VH1's Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 80's
A list of VH1's countdown of the 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 1980s .
List activity
43K views
• 24 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
100 titles
- DirectorJulien TempleStarsDexys Midnight RunnersKevin ArcherMáire FaheyThe 1982 music video was filmed in the inner south London suburb of Kennington in the vicinity of the corner of Brook Drive and Hayles Street. The character of "Eileen" in the music video, as well as on the single cover, is played by Máire Fahey, sister of Siobhan Fahey from Bananarama. Archival footage of Johnnie Ray arriving at London Heathrow Airport in 1954 was featured in the video.
- DirectorTony van den EndeStarsA Flock of SeagullsFrank MaudsleyPaul ReynoldsMusic video for the 1982 song "I Ran (So Far Away)" by A Flock of Seagulls. It features the band members performing the song in a room covered in aluminum foil and mirrors.
- DirectorSteve BarronStarsa-haBunty BaileyAlfie CurtisOfficial music video for "Take on Me" by A-Ha.
- DirectorMark RobinsonStarsJohn CowsillTommy HeathJim Keller"867-5309/Jenny" is a 1981 song written by Alex Call and Jim Keller and performed by Tommy Tutone that was released on the album Tommy Tutone 2, on the Columbia Records label. The song caused a fad of people dialing 867-5309 and asking for "Jenny". In the music video, the "Jenny" character is played by Karen Elaine Morton.
- DirectorPeter ChristophersonStarsMarc AlmondA remixed version of the song was issued in 1991, seven years after Soft Cell's dissolution in 1984. The video for the remix, directed by Peter Christopherson of Hipgnosis, features a man pacing at night harassed by starry dancing apparitions, while Almond (visible only from neck to head) sings among the stars.
- DirectorToni BasilStarsToni BasilThe official music video for her song "Mickey" features Toni Basil dressed in an LVH cheerleader outfit.
- StarsModern EnglishRichard BrownMick ConroyModern English performs in the music video "I Melt with You" from the album "After the Snow" recorded for 4AD and Sire Records. Moden Englist perform the song in a darkened room with Robbie Grey wearing a black shirt and hat. A man and a woman ballroom dance to the song as the band plays.
- DirectorSteve KahnStarsMatthew AshmanAnnabella LwinBow Wow WowMusic video featuring the English band Bow Wow Wow performing "I Want Candy", a cover of Strangeloves' hit song from 1965.
- DirectorSimon MilneStarsKajagoogooNick BeggsCarolyn EspleyKajagoogoo performs in the music video "Too Shy" from the album "White Feathers" recorded for EMI Records. Kajagoogoo performs on the stage of a club while a waitress cleans up at the end of the night. She fantasizes about people from different eras dancing on the dance floor.
- DirectorLol CremeGodley & CremeKevin GodleyStarsFrankie Goes to HollywoodPeter GillHolly JohnsonA second video featuring the group performing with the help of laser beams.
- DirectorDerek BurbidgeStarsGary NumanVideo clip of Gary Numan's #1 mega-hit "Cars". The singer and band perform the song followed by a crazed visual style, strange mix of effects which became a trend for the many video clips that followed in the 1980's; and obviously the powerful and unforgettable sound of synthesizers and Numan's peculiar voice.
- DirectorAmos PoeStarsAnimotionPaul F. AntonelliDon KirkpatrickAnimotion perform in the music video "Obsession" from the album "Animotion" recorded for Mercury Records. Bill Wadhams and Astrid Plane stand in front of a stone water fountain and sing. Video clips feature the band dressed up as Cleopatra, Mark Antony, a spaceman, a desert sheikh, and a samurai.
- DirectorSteve BarronThomas DolbyStarsThomas DolbyMagnus PykeThomas Dolby performs in the music video "She Blinded Me with Science" from the album "The Golden Age of Wireless" recorded for Capitol Records. Thomas Dolby commits himself to the Home for Deranged Scientists. A variety of mad scientists operate bizarre inventions on the grounds of the home. A doctor tries to diagnosis him as a woman tires to seduce him.
- DirectorLindsey ClennellStarsBig CountryStuart AdamsonMark BrzezickiBig Country performs in the music video "In a Big Country" from the album "The Crossing" recorded for Mercury Records. The music video features the band scouring the countryside as they are trying to track down an unspecified treasure. They are constantly beaten to the punch by a woman is appears to be a rival treasure-hunter. Clips of the band on stage play throughout.
- DirectorGerald CasaleStarsBob CasaleGerald CasaleDevoThe music video of Devo performing their single "Whip It" on the set of a ranch.
- DirectorBert van der VeerStarsRolf BrendelKarlo CargesJürgen DehmelThe promotional video was shot in a Dutch military training camp, the band performing the song on a stage in front of a backdrop of fires and explosions provided by the Dutch army. Towards the end of the video, the band are seen taking cover and abandoning the stage which was unplanned and genuine since they believed the explosive blasts were getting out of control.
- DirectorTim PopeStarsMen Without HatsIvan DoroschukLouise CourtThe music video for "The Safety Dance" by Men Without Hats, featuring an English folk revival setting.
- DirectorPeter LauerPam ThomasStarsRob BaseDJ EZ RockRob Base and DJ E-Z Rock performs in the music video "It Takes Two" from the album "It Takes Two" recorded for Profile Records. The music video opens in a record store with a young boy asking to hear the album. The video feature Rob Base singing in the record store and outside by a steel door. The video also features the use of xerography for animation.
- DirectorVaughan ArnellAnthea BentonStarsPete BurnsSteve CoyDead or AliveMusic video for Dead or Alive's 1984 single "You Spin Me Round (Like A Record)". It features the band embracing a disco ball, waving gold flags and channeling an evocation of the six-armed Vishnu.
- DirectorFrancis DeliaStarsJon LeonoudakisRockwellMark Van CleveOfficial music video for "Somebody's Watching Me" by Rockwell in which Rockwell sings about his average life that is being menaced by an unseen stalker.
- DirectorMarty CallnerStarsTwisted SisterDee SniderJay Jay FrenchA music video for the song 'We're Not Gonna Take It' by Twisted Sister.
- DirectorAdrian LyneStarsJennifer BealsMichael SembelloThe official music video for Michael Sembello's song "Maniac" features clips from the film Flashdance, with Jennifer Beals, as, Alex working out.
- DirectorSteve BarronStarsEddy GrantEddy Grant performs in the music video "Electric Avenue" from the album "Killer on the Rampage" recorded for Parlophone and EMI Records. The music video begins with Eddy Grant running on a beach. He sits on a couch and watches a television set as he sings the song. Clips of motorcyclists going through a city play throughout.
- DirectorJonas LivingstonStarsEdie BrickellEdie Brickell & New BohemiansEdie Brickell and New Bohemians performs in the music video "What I Am" from the album "Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars" recorded for Geffen Records. Edie Brickell sings while New Bohemians play in a room filled with a variety of lamps, signs, and other antiques.
- DirectorDon LettsStarsKelvin GrantMichael GrantMusical YouthThe video was directed by Don Letts. It was shot partly on the southern banks of the River Thames in London, by Lambeth Bridge. The video depicts the band performing the song and playing instruments, until an official appears to arrest them. Courtroom scenes are interspersed with the exterior ones. Musical Youth became the first black artists to appear in a studio segment on MTV.