Here’s why: none of what you believe about the song is true.

First, the guy whistling on the record is not actually Whistling Jack Smith. His name is John O’Neill.

Second, John O’Neill didn’t actually appear as Whistling Jack Smith. Whistling Jack Smith was actually performed by a guy named Billy Moeller.

Third, Whistling Jack Smith was not actually Kaiser Bill’s Batman. I assume you knew that already.

Fourth, the lead instrument on “I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” is a multi-tracked whistle. Not a guitar. Not a piano. Just a guy and his mellifluous whistle whistling the same chorus again and again. The best part of the song is the “Oy” near the very end. A pre-punk “Oy” in a song my grandparents loved. How post-modern.

Fifth and last, “I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” by Whistling Jack Smith just might be the best combination of bizarre band name matched to silly song title ever. Please share your nominations for equally strange band/song title in the comments below.

Listen to “I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” by Whistling Jack Smith

“I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” by Whistling Jack Smith reached #20 on the Billboard Top 40 back in the summer of 1967. That was, after all, the summer of love and it’s impossible not to love “I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” or Whistling Jack Smith like they are your own.

It’s a novelty song. Click to hear more novelty songs

It’s an instrumental one-hit wonder (unless you count the “Oy” and I don’t). Click to hear more instrumental one-hit wonders

It’s bizarrely awesome and even better when you watch the video of a spot-on whistling performance by Whistling Jack Smith or John O’Neill or Billy Moeller or whoever this dandy fellow is bouncing around on the stage.

It would be hard to love a song more than this one.

Buy “I Was Kaiser Bill’s Batman” by Whistling Jack Smith

A little too over the top? Listen to this little pop gem three times in a row and then try to get it out of your head.

Impossible.

With the “bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah, bah” introduction the song nestles in your cranium and will take up residence for at least 12 weeks, which is as long as “Tracy” spent on the Billboard charts back in 1969.

Hear more: Bubblegum rock songs

The kids loved it and “Tracy” reached number 9 on the Billboard Top 40 in October 1969–just as “Sugar, Sugar” by The Archies was descending the charts.

Why bring up The Archies? Because The Cuff Links lead singer (Ron Dante) was also the lead singer of The Archies. That means Ron Dante had two songs on the Billboard Top 40 at the same time and no one had a clue who this guy was.

But the kids knew and this infectious bit of ear candy made “Tracy” a million-selling single and turned The Cuff Links into one-hit wonders with one of the greatest bubblegum hits of all time.

Listen to Tracy by The Cuff Links

As for Dante, he did just fine after The Cuff Links (which were a band in name only) broke up; he went on to record solo records, produce Tony-award winning musicals and served as producer for some of Barry Manilow’s earliest hits, including his #1 single, “Mandy” back in 1974.

Buy Tracy by The Cuff Links

But first a little history.

The first rap-metal blend to become a hit was when Steven Tyler and Joe Perry guested on Run DMC’s remake of Aerosmith’s own “Walk This Way.” The new version even charted a good deal higher (Number 4 vs. Aerosmith’s Number 10). It also resurrected Aerosmith’s career and their 1987 album Permanent Vacation was their biggest seller in years, paving the way for Pump and other out-of-the-box chart busters. We’ve included “Walk This Way” below.

Later, Anthrax introduced hip-hop elements into the dark world of thrash metal on their I’m the Man EP. Anthrax also teamed with hip-hop legends and Billboard Top 40 one-hit wonders, Public Enemy, to record a rockin’ version of “Bring the Noise” for their Attack of the Killer B’s album. You can hear it below, too.

Listen to Walk This Way by Aerosmith and Run D.M.C.

Listen to Bring the Noise by Anthrax and Public Enemy

But it was “Epic,” a 1990 hit by one-hit wonders Faith No More that opened the door for much of the rap-metal garbage that followed in Faith No More’s wake.

For the record (so to speak), “Epic” peaked at Number 9, but Faith No More would never reach the Top 40 again.

A remake of The Commodore’s “Easy” managed to climb into the lower reaches of the Hot 100, and another song called “Midlife Crisis” missed the Hot 100 but topped the Modern Rock Tracks chart in 1992.

“Epic” was a huge hit and is ranked #30 on Vh1′s 40 Greatest Metal Songs and, more important to readers of this site, “Epic” was named #67 on VH1′s Greatest One-Hit Wonders List.

Listen to Epic by Faith No More

(If the link doesn’t work, try this one

Like so many bands, Faith No More was hugely successful with their fans but never became a mainstream success; they broke up in 1998. Yet like so many bands, Faith No More found a way to reform in the late 2000s and continues to sporadically perform shows together where they inevitably play “Epic.”

Editor’s note: the following statement by Jim Barton doesn’t necessarily represent the view of TopOneHitWonders.com or Michael Waterman who enjoys plenty of rap music and has great appreciation for hip-hop geniuses like Public Enemy and many other rap and hip-hop one-hit wonders.

Hear more: Hip-Hop one-hit wonders

Personally, I find rap an abomination (one common joke for rap enemies is “Music is like candy: you have to throw away the rappers”) and rap/metal hybrids are equally unwelcome on my turntable. That said, without early rap/rock collaborations, you wouldn’t have rap-metal artists such as Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, Korn and others. That wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

Buy Epic by Faith No More

Yauch had fought cancer since 2009 and did not appear with the Beasties when they were inducted into the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in April 2012.

His death was announced by Russell Simmons who signed the Beasties to their first label deal.

“GlobalGrind is confirming this very sad news,” said Simmons. “One of our heroes, Adam Yauch aka MCA of the Beastie Boys has passed this morning after a long bout with cancer. Our prayers go out to the family of Adam and the entire Beastie Boys crew.”

If you haven’t followed the Beastie Boys career, you might think they are a one-hit wonder for their 1987 breakthrough hit “(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right to Party.”

The video was a big hit on MTV and ended up as the band’s highest-charting single when it reached number 7 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1987.

But the three-man band actually charted three times on the Billboard Top 40. Their other charting singles were “Hey Ladies” from 1989 (peak position #36) and “Intergalactic” from 1998 (peak position #28).

Beastie Boys formed in 1979 and released seven studio albums and thirty-five singles.

Remaining members of the band include Michael “Mike D” Diamond and Adam “Ad Rock” Horowitz. It’s unknown whether the band will continue without Yauch.

Listen to (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right to Party by Beastie Boys

Listen to Intergalactic by Beastie Boys

Buy Beastie Boys Music

Long before the Los Angeles hair-metal scene, there was the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, a movement that launched the careers of the famous (Def Leppard, Iron Maiden) to the cult favorites (Motorhead, Saxon) to the obscure (Tank, Raven). Then there was Diamond Head, whose songs Metallica lovingly covered in their garage-band days and later made famous by remaking them for albums such as Garage, Inc.

One of the more obscure bands from the NWOBHM was a group called Girl, whose main claim to fame was supplying two of its members to more famous bands. Guitarist Phil Collen (not to be confused with Phil Collins of Genesis, of course) replaced Steve Willis in Def Leppard just in time for that group’s Pyromania album. And singer Phil Lewis would ultimately end up in Los Angeles, fronting L.A. Guns (named after guitarist Tracii Guns).

Members of an early version of L.A. Guns teamed up with ex-members of another group called Hollywood Rose to form Guns n’ Roses. Yes, the Guns ‘n Roses, a band that was enshrined in the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 2012.

One of the earliest lineup of Guns n’ Roses includes W. Axl Rose on vocals, Tracii Guns on guitar and Izzy Stradlin on guitar. An impressive feat getting those three guys in the same room. Yet the union was short-lived an Guns soon left the band.

Once G N’R hit the big time, a new version of L.A. Guns briefly rode their coattails to short-lived fame of their own, scoring their only Top 40 hit when “The Ballad of Jayne” reached #33 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1990.

In “The Ballad of Jayne,” we find another song with the endurance of an Iron Man Triathlon winner (also see “House of Pain” by Faster Pussycat). Though it only reached Number 33 (in 1990), “The Ballad of Jayne” spent an incredible 22 weeks on the Hot 100, actually beating out the Faster Pussycat song by one week!

Listen to The Ballad of Jayne by L.A. Guns

Bonus one-hit wonder connections

In our ongoing quest to prove that all one-hit wonders are somehow connected, add L.A. Guns and “The Ballad of Jayne” to the list. The similarity to Faster Pussycat is not limited to chart success only; several members of Faster Pussycat were members of L.A. Guns during its long and complicated history.

Alert readers will remember that Faster Pussycat reached the Billboard Top 40 in 1990 when “House of Pain” reached #28 on the Billboard Top 100.

Read and hear: “House of Pain” by Faster Pussycat

buy The Ballad of Jayne by L.A. Guns

It’s hard to calculate and quantify the number of one-hit wonder bands and artists Dick Clark featured on American Bandstand during its 30-year run between 1957 and 1987.

Virtually every American band (and many non-American bands) who found a place on the Billboard Top 40 appeared on American Bandstand.

YouTube is filled with American Bandstand videos from one-hit artists like Anita Ward (“Ring My Bell”), Buckner and Garcia (“Pac-Man Fever”), Haircut 100 (“Love Plus One”), Devo (“Whip It”) and hundreds more from the 1970s and 1960s.

The show was influenced by popular culture and directly influenced popular culture in return. And at the center of the show was Dick Clark, a man who never seemed to age and who was an ideal foil for his audience who never seemed to age either.

American Bandstand wasn’t known for cutting-edge music; it was known for giving currently popular artists a shot at the spotlight.

In some cases, major artists like Aretha Franklin made multiple appearances. But my favorites were always the here-today-gone-tomorrow one-hit wonders who graced the Bandstand stage.

Rock legend or new kid on the block, Dick Clark treated all artists equally, offering a chance to lip-sync their song on stage or, in rare instances with artists like Al Green, Marvin Gaye and Aretha, allow them to sing live.

The kids didn’t care; they just wanted to dance. And Dick Clark just wanted to promote. Sure, if he made a few bucks in the process, everyone came out ahead.

Clark made plenty of money and his enterprises helped launch the careers of artists who had decades-long careers (see Aretha Franklin and “Rock Steady”) or who were novelty acts destined for one-hit wonder status (see Rick Dees and “Disco Duck.”)

Clark suffered a stroke in 2004 and also suffered from diabetes. His passing today is met with tributes, accolades and fond remembrances.

As a kid who grew up watching American Bandstand on Saturday mornings, Dick Clark and Casey Kasem were the gateway to this drug we all know as music.

I can’t thank him enough.

Rest in peace, Dick Clark.

Watch the Best of American Bandstand

Released in 1991, “Pop Goes the Weasel” was the sixth track of 3rd Bass’s album titled Derelicts of Dialect, one of the greatest alliterative titles of early ’90s hip hop.

It’s instantly recognizable thanks to a healthy hook courtesy of “Sledgehammer” by Peter Gabriel.

But that’s not it for samples. Listen closely and you’ll hear bits of “Eminence Front” by The Who and “You Haven’t Don’t Nothin’” by Stevie Wonder. Plus, if you listen really closely, you’ll hear a few bars of “Damn Right I’m Somebody” by Fred Wesley and the J.B.’s. Fred was the trombone player in many James Brown bands and is also owner of his own one-hit wonder titled, “Doing it to Death” that reached #22 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1973.

Yet again, a hip-hop one-hit wonder shares a remarkable connection to a band that is a founding element of hip hop (that would be James Brown if you’ve lost track somewhere in the equation).

Listen to Pop Goes the Weasel by 3rd Bass

What’s “Pop Goes the Weasel” about?

It’s blasting all the hip-hop artists who crossed over into the mainstream with songs that were commercial and poppy and easy on the ears. Think M.C. Hammer, Vanilla Ice and others. Check these lyrics from “Pop Goes the Weasel.”

Hip-hop, got turned into hit pop
the second a record was number one on the pop charts
For those that get on heart that gotta in the ghetto
Let no one forget about the hard part
Now in ninety-one we got a new brand, a new band
lookin like the same old Klan
Same old theives that skeez so we gotta make sure
that real rap has got to endure

To my ears, it sounds like 3rd Bass is inviting and then biting the very hand that feeds them by inserting samples and the main riff from “Sledgehammer” into their allegedly subversive and legit rap song. Fellas, “Pop Goes the Weasel” is just as poppy by trading on goodwill toward “Sledgehammer” as “You Can’t Touch This” became a massive pop hit by co-opting Rick James’ “Super Freak.”

And though you could argue that 3rd Bass had more street cred than Vanilla Ice (a fact I won’t dispute), is “Pop Goes the Weasel” and its “Sledgehammer” sample any less overtly commercial than Vanilla Ice’s creative theft of “Under Pressure” by Queen?

Nope.

They’re all just great hip-hop pop songs. 3rd Bass is no more legit than Hammer–at least on “Pop Goes the Weasel.”

You probably recall that Hammer sang “Too Legit to Quit” back in the early 1990s. Well that’s exactly what 3rd Bass did soon after their big hit by disbanding in 1992.

So 3rd Bass is history but “Pop Goes the Weasel” lives on as a classic hip-hop one-hit wonder that forced bands and listeners to take sides on who were the credible rappers. In my opinion, they all were.

But maybe I’m just a weasel myself.

Hear more: Hip-hop one-hit wonders

Buy Pop Goes the Weasel by 3rd Bass

Giant is so far off the beaten path of rock history you’ll need GPS and compass skills used by back-country hikers in remote wilderness areas to even locate this band.

Giant was essentially a bunch of Christian Nashville session players that decided one day to get together as a band and make records of their own, like Toto in Los Angeles. But if Giant had dreams of being as giant as Toto was in 1982, those dreams were soon dashed, perhaps because they sounded too much like a Foreigner clone.

Their first single “I’m a Believer” (not a remake of the Monkees hit, although lyrically, it’s closely related and you can click this link to hear Monkee Michael Nesmith’s one-hit wonder hit “Joanne”) missed the Billboard Top 40 but would become their most famous song, relatively speaking (Dee Snider has been known to dust this one off on occasion and play it on his House of Hair program).

It was their second single, “I’ll See You In My Dreams,” that put Giant in the Top 40 for the only time in 1990. Yet another power ballad, the song reached number 20 on the Billboard Top 40, and soon Giant would enter the world of forgotten one-hit wonders.

Now where did I put those topographical maps?

Listen to I’ll See You In My Dreams by Giant

Bonus trivia:

If you’re the kind of person who reads the liner notes and musician credits on albums and CDs, you’ll likely recognize Dann Huff. He was a monster studio guitarist who played on records from everyone from Michael Jackson to Whitney Houston, one-hit wonders Scritti Politti (“Perfect Way”) and George Benson, to name just a few. And that’s just on the pop side of the equation.

On the country side of music, Huff has produced records for an equally impressive bunch of singers, including Carrie Underwood, Trisha Yearwood, Reba McEntire, Jewel, Rascal Flats, Faith Hill and Keith Urban.

While the royalties for “I’ll See You in My Dreams” may not be paying Dann Huff’s mortgage, I’m confident he’s doing just fine and we’re impressed by his remarkable impact on pop and country music.

Hear more: Heavy metal one-hit wonders

Buy I’ll See You In My Dreams by Giant

There is nothing wrong with the song. In fact, it’s a wonderfully produced disco gem that features all the disco trademarks including:

• Dual-tracked female singers
• A consistent disco beat
• Vocal references to roller skates
• Soaring strings at all the right moments

“A Lover’s Holiday” should have been a hit. Instead it only reached number 40 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1980.

Here’s the problem: the song came out at least two years too late.

Disco listeners were ready for this song in 1977 or 1978 as an aural addition to the brilliant disco canon established by the greatest disco band of all time, Chic.

Instead, Change sounds like the poor-man’s version of Chic.

Listen to Change by A Lover’s Holiday

Featuring Nile Rodgers, Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson, Chic created such dance anthems as “Good Times” and “”Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)” and “Le Freak.”

Chic also penned “We Are Family” by Sister Sledge and “Upside Down” and “I’m Coming Out” by Diana Ross.

The boys had serious songwriting chops and their songs have aged incredibly well.

In case you’ve forgotten, “Good Times” by Chic was the instrumental bed for the first big rap song, “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang that reached number 36 in 1980 and turned The Sugarhill Gang into cherished hip-hop icons and one-hit wonders.

And here’s one more Chic one-hit wonder connection for you: Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson were part of three-hit wonders, The Power Station and their hits “Some Like it Hot” and “Get It On (Bang a Gong)”, which was a cover of one-hit wonder T-Rex’s original hit “Get It One (Bang a Gong)” from 1971.

And finally, if you haven’t tired of all the Chic and The Power Station connections to one-hit wonders, you have to add “Take It Easy” by Andy Taylor of Duran Duran and The Power Station fame. His song “Take It Easy” sounds remarkably similar in production to “Get It On (Bang a Gong)” by The Power Station.

As for Change, well, they released two albums, scored this Billboard Top 40 hit and became one-hit wonders who are largely forgotten today through no fault of their own since “A Lover’s Holiday” is as good as more than half of the disco songs that became bigger hits (see “Disco Lucy” by the Wilton Place Street Band and “Disco Duck” by Rick Dees for examples of bad songs that became big hits).

“A Lover’s Holiday” is more proof that timing is everything–no matter how good your song may be.

Listen to more: Disco one-hit wonders

Listen to more: Forgotten one-hit wonders

Buy Change by A Lover’s Holiday

Buy Chic music

With songs such as “Cathouse,” “Madam Ruby’s Love Boutique” and the near-novelty “Bathroom Wall,” a heavy metal cousin to “867-5309 (Jenny)” by Tommy Tutone, Faster Pussycat (named for a 1960s movie) was certainly one of the silliest bands to emerge from the Los Angeles “hair metal” scene of the 1980s.

“House of Pain,” however, was a serious song: a power ballad about one of the band member’s difficult relationship with his father that made the Top 40 in 1990. Having watched a close friend deal with a dad who wasn’t exactly a candidate for “Father of the Year” awards while growing up, “House of Pain” struck a responsive chord, yet when paired with all the cornball sleaze-songs Faster Pussycat did, its impact was oddly blunted.

Hear more: Heavy metal one-hit wonders

“House of Pain” was Faster Pussycat’s only Top 40 hit. Although it stalled at number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1990, the song was remarkably enduring: It was on the Hot 100 for a full 21 weeks, longer than any of the twenty chart-toppers by The Beatles or the eight by the Rolling Stones! An odd statistic indeed.

Listen to House of Pain by Faster Pussycat

And since you didn’t ask, the name Faster Pussycat is indeed inspired by the Russ Meyers’ movie Faster, Pussycat! Kill! Kill! And speaking of movies, you can catch interviews of Faster Pussycat in the fantastically fascinating movie The Decline of Western Civilization part 2 – The Metal Years directed by Penelope Spheeris. If you enjoy music documentaries, The Decline of Western Civilization part 1 – The Punk Years and The Decline of Western Civilization part 2 – The Metal Years are must-see movies.

Like so many one-hit wonders, Faster Pussycat soldiered on for a few more years, then broke up, then later reconciled to perform in front of progressively smaller audiences. As of 2012, they’re still touring sporadically.

So we salute Faster Pussycat as heavy-metal one-hit wonders who left the world with an acoustic-driven power ballad that is a bookend to Kix’s “Don’t Close Your Eyes” as a metal song with a much heavier meaning than you probably expect.

Buy House of Pain by Faster Pussycat

That’s because “Forget Me Nots” is the basis of “Men in Black” by Will Smith.

Simply replace “Sending me forget me nots / I want you to remember” with “Here come the Men in Black / they won’t let you remember” in the chorus, maintain the music, the melody and the riffs and you have a formula for a Billboard top 10 hit.

For Will Smith and “Men in Black” that is.

“Forget Me Nots” by Patrice Rushen was popular yet only managed to reach #23 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1982, which transformed Patrice Rushen into a one-hit wonder for a song that rarely gets played today yet virtually everyone remembers.

Meantime, Will Smith’s “Men in Black” reached #2 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1997 and Smith won a Grammy for Best Rap Solo Performance in 1998.

Listen to Forget Me Nots by Patrice Rushen

Listen to Men in Black by Will Smith

The best part for the songwriters (Patrice Rushen and Terry McFadden): royalty checks for both versions. If you want a recipe for long-term financial success in the music business, write a song that gets covered again and again.

For instance, take “Last Kiss” that was first recorded by J. Frank and the Cavaliers, then covered by Wednesday in 1974, then covered again by Pearl Jam in 1999, in the process becoming that Seattle-based band’s biggest hit.

Alternatively, you can write a song with a catchy chorus and killer musical hook and let Will Smith turn it into a soundtrack hit.

Either way, you’ve done just fine.

As for Patrice Rushen, “Forget Me Nots” may have been her only Billboard Top 40 hit, but she did just fine in her music career, amassing Grammy award nominations and plenty of steady, impressive work. You can learn more about Patrice Rushen here.

Buy Forget Me Nots by Patrice Rushen

Buy Men in Black by Will Smith

The pounding piano is straight from Toto’s first hit, “Hold the Line” with some sly nods to Daryl Hall’s piano pounding on “Kiss on My List.”

The soaring vocals have a touch of two-hit wonders Frankee and the Knockout’s vocal stylings on their biggest hit, “Sweetheart.”

The “no I never” backing vocals would sound perfect on any Queen song circa 1975-1979.

The general production evokes memories of “Theme from America’s Greatest Hero (Believe It or Not)” by Joey Scarbury, though O’Banion exhibits more singing chops.

Emulation can be a very smart move in pop music.

But draw a little too close to the source and people may simple assume they are hearing yet another song by Hall and Oates or Toto instead of a new guy named John O’Banion.

Listen to Love You Like I Never Loved Before by John O’Banion

So they buy the latest record from those guys and never even learn John O’Banion even exists, which quickly moves those newly pressed records from the “New Release” bin to the “Cutout Bin” where rock ‘n’ roll dreams died a slow, painful death in grocery stores throughout much of the 1980s.

“Love You Like I Never Loved Before” by John O’Bannion reached number 24 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1981. Years later, it’s a forgotten one-hit wonder.

Hear more: Forgotten one-hit wonders

O’Bannion never again charted but his song, “I Don’t Want To Lose Your Love,” which was recorded by country artist Crystal Gayle on her 1983 album, Cage The Songbird, reached #2 on the the Billboard country music charts. Royalty check.

O’Banion continued to sing and act but died just before his 60th birthday from injuries sustained when he was hit by a car in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Buy Love You Like I Never Loved Before by John O’Banion

Back in the days when teachers and principals were concerned about gum instead of guns in schools, teen suicide was virtually unheard of. The notion that kids could take their own lives first reared its ugly head in the 1980s, thanks to two highly-publicized court cases involving parents whose teen sons committed suicide trying to blame Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest’s music on it.

Ozzy’s controversial song was titled “Suicide Solution” and both sets of parents ultimately lost their lawsuits.

Several songs have been written that take an anti-teen-suicide stance, the best of which is “The Pass” by Rush, an obscure cut from their Presto album that views the problem from the thoughtful, intellectual angle that Rush is famous for.

Others are the rather silly “Don’t Try Suicide” by Queen, “Sins of Omission” by Bay Area thrash metalists Testament, and the hit power ballad “Don’t Close Your Eyes” by Kix.

Listen to Don’t Close Your Eyes by Kix

Kix was a Hagerstown, Maryland band that sounded like a cross between Motley Crue and Bon Scott-era AC/DC. Their first few albums were poor sellers, but their fourth LP, Blow My Fuse, came out at the height of pop metal’s late 1980s popularity.

“Don’t Close Your Eyes” is the big hit from Blow My Fuse, and in 1989, it was released as a single that fell just shy of the Top 10. “Don’t Close Your Eyes” reached number 11 on the Billboard Top 40, which transformed Kix into a one-hit wonder.

Although Kix formed in 1977 and continues to tour well into the 2000s, they never became a household name–besides metal-heads and fans who remember “Don’t Close Your Eyes.”

Hold on, hold on tight
I’ll make everything all right
Wake up don’t go to sleep
I’ll pray the Lord your soul to keep

Don’t close your eyes
Don’t close your eyes
Don’t sing your last lullaby

Buy Don’t Close Your Eyes by Kix

While The Monkees had 12 Top 40 hits, only one member of The Monkees had a solo song reach the Billboard Top 40.

And it ain’t Davy Jones.

It’s Michael Nesmith with his 1970s twangy soft-rock ballad, “Joanne.”

Never heard it before? I’m not surprised. This song reached #21 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1970 and was billed to Michael Nesmith and the First National Band.

A follow-up song titled “Silver Moon” reached #42 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1970, nearly disqualifying Nesmith from becoming a one-hit wonder.

Listen to Joanne by Michael Nesmith and the First National Band

Nothing else Nesmith performed ever reached listener’s ears on Top 40 stations. But Nesmith went on to a long and distinguished career as a songwriter, director, producer and more.

In fact, Nesmith produced the video for Lionel Richie’s hugely popular “All Night Long” in the 1980s and the video for Michael Jackson’s “The Way You Make Me Feel.”

Impressive work. He also won a Grammy Award Nesmith for Long-form Music Video in 1982, for his hour-long Elephant Parts.

But his best claims to fame?

Nesmith was a member of The Monkees and partially responsible for their bubblegum rock brilliance. Even better, he’s the only Monkee who is a one-hit wonder.

Go Mike, go!

Buy Joanne by Michael Nesmith and the First National Band

That’s because the chorus consists entirely of that single phrase: “I’m breaking away. Hoo-ooo.”

Twenty-three times if my ear doesn’t deceive me in a song that is only 3-minutes and 14-seconds long.

But “Breaking Away” has so many trademark 1980s sounds, it sounds like it was made in the 1980s Pop Hits Factory somewhere outside Los Angeles, California (even though Balance formed in New York City).

Big drums. Check.

Punchy analog keyboard flourishes. Check.

Piano and keyboard dueling for prominence in the mix. Double check.

Three-part harmonies in the chorus. Triple check.

And a passionate vocal performance by lead singer, Peppy Castro. With a name like Peppy, it’s probably impossible to sing without passion.

It was 1980s gold as “Breaking Away” hit number 22 on the Billboard Top 40 in 1980, making Balance a one-hit wonder.

Listen to Breaking Away by Balance

Balance soon broke away from the radio, concert halls and memories of top 40 radio listeners. That’s the one-hit wonder story. A hit today, then you’re breaking away into oblivion. But hey, at least they had one hit.

Bonus trivia: guitarist Bob Kulick went on to play guitar on several studio albums with Kiss and his younger brother, Bruce Kulick, became lead guitarist for Kiss for 12 years in the mid-1980s. Balance drummer, Chuck Burgi, has enjoyed a long, successful career as a studio musician and has played in Billy Joel’s band since 2005.

Buy Breaking Away by Balance