Playlist: In Defense of the One-Hit Wonder

(Photo: Ali Anne) 

For the most part, the term “one-hit wonder” is used pejoratively. As they say in the South, even a blind squirrel can find an acorn, and we generally believe that this is true in pop music. One-hit wonders are flukes, flashes in the pan that take a back seat to career artists. This isn’t fair, of course. Some of the best songs of the past 40 years have been produced by so-called one-hit wonders. Their music is, by and large, unencumbered by the pretenses of legacy. It’s looser, more prone to novelty and gimmickry. From old-school classics such as Jean Knight’s “Mr. Big Stuff” and The Larks' beautiful “The Jerk”  to disco and funk jams such as Anita Ward’s “Ring My Bell” and E.U.’s wonderful “Da Butt,” this music is fun and carefree. And, what’s better, the acts didn’t stick around long enough to wear out their welcome. They never matured, never changed and never slipped into self-parody. In the mind of the listening public, they are ephemeral and ageless, the pop music equivalent of Dorian Gray. Let the Rolling Stones tour until their Depends get squishy; Musical Youth will forevermore be in their early teens, passing the dutchie to the left-hand side. And there is also no cult of personality surrounding them. They never substituted celebrity for music because few of these would ever be considered celebrities. What you hear here is pop music in its purest form.

Further Listening:
Playlist: One-Hit Wonder, the Urban Music Edition