|
Streaming samples from Amazon
Click the picture below for samples of the one hit wonders on this page
|
Most Popular One Hit Wonders
Summary of the biggest one hit wonders
of 1961 in popularity order
| 1. | Pretty Little Angel Eyes
Curtis Lee |
| 2. | Angel Baby
Rosie & The Originals |
| 3. | This Time
Troy Shondell |
| 4. | Baby Blue
The Echoes |
| 5. | Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me Of You)
Little Caesar And The Romans |
| 6. | Wheels
The String-A-Longs |
| 7. | Let's Get Together
Hayley Mills |
| 8. | Baby Sittin' Boogie
Buzz Clifford |
| 9. | Wizard Of Love
The Ly-Dells |
| 10. | A Little Bit Of Soap
The Jarmels |
| 11. | Who Put The Bomp (In The Bomp, Bomp, Bomp)
Barry Mann |
| 12. | Asia Minor
Kokomo |
| 13. | Rama Lama Ding Dong
The Edsels |
| 14. | Mexico
Bob Moore And His Orchestra |
| 15. | Good Goodbye (So So Long)
The Bob Knight Four |
1961 Number One Song Calendar
Find out which number one song
was big on any date with the
Number One Song Calendar page
1961 Top 40 Songs Of The Year
The Top Songs of 1961 in order
starting with the song of the year
Christmas And Holiday Songs
Take a look at the Christmas classics
The holidays are coming fast
One Hit Wonders Homepage
Master page for the one hit wonders
section of the encyclopedia
One Hit Wonders by Year
Choose another year of one hit wonders
Tunecaster has one hit wonder pages for every year from 1960 through 2000, including 1961.
One Hit Wonders are songs which are the most popular by an artist.
There are different views on what qualifies a song for a One Hit Wonder.
A One Hit Wonder could be an artist that had only one song in the top 10, top 20, or even top 40.
On these pages, strictly speaking, an artist is a One Hit Wonder
if the artist had exactly one song make the pop or rock top 20.
No artist can be considered a One Hit Wonder who made the top 20 twice.
This strict definition may create some strange results where a supergoup
like Metallica makes the Pop Top 20 charts once, despite a long list of rock number one songs.
Superstar side projects with temporary or transient names may be technical One Hit Wonders.
Additionally, a One Hit Wonder listed on this 1961 page
may be a song that is significantly more popular than other songs by the same artist,
even though it did not make the top 20.
|
|
|
1961 One Hit Wonders Page
One Hit Wonders from 1961 at Tunecaster
Here are the US 1961 one hit wonders.
All the one hit wonder songs by the artists you remember,
and maybe some one hit wonders you forgot. Find a one hit wonder.
ultimate one hit wonders home page
|
|
Complete Weekly Music Chart Archives:
Blue Peak Numbers take you to the weekly pop chart, from 1960;
|
Jan 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Angel Baby Rosie & The Originals |
|
| Rosie Hamlin wrote Angel Baby when she was 14, and the song became famous when she was 15. She was not listed as the writer on the record. Although Angel Baby was the only top 20 hit for Rosie & The Originals, Rosie followed-up with Lonely Blue Nights, which received minor radio airplay. | |
Jan 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Thelma Carpenter |
|
| Yes, I'm Lonesome Tonight was an answer song to 1960 number one song Are You Lonesome Tonight by Elvis Presley. Vaughn Deleath originally popularized Are You Lonesome Tonight in 1924. Thelma Carpenter was a popular singer during the big band era, and sang with many top groups. She also was an actress. | |
Feb 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
(Ghost) Riders In The Sky The Ramrods |
|
| This instrumental version of (Ghost) Riders In The Sky was a top 20 near miss and by far the most popular song by The Ramrods. | |
| Number 7 hit instrumental song Wheels was a top 20 one hit wonder for The String-A-Longs. The group followed-up with other instrumentals that received moderate airplay. Wheels was written by Richard Stephens and Jimmy Torres. | |
Mar 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Baby Sittin' Boogie Buzz Clifford |
|
| Baby Sittin' Boogie was the only top 20 hit for Buzz Clifford. He received some airplay for other songs too, like Three Little Fishes. | |
Apr 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Asia Minor Kokomo |
|
| Instrumental song Asia Minor was based on Piano Concerto in A Minor by Edvard Grieg. Kokomo was actually Jimmy Wisner, hiding his identity from other classically trained musicians. Kokomo was a top 20 one hit wonder, but Jimmy Wisner received some airplay with other songs as Jimmy Wisner Trio also. The 1970s group Kokomo was unrelated. | |
May 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Baby Blue The Echoes |
|
| Vocal group The Echoes made the top 20 once, with the song Baby Blue. The group had other popular songs out, like the follow-up, Sad Eyes (Don't You Cry), but no more top 20s. | |
May 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Good Goodbye (So So Long) The Bob Knight Four |
|
| Good Goodbye (So So Long) was the only top 20 hit for The Bob Knight Four. The group received minor radio airplay with other songs too, like Two Friends. | |
Jun 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
In My Heart The Timetones |
|
| In My Heart was also released as Here In My Heart. The Timetones received moderate radio airplay with In My Heart, and slight airplay with I've Got A Feeling. | |
Jun 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Peanut Butter The Marathons |
|
| The Marathons was actually The Vibrations. The record company wanted a group that sounded like The Olympics, so they secretly borrowed The Vibrations. When the record company for The Vibrations found out, it took the song and released it as by Vibrations Recorded As Marathons. The Vibrations, under its correct name, was a top instrumental surf band with many songs like The Watusi. Peanut Butter was written by: Bill Barnum, Martin Cooper, Cliff Goldsmith, Fred Smith. | |
Jun 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Rama Lama Ding Dong The Edsels |
|
| Rama Lama Ding Dong was the only top 20 hit for The Edsels. The group received minor airplay for other songs, like Bone Shaker Joe. | |
Jul 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Those Oldies But Goodies (Remind Me Of You) |
|
| Those Oldies But Goodies was the only top 20 tune for doo-wop group Little Caesar And The Romans. Fellow group Nino And The Ebb Tides held back to back chart positions with this same song in July, 1961. Little Caesar And The Romans followed up with other songs including Memories Of Those Oldies But Goodies, which included tributes to many classic songs. | |
Jul 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
You Can't Sit Down Philip Upchurch Combo |
|
| You Can't Sit Down was an instrumental top 20 one hit wonder. The 45 RPM single had parts one and two on its sides. Part two was more famous. This was the most popular song by Philip Upchurch Combo, later known as Phil Upchurch. He received slight radio airplay with other songs, like Softly, and played guitar on many records for decades to come. | |
Aug 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Pretty Little Angel Eyes Curtis Lee |
|
| Pretty Little Angel Eyes was the only top 20 hit for Curtis Lee. He had other songs that received radio airplay including Under The Moon Of Love. Pretty Little Angel Eyes was written by Tommy Boyce and Curtis Lee. | |
Sep 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Wizard Of Love The Ly-Dells |
|
| Although Wizard Of Love was the only top 20 hit for The Ly-Dells, the group received minor radio airplay with other songs like Genie Of The Lamp. | |
Sep 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
A Little Bit Of Soap The Jarmels |
|
| A Little Bit Of Soap was the only top 20 hit for The Jarmels. The group received some airplay with other songs too, like Little Lonely One, a regional east coast song. | |
| This was the only top 20 hit for The Dreamlovers, who became a classic doowop group with other songs like For The First Time and If I Should Lose You. The Dreamlovers sang backup for Chubby Checker. | |
Sep 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Lover's Island The Blue Jays |
|
| Lover's Island was the only top 20 hit for The Blue Jays. The group received minor radio airplay with other songs like Tears Are Falling too. In the 1950s, there was another group with the same name. | |
Sep 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
I Just Don't Understand Ann-Margret |
|
| I Just Don't Understand was the most popular song by actress and performer Ann-Margret, just making the top 20. She had a few other songs that received radio airplay too, like It Do Me So Good. | |
| Nag was the greatest hit and a top 20 near miss for The Halos. The group received slight radio airplay with other songs, including Come Softly To Me. | |
Sep 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Who Put The Bomp (In The Bomp, Bomp, Bomp) Barry Mann |
|
| Who Put The Bomp (In The Bomp, Bomp, Bomp) was the only top 20 hit for Barry Mann. He had a string of songs that received minor airplay, including The Princess And The Punk in 1976. | |
Oct 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Mexico Bob Moore And His Orchestra |
|
| Although instrumental song Mexico was a top 20 one hit wonder for Bob Moore, he received some airplay in 1963 with another regional instrumental, Kentucky. Mexico was written by Boudleaux Bryant. | |
Oct 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
I Really Love You The Stereos |
|
| I Really Love You was originally released in monophonic sound. This was the only top 20 song for The Stereos, which received no measurable radio airplay with any other song. | |
| Let's Get Together was the only top 20 song for Hayley Mills, who had a near miss a few months later with Johnny Jingo. Let's Get Together was from the movie The Parent Trap. | |
Nov 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
This Time Troy Shondell |
|
| Although This Time was the only top 20 hit for Troy Shondell, some other songs by him received minor radio airplay like Tears From An Angel. Singer Tommy James named his backup band The Shondells after Troy Shondell. | |
Dec 1961 |
|
|
|
|
|
Your Ma Said You Cried In Your Sleep Last Night Kenny Dino |
|
| Your Ma Said You Cried In Your Sleep Last Night was performed in 1990 by Led Zeppelin member Robert Plant. His version of the song reached number 8 on the rock chart. Kenny Dino was actually Kenny Doino. He received slight airplay with other songs too, like Betty Jean. | |
|
 |
|
|
|
|
