So many one hit wonders over the years

The Tokens were an American doo-wop band and record production company group from Brooklyn.
The group had four top 40 hits on the Billboard Hot 100, all in the 1960s, their biggest being the chart-topping 1961 hit single The Lion Sleeps Tonight, which borrowed heavily from the 1939 song “Mbube” by South African singer Solomon Linda.
They are also known for having Neil Sedaka as an original member, before he pursued a solo career.
The Lion Sleeps Tonight - The Tokens
Mbube - Solomon Linda & The Evening Birds - the original version, origin of The Lion Sleeps Tonight


 

The Penguins were an American doo-wop group from Los Angeles, that were active during the 1950s and early 1960s.
They are known for their 1954 hit song, Earth Angel, which was one of the first rhythm and blues songs to cross over to the pop charts. The song would ultimately prove to be their only success.
The song peaked at No. 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100.
Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine) - The Penguins
 

Alan Sherman was born in Chicago.
Because his parents frequently moved to new residences, he attended 21 public schools in Chicago, New York, Los Angeles and Miami.
Sherman devised a game show with comedy writer Howard Merrill called I’ve Got a Secret, which ran on CBS from 1952 to 1967.
Sherman wrote a parody song called Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (A Letter from Camp).
Taken from Wikipedia.
The song is a parody that complains about the fictional “Camp Granada”.
The lyrics go on to describe unpleasant, dangerous, and tragic developments, such as fellow campers going missing or contracting deadly illnesses. He asks how his “precious little brother” is doing, and begs to be taken home, afraid of being left out in the forest and fearing getting eaten by a bear, promising to behave, and even to let his aunt hug and kiss him. At the end, he notes that the rain has stopped and fun activities such as swimming, sailing, and baseball have begun, and asks his parents to “kindly disregard this letter”.
The song reached number 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 24, 1963 and stayed there for 3 weeks.
Hello Muddah, Hello Fadduh (Camp Granada Song) - Allan Sherman 1963
 
Billy Swan is a country music singer/song writer born in Cape Girardeau, Missouri on the Mississippi River.
He learned to play guitar, piano and drums.
Swan moved to Nashville in 1973 and cut his first album, I Can Help in early 1974.
I can help, the single, was a rockabilly number which topped the Billboard Hot 100 as well as the US and Canadian country charts in 1974, also becoming a hit in many other countries.
It was his only hit song. Next best was Everything's the Same which reached number 17 in 1975.

I Can Help - Billy Swan 1975​

 
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The Monotones were a six-member American doo-wop vocal group in the 1950s.
They are considered a one-hit wonder, with “The Book of Love”, peaking at number five on the Billboard Top 100 in 1958.
The Monotones formed in 1955 in Newark, New Jersey.
Book Of Love - The Monotones 1957
 
Ralph McTell is an English singer-songwriter and guitar player who has been an influential figure on the UK folk music scene since the 1960s.
McTell is best known for his song “Streets of London” released in 1969, which has been covered by over two hundred artists around the world.
The song contrasts the common problems of everyday people with those of the homeless, lonely, elderly, ignored and forgotten members of society.
The song reached number 2 on the UK singles chart when it was released in 1974.
Streets of London - Ralph McTell
 
The Capris were a 1950s Doo Wop group from Philadelphia who started out in their teens.
They consisted of four males and a female.
The song that they are most known for is God Only Knows.
Reaching number 3 on the R&B Territorial Best Sellers list in Baltimore, Oct 27th, 1954.

God Only Knows - The Capris 1954​

 
The "Fine Young Cannibals" were an English Pop Rock trio formed in 1984 led by Roland Gift who only GOD knows why they were singing in a club scene of Tin Men starring Danny DiVito and Ritchard Dryfuss . Eventually Andy Cox and David Steele grew tired of Rolands "I'm all that" attitude and left in 1992.

 


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