» Entries tagged with "TV show one hit wonder"
How Do You Talk to an Angel – The Heights
Aaron Spelling is one of the all-time genius TV show producers. You may not love all his programs. You may laugh at their period-piece pop-cultural aesthetics. You may tell your friends you never watched Charlie’s Angels or Melrose Place or Dynasty or Beverly Hills 90210 or The Mod Squad. But the fact is, you probably did. And the rest of America joined you on the sofa as these TV shows became cultural phenomenons and water cooler fodder. But one Aaron … Read entire article »
General Hospi-Tale – The Afternoon Delights
There is a certain charm in novelty songs, those quirky little musical nuggets that capture a moment in time with a popular song based on a pop cultural event. How else can you explain “Pac-Man Fever” by Buckner and Garcia or “Disco Duck” by Rick Dees? They’re silly, stupid, disposable but certainly charming in small doses. Very small doses. “General Hospi-Tale” by The Afternoon Delights is exceedingly stupid, anachronistic and disposable since it manages to name-check key … Read entire article »
Filed under: 1980s
Baby, Come to Me – Patti Austin and James Ingram
TV shows can transform tunes from good song to hit song. All it takes is a little timing, a little luck and that unplanned groundswell of support that pushes a song from a failed single or album track to Billboard number one song. In the one-hit wonder world, this phenomenon has occurred many times. Don’t believe me? How about these examples: “Welcome Back” by John Sebastian (The Theme from Welcome Back, Kotter) “Believe it or Not” by Joey … Read entire article »
Welcome Back – John Sebastian
If you were a kid in 1976, Welcome Back Kotter was the greatest show on TV. Better than Happy Days. Better than Good Times. Better than All in the Family. And the theme song, “Welcome Back” by John Sebastian, was a staple on AM radio stations. America fell in love with the Sweathogs that featured Gabe Kaplan and the legendary, Vinnie Barbarino, i.e., John Travolta. Vinnie was the man. With his feathered hair, massive Goody comb … Read entire article »
Miami Vice Theme – Jan Hammer
Another instrumental one-hit wonder coming your way today. This one from 1985 takes you back to one of the most influential TV series of all time. I’m not kidding when I write this. Miami Vice was a big deal visually, musically and stylistically. Its influence is still felt today. While we could rhapsodize about the cars Crockett and Tubbs drove (a black 1972 Ferrari Daytona Spyder 365 GTS/4 for Crockett and a 1964 Cadillac Coupe de … Read entire article »
Theme from Greatest American Hero (Believe It or Not) – Joey Scarbury
Few songs cry out 1980s sitcom more than the “Theme from Greatest American Hero (Believe It or Not)” by Joey Scarbury. The distinctive piano intro. The simple, sugary sweet pop melody. The fact that the song is called “Theme from Greatest American Hero (Believe It or Not).” And the album artwork. Even as a kid I knew this had to be one of the worst album covers ever. C’mon, you can’t do better than a … Read entire article »
Take Off – Bob and Doug McKenzie
In 1982, Rush was riding high (at least among Canadian bands). Moving Pictures had sold millions of records and Signals would soon reach stores and turn Rush into a one-hit wonder with their one and only top 40-charting song “New World Man.” For a couple of Canadian comedians, there was no better better choice than to have fellow Canadian and Rush lead singer Geddy Lee sing on Bob and Doug McKenzie’s hit single, “Take Off.” … Read entire article »