Wonder Why

Continuing the series of mistaken one hit wonder, this month, the Wonder  Why series looks at the hip-hop group Digital Underground.  Breaking  out in 1990 with the song "The Humpty Dance," it was easy to write off  Digital Underground as a gimmicky rap group.  However, upon looking  deeper, one finds the DU were carrying on a tradition started by funk  legends P-Funk.  The success of "The Humpty Dance" led to a unique  opportunity for the band as well as hoping launch the career of one of  the biggest rap stars of the nineties.  A minor hit would follow a  couple of years later.

The unofficial fourth season of Wonder Why kicks off with a new theme  for the year. Instead of looking at technical "One Hit Wonders," for  2021, the focus is on Artists that have more than one hit but are  primarily known for one hit.

The first  artist on the list is Englishman, Rupert Holmes. Scoring a number one  hit with "Escape (The Pina Colada Song), Rupert had a couple more hits  before transitioning to a second (and third) career.

Be sure to check out @chadsmart and @MikeDekalb's other podcast, Out of Touchstone. Take a trip through the history of Touchstone Pictures. 

How soon is too soon to label a band a one hit wonder? That's the question @chadsmart and @MikeDeKalb  tackle in this episode of Wonder Why.  Foster the People burst onto the scene in 2011 with "Pumped Up Kicks," a song that reached number three on the Billboard chart. Surprisingly in the following 9 years, Foster the People have only come close to Top 40 success once. 

After examining three studio albums to try and understand why Foster the People hasn't had hits,  their conclusion puts the blame less on Mark Foster and group and more on the state of the modern day music industry.

Busting on the scene in the late '70s, The Vapors scored a Top 40 hit with the timeless "Turning Japanese."  Unfortunately, there would be no follow up success in the States and after a second album the band went their separate ways. On this edition of Wonder Why, @chadsmart and @MikeDeKalb examine the album New Clear Days to try and understand why The Vapors didn't have more success. 

For co-host @chadsmart, 1997 is a blank spot in terms of pop music. Co-host @MikeDeKalb, tries to fill in the void of Chad's memory with the suggestion of examining a song that stayed on the American Top 40 chart for nearly seven months.  British singer Mark Morrison hit it big in the summer of '97 with the catchy song "Return of the Mack."  While Morrison had better success in England with his other singles, "Return of the Mack" is his only hit in the States.  On this episode of Wonder Why, chad and Mike examine the Mark Morrison's debut album and life choices to try and understand why he remains a One Hit Wonder. 

We have a first and a second on this episode of Wonder Why.  This is the  second time we're talking about an artist that technically has two Top  40 hits. The first is neither song appears on a studio album by the  artist in question.  How did Murray Head come to have two hits? And why  didn't he have any hits from his own albums?  What connection does he  hold to Buffy the Vampire Slayer?  Listen to this episode of Wonder Why  to get the answer to these questions.

Hoping in the One Hit Wonder time machine, this episode of Wonder Why  travels back to 1979 to explore the career of the hardest artist to  Google, M. Achieving a number one hit with the song "Pop Muzik," M (AKA  Robin Scott) quickly climbed the Billboard charts and then, almost as  quickly, faded from the spotlight.

@chadsmart and @MikeDeKalb break down the pre and post "Pop Muzik"  career of M to see why he only had one hit.  The reason may surprise  you.

On this episode of Wonder Why, we look at probably the most uniquely  titled one hit wonder.  "Mmm mmm mmm mmm" by the Canadian group Crash  Test Dummies hit the top ten in 1994.  With the distinct vocals of  singer Brad Roberts, the very descriptive song stood out from the rest  of the songs on the charts at the time.

Why didn't the follow up songs chart well? Why did future Crash Test  Dummies albums fail to make much of a dent in America? @chadsmart and  @MikeDeKalb break down the career and try to figure out why the band  became a subject for Wonder Why.

We've achieved something never expected on Wonder Why. We've found a  one hit wonder that host @chadsmart has never (at least he thought)  heard. Yes, @MikeDeKalb was able to stump Chad with the 1978 Walter  Eagan hit, "Magnet and Steel."

Who is Walter Eagan? How did he come to have a top ten hit? What did  he do after that hit? Where is he today? What do Flying Burritos, Rumors  and an all sister group have to do with this story?  All those  questions are answered on this episode of Wonder Why

Hang the fuzzy dice from the mirror, make sure the gas tank is full and  lets hit the open road cause "Life is a Highway."  On this episode of  Wonder Why, @chadsmart and @MikeDeKalb look at the career of Canadian  superstar Tom Cochrane. From his early days in the band Red Rider to  being a solo superstar, Tom Cochrane's career has span over 40 years.