A history of popular music, as told by 100 one-hit wonders (part 5)

60. Lorne Greene –•– Ringo — (Peaked: December 5, 1964 at #1) 

59. Ian Whitcomb –•– You Turn Me On — (Peaked: July 17, 1965 at #8)               

If a rising tide lifts all boats, then the British Invasion helped these two songs. "Ringo" had nothing to do with, you know, the real Ringo. It was a spoken-word tale of a gunslinger with Lorne Greene at his most sonorous. "You Turn Me On" was good enough to stand on its own merits, a boogie-woogie workout with Brit Ian Whitcomb singing in a breathless, feminine falsetto, fueling playground accusations that he was gay. 

58. The Hollywood Argyles –•– Alley Oop — (Peaked: July 11, 1960 at #1)           

Hollywood record producer Gary Paxton was The Hollywood Argyles. Fast forward several decades from this record and Paxton, then producing gospel music records, became People magazine fodder when he was accused of having an affair with Tammy Faye Bakker, although he insisted they were just friends, and not in the biblical sense. 

57. Paul Mauriat and His Orchestra –•– Love Is Blue — (Peaked: February 10, 1968 at # 1) 

Stuffy instrumental you could only wait out when it played on the radio, but at #1 for five weeks, it was a long wait. Neil Young said he was fooling around trying to play this on his guitar when he stumbled onto the chords for “Heart of Gold.” 

56. Kyu Sakamoto –•– Sukiyaki — (Peaked: June 15, 1963 at # 1)        

55. The Singing Nun –•– Dominique — (Peaked: December 7, 1963 at # 1)                      

Six months separate two of the strangest records to ever reach #1. The Japanese lyrics of "Sukiyaki" are vaguely about dejection over a lost love but were actually written in frustration following a failed student demonstration against the continued post-World War II American military presence in Japan. The title, which has nothing to do with the song, was chosen because it was a term recognizably Japanese and familiar to most Americans – almost like retitling “Dominque” with its French lyrics, “Croissant.” "Dominique" existed in the strange twilight that hung over America between the Kennedy assassination and Beatlemania – the Singing Nun appeared on Ed Sullivan in January 1964, one month before the Beatles. Citing financial difficulties, she and a female friend committed suicide together in 1985. 

54. The Trade Winds –•– New York’s A Lonely Town — (Peaked: March 6, 1965 at # 32)

California dreaming on such a winter's day. In an episode of Mad Men, Don Draper and Harry go to a concert to sign the Rolling Stones to cut a commercial jingle for Heinz Ketchup – not such a reach as the Stones in their early days did ads for Kellogg’s in the UK. Backstage, Harry somehow gets confused and winds up signing opening act the Trade Winds instead. 

53. Iron Butterfly –•– In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida — (Peaked: October 26, 1968 at # 30)            

There was plenty of fat to be trimmed from the original 17-minute version of "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" to make this AM-friendly version, although when I hear the edited single, my mind starts to replay the deleted drum solo, like when you have a tooth removed and you keep probing around, looking for it with your tongue. 

52. Rosie and the Originals –•– Angel Baby — (Peaked: January 23, 1961 at # 5)            

Rosie was 14 when she wrote "Angel Baby" for her boyfriend. The group was offered a recording contract – cue the “Jaws” theme – under the condition that the record label take possession of the master recording and that the oldest Original, not Rosie, be listed as the writer. Ineligible to collect royalties because she wasn’t credited as the writer, decades of litigation followed. John Lennon was an admirer of the amateurish charm of this record, recording a version in the 70s. 

51. Mickey & Sylvia –•– Love Is Strange — (Peaked: March 2, 1957 at # 11)    

50. Shirley & Company –•– Shame, Shame, Shame — (Peaked: March 29, 1975 at # 12)

Sylvia Robinson earned her spot on the Mount Rushmore of one-hit wonders. As half of Mickey & Sylvia, their "Love Is Strange" went to #11 – what is strange is why this song never charted higher, given how well known it is and how often it gets used on soundtracks. Eight years later, Robinson wrote the irresistible disco hit "Shame, Shame, Shame" – John Lennon was an admirer, one of the few rock stars to admit to liking some disco music. Recording as Sylvia in 1973, she was a one-hit wonder with the embarrassing top ten hit “Pillow Talk,” before founding the hip hop label Sugar Hill, home of yet another one-hit wonder, the Sugar Hill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight” in 1979.