B&W portrait of Chrissy Amphlett created using Dall-E
Chrissy Amphlett, iconic frontwoman of Divinyls, died after a long battle with breast cancer. She'd been unable to receive radiation treatment or chemotherapy due to the multiple sclerosis that she also suffered from. She was 53.
Chrissy Amphlett
October 25, 1959 ~ April 21, 2013
Divinyl’s breakthrough in the US came with “I Touch Myself,” & the song became their only US #Top40 hit… It pushed boundaries & got attention, but it was more than just the shock value. It was a perfect pop-rock song with huge hooks and Chrissy’s totally confident delivery. #Divinyls #OneHitWondered
Divinyls rocked one of America’s biggest stages early on… opening the 1983 US Festival on New Wave Day. Chrissy Amphlett looked like a star, but the weird part… after such a huge intro, their breakthrough still took almost another decade. #ChrissyAmphlett #Divinyls #USFestival #OneHitWondered
Divinyls found success in Australia, but little in the US… In 2001, APRA named "Science Fiction" one of the Top 30 Australian songs of all time. In 2006, they were inducted into the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) Hall of Fame! #Divinyls #OneHitWondered #MusicSky
A day to remember Chrissy Amphlett, who #DOTD in 2013… Fronting the Aussie rock group Divinyls, Chrissy earned US #OneHitWonder honors in 1991 when their provocative new wave single “I Touch Myself” spent 12 weeks on the US #Billboard #Top40, peaking at #4. #ChrissyAmphlett #OneHitWondered #MusicSky
A proud Minnesotan through and through.
10 years after his passing, I’m joining folks around the world in honoring Prince by listening to Purple Rain today.
Ernie Maresca & Tom Bogdany wrote “Shout! Shout!” at George’s Nut House in Manhattan, then Maresca played a homemade demo for Seville A&R man Marvin Holtzman… about a week later, they were in the studio cutting the single. #ErnieMaresca #SevilleRecords #OneHitWondered
Ernie Maresca publicity photo
Ernie Maresca’s own US #Top40 hit, “Shout! Shout! (Knock Yourself Out),” was not a Laurie single… NYC indie label Seville Records offered Maresca a recording contract in 1961. He warned Seville he was not much of a singer, but they were chasing songs more than polish. #ErnieMaresca #OneHitWondered
Laurie Records logo
Ernie Maresca became a jack-of-all-trades at Laurie Records, as a songwriter, producer, & performer. By the 1970s, Maresca transitioned to the business side, and was head of Laurie Records' publicity department… and instrumental in managing the label's legacy. #LaurieRecords #OneHitWondered
Ernie Maresca’s influence on the charts was massive… Beyond Dion, he penned hits for various artists across the 1960s, including "Whenever a Teenager Cries" for Reparata and the Delrons and "Party Girl" for Bernadette Carroll. #ErnieMaresca #OneHitWondered
Ernie Maresca is easily most famous for his collaboration with fellow Bronx native Dion DiMucci. He wrote or co-wrote some of Dion’s legendary hits, including: “Runaround Sue” (#1 hit), “The Wanderer” (#2 hit), “Lovers Who Wander”, & “Donna the Prima Donna” #ErnieMaresca #Dion #OneHitWondered
The week ending April 21, 1962, Bronx, NYC, singer/songwriter Ernie Maresca earned US #OneHitWonder honors when his early rock & roll/doo-wop classic “Shout! Shout! (Knock Yourself Out) entered the US #Billboard #Top40 at #33. The single spent 9 weeks on the chart, peaking at #6. #OneHitWondered
"Pro Life" Republicans
I must confess, I couldn't summon up much energy to dig into this one... and it deserves better. Next time...
I should post a trailer from the film that put "The Entertainer" on the map, so to speak. #OneHitWondered
Marvin Hamlisch
Marvin Hamlisch’s “The Entertainer” turned ragtime into mainstream radio music again, decades after Joplin wrote it… but the success was a total shock. Who’d have thought that 70-year-old ragtime could compete with rock 'n' roll, effectively launching a nationwide ragtime revival? #OneHitWondered
In 1974, Marvin Hamlisch achieved a rare feat for a film composer: a massive #Top40 pop hit with an instrumental. "The Entertainer," from the Newman/Redford film The Sting, wasn't a Hamlisch original. He adapted/orchestrated a 1902 ragtime piano classic by Scott Joplin. #ScottJoplin #OneHitWondered
The week ending April 20, 1974, legendary composer/conductor Marvin Hamlisch earned US #OneHitWonder honors when his adaptation of Scott Joplin’s 1902 ragtime piano rag “The Entertainer” entered the US #Billboard #Top40 at #31. The single spent 12 weeks on the chart, peaking at #3. #OneHitWondered
![George Benson - Give Me The Night (Official Music Video) [HD Remaster]](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_thumbnail/plain/did:plc:5dtyyzzbeqprz3t53mqjijlc/bafkreiannbc3lib5yua67yoe7hsawc6wrwuvpwxunkgmafzzuikxa3gzwy)
Featuring the immortal Rod Temperton, who famously wrote for Quincy Jones and Michael Jackson. He also wrote this classic for George Benson.
Oh, I know you know all their hits... I can smell a fan from across the 'net.
I was mentioning the others for anyone else who might be reading the comments 😀
Well, now you're drifting into a gray area... That's when the name got shortened to Faces, and I'm treating them as a separate entity. Faces... or Rod Stewart & Faces, had two US #Billboard #Top40 hits. "Stay with Me" peaked at #17, and "(I Know) I'm Losing You" topped out at #24.
It's a fantastic song...
Small Faces earned US #OneHitWonder honors... but Humble Pie is an altogether different entity. As to Humble Pie, they did not earn US #OneHitWonder honors, as they never had a single reach the #Billboard #Top40. "Hot 'n' Nasty" & "Fool for a Pretty Face" peaked at #52
In the US, "Whatcha Gonna Do About It" didn't chart... "Tin Soldier" peaked at #73 and "Lazy Sunday" topped out at #114 on the Bubbling Under chart... There were a bunch of other Small Faces UK hits you could've mentioned, too. "All or Nothing" was a UK #1 hit, "Sha-La-La-La-Lee" went to #3.
B&W portrait of Steve Marriott created using Dall-E
Steve Marriott died from smoke inhalation suffered during a fire at his home. The theory was that Marriott had lit a cigarette in bed and fell asleep. Drugs & alcohol were found in his blood. He was 44 years old…
Steve Marriott
January 30, 1947 ~ April 20, 1991
Remembering English singer/guitarist Steve Marriott, who #DOTD in 1991. As the frontman for the English rock group Small Faces, Steve earned US #OneHitWonder honors when “Itchycoo Park” spent 8 weeks on the US #Billboard #Top40 in 1968, peaking at #16. #SteveMarriott #OneHitWondered #MusicSky
For the record, “Sweetness” topped out at #75 on the US #Billboard #Hot100. “Pain,” Jimmy Eat World’s third single on the #Hot100, squeaked onto the chart at #93. #JimmyEatWorld #TheMiddle #Sweetness #Pain #OneHitWondered #MusicSky
Before you come at me… To date, "The Middle" remains Jimmy Eat World’s only US #Top40 hit on the #Billboard #Hot100… Songs like "Pain" & "Sweetness" topped the Alternative chart; "The Middle" is their undisputed signature crossover hit. #JimmyEatWorld #TheMiddle #OneHitWondered
Legend says that Jimmy Eat World’s name came from a childhood grudge... Guitarist Tom Linton’s younger brothers, Jim & Ed, fought constantly. After losing one fight, Ed drew a picture of Jim shoving the Earth into his mouth with the caption: ‘Jimmy Eat World.’ #JimmyEatWorld #OneHitWondered
Obviously, Jimmy Eat World’s mainstream breakthrough was "The Middle." Written by frontman Jim Adkins, the song was reportedly inspired by a fan's email about feeling like an outsider. It became a message of hope… Don’t write yourself off yet. #JimmyEatWorld #TheMiddle #OneHitWondered #MusicSky
Jimmy Eat World came outta Mesa, Arizona, in 1993 and became one of the most durable bands of the late-‘90s/early-‘00s emo/pop-punk wave. Over time, they’ve built a reputation for consistency, with songs like “Sweetness,” “Pain,” “Work,” & “Big Casino” keeping them visible for years. #OneHitWondered
The week ending April 20, 2002, American pop-punk group Jimmy Eat World earned US #OneHitWonder honors when their uplifting emo power-pop anthem “The Middle” entered the US #Billboard #Top40 at #34. The single spent 26 weeks on the chart, peaking at #5. #JimmyEatWorld #OneHitWondered #MusicSky