3 Beloved One-Hit Wonders From the ’90s
In honor of this nostalgic time in music, Audio Ink Radio presents its tally of three beloved one-hit wonders from the ’90s. – Author: Cat Badra, Photo from Yasmin Than
The 1990s were an exciting time in music, unless, of course, you were in the hair metal world. While the 1980s were all about hair metal, the early 1990s totally changed that with Nirvana’s “Nevermind.” The seminal album from the Seattle rock band was released in 1991 and changed the musical landscape, suddenly making flannel and lo-fi music sounds cool and kicking glam-rock to the curb.
So, the ’90s were a big time in music for grunge, but it wasn’t only grunge. Pop music, rap, hip-hop and other forms of musical also thrived during the era. Some artists were lucky enough to hit it big with one song, and others even had more hits. In honor of this nostalgic time in music, Audio Ink Radio presents its tally of three beloved one-hit wonders from the ’90s.
Awesome One-Hit Wonders From the 1990s
The Wallflowers, “One Headlight”
The Wallflowers are fronted by Jakob Dylan, who is Bob Dylan’s son, so that pedigree got the band attention right away. But, aside from Jakob’s rock star father, Jakob and the Wallflowers simply made fantastic music. It wasn’t grunge at all. The Wallflowers made a kind of melodic pop-rock that was indicative of the 1990s era, minus the grunge. “One Headlight” reached No. 1 on all of Billboard’s rock airplay charts and No. 2 on their all-genre Hot 100 chart. It was a massive hit and is still a popular song today. They followed up “One Headlight” with “The Difference” and “Heroes,” and while those did well, nothing ever topped “One Headlight.”
Blind Melon, “No Rain”
Blind Melon had a lot of positive vibes in the early 1990s, and many knew they would become one of the significant rock bands in the decade. Lead singer Shannon Hoon had a high-profile friendship with Axl Rose, so that was part of the excitement. “No Rain” was a massive hit for the band, and it’s still played on radio stations everywhere. The song reached No. 1 on the alternative and mainstream rock charts, and it peaked at No. 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. Sadly, Hoon died of an overdose in 1995, and that marked the end of Blind Melon. He was one of the many musicians who died too early in the 1990s.
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, “The Impression That I Get”
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones had more hits than just “The Impression That I Get,” but nothing ever topped this catchy track. The band ruled the 1990s and appeared at major festivals, such as Warped Tour appearances and Lollapalooza. They scored a mainstream hit with “That Impression That I Get,” off the band’s fifth studio album, “Let’s Face It.” It’s nice to see a band that already had a rich catalog finally hit it big. The song reached No 1 on the alternative chart and No. 23 on Billboard’s all-genre Hot 100. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones followed up that hit with “The Rascal King,” and it’s a great song but didn’t catch on quite like “The Impression That I Get.”
For more on one-hit wonders, check out Audio Ink Radio’s features on great one-hit wonders from the early 2000s and one-hit wonders with follow-ups better than the hits.
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