I think one-hit wonders are about subjective perceptions, not objective chart positions. No one remembers how high a song charted, they just recall it being more popular than anything else the band did before or since. I'd include "Laid" by James, for example, even if they technically had other hits.
I feel like a one-album wonder should be similar, so I'd include bands like Boston or Supertramp. If you saw them in someone's record collection, you could bet it was only ever the one popular album.
Aside from Mazzy Star, who may actually be an album band, many of these strike me as "one-hit wonders" who somehow managed to chart an album. A-Ha, for example. Stand in Times Square and ask everyone you meet to name one other A-Ha song. You'll be there for days... That said, I'm fascinated by one-album wonders like Basement 5 or Young Marble Giants, which chart nowhere but my overheated imagination, but are artistic triumphs.
How about Big Brother and the Holding Company? 'Cheap Thrills' topped the chart for a good part of 1968 (eight weeks in total) and only one other LP by the group charted in the Billboard Hot 100.
I immediately thought of David & David's Welcome to the Boomtown. Certified Gold. The album charted in the USA, Australia, and UK. Three singles charted in the USA. A big critical hit. Has a mythical status in some music circles. The duo played a huge role in Sheryl Crow's first album. But they're probably too obscure to be an official one-album wonder.
I give up. The closest I came was Better than Ezra. Their Deluxe just missed having two top 40 hits and they didn't chart anything after that even though they released a bunch of albums. Fun activity!
Some 60s artists appeared on the list, albeit further down cause they aren’t that popular on Spotify. But you’d also be shocked how often those random groups only had a single album
My criteria would be: only a single top 40 album with at least two top 40 hits on it and then no more top 40 albums or top 40 hits. That would differentiate it from a one-hit wonder. After checking a ton of candidates, the closest I could get was Temple of the Dog, and that's kind of a special case since they were a temporary band and they had two mainstream rock hits, but not two Billboard Hot 100 hits. They Might Be Giants comes surprisingly close, too.
Submitting for consideration "The Presidents of the United States of America." First album had hits like "Lump" and "Peaches" and reached #6 on the charts. Their follow-ups didn't spawn any other super memorable hits and chart performance was much worse.
Might be a bit too Australian, but their first album was a banger, went five times platinum. Joker & the Thief, Mind's Eye still get a lot of play. Everything after that disappeared like a fart in the night.
I propose, if we are just talking the US, one RIAA certified gold or platinum album, and no others. Ranked by certification, then ties broken by chart position, THEN Spotify ranking.
Among stuff mentioned in the article, that rules out, say, Vicente Fernandez and Sir Mix-a-Lot, but keeps the Fugees in the convo (7xPlatinum and #1–they could win this thing. Kinda surprised their debut didn’t at least go gold though).
The first three that jumped to mind for me were:
-Milli Vanilli (6xPlatinum/#1, but their remix album went gold. I would argue that’s just a repackaging of their album, but ok with ruling them out on a technicality).
-Blind Melon (4xPlatinum/#3). They did have other albums later that are considered cult classics by their fans, but they are one-album in the minds of most.
-The aforementioned Fine Young Cannibals (2xPlatinum, #1). I love their first album, but realize that most people don’t know it exists.
What are some other artists with one multi platinum album, but nothing else so much as gold?
The next album went to #2 on billboard and went platinum. But you could argue a lot of people went out an bought it because of FCA and then never cared about Frampton again
if we're going off vibes I feel like that Fugees album is the best example
Agreed. Though I feel like both albums are considered classics.
I think one-hit wonders are about subjective perceptions, not objective chart positions. No one remembers how high a song charted, they just recall it being more popular than anything else the band did before or since. I'd include "Laid" by James, for example, even if they technically had other hits.
I feel like a one-album wonder should be similar, so I'd include bands like Boston or Supertramp. If you saw them in someone's record collection, you could bet it was only ever the one popular album.
Good point. The first Boston album certainly overshadows the rest of the catalog. But they did have some other huge hits (eg, “Amanda”)
Yes, my former manager was named after that song, so it definitely made an impact! It also made me realize she was younger than me…
Aside from Mazzy Star, who may actually be an album band, many of these strike me as "one-hit wonders" who somehow managed to chart an album. A-Ha, for example. Stand in Times Square and ask everyone you meet to name one other A-Ha song. You'll be there for days... That said, I'm fascinated by one-album wonders like Basement 5 or Young Marble Giants, which chart nowhere but my overheated imagination, but are artistic triumphs.
a-ha is a huge one hit wonder in the US but lots of hits in Europe interestingly
How about Big Brother and the Holding Company? 'Cheap Thrills' topped the chart for a good part of 1968 (eight weeks in total) and only one other LP by the group charted in the Billboard Hot 100.
Viable answer as long as you consider the Joplin solo stuff a separate thing
I would if because Big Brother remained a group after Joplin left.
I immediately thought of David & David's Welcome to the Boomtown. Certified Gold. The album charted in the USA, Australia, and UK. Three singles charted in the USA. A big critical hit. Has a mythical status in some music circles. The duo played a huge role in Sheryl Crow's first album. But they're probably too obscure to be an official one-album wonder.
https://youtu.be/97wvwuHUMCw?si=D_ZOaZbrGm9GkRY1
I think that counts
4 Non Blondes would count but they don't meet your "released at least two albums" criteria. I'll keep looking.
Yes. Came across them. Rolling Stone did a list on great bands that only have one album https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-lists/best-one-album-wonders-14916/
I give up. The closest I came was Better than Ezra. Their Deluxe just missed having two top 40 hits and they didn't chart anything after that even though they released a bunch of albums. Fun activity!
this is a good answer!
With so many one hit wonders from the late 50s and 60s, I was surprised to see nothing from that era.
Some 60s artists appeared on the list, albeit further down cause they aren’t that popular on Spotify. But you’d also be shocked how often those random groups only had a single album
My criteria would be: only a single top 40 album with at least two top 40 hits on it and then no more top 40 albums or top 40 hits. That would differentiate it from a one-hit wonder. After checking a ton of candidates, the closest I could get was Temple of the Dog, and that's kind of a special case since they were a temporary band and they had two mainstream rock hits, but not two Billboard Hot 100 hits. They Might Be Giants comes surprisingly close, too.
I saw Temple of the Dog suggested in a subreddit thread about this. I honestly feel like there is almost no one album wonders lol
The Darkness - Permission to Land seems like a good one-album wonder to me.
What comes to mind first is Fine Young Cannibals's The Raw and the Cooked from 1989. The album was huge but they were never really heard from again.
Their debut album charted in a bunch of countries.
https://open.substack.com/pub/johnnogowski/p/some-songs-to-write-by?r=7pf7u&utm_medium=ios
Like this?
I would have expected to see Aqua "Barbie Girl" for sure! Perhaps they had other hits back home in Sweden?
Submitting for consideration "The Presidents of the United States of America." First album had hits like "Lump" and "Peaches" and reached #6 on the charts. Their follow-ups didn't spawn any other super memorable hits and chart performance was much worse.
I love their second album!
Wolfmother - Wolfmother
Might be a bit too Australian, but their first album was a banger, went five times platinum. Joker & the Thief, Mind's Eye still get a lot of play. Everything after that disappeared like a fart in the night.
I propose, if we are just talking the US, one RIAA certified gold or platinum album, and no others. Ranked by certification, then ties broken by chart position, THEN Spotify ranking.
Among stuff mentioned in the article, that rules out, say, Vicente Fernandez and Sir Mix-a-Lot, but keeps the Fugees in the convo (7xPlatinum and #1–they could win this thing. Kinda surprised their debut didn’t at least go gold though).
The first three that jumped to mind for me were:
-Milli Vanilli (6xPlatinum/#1, but their remix album went gold. I would argue that’s just a repackaging of their album, but ok with ruling them out on a technicality).
-Blind Melon (4xPlatinum/#3). They did have other albums later that are considered cult classics by their fans, but they are one-album in the minds of most.
-The aforementioned Fine Young Cannibals (2xPlatinum, #1). I love their first album, but realize that most people don’t know it exists.
What are some other artists with one multi platinum album, but nothing else so much as gold?
Frampton Comes Alive?
The next album went to #2 on billboard and went platinum. But you could argue a lot of people went out an bought it because of FCA and then never cared about Frampton again
This is actually the pattern that I saw. If you had one big album, it’s likely your next one sold even if no one remembers it