One Hit Wonders of the UK Singles Charts

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	One Hit Wonders of the UK Singles ChartsYour Guide to the oddities of the UK Singles Charts

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Records

The Passing of a One Hit Wonder

So what is a One Hit Wonder you ask? Well, we'll tell you. A One Hit Wonder is defined as a band or artist that has had one number one single in the UK singles chart, and no other single that has reached the top 20, ever.

To become a true one hit wonder of course, it's much better if the band disappear into obscurity immediately or return to their day jobs (as you'll see a number of actors and TV stars turn up in these lists).

Below is a quick list of all the One Hit Wonders to appear in the UK Singles Charts from it's inception until the end of the 20th Century, but we'll be adding more detail to this section as we grow and develop further. If you know anything interesting about any of these acts please let us know via the WWWK Nostalgia Forums.

Year	Artist	Song	Weeks at No.1	Comments
1954	Kitty Kallen	Little Things Mean A Lot	1	US band vocalist from the 1940s who gained the distinction of becoming the first One-hit Wonder in the UK.
1956	Dreamweavers	It's Almost Tomorrow	2	Studio-only act from Miami. The song was covered by Mark Wynter in 1963 when it reached No. 12.
1958	Kalin Twins	When	5	They had several hits in US, but this rock 'n' roll classic was their only hit in the UK.
1959	Jerry Keller	Here Comes Summer	1	Despite taking care over follow-up, Jerry Keller became a One-hit Wonder in both the UK and the US.
1960	Ricky Valance	Tell Laura I Love Her	3	Ricky was Welshman who covered this US hit.
1962	B. Bumble & The Stingers	Nut Rocker	1	A wild piano version of Tchaikovsky's "Nutcracker Suite".
1966	Overlanders	Michelle	3	A cover version of a song from the Beatles' "Rubber Soul" album.
1968	Crazy World Of Arthur Brown	Fire	1	A truly bizarre one hit wonder. Arthur would appear on stage with a bowl on his head that was actually on fire during the song!
1969	Zager & Evans	In The Year 2525	3	A catchy tune about what life will be like in the future.
1969	Jane Birkin & Serge Gainsbourg	Je T'aime... Moi Non Plus	1	This song was banned by the BBC, and switched labels mid-way due to company embarrassment!
1969	Archies	Sugar Sugar	8	First No. 1 performed by US TV cartoon characters. Like The Monkees, created by Ron Dante. (The series was never shown in UK).
1970	Lee Marvin	Wand'rin' Star	3	Tough-guy actor with a song from his film "Paint Your Wagon".
1970	Norman Greenbaum	Spirit In The Sky	2	Norman wrote this classic song himself. Doctor & The Medics took the song to No. 1 again in 1986.
1970	Matthew's Southern Comfort	Woodstock	3	Written by Canadian folk legend Joni Mitchell, their only UK No. 1 was about the famous rock festival of 1969.
1971	Clive Dunn	Grandad	3	"Dad's Army" star who tapped a rich vein of seasonal sentimentality that Christmas & New Year.
1973	Simon Park	Orchestra Eye Level	4	The instrumental theme from tv series "Van Der Valk" was first tv theme to reach the top of the charts.
1975	Typically Tropical	Barbados	1	Two recording engineers created this reggae dance hit. The song, with new words and title made No 1 again in 1999.
1976	J.J. Barrie	No Charge	1	Slushy, sentimental rubbish from the Canadian.
1977	Floaters	Float On	1	Soul/funk act from Detroit, formed in 1964. Top US soul hit of 1977.
1978	Althia & Donna	Uptown Top Ranking	1	Two Jamaican teenagers who put some Carribean slang to existing music.
1978	Brian & Michael	Matchstalk Men & Matchstalk Cats & Dogs	3	Band with a song celebrating the life and work of the painter, L S Lowry. The backing vocals are by the St Winifred's School Choir, who had their own one hit wonder in 1980.
1979	Anita Ward	Ring My Bell	2	Gospel singer from Memphis, who ended up recording disco tracks.
1979	Lena Martell	One Day At A Time	3	British MOR album artist who had this unexpected hit.
1980	Fern Kinney	Together We Are Beautiful	1	American songstress that we know very little about.
1980	MAS*H	Theme From Mash	3	Theme from the popular US TV series, recorded by a group of studio session musicians.
1980	St. Winifred's School Choir	There's No One Quite Like Grandma	2	School choir with a song which, like "Grandad" in 1971, captured the sentimental Christmas market.
1981	Joe Dolce	Shaddap You Face	3	Italian-American who found comedy success in Australia.
1982	Charlene	I've Never Been To Me	1	This 1976 recording was dusted off and reissued by Motown in 1982, by which time the American had retired to England.
1985	Phyllis Nelson	Move Closer	1	US soul singer who wrote the song herself. Tom Jones returned the song to the charts in 1989.
1987	M/A/R/R/S	Pump Up The Volume	2	Dance hit that heavily sampled other recordings, which resulted in lengthy litigation.
1988	Robin Beck	The First Time	3	Studio singer from New York. Like the New Seekers' No 1 of 1971, this started as a TV jingle for Coca Cola.
1990	Partners In Kryme	Turtle Power	4	US rap duo celebrating the kids' TV fad, "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles".
1991	Hale & Pace	The Stonk	1	"Comic Relief" charity single by the two stand-up comedians.
1994	Doop	Doop	3	Dutch instrumental duo, who revived the 1920s Charleston dance for this off-the-wall hit.
1996	Dunblane	Knockin' On Heaven's Door	1	Charity single raising money for the victims of the Dunblane massacre. The performers were local (Scottish) folk musicians.
1997	Teletubbies	Teletubbies Say Eh-oh!	2	This was the theme song from the BBC's tiny tots' TV programme, "Teletubbies", much loved by toddlers and students alike.
1998	Spacedust	Gym & Tonic	1	UK cover of a track called "Gymtonic" by French DJ and producer Christophe Le Friant, who works under the psuedomym of Bob Sinclair.
1999	Chef	Chocolate Salty Balls	1	Cartoon character in the cult tv series "South Park". The voice was that of Isaac Hayes.
1999	Mr. Oizo	Flat Beat	2	French act, Quentin Dupieux, with a dance riff, first heard in a Levis jeans TV ad.
1999	Baz Luhrmann	Everybody's Free (To Wear Sunscreen)	1	Luhrmann is an Australian film director.

Want to talk about these one hit wonders or have any questions about the UK Singles Charts? Or if you have any questions, ideas or comments about this site, why not visit the WWWK Nostalgia Forums and share your views.

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