The Top 500 One-Hit Wonders of the Rock Era Revisited: #150-141

We've been celebrating the music and story of The Top 500 One-Hit Wonders of the Rock Era* for 35 days now, and we've heard from 350 artists thus far. 

If you were a Deadhead, you likely saw these two musicians:

    

 #150:  Brewer and Shipley--"One Toke Over The Line"

Singer-songwriters Mike Brewer and Tom Shipley formed this duo, known for their great guitar work, harmonies and socially conscious lyrics.  Both from the Midwestern United States, Brewer and Shipley met several times at various coffeehouses, before moving to Los Angeles to write music together.

The duo recorded two albums, Down in L.A. and Weeds, before moving to Kansas City, Missouri.  They subsisted on gigs in college towns in 1969, then recorded the album Tarkio, named for a gig they had in Tarkio, Missouri. 

Tarkio included "One Toke Over The Line", the only hit Brewer and Shipley would have.  The two released seven albums in their career.  Though their music was much deeper than this song would indicate, this was the song that most people would remember them by.

Brewer and Shipley have performed with Bruce Springsteen, Stephen Stills, Black Sabbath and Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead.  Brewer and Shipley continue to perform together. 

This group showed great promise with a song in 1977 that has stood the test of time very well:

   
#149:  Sanford Townsend Band--"Smoke From A Distant Fire"  

Keyboardists Ed Sanford and Johnny Townsend originally formed this group in Alabama. After reuniting in Los Angeles, Sanford and Townsend signed a publishing contract with Chappell Music and began writing songs. Loggins and Messina recorded "Peacemaker", a song that Sanford and Townsend co-wrote with Kenny Loggins.

In 1976, the Sanford Townsend band recorded their self-titled album, that took off when the single "Smoke from A Distant Fire" reached #9 in the United States.  The group opened for Fleetwood Mac on their Rumours Tour, as well as concerts with Foreigner, Heart, Jimmy Buffett, Charlie Daniels and the Marshall Tucker Band.

The group's albums that followed were not near as successful, so Sanford and Townsend resumed their careers as songwriters and session musicians.  Sanford co-wrote "I Keep Forgettin'" with Michael McDonald, while Townsend formed the Toler/Townsend Band with Dan Toler.

The one hit which this group recorded caused many a phone number to be cancelled:

   

#148:  Tommy Tutone--"867-5309"

Lead singer and rhythm guitarist Tommy Heath and lead guitarist Jim Keller founded the band in 1978 as Tommy and the Tu-Tones.  The rest of the group has been a revolving door of musicians that originally included Terry Nails on bass and Mickey Shine on drums.  Shortly after forming, the group changed the name to Tommy Tutone and released "Angel Say No" in 1980, which reached #38.  

In 1982, the group hit paydirt with "867-5309/Jenny", which landed at #4.  John Cowsill of the Cowsills played drums and sang on the song.  Various lineups have recorded five albums, but nothing else caught on like "867-5309/Jenny".

This Hard Rock group achieved their big success with a song that has become an anthem of the anti-establishment:

  
#147:  Brownsville Station--"Smokin' In The Boy's Room"  

This act formed in Ann Arbor, Michigan in 1969 with Cub Koda (guitarist and vocalist), Mike Lutz (guitarist and vocalist), drummer T.J. Cronley and bassist Tony Driggins.  The group's first albums included covers from groups that inspired them.  

In 1970, Brownsville Station released their debut album No BS on a label owned by Warner Brothers Records.  

In 1973, the group released the album Yeah!  "Smokin' In The Boys Room", written by Lutz and Koda, reached #3 in the United States and #27 in the U.K. and sold over two million copies.

Henry Weck replaced Cronley on drums.  Brownsville Station became a popular live act featuring Koda's onstage antics.  The group's second-best song was "Kings Of The Party", which peaked at #31 in 1974.  

In 1977, Brownsville station recorded the novelty song "Martian Boogie", which was played on Dr. Demento's radio show.  The group released the album Air Special in 1978 and broke up the following year.  Lutz went on to produce many artists, including Ted Nugent.  Weck engineered and co-produced the Blackfoot album Strikes. 

Brownsville Station released eight albums and 13 singles in their career. 

This gifted singer-songwriter is featured next in The Top 500 One-Hit Wonders of the Rock Era*:

   
#146:  Brenda Russell--"Piano In The Dark"

Brenda Gordon and her family moved from Brooklyn, New York to Hamilton, Ontario, Canada at age 12.  She began performing in local groups and joined a girl group called the Tiaras.  The act released the single "Where Does All The Time Go" in 1968.  

Later in her teens, Brenda married musician Bryan Russell and the two, as Brian & Brenda, released two albums on Elton John's Rocket Records.  The pair also performed on two tracks on Robert Palmer's album Double Fun.  By the late 1970's, the two divorced, and Brenda moved to Los Angeles to begin a solo career.

Russell signed a recording contract with Horizon Records and released the solo single "So Good, So Right" in 1979.  The song reached the Top 30.  A&M Records took over Russell's contract and released Russell's self-titled debut album.  The albums Love Life and Two Eyes followed; Russell then moved to Sweden and began working on her third album.

Brenda released the album Get Here in 1988, the biggest success so far.  "Piano In The Dark" was released as a single and became a multi-format smash, earning two Grammy Award nominations including the prestigious Song of the Year nomination.  The song peaked at #6 in the United States, #3 on the influential Adult Contemporary chart, and #23 in the U.K.  The title song from the album later became a huge hit for Oleta Adams. 

After releasing the album Kiss Me with the Wind in 1990, Russell moved to EMI Records and released the album Soul Talkin' in 1993.  Brenda wrote the score for the movie How Stella Got Her Groove Back and appeared in the 1999 movie Liberty Heights.

Russell continued to record albums, then co-wrote the score for the Broadway version of the movie The Color Purple.  Russell and her co-writers were nominated for a Grammy for Best Musical Show Album and a Tony Award for Best Score.  

Russell's songs have been performed by Diana Ross, Stevie Wonder, Ray Charles, Herb Alpert, Donna Summer, Tina Turner, Roberta Flack, Earth, Wind & Fire, Dionne Warwick, Anne Murray, Sting, Rita Coolidge, Johnny Mathis, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Joe Cocker, Luther Vandross, Al Jarreau, Babyface, Peabo Bryson, Chaka Khan, Patti Labelle, Patti Austin, Paul Carrack and Regina Belle, among others.

This talented Australia band checks in next at #145:

   
#145:  Split Enz--"I Got You"

After finishing primary school in New Zealand, Brian Timothy Finn met Jonathan Chunn at Sacred Heart High School.  The two wrote songs and played music together over the next five years.  In 1971, Finn and Chunn went to Auckland University, where they met Phillip Judd.  The following year, they added classically-trained violinist Miles Golding and reed player Mike Howard and formed a group.

Originally, the group was known as Split Ends, but they eventually changed it to Split Enz to incorporate the common abbreviation for New Zealand (NZ).  Finn and Judd wrote the songs and with financial backing from friend Barry Coburn, who became the group's manager, Split Ends released their first single "For You/Split Ends" in 1973.

Golding and Howard quit soon after.  Chunn's brother Geoff was brought in to play drums, while lead guitarist Paul Wilkinson and Robert Gillies (saxophone and trumpet) were also brought in.  The group toured New Zealand opening for John Mayall.

Late in 1973, the group landed a 30-minute concert special for Television New Zealand and released a couple of other singles.  In 1974, the group added Anthony "Eddie" Rayner on keyboards and switched the spelling of their name.  The members developed elaborate sets, costumes, hairstyles and makeup.  Geoff Chunn and Gillies both left the group, with Paul Crowther joining on drums.

In 1974, Geoffrey Crombie joined full-time on percussion and directed the band's music videos.  The group set out to capture fans in Australia, then signed a management and publishing deal and recording contract with Mushroom Records.  

The band released their debut album Mental Notes in 1975, which sold moderately in Australia.  Wilkinson was fired and Gillies was brought back in as a permanent member.  While on tour in Australia, Split Enz caught the attention of Roxy Music guitarist Phil Manzanera, who offered to produce their next album in London.  The group relocated there, and signed with Chrysalis Records.

The group's bizarre appearance and crazy onstage antics initially threw the U.K. fans for a loop, but eventually, their musical skills won them a cult following.  Crowther was fired and replaced by drummer Malcolm Green.  Split Enz toured the United States in 1977, but it would be the final tour with founding members Phil Judd and Mike Chunn.

Since the group was about to begin a tour of the U.K., Tim reorganized the group, adding bassist Nigel Griggs and his younger brother Neil Finn on lead guitar.  Neil eventually began writing songs and became the group's second lead singer.  

In 1977, the group released Dizrythmia, which yielded a #18 song in Australia--"My Mistake".  The group toured throughout the U.K. and Europe and began to draw large crowds.  But in 1978, Split Enz lost their contract with Chrysalis.  Debts mounted, but the group continued to write new songs and rehearse constantly.

Split Enz soon got financial help from the New Zealand Arts Council, but then in 1979, two days before a scheduled appearance at the Nambassa Festival in New Zealand, all of the group's equipment was destroyed in a fire.  But the group honored their agreement and performed at the festival, in which Split Enz impressed audiences with a great performance.

The one album in which Split Enz enjoyed international attention was True Colours.  A single from that album, "I Got You", emerged and the video was popular on MTV, which in that day stood for Music Television.  The song, written by Neil Finn, rose to #1 in Canada, Australia and New Zealand and reached #53 in the United States.  It was #1 for eight weeks in Australia and became the second-highest selling single of the year.

Ten albums and 32 singles after they began, Split Enz is still mostly known for their one big hit, "I Got You".  The nucleus of the group went on to form Crowded House, who gave us the great song "Don't Dream It's Over".

Radio prevented this group from ever achieving success with a highly underrated song, so they picked up, moved on, and became one of the top hard rock groups of the 80's:

  
#144:  Rubicon--"I'm Gonna' Take Care Of Everything"

  

Jerry Martini, an original member of Sly & the Family Stone, formed Rubicon in San Francisco with Greg Eckler (vocals and drums), guitarist Brad Gillis, Max Haskett on lead vocals and horns, Dennis Marcellino on sax and vocals, keyboardist Jim Pugh and bassist Jack Blades. 

Rubicon released "I'm Gonna' Take Care Of Everything" in 1978, which peaked at #28, but in fact was highly underrated.  Because of the oversight by radio, Rubicon was not successful enough to continue.  They released a second album, America Dreams, before breaking up. 

Gillis and Blades further proved the greatness of this group when they went on to form Night Ranger, one of the great acts of the 1980's.

The mystery of this One-Hit Wonder is even deeper when one considers that he was the songwriter and lead singer of one of the top groups of the 60's:

  
#143:  John Sebastian--"Welcome Back"  

Sebastian was born in Greenwich Village in New York City and was surrounded by musicians in his neighborhood, including Woody Guthrie and Burl Ives.  Sebastian played guitar and harmonica for Billy Faier in 1964, and also recorded with Fred Neil and Tom Rush.  John then joined the Even Dozen Jug Band and the Mugwumps, which split to form the Lovin' Spoonful and the Mamas & the Papas.  

Sebastian was a songwriter, lead singer and guitarist with Lovin' Spoonful, a group that was elected into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. The Spoonful was responsible for the classic "Summer In The City" and hits such as "Do You Believe In Magic", "Did You Ever Have To Make Up Your Mind?", "You Didn't Have To Be So Nice" and "Daydream".

Sebastian left the group in 1968 to pursue a solo career.  He wrote the music and lyrics for Jimmy Shine, a Broadway play starring Dustin Hoffman in the title role.  He made an unscheduled appearance at Woodstock in 1969, appearing after Country Joe McDonald's set.  In 1970, Sebastian released the album John B. Sebastian, accompanied by Los Angeles musicians.

Sebastian played harmonica on "Roadhouse Blues" for the Doors under the pseudonym G. Pugliese to avoid problems with his recording contract.  John also played harmonica on "Deja Vu" for Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young.  Despite his overwhelming success in Lovin' Spoonful and his credibility, both as a songwriter and as a musician, Sebastian released three albums and seven singles with little to no success.  

Then in 1976, Sebastian recorded the song "Welcome Back" for the television show Welcome Back, Kotter.  The song was released as a single and it became Sebastian's only Top 40 solo hit, reaching #1.

Sebastian did not release any more solo recordings after his One Hit.  He did play as John Sebastian and the J-Band.  In 1978, John wrote the music for the animated special The Devil and Daniel Mouse.  In the next decade, he continued to write and perform for several animated productions, including the Care Bear trilogy.  Sebastian's songs have been recorded by Tom Petty, the Everly Brothers, Helen Reddy, Brenda Lee, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Bobby Darin, Jimmy Buffett, Slade and Joe Cocker.  Sebastian was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2008.

It is amazing that given his talent, and especially considering his exposure as lead singer of the Lovin' Spoonful, Sebastian never came close to the Top 20 again as a solo artist.  His next-best effort other than "Welcome Back" was "She's A Lady" in 1968.

Sebastian is the godson of Vivian Vance, who so famously performed as Ethel Mertz of the television classic I Love Lucy.    

A second try at this group paid off when they scored their one massive hit in 1981:

   
#142:  Manhattan Transfer--"The Boy From New York City"  

The Manhattan Transfer has had two manifestations, originally formed in 1969 by Tim Hauser, Erin Dickins, Marty Nelson and Pat Rosalia.  Gene Pistilli, who had become known for his work with Gene Cashman and Tommy West, soon wrote for and sang with the group.  The Transfer signed with Capitol Records and released their debut album Jukin' in 1971.  But the group broke up in 1973 and went their separate directions.  

Hauser joined with singers Alan Paul, Janis Siegel and Laurel Masse for a second lineup of Manhattan Transfer.  After several performances at Max's Kansas City, the group developed a cult following.  Ahmet Ertegun, founder and chairman of Atlantic Records, saw their show at Reno Sweeney and signed them to a recording contract.  

Manhattan Transfer released their self-titled album in 1975 and that summer, was signed to their own hour-long television variety series on CBS-TV.  The group also became popular in Europe, and their cover of "Chanson D'Amour" became a #1 hit in the U.K. and Australia in 1977.  

In 1978, shortly after a live album was recorded, Masse was seriously injured in a car accident and was replaced by Cheryl Bentyne.    Transfer released the album Extensions in 1979, which featured a tribute to Rod Serling's groundbreaking Twilight Zone television series with a single of the same name and a cover of Weather Report's "Birdland".  "Birdland" earned Manhattan Transfer a Grammy Award for Best Jazz Fusion Performance and another for Best Vocal Arrangement for Two or More Voices.

The group had a loyal following, critical acclaim and spotty success.  The one thing that was missing was worldwide attention.  They achieved that in 1981 with their remake of "Boy From New York City".  The group became the first act to win Grammy Awards in Popular and Jazz categories in the same year.  Their album Boy from New York City and Other Hits received the award for Best Pop performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal, while "Until I Met You (Corner Pocket)" won the Grammy for Best Jazz Performance, Duo or Group. 

The Transfer won another Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group, for their remake of "Route 66", featured in the movie Sharky's Machine, which was an Adult Contemporary hit in the United States but found little success elsewhere.  In 1983, they landed two R&B hits, "Spice Of Life" (#40 on the United States Popular chart) and "Mystery", which Anita Baker did so magnificently on her 1986 album Rapture. 

On 1985, Manhattan Transfer released Vocalese, which earned twelve Grammy nominations, second only to Michael Jackson's Thriller at the time.  The group walked home with two awards:  Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Duo or Group, and Best Arrangement for Voices.  Despite the high honors that night, few people outside the music industry were aware of the album.

The album Brasil in 1987 captured another Grammy for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.  Again, few outside the music industry seemed to care.  The Transfer went on to release 18 albums and 7 singles in their career.  They were inducted into the Vocal Group Hall of Fame in 1998.

Some of the One-Hit Wonders* in this spectacular recorded one big hit but nothing else.  In the case of Manhattan Transfer, however, the fact that they only enjoyed one big hit is all the more unusual because of their obvious talent and acceptance within the industry. 

 We're up to the amazing story behind the song that gave this next pair of talented musicians their one big hit as recording artists:

   
#141:  Barry DeVorzon & Perry Botkin, Jr.--"Nadia's Theme"  

Barry De Vorzon was born in New York City.  He began writing songs, and one of them, "Dreamin'", was recorded by Johnny Burnette in 1960.  De Vorzon wrote "I Wonder What She's Doing Tonight" for the Cascades originally.  They did not record it, but DeVorzon recorded it himself with his group Barry and the Tamerlanes, and the song became a huge hit for Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart, another One Hit Wonder.  DeVorzon also co-wrote several minor hits for Dorsey Burnette.

De Vorzon founded Valiant Records later in the 1960's, one of the most successful independent recording and publishing companies of the time, that was later sold to Warner Brothers.  Perry discovered the Association, one of The Top 100 Artists of the Rock Era*, signing them to his label and producing their first single.

DeVorzon composed the music for many soundtracks.  One song he and Perry Botkin, Jr. had written for the movie Bless the Beasts and the Children, "Cotton's Dream", was rearranged in 1973 as the instrumental theme for the television soap opera The Young and the Restless.  In 1976, ABC used "Cotton's Dream" as background music for a montage of Romanian gymnast Nadia Comaneci's spellbinding routines during the Summer Olympic Games in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Viewer inquiries to ABC regarding the beautiful song prompted the release by A&M Records of the single retitled "Nadia's Theme".  The song hit #8 in the United States and won a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement.  The title song to Bless the Beasts and Children became one in a long line of smash hits for the Carpenters and earned DeVorzon and Botkin, Jr. another Grammy nomination.  

DeVorzon also wrote the "Theme From S.W.A.T.", a #1 hit for Rhythm Heritage, and co-wrote "In The City" for Joe Walsh for the movie The Warriors.  

DeVorzon has won six Emmy Awards, but never recorded another hit song.  He founded MasterWriter software with fellow songwriter Michael Towers and Perry's son Matthew.  The program was designed for songwriters and contains all the tools and reference that are essential for the modern songwriter.    

Botkin, Jr. was also born in New York City.  He worked in the music business for over forty years as a songwriter, arranger, musician and producer, collaborating with artists such as Harry Nilsson, Bobby Darin, the Lettermen, Ed Ames, and Harpers Bizarre, among others.  Botkin, Jr. arranged "Rhythm OF The Rain" for the Cascades and "Feliz Navidad" for Jose Feliciano and albums by Barbra Streisand, Carly Simon and Maureen McGovern. 

Botkin, Jr. also worked with DeVorzon on the movie R.P.M., and arranged music for several movies including Goin' South in 1978 and Tarzan, the Ape Man in 1981.  He also arranged music for the ABC Movie of the Week, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, Happy Days, The Smothers Brothers Show, Mork & Mindy and Laverne & Shirley.

For some One Hit Wonders, they recorded that one big hit and you never hear of them again.  DeVorzon and Botkin, Jr. have both made tremendous contributions to the music industry far beyond their recording efforts.

The Top 500 One-Hit Wonders of the Rock Era*, a summer spectacular in 2025.  Join us tomorrow exclusively on Inside The Rock Era!