If you’re of a certain age, you probably remember hearing Gerry Rafferty on the radio a lot. And I mean a whole lot. His biggest hit was all over the radio during the summer of 1978, and the follow-up got lots of airplay that fall. But Mr. Rafferty had more hits than just those two. Do you remember 1979’s “Get It Right Next Time”?
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Mother Freedom by Bread
Sometimes a band gets a little bit typecast. Take Bread, for example. You remember Bread, don’t you? They placed a whole lot of slow ballads on the chart in the early-to-mid 1970s. Oh, and two rockers that no one remembers, or at least radio programmers don’t. Let’s take a look at one of those today, the still timely “Mother Freedom”.
Paranoimia by The Art of Noise with Max Headroom
By pretty much any standard, The Art of Noise is one of the most unique groups to come out of the 1980s. What started out with a solid pedigree went in a direction no one but its members could have predicted. And it was without the group’s most famous member that the group had its biggest successes. A few of those successes even made it onto the US charts, including one with a very 80s character.
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Destination Unknown by Missing Persons
Occasionally, a recording act will be remembered many years after hitting the charts, before finally disappearing from the radio waves. Such was the case with Missing Persons, a group known best for two songs which both just missed the top 40. Both those songs are mostly forgotten now, but one is remembered just a little bit less than the other. It is for that reason that this entry will spotlight “Destination Unknown”.
Taken In by Mike + The Mechanics
It’s not at all uncommon for an artist who is already part of a successful band to start a side project. This page covered one of those fairly recently. Heck, Duran Duran’s members split up between two successful side projects at the same time in 1985. Now, some of these side projects (though probably not Duran Duran’s two) are easily forgotten. Possibly one of the most successful bands formed as a side project, though, was Mike Rutherford’s side project Mike + The Mechanics.
Mike + The Mechanics was so successful that while the band, and several of its songs, are still remembered, other songs which got a fair amount of airplay originally have fallen by the wayside. One of those was the band’s 1986 top 40 hit “Taken In”.
Ai No Corrida by Quincy Jones
It isn’t unheard of for the artist credited on a track not to be the one who actually sings on that track. Carlos Santana, for example, made a career of it. But while many Santana tracks are still receiving airplay, one artist whose credited tracks are much more difficult to hear on American radio is famed producer Quincy Jones. Do you remember a 1981 track called “Ai No Corrida”?
Hearts by Marty Balin
September 2018 saw the loss of yet another name from rock music history, as Marty Balin died at age 76. Marty Balin was one of the founding members of Jefferson Airplane and also sang with its offshoot, Jefferson Starship. But it was his solo career that has become forgotten by radio now.
Dreamtime by Daryl Hall
When Daryl Hall wasn’t making hit albums and singles with John Oates (along with the occasional now-forgotten song), he certainly kept busy during the 70s and 80s.* In addition to writing and producing, he also recorded some music on his own. American terrestrial radio has pretty much forgotten, but he had some success in the mid-80s with a hit called “Dreamtime”.
Your Imagination by Daryl Hall and John Oates
If one were to make an objective list of the most successful duos in American music during the pop era by sales and chart successes, one would have to include Daryl Hall and John Oates. However, if I were to make a list of the most disrespected duos in America music in the pop era, I would also include Daryl Hall and John Oates. Add to that the fact that they did have so many chart smashes, and it’s easy to see how a single that was not so successful could be forgotten so totally. And that’s exactly the fate of the duo’s 1981 single “Your Imagination”.
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Rocky by Austin Roberts
Many times an artist who hits the top ten is better known for acting. For example, within a three-year period during the 80s, actors Don Johnson, Bruce Willis, and Patrick Swayze hit the top ten for their first and only time. For an artist to be better known for his work on an animated children’s show, though, is a much rarer instance. Such is the case for Austin Roberts, one of those artists now thought to be a one-hit wonder…even though he wasn’t.