One-hit wonders of Alternative Guises in the UK

There have been many music acts who have charted with a number one single and nothing else. These are known as One-hit Wonders, according to the Guiness Hit Singles book.
There are some acts which fall into this category, however the artists involved have had other chart success and this is what this article focuses on.
Such acts mainly consist of one artist doing a collaboration with another however some are artists under different names or it is just one member of a group doing a solo record. As long as it is the only chart entry in the UK and it hit the number one spot, it will have a valid place on the list.
As mentioned in the main One-hit wonders in the UK article, such titles where both artists do not have equal billing (e.g. listed as featuring) can not be included here as it is technically only a song by the main artist.
Where possible explanations as to why the titles are listed here are given.
List of One-hit wonders of Alternative Guises
* Frank Sinatra and his daughter Nancy Sinatra had a number one hit in 1967 with "Somethin' Stupid". They never had any further chart entries together as a duo, but each has had many other chart entries separately.
* John Denver had just one solo number one with "Annie's Song" in October 1974. However, he also released a single chart entry with Plácido Domingo.
* Tubeway Army was a group which featured Gary Numan, Tubeway Army scored their first hit with their final single, "Are 'Friends' Electric?" in 1979. The song reached No.1 for four weeks in June 1979. Immediately the band dissolved, but not before also scoring a No.1 album at the same time. Gary Numan went on to have many solo hits.
* Olivia Newton-John and The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) had a joint number one with Xanadu in 1980. Both have had hits separately. In the case of ELO, this was their only number one hit.
* Queen and David Bowie had a joint number one with "Under Pressure" in 1981. Considering they did not make a video which featured them together due to not having the time to get together, it would be fair to assume that they would not have been able to record another song together and they did not.
* Paul McCartney and Stevie Wonder had a joint number one with "Ebony and Ivory" in 1982, but had no further hits together. Both have had many hits as solo artists. McCartney also has numerous hits from his years with The Beatles and Wings, and was also a participant in the Band Aid and Band Aid 20 charity supergroups. Wonder would also reach the UK charts with two other charity supergroups—USA for Africa ("We Are the World") and "Dionne and Friends" ("That's What Friends Are For").
* Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson had a joint number one with "I Know Him So Well", from the musical Chess, in 1985. They had no further hits together but they have have hits by themselves.
* David Bowie and Mick Jagger had a one-off number one hit together with "Dancing in the Street". Both singers have had other hits, but nothing else together.
* In 1986, The Young Ones (based on characters from the comedy series of the same name) teamed up with Cliff Richard for a spoof version of his 1959 hit "Living Doll". The song reached No.1 for three weeks in March 1986. It was the comedy team's only hit, but member Nigel Planer did have a solo hit in 1984 as character 'Neil'. Richard has also had many hits in his own right.
* Producer Steve 'Silk' Hurley had scored many hits on the UK Dance Chart, but "Jack Your Body" was his only mainstream success, reaching No.1 for two weeks in January 1987. Hurley refused to promote himself as an artist and went on to remix many more chart hits, but none as a solo act. He has had other hits as part of the duo "JM Silk".
* Aretha Franklin and George Michael had a one-off number one with "I Knew You Were Waiting for Me" in 1987. Both have had hits in their own right, but nothing else together.
* Gerry Marsden had many hits in the 1960s group Gerry and the Pacemakers, but as a solo artist he qualifies for his participation in the charity disc, "Ferry 'Cross the Mersey" in 1989. Unlike other charity line-ups, this single was not released under an umbrella group name, but attributed to several artists individually (and equally). Of these, only Marsden is a previously uncharted act in his own right.
* The KLF scored a single hit as The Timelords (the No.1 "Doctorin' the Tardis" in 1988), but scored individual hits as The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu (aka The JAMs) and 2K, and several hits, including another No.1, as The KLF.
* UK comedy double act Hale and Pace released "The Stonk" as a charity single for Comic Relief. Released under the name "Hale and Pace and the Stonkers" (although it was essentially just the duo), the song reached No.1 for one week in March 1991. The Stonkers consisted of Roger Tayor and Brian May from Queen and Cozy Powell. All three have had group and solo hits.
* Baddiel / Skinner and The Lightning Seeds (1996) and (1998). The comedians David Baddiel and Frank Skinner teamed up wih chart act The Lightning Seeds in 1996 to record the football song "Three Lions". The song became a major success by hitting No.1 on three separate occasions. It has been released to chart action four times in total (1996, 1998, 2002 and 2006) only the 1998 version had different lyrics, but no other collaboration has been attempted. The Lightning Seeds have had other chart entries in their own right. Some people may argue this is actually two different hits as the lyrics for the 1996 and 1998 releases were different. The tune is the same.
* Isaac Hayes reached No.1 as Chef with "" in 1998. He had hits under his own name during the 1970s.
* Queen and 5ive had a number one hit with "We Will Rock You" in 2000. 5ive originally planned to record a cover and then they asked Brian May if they could sample his guitar part. He said they might as well have him playing on the record and this eventually lead to Roger Tayor also getting involved. With John Deacon retired from the band and Freddie Mercury deceased, the remaining two members of Queen kept their name and recorded the collaboration with 5ive. The two bands did not record any further songs together.
* Christina Aguilera, rapper Lil' Kim, Mýa and Pink recorded a cover of Labelle's 1975 single "Lady Marmalade" with for the soundtrack of the film ' in 2001. All four artists here were credited individually (and equally) with no special umbrella group name. All four have had hits in their own solo names.
* Robbie Williams and Nicole Kidman had a Christmas number one in 2001 with a cover of "Somethin' Stupid". Both artists have had other chart entries, however nothing else together.
* Elvis Vs JXL had a number one hit in 2002. The Dutch dance musician and remixer Tom Holkenborg is a well known artist under the name JXL. In 2002 he remixed the little-known Elvis Presley song "A Little Less Conversation". The song was an immediate hit and reached No.1 for four weeks in June 2002. JXL continues to remix songs for other artists, but this song remains his only credit in the UK charts. Elvis had many chart entries in his own right.
* Gareth Gates and Will Young had a one-off number one hit with a cover of "The Long and Winding Road". This was a double A side with a Gates solo cover of "Suspicious Minds".
* Gareth Gates and The Kumars had a 2003 number one hit with a version of "Spirit in the Sky", in aid of Comic Relief. Gates has had other hits in his own name, but nothing else with The Kumars.
* In 2004, there was a one-off number one hit credited to LMC vs U2 with a mash-up record called "Take Me To The Clouds Above". No other hits have featured in the charts under this line-up.
* Beyoncé Knowles and Shakira had a number one hit with "Beautiful Liar" in 2007. Both acts have had hits on their own but nothing else together.
* In 2007, there was a cover of "Walk This Way" credited to Sugababes Vs Girls Aloud. This was a charity single in aid of Comic Relief which went to number one and the two acts have not done anything else together.
* The late Eva Cassidy had a posthumous number one hit duetting with Katie Melua with a cover of the song "What a Wonderful World" in 2007. No other records have come from the pair. This makes Eva Cassidy the first posthumous artist to be a One Hit Wonder with another singer or as a Sole UK One Hit Wonder.
Aggregate ensemble groups
The following is a list of aggregate ensemble groups. These are usually put together for charity purposes. The ones listed below are One Hit Wonders in their respective line-ups, but each is made up of several chart artists. The following line-ups have all reached No.1 in their only hit under these umbrella group names:
*Band Aid ("Do They Know it's Christmas?", 1984)
*USA for Africa ("We Are the World", 1985)
*The Crowd ("You'll Never Walk Alone", 1985)
*Ferry Aid ("Let it Be", 1987)
*Band Aid II ("Do They Know it's Christmas?", 1989)
* ("Knocking on Heaven's Door", 1996)
*Various Artists ("Perfect Day", 1998)
*Band Aid 20 ("Do They Know it's Christmas?", 2004)
 
< Prev   Next >