The 90s was a revolution in pop music that didn’t take itself too seriously, and therefore it’s probably the most prominent decade for one-hit wonders. There are so many songs from that era that we’ve heard hundreds of times, and yet we’re unlikely to have heard anything else by some of these artists.
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Breakfast at Tiffany’s - Deep Blue Something
Despite releasing four albums in total, Deep Blue Something only managed to gain chart success with their second album Home - and that was solely down to the track Breakfast At Tiffany’s named after the 1961 Audrey Hepburn film. Strangely, it was actually Roman Holiday that inspired most of the lyrics.
Brimful of Asha - Cornershop
We still don’t know what a “Brimful of Asha on the 45” means, but we still scream along everytime the Norman Cook remix of this 1997 comes on. Cornershop only achieved marginal chart success with a handful of other singles, but they’re still going. Their last release was in 2020!
Born Slippy Nuxx - Underworld
It was thanks to Danny Boyle’s 1997 film Trainspotting that this song became such a hit for Welsh electronic group Underworld. It’s still their only top 10 UK single, but they have released one or two other memorable tracks in their career.
Sweat (A La La La La Long) - Inner Circle
Why are so many 90s hits so low-key dirty? Well, whatever the reason, it certainly worked for reggae stars Inner Circle with their track Sweat from their album Bad to the Bone. They didn’t make much of an impact with any other release, but they had the sense to re-issue this track several more times over the years.
Music Sounds Better With You - Stardust
One of the few times being a one-hit wonder was a choice, Music Sounds Better With You is literally the ONLY song ever to be released French house trio Stardust. Sampling Chaka Khan’s Fate, they released the song in 1998 then mysteriously disbanded, never to be heard again.
Baby Got Back - Sir Mix-a-Lot
Sir Mix-a-Lot has really embraced his status with regards to his hit rap track Baby Got Back, and to this day it remains a global favourite thanks to its frequent appearance in films and TV shows, and Nicki Minaj’s famous sampling in her 2014 song Anaconda.
Tubthumping - Chumbawamba
This feel-good Brit-award nominated single was released in 1997 by British rockers Chumbawamba. Apart from immediate follow-up singles Amnesia and Top of the World (Olé, Olé, Olé), they would never hit the charts again, but they still managed to stay together until 2012.
MORE: Radiohead's OK Computer named Ultimate 90s Album
Mambo No. 5 - Lou Bega
Did you know this 1999 Grammy-nominated hit was inspired by and sampled from Pérez Prado's 1949 instrumental track of the same name? Well, know you do. It was Lou Bega’s only global number one and featured on his debut album A Little Bit of Mambo.