Ronnie Dyson is remembered for his 1970 hit "Why Can't I Touch You" and starring in the Broadway musical Hair. Mark Anthony Neal argues that we overlook Dyson's influence as a transitional soul figure. Courtesy of Sony Music hide caption
One-Hit Wonders / Second-Best Songs This series argues that artists who are best-known in the U.S. for one monster hit have much more to offer.
Special Series
One-Hit Wonders / Second-Best Songs
Stan Ridgway of Wall of Voodoo performs in the band's video for "Mexican Radio." YouTube/Screenshot by NPR hide caption
Combining Film Scores And Pop Rock, Wall Of Voodoo Was Not Just A One-Hit Wonder
Love and Rockets, primarily known for its 1989 hit "So Alive," also helped establish a template for what became alternative rock with songs like "Yin and Yang (The Flowerpot Man)." Frazer Harrison/Getty Images hide caption
Love And Rockets' Psychedelic Train Ride Laid The Foundation For Alt-Rock
A montage of images taken by the Voyager spacecraft of the planets and four of Jupiter's moons, set against a false-color Rosette Nebula with Earth's moon in the foreground. NASA hide caption
In The Shadow Of 'The Planets' Lies Gustav Holst's Sweet Little Suite
Neneh Cherry is mostly known in the US for her hit "Buffalo Stance." Author and professor Jayna Brown argues Cherry's recent songs like "Kong" show how an artist can mature over the years. Rafa Rivas/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
Mark Hollis was the lead singer of Talk Talk, a band known mostly for its 1984 hit "It's My Life." NPR's Guy Raz argues that Hollis' songwriting shines more on later tracks like "Ascension Day." Dr. Space / Flickr Creative Commons hide caption
Revisiting Talk Talk, A Band Worried About Being A 'Laughing Stock'
Percy Sledge never matched the height of his first hit, but Lauren Onkey frames it as less of a failure than an act of coming back down to size. Rick Diamond/Getty Images hide caption
Synonymous With Soul, Percy Sledge Transcended The Muscle Shoals Sound
Green Gartside of Scritti Politti, the band best known for the 1985 hit "Perfect Way." Music writer Maura Johnston argues that we should explore more of Gartside's work, which bridged punk and pop. Tom Sheehan /Courtesy of the artist hide caption
Beyond Santana: Malo And The Forgotten Wave Of '70s Latin Rock Bands
Marlena Shaw's music combines the devotional passion, the harmonic inventiveness and the spirit-led improvisation that we hear in both the gospel and jazz idioms. David D. Spitzer/Collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture hide caption
Best known for the 1997 hit "Flagpole Sitta," Harvey Danger had much more to offer, argues NPR's Stephen Thompson. Scott Gries/Getty Images hide caption
(L-R) Rick Richards, Bruce Smith and Fred McNeal of The Georgia Satellites perform onstage in 2018. Frazer Harrison/Getty Images hide caption
After hit song "At Seventeen," singer-songwriter Janis Ian stepped away from her musical success for over 10 years, which is why Ann Powers thinks she's a bit forgotten. Shawn Baldwin/AP hide caption
(L-R) Steve Norman, Martin Kemp,Tony Hadley and Gary Kemp of the band Spandau Ballet perform live in 2015. Suhaimi Abdullah/Getty Images hide caption
Ted Leo performs in Oct. 2010 in New York. Cory Schwartz/Getty Images hide caption