70 Fun Facts About 1980s One-Hit Wonders

Which group recorded 'Come On Eileen', Britain's best-selling single of 1982?

It was their second UK number one after 'Geno', but their only American hit; it won Best British Single at the 1983 Brits.

Soft Cell's 1981 smash 'Tainted Love' was a cover of a 1964 recording by which soul singer?

Jones's B-side flopped in 1965 but became a Northern soul favourite in Britain, which is how Marc Almond heard it.

Soft Cell's 12-inch version of their 1981 hit segues halfway through into a cover of which Supremes song?

Almond later lamented that putting an original song there instead would have made the duo considerably richer.

Balloons released at whose 1982 West Berlin concert inspired '99 Luftballons'?

He wondered what would happen if they drifted over the Berlin Wall; in the US the German original charted while the English '99 Red Balloons' did not.

Which is the only German-language song ever to reach number one on the Billboard Hot 100?

Falco's song about Mozart's fame and debts was inspired by the film Amadeus; the US album carried an eight-minute 'Salieri Mix'.

Which British band took an English cover of Falco's 'Der Kommissar' into the US top five?

Falco had wanted 'Helden von heute' as the A-side because the hook sounded too much like Rick James's 'Super Freak'.

The Vapors' managers were Bruce Foxton, bassist of which band, and John Weller, father of its frontman?

Writer David Fenton said the chorus came to him at 4 a.m. and that the words did not really mean much.

Toni Basil's 'Mickey' was originally recorded by the British band Racey under what title?

Basil, a choreographer who had worked on the Monkees' film Head, denied the long-running rumour that she renamed it for Micky Dolenz.

Ivan Doroschuk wrote 'The Safety Dance' after being thrown out of a club for doing what?

The Canadian band's single peaked higher in the US (number three) than at home (number eleven).

Who wrote 'Puttin' On the Ritz', a 1983 synth-pop hit for Taco, back in the 1920s?

The Indonesian-born Dutch singer's original video included blackface characters and has since been banned by many networks.

Which British TV scientist shouts 'Science!' on Thomas Dolby's 'She Blinded Me with Science'?

The video was storyboarded before the song existed; Dolby wrote the song to fit it, then directed it himself.

Tommy Tutone's 1982 hit '867-5309' started a nationwide fad for doing what?

The band members told conflicting stories about who Jenny was, but all agreed the number came off a bathroom wall.

Matthew Wilder's 1983 hit 'Break My Stride' was later interpolated in which 1997 Puff Daddy single?

Wilder wrote it about his frustrating time at Arista, whose boss Clive Davis dropped him without hearing a hit in it.

Rockwell's 1984 hit 'Somebody's Watching Me' has uncredited chorus vocals by which superstar?

Rockwell is the son of Motown boss Berry Gordy, who was unimpressed by his music until he heard that familiar voice on the chorus.

Timbuk 3's 'The Future's So Bright, I Gotta Wear Shades' was written as an ironic song about whom?

His wife had said the line in earnest about their improving prospects; he heard it as a quip and wrote it down.

'Voices Carry', the 1985 hit by 'Til Tuesday, was written and sung by which future solo artist?

Epic Records pressured the band to change the lyric's addressee from a woman to a man before it was recorded.

Martika's 1989 US number one 'Toy Soldiers' was written about a friend struggling with what?

Eminem built his 2005 single 'Like Toy Soldiers' around a sped-up sample of Martika's chorus.

Bobby McFerrin's 'Don't Worry, Be Happy' was the first US number one of what kind in 1988?

It knocked Guns N' Roses' 'Sweet Child o' Mine' off the top and swept Song and Record of the Year at the Grammys.

Eddy Grant's 'Electric Avenue' is named after a street in which London district, hit by 1981 riots?

Grant wrote it in anger after the riots, then moved to Barbados and lost most of his new songs in transit.

In Musical Youth's 1982 hit 'Pass the Dutchie', a 'dutchie' is Jamaican patois for what?

The Birmingham schoolboys sold over five million copies and topped the chart in at least nine countries.

'In a Big Country' (1983), famous for guitars that sound like bagpipes, was by a band from which country?

The video, filmed partly at the derelict Corfe Castle railway station, has the band chasing treasure on three-wheelers.

The Dream Academy's 1985 hit 'Life in a Northern Town' was co-produced by which Pink Floyd guitarist?

The song is about the collapse of the British shipping industry and was written as 'a folk song with an African-style chorus'.

Peter Schilling's 1983 hit 'Major Tom (Coming Home)' continues the story from which David Bowie song?

It is one of the few Neue Deutsche Welle records that crossed over into English-speaking pop culture.

Animotion's 'Obsession' was first recorded by writers Holly Knight and which former Silverhead singer?

Animotion's version became the theme for WWF's Saturday Night's Main Event and later turned up on the radio in Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Eddie Murphy's 1985 hit 'Party All the Time' was written and produced by which funk star?

Richard Pryor bet Murphy $100,000 he could not make an album without jokes; Murphy says Pryor never paid up.

Which Red Hot Chili Peppers member played bass on Young MC's 1989 Grammy-winning hit 'Bust a Move'?

The song spent 39 weeks on the Hot 100 and won the 1990 Grammy for Best Rap Performance.

Lipps Inc.'s 1980 hit "Funkytown" was written by members dreaming of leaving which city for New York?

It went to number one in at least eight countries and sold over eight million copies.

'Cars' (1979) was the first single released under whose own name after he dropped the band name Tubeway Army?

He has since called it 'a pretty average song', though it remains his only major American hit.

Which disc jockey's push on Southeastern US radio made Devo's 'Whip It' a hit in 1980?

Warner Bros. had bet on 'Girl U Want' as the single because it sounded like 'My Sharona'; it flopped.

Which former 1950s teen idol co-wrote his teenage daughter's 1981 UK number two 'Kids in America' with his son Ricky?

It reached number one in Finland and South Africa and has sold over three million copies.

'Too Shy', a 1983 UK number one, was the debut single by which band fronted by Limahl?

They had two more UK top tens, but in the US this was their only significant hit.

Trio, whose 1982 hit 'Da Da Da' sold 13 million copies in some 30 countries, came from where?

It resurfaced in the US in 1997 in a Volkswagen Golf commercial.

Which 'Hot Child in the City' singer co-wrote Scandal's 1984 hit 'The Warrior' with Holly Knight?

It reached number one in Canada and won a BMI Airplay Award, but Scandal split before making a second album.

Timex Social Club's 1986 hit 'Rumors' was written by three members while they were still seniors where?

Producer Jay King first offered the demo to Con Funk Shun, who turned it down, so he recorded the teenagers himself.

'Our House' by Madness reached number seven in the US in 1983 and won Best Pop Song at which ceremony?

Madness had over a dozen UK top tens, but this was their only real American hit.

Tom Tom Club, of 'Genius of Love' fame, was a side project of which band's rhythm section?

The song's groove has been sampled endlessly, most famously on Mariah Carey's 'Fantasy'.

Katrina and the Waves, whose 'Walking on Sunshine' was a hit in 1985, later won what for the UK in 1997?

Guitarist Kimberley Rew, who wrote it, admits it is 'just a piece of simple fun' from a band who were not especially cheery people.

Joe Dolce's 'Shaddap You Face' kept which Ultravox single off the top of the UK chart in 1981?

It was number one in twelve countries and became Australia's best-selling single ever at the time.

Which prog-rock keyboardist features on 1980's 'There's No One Quite Like Grandma'?

It was written to mark the Queen Mother's 80th birthday and famously beat John Lennon to the Christmas top spot days after his death.

'The Chicken Song', a UK number one in 1986, came from which satirical puppet TV show?

Its nonsense lyrics by Rob Grant and Doug Naylor, later of Red Dwarf, parodied holiday disco hits like 'Agadoo'.

In which 1987 UK number one did the catchphrase 'It's life, Jim, but not as we know it' actually originate?

The Firm's record entered the chart at 74 and climbed all the way to number one, selling over a million copies.

Aneka of the 1981 hit 'Japanese Boy' was Mary Sandeman, previously known as what kind of singer?

She found the kimono image impossible to shake off, and her career as Aneka fizzled quickly.

The Timelords, whose 'Doctorin' the Tardis' hit UK number one in 1988, were an alias of which duo?

They followed it with a book, The Manual, explaining how to have a number one the easy way.

M|A|R|R|S's 'Pump Up the Volume' took its title from a sampled lyric by which hip-hop duo?

It was an uneasy one-off collaboration between 4AD labelmates Colourbox and A.R. Kane, and the act never released another record.

Steve 'Silk' Hurley's 'Jack Your Body' was the first UK number one to do what in January 1987?

Under the rules of the day those 12-inch sales should not have counted, which forced a rethink of the chart rules.

Yazz's 1988 UK number one 'The Only Way Is Up' was a cover of a 1980 single by which soul singer?

It was produced by Coldcut, who had already used Yazz on 'Doctorin' the House'.

'Together in Electric Dreams' (1984) paired Philip Oakey with which disco producer?

It was written for the film Electric Dreams, directed by Steve Barron, who had made the 'Don't You Want Me' video.

Ray Dorset wrote Kelly Marie's 1980 number one 'Feels Like I'm in Love' with which singer in mind?

Mungo Jerry's own version was relegated to the B-side of a Belgian single.

The chorus of Stephen 'Tin Tin' Duffy's 1985 hit 'Kiss Me' draws on which book of the Bible?

The song was allegedly written within 24 hours of Duffy's band Tin Tin signing to WEA in 1982, and flopped twice before the 1985 version hit number four.

Modern English's 'I Melt with You' became a US cult hit in 1983 after appearing in which film?

Singer Robbie Grey says it depicts a couple making love as an atomic bomb goes off.

'One Night in Bangkok' comes from Chess, a musical by Tim Rice and two members of which group?

Thailand banned it in 1985 for disrespecting Buddhism and Thai society.

Donnie Iris's 1980 hit 'Ah! Leah!' is regarded as the unofficial anthem of which American city?

The 'ah, Leah' hook started life as a Gregorian-style chant on what was meant to be an anti-war song.

Baltimora's 1985 hit 'Tarzan Boy' was fronted in videos by Jimmy McShane, who did what on the record?

The refrain uses Tarzan's cry as its melody and has been cited as an early example of the 'millennial whoop'.

Sabrina's 1987 hit 'Boys' made her the first singer from which country to top the French chart since 1984?

It reached number three in the UK the following summer, helped by a much-discussed swimming-pool video.

A Flock of Seagulls' 'I Ran (So Far Away)' hit No. 9 in the US and No. 1 in Australia; what did it peak at in the UK?

Rolling Stone credited singer Mike Score's haircut, 'stranger than anything you'd encounter in a month of poodle shows', for its MTV success.

Which director's pencil-sketch animation video helped a-ha's 'Take On Me' top the US chart in 1985?

The Norwegian trio's original 1984 version and the first 1985 release both failed to chart in the UK.

The Vapors' 1980 hit "Turning Japanese" prominently features which stock musical phrase on guitar?

The song came from the album New Clear Days and remains by far the band's best-known recording.

Which heavy-metal frontman appears in the video for Boys Don't Cry's 1985 hit "I Wanna Be a Cowboy"?

The song hit number one in New Zealand and 12 in the US but stalled at 77 in the band's native Britain.

"The Politics of Dancing" (1983) was the debut single of which English new wave band?

Keyboardist and co-founder Paul Fishman wrote it as the title track of the band's debut album.

Ready for the World's 1985 number one "Oh Sheila" is often wrongly attributed to which star?

The LinnDrum sound, singer Melvin Riley's faux-British accent and the name Sheila all fed the confusion.

Which soul veteran later covered Living in a Box's 1987 hit "Living in a Box"?

The original was the group's only US top-40 entry, peaking at number 17.

After "Pac-Man Fever", Buckner & Garcia's 1982 follow-up single was about which other arcade game?

"Do the Donkey Kong" stalled at number 103, while "Pac-Man Fever" had gone gold and sold 2.5 million copies over time.

Opus, whose "Live Is Life" topped charts across Europe in 1985, come from which country?

The title is often misheard as "Life Is Life" because German speakers devoice the final consonant of "live".

Real Life's "Send Me an Angel", a US hit in both 1984 and 1989, came from a band based where?

The 1989 remix actually charted higher in the US than the original, reaching number 26.

Harold Faltermeyer's 1985 instrumental hit "Axel F" is the theme from which film?

Named for Eddie Murphy's detective Axel Foley, it hit number one in Ireland and number two across much of Europe.

Jan Hammer's "Miami Vice Theme" was the last instrumental to top the Hot 100 until which 2013 track?

Hammer's synth theme reached number one in 1985 after debuting with the show in September 1984.

Michael Sembello's 1983 number one "Maniac" is best known from the soundtrack of which film?

It began as a darkly comic song about a serial killer before being rewritten to fit the film's dancer heroine.

Yello's 1985 track "Oh Yeah" later became the theme for which Simpsons character?

The Swiss duo's chugging electro track first went mainstream in Ferris Bueller's Day Off.

Which British band's 1983 single "Just Got Lucky" reached the UK top ten and the US top 40?

It came from their debut album Like Gangbusters, and the band's sound was dubbed "Boxerbeat".

Trans-X, the Canadian act behind "Living on Video", also recorded the song in which language?

Written in 1982, it was released as a single in 1983 and remixed for a bigger run in 1985.