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One-hit Wonder
A one-hit wonder is any entity that achieves mainstream popularity, often for only one piece of work, and becomes known among the general public solely for that momentary success. The term is most commonly used in regard to music performers with only one hit single that overshadows their other work. Some artists dubbed "one-hit wonders" in a particular country had achieved success in other countries. Music artists with subsequent popular albums and hit listings are not properly considered a one-hit wonder, although artists with multiple hits have sometimes been erroneously labelled as "one-hit wonders" if one particular hit has become much more well-remembered years or decades later than their other hits. One-hit wonders usually see their popularity decreasing after their hit listing, and most often never return to hit listings with other songs or albums. Music industry In ''The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders,'' music journalist Wayne Jancik defines a one-hit wonder as "an ac ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musician
A musician is someone who Composer, composes, Conducting, conducts, or Performing arts#Performers, performs music. According to the United States Employment Service, "musician" is a general Terminology, term used to designate a person who follows music as a profession. Musicians include songwriters, who write both music and lyrics for songs; conductors, who direct a musical performance; and performers, who perform for an audience. A music performer is generally either a singer (also known as a vocalist), who provides vocals, or an instrumentalist, who plays a musical instrument. Musicians may perform on their own or as part of a Musical ensemble, group, band or orchestra. Musicians can specialize in a musical genre, though many play a variety of different styles and blend or cross said genres, a musician's musical output depending on a variety of technical and other background influences including their culture, skillset, life experience, education, and creative preferences. A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Funkytown
"Funkytown" is a song by American disco-funk group Lipps Inc., written and produced by Steven Greenberg and released by Casablanca Records in March 1980 as the second single from the group's debut studio album, '' Mouth to Mouth'' (1979). The track was met with immediate commercial success, reaching number one on various record charts in different countries including Australia, Belgium, Canada, France, Israel, New Zealand, Spain, West Germany and on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It quickly became the group's signature song, selling over eight million copies worldwide and becoming their most successful song. Composition and lyrics Sung by Lipps Inc.'s lead vocalist Cynthia Johnson, the tune features the narrator pining for a metaphorical place that will "keep me movin', keep me groovin' with some energy", while Lipps Inc. members were dreaming of relocating from Minneapolis to New York City. The song is in time with a key of C major. Chart performance In the United States ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Day
Robert James Byrd (July 1, 1930 – July 27, 1990), known by the stage name Bobby Day, was an American singer, multi-instrumentalist, music producer, and songwriter. He is best known for his hit record " Rockin' Robin", written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas. Day also wrote the top-10 ''Billboard'' hits "Little Bitty Pretty One" (1957, Thurston Harris) and " Over and Over" (1965, the Dave Clark Five). Biography Born in Fort Worth, Texas, United States, Day moved to Los Angeles, California, at age 15. His first recording was "Young Girl" in 1949 in the R&B group the Hollywood Flames, released in 1950 on the Selective Label. He went several years with minor musical success limited to the West Coast. Day recorded under numerous other names: The Jets, The Voices, The Sounds, The Crescendos, and as the original "Bob" in the duo Bob & Earl with singer Earl Nelson. As a member of the Flames, he used the stage name Bobby Day. Day's penned song, " Buzz-Buzz-Buzz" was ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rockin' Robin (song)
"Rockin' Robin" (originally released as "Rock-In Robin" on the Class Records 45 single) is a song written by Leon René under the pseudonym Jimmie Thomas, and recorded by American singer Bobby Day in 1958. It was Day's biggest hit single, becoming a number two hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and spent one week at the top of the R&B sales chart. Michael Jackson recorded his own version of the song in 1972, which also achieved success. Personnel *Bobby Day – vocals *Plas Johnson – piccolo *Earl Palmer – drums *Barney Kessel – guitar Copyright status "Rockin' Robin" is in the public domain, as the owners never renewed the copyright. Charts Michael Jackson version In 1972, Michael Jackson released his own version of "Rockin' Robin", which was released as a single from his gold-certified solo album titled '' Got to Be There'' as a follow-up single to the song of the same name. It was the biggest hit from the album, hitting number 1 on the ''Cash Box'' singles chart ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Musical Youth
Musical Youth are a British reggae band formed in 1979 in Birmingham, England. They are best known for their 1982 single " Pass the Dutchie", which was number 1 in multiple charts around the world. Their other hits include " Youth of Today", "Never Gonna Give You Up", and a collaboration with Donna Summer, " Unconditional Love". Musical Youth recorded two albums and earned a Grammy Award nomination before disbanding in 1985 after a series of personal problems. The band returned in 2001 as a duo. History The group was formed in 1979 by the fathers of Kelvin and Michael Grant, and Frederick (known as Junior) and Patrick Waite, respectively, who put together a band featuring their sons. The Waites' father, Frederick Waite Sr., had been a member of the Jamaican reggae group the Techniques. At the start of Musical Youth's career, he sang lead with Junior. Musical Youth were influenced by reggae artists such as Sugar Minott, Aswad, Gregory Isaacs, Dennis Brown, John Holt and Besha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pass The Dutchie
"Pass the Dutchie" is a song performed by the British reggae band Musical Youth, taken from their debut studio album, '' The Youth of Today'' (1982). It was produced by Toney Owens from Kingston, Jamaica. The single peaked at the top of the UK Singles Chart. Outside the United Kingdom, "Pass the Dutchie" topped the charts in at least five other countries, including Australia, Canada, New Zealand and Ireland, as well as peaking within the top ten of the charts in Iceland and the United States. The single sold over five million copies worldwide. Background The song was the band's first release on a major label. Following a shouted intro taken from U Roy's "Rule the Nation" with words slightly altered, the track combined two songs: "Gimme the Music" by U Brown, and " Pass the Kouchie" by Mighty Diamonds, which deals with the recreational use of cannabis (''kouchie'' being slang for a cannabis pipe). For the cover version, the song's title was bowdlerised to "Pass the Dutchie", t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby McFerrin
Robert Keith McFerrin Jr. (born March 11, 1950) is an American singer, songwriter, and conductor (music), conductor. His Vocal pedagogy, vocal techniques include singing fluidly but with quick and considerable jumps in Pitch (music), pitch—for example, sustaining a melody while also rapidly alternating with arpeggios and harmonies—as well as scat singing, Polyphony, polyphonic overtone singing, and improvisational vocal percussion. He performs and records regularly as an unaccompanied solo vocal artist. He has frequently collaborated with other artists from both the jazz and Classical music, classical scenes. McFerrin's song "Don't Worry, Be Happy" is the only A cappella, acapella track to ever reach No. 1 in the US, which it reached in 1988 and additionally won Grammy Award for Song of the Year, Song of the Year and Grammy Award for Record of the Year, Record of the Year honors at the 31st Annual Grammy Awards, 1989 Grammy Awards. McFerrin has also worked in collaboration ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Don't Worry, Be Happy
"Don't Worry, Be Happy" is a 1988 song by Bobby McFerrin, released as the first single from his album '' Simple Pleasures'' (1988). It was the first '' a cappella'' song to reach number-one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, a position it held for two weeks. Originally released in conjunction with the film ''Cocktail'', the song peaked at number-one on September 24, 1988, displacing " Sweet Child o' Mine" by Guns N' Roses. The song also peaked at number 11 on the ''Billboard'' Hot Black Singles chart and number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart. It hit number one in Australia and stayed there for 7 weeks. It was also a hit in the United Kingdom, reaching number two during its fifth week on the UK Singles Chart. In Canada, the song reached number one in its eighth week. One critic noted it as a "formula for facing life's trials". At the 1989 Grammy Awards, "Don't Worry, Be Happy" won the awards for Song of the Year, Record of the Year, and Be ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nena (band)
Nena was a West German Neue Deutsche Welle band formed in West Berlin in 1981. In 1983 and 1984, their German-language song "" (and its English version, "99 Red Balloons") reached number one in the singles charts of countries around the world. History Formation and rise The band was formed in 1981 when vocalist Gabriele Kerner (Nena) came to West Berlin with drummer Rolf Brendel, her boyfriend at the time. There they assembled the other members of the band, which took its name from their lead singer's nickname (Spanish for "little girl"), which she had acquired as a toddler during a family holiday to Catalonia, Spain. The band wrote all of their songs themselves, typically working in pairs. They became overnight sensations in Germany when they performed their debut single " Nur geträumt" on German TV in August 1982, Nena herself wearing a distinctive short red miniskirt. The single reached number 2 in the German charts, a position it occupied for 6 weeks, and also climbed hig ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
99 Luftballons
"99 Luftballons" (, "99 balloons") is a song by the West German band Nena from their 1983 self-titled album. An English-language version titled "99 Red Balloons" (), with lyrics by Kevin McAlea, was also released by Nena on the album '' 99 Luftballons'' in 1984 after widespread success of the original in Europe and Japan. The English version is not a direct translation of the German original and contains lyrics with a somewhat different meaning. In the US, the English-language version did not chart, while the German-language recording became Nena's only US hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Lyrics While at a June 1982 concert by the Rolling Stones in West Berlin, Nena's guitarist Carlo Karges noticed that balloons were being released. He watched them move toward the horizon, shifting and changing shapes like strange spacecraft (referred to in the German lyrics as a " UFO"). He thought about what might happen if they floated over the Berlin Wall to East Berlin. Also cited b ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Norman Greenbaum
Norman Joel Greenbaum (born November 20, 1942) is an American singer-songwriter, known for his 1969–1970 hit song "Spirit in the Sky". The song made him one of the most famous acts with a best-selling one-hit wonder for all time. Early life and education Greenbaum was born in Malden, Massachusetts southeast of Lowell, Massachusetts, Lowell. He grew up in an Orthodox Judaism, Orthodox Jewish household and attended Hebrew school at Congregation Beth Israel (Malden, Massachusetts), Congregation Beth Israel. His initial interest in music was sparked by southern blues music and the folk music which was popular in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He performed with various bands in high school and Musicology, studied music at Boston University in Boston for two years. In college he performed at local coffeehouses but eventually dropped out and moved to Los Angeles in 1965. Career In the late 1960s, Greenbaum was the leader and composer for Dr. West's Medicine Show and Junk Band, wh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Spirit In The Sky
"Spirit in the Sky" is a song by American singer-songwriter Norman Greenbaum, originally written and recorded by Greenbaum and released in December 1969 from his album '' Spirit in the Sky''. The single became a gold record in the United States, selling two million copies from 1969 to 1970, and reached No. 3 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 where it lasted for 15 weeks in the Top 100. ''Billboard'' ranked the record as the No. 22 song of 1970. It also climbed to No. 1 on the UK, Australian and Canadian charts in 1970. ''Rolling Stone'' ranked "Spirit in the Sky" No. 333 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Cover versions by Doctor and the Medics and Gareth Gates have also made the No. 1 spot in the UK. The song was voted one of the top ten one-hit wonders in a ''Rolling Stone'' reader's poll. Original version by Norman Greenbaum "Spirit in the Sky" makes several religious references to Jesus, though Greenbaum himself is Jewish. In a 2006 interview with '' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
