The "Insane World Of Mike Sain" airs every Wednesday at 9:00 AM Eastern Time on WPON-AM 1460 Detroit. This morning, Mike played songs by bands and artists who had only one song on the Billboard Hot 100 Pop/Rock charts which did not make the Top 40 - the "other" one hit wonders. One hit wonders are typically defined as those bands and artists that had only one hit in the Billboard Pop/Rock Top 40 (or Top 20, depending on your definition). The "other" one hit wonders' songs were in that that middle range of "minor" hits that peaked somewhere between #41-100. Although many of these songs received a fair amount of airplay in their day, they are perfect examples of some of the oldies you don't hear much anymore that you may have forgotten you remember - until you hear them again.
In the songs below the peak chart positions are listed alongside their years.
- Alley Oop - The Dyna-Sores - 59/1960
- Deserie - The Charts - 88/1957
- No, No, No - The Chanters - 41/1961
- Road Runner - The Gants - 46/1965
- The 81 - Candy And The Kisses - 51/1965
- Zabadak - Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich - 52/1968
- Day After Day (It's Slippin' Away) - Shango - 57/1969
- It Will Stand - The Showmen - 61/1962 & 80/1964
- Cinderella Rockefella - Esther & Abi Ofarim - 68/1968
- Goldfinger - John Barry And His Orchestra - 72/1965
- Witchi Tai To - Everything Is Everything - 69/1969
- Winkin', Blinkin' and Nod - The Simon Sisters - 73/1964
- Son-In-Law - The Blossoms - 79/1961
- Respect - The Rationals - 92/1966
Notes:
- "Alley Oop" topped the charts for the Hollywood Argyles in 1960 and also charted that same year for Dante & the Evergreens and the Dyna-Sores. The Dyna-Sores were a doo wop group whose members included H.B. Barnum and Jimmy Norman. Both Barnum and Norman later went solo and each had one chart hit.
- The Charts ironically had only one chart hit, "Desirie," which debuted in July, 1957, peaking at #88. "Desirie" re-entered the charts in October of that year, and a new version of this song was later released which barely made the charts in 1966, peaking at only #132. The Charts were formed in Harlem in 1956 and led by Joe Grier. The rare "Desirie" is considered to be a doo wop classic and a collectors item.
- "No, No, No" by the Chanters narrowly missed being a Top 40 hit on the Billboard Pop/Rock charts, peaking at #41. The Chanters were formed in Queens in 1957 and led by Larry Pendergrass.
- "Road Runner" was first charted in 1960 by Bo Diddley. The Gants, a garage band from Mississippi led by Sid Herring, later charted with this song in 1965. A "beep beep" sound similar to that of the cartoon character can be heard throughout the song.
- The girl group, Candy & the Kisses, was made up of sisters Candy and Suzanne Nelson with Jeanette Johnson. They are best remembered for the 1965 hit, "(Do) The 81," which was a song about a then-popular dance in Philadelphia.
- Dave Dee, Dozy, Beaky, Mick And Tich was a top British pop group with many Top 10 hits in the UK. In the US, they are best remembered for the weird "Zabadek."
- Shango members included Tommy Reynolds who had been with the T-Bones and later became a part of Hamilton, Joe Frank & Reynolds. Shango's one Billboard Hot 100 hit, "Day After Day (It's Slippin' Away)," is about all the havoc and problems in California created by earthquakes. Shango had one other song that barely made the charts in 1970 (peaking at only #107), "Some Thing's A Man's Gotta Do."
- The Showmen were led by General Norman Johnson who later formed Chairmen of the Board. The Showmen are best remembered for "It Will Stand" which charted in both 1962 and 1964. They later had another song in 1967 that just missed the Billboard Hot 100, "39-21-46," peaking at only #101. Both "It Will Stand" and "39-21-46" were major regional hits on the East Coast.
- Veteran Israeli singer Esther Ofarim began recording in the late 1950s, and throughout her career she has sung mostly folk and folk rock in different languages including English, Hebrew, and Spanish. In the 1960s, Ofarim, with then-husband Abi, has one chart hit in 1968, "Cinderella Rockefella." This novelty duet, which is in a nostalgic turn-of-the-century honky tonk piano style, peaked at only #68 in the US but topped the UK charts.
- Film music composer and conductor John Barry wrote most of the music for the James Bond movies, including the title song for "Goldfinger." The best known version of "Goldfinger" is the one by Shirley Bassey which was a Top 10 hit in 1965. Billy Strange, Jack LaForge, and John Barry also charted that same year with their own instrumental versions of this song. Besides the James Bond movies, John Barry also wrote the scores for numerous other films including "Born Free," "The Lion in Winter," "Out of Africa," and "Dances With Wolves," and his many honors include five Academy Awards.
- Everything Is Everything was pop duo Danny Weiss and Chris Hills, and they had only one chart hit in 1969 with "Witchi Tao To." As the song title suggests, the lyrics for this novelty song sound like a witch doctor's chant.
- The Simon Sisters were Carly Simon and her sister Lucy. Based on the well known children's poem, "Winkin', Blinkin' And Nod" later also charted for the Doobie Brothers in 1981.
- The Blossoms, whose members included Darlene Love, served as a backup group for many singers including Bobby Darin, Elvis Presley, and Paul Anka. This group had one Billboard Hot 100 hit in 1961 with "Son-In-Law" which was an answer song to Ernie K-Doe's "Mother-In-Law." The Blossoms also had one R&B chart hit, "Good, Good Lovin'" (1967).
- The Otis Redding-penned "Respect" was first charted in 1965 by Otis Redding, and Aretha Franklin later topped the charts with this song in 1967. The Rationals also had a minor hit with "Respect" in 1966 which barely made the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at only #92. The Rationals were a garage band from Ann Arbor, Michigan led by Scott Morgan. Although "Respect" was their only song to chart nationally, the Rationals also had a number of other songs that were major regional hits, including "Gave My Love," "I Need You," and "Hold on Baby." "Respect" by the Rationals is included on the hard-to-find CD "Michigan Memories Volume 1."
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