe toured with his band Noise To Go and later with The Cowboy Outfit, which included keyboard player Paul Carrack.  In 1992, Lowe's song "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" was covered by Boise, Idaho's Curtis Stigers on the huge-selling soundtrack album to The Bodyguard.

Lowe wrote songs for Carrack, Edmunds, Elvis Costello, Dr. Feelgood, and his father-in-law, Johnny Cash and produced many artists, including the Fabulous Thunderbirds.  Lowe released 13 albums and 24 singles in his career.  

Other sites ridicule the One-Hit Wonders (as if they could ever do better!)  We praise the tremendous talent of them, such as this singer:

   

#224:  Chi Coltrane--"Thunder And Lightning"

Chi Coltrane was born in Racine, Wisconsin and played several instruments as a child.  She gave her first piano recital at age 12.  In 1970, Chi played jazz, funk and rock in local Chicago clubs and bars.  In 1971, she represented the United States at the International Rock Festival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.  She appeared on The Midnight Special and The Tonight Show on television.

Coltrane released the single "Thunder And Lightning" in 1972, which hit #12 in the United States, #4 in Germany and #18 in Canada.  Another song on her self-titled debut album, "Go Like Elijah" was #1 in the Netherlands but only hit #94 in the United States.

Despite the enormous potential revealed in "Thunder And Lightning", Coltrane never had another mass appeal worldwide hit.  She continued to release albums through the 70's and 80's and moved to Europe for a few years, where she became extremely popular.  Chi did television soundtrack work and collaborated with Tangerine Dream in 1991.  In 1993, Coltrane moved to Los Angeles and built a recording studio.

In 2009, Coltrane attempted a comeback, giving a concert in Vienna that drew 100,000 people.  She signed a recording contract with Sony and did tours of the Netherlands and Germany.  

Coltrane has released six albums in her career.

We turn to the 80's for this highly underrated 

group:

    

#223:  Diesel--"Sausalito Summernight"

Drummer Pim Koopman created the group Diesel in the Netherlands in 1978 with Rob Vunderink (guitar, lead singer and songwriter), Mark Boon (guitarist and songwriter) and bassist Frank Papendrecht.  The group released their debut album Watts in a Tank in 1980.  "Going Back to China" was released as a single and became a minor hit in the Netherlands.  Two other singles, "Down in the Silvermine" and "Sausalito Summernight", also became hits in their native land.  

Boon and Papendrecht left the group, replaced by bassist Wijnand Ott and guitarist Hugo de Bruin.  In 1981, Kim Weemhoff replaced Koopman.  Watts in a Tank was released in North America in 1981, and "Sausalito Summernight" hit #1 in Canada and #25 in the United States.  Upon seeing the sudden success, Boon returned to the group and Diesel did a North American tour.  

The group signed with Atco Records and released the album Unleaded in 1982.  However, nothing caught on the way "Sausalito Summernight" did, and several personnel changes followed before the group broke up in 1985.

You may have been spotted on the dance floor heating it up to this group: 

  

  #222:  No Mercy--"Where Do You Go?"  

Frank Farian, Marty Cintron and twin brothers Ariel and Gabriel Hernandez formed this group in 1995 in Miami, Florida.

No Mercy released their self-titled debut album (later re-released in Europe as My Promise) in 1996.  The group's remake of "Where Do You Go" by Labouche rocketed to #2 in the U.K. and Australia, #3 in Germany, #4 in France, #5 in the United States and Austria and #6 in Sweden.  The follow-up, "Please Don't Go", reached #4 in the U.K. but only #21 in the United States, just one spot away from the Top 20, which would have made the group ineligible for the One-Hit Wonders music special.  

No Mercy's remake of "Kiss You All Over" by Exile (never try to remake a classic!) was a #1 dance song but unsuccessful across the rest of the world.  "When I Die" was a Top 10 hit in Australia, Switzerland and Austria but only #41 in the United States and it did not chart in the U.K., music's second-biggest market.

No Mercy released the album More in 1998 and their third album Day By Day in 2007.

 This San Francisco band lost their momentum when their popular lead singer went solo:

    

#221: Big Brother and the Holding Company--"Piece Of My Heart"

Peter Albin and Sam Andrew formed this group in San Francisco, then invited guitarist James Gurley and drummer Chuck Jones into the group.  Big Brother and the Holding Company performed for the first time at the Trips Festival in 1966.  David Getz, who was in the audience, soon replaced Jones as drummer.

Soon, Big Brother became the house band at the Avalon Ballroom.  Wanting a strong lead singer, the group invited Janis Joplin from Texas, who debuted with the group at the Avalon in the summer of 1966.  The group members weren't overly impressed with Joplin and it took some time for the band's fans to accept her.

The group moved to a house in Lagunitas, California, often partying with the Grateful Dead, who lived less than two miles away.  The group signed a recording contract with Mainstream Records before Joplin relapsed into drinking and intravenous drug use.  Big Brother began playing at the Fillmore West and Winterland in San Francisco, at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, and at several other venues along the West Coast.  

The group released their self-titled debut album, which was popular in the Bay Area but did not do well elsewhere.  In 1967, the group performed at the Monterey Pop Festival, giving an impressive performance that attracted national attention.  The single "Down On Me' reached #43 as a result.

Following their show at Monterey, Big Brother signed with Columbia Records and booked a tour of the United States.  In 1968, the group released the album Cheap Thrills and single "Piece Of My Heart",  which reached #12.  The album went to #1 and sold over one million copies thanks to "Piece Of My Heart".  But Joplin announced that she was leaving the group in the summer.

Big Brother & the Holding Company did another tour, and released "Coo Coo" later in the year.  But that song, at #84, would be the closest the group would ever come to being successful after Joplin left.

A group that may very well have been a big act if not for the departure of Joplin.  Join us tomorrow for 10 more!