This particular entry is not really about a societally relevant topic but it's one that makes me laugh and even cry a little bit inside. I love 80's music but I hate the term one hit wonder because I think it's really used improperly. Let me go ahead and explain what it is I mean and where I am headed.
VH1 constantly used to air specials about one hit wonders and the usual suspects showed up. The Buggles, Haircut 100, Bow Wow Wow, and yes the legendary Taco. To me al of that made sense because it's not like Taco had a smash follow up to "Putting on the Ritz." The truth is that those were all fun one off songs that everyone could enjoy in a nice 80's disco with a lot of flashy lights and mega amounts of gnarly cocaine in the back room. I always had a massive problem with one addition and that was Gary Numan.
What exactly made Gary Numan a one hit wonder? The song cars is apparently the culprit here. I have an issue when you consider that three years before Gary Numan and the Tubeway Army had a hit with are friends electric and were bringing a dark and edgy style music to the world. The songs like " Are Friends Electric" and "Down in the Park" were new and very innovative.
While none of this is really relevant today it is a part of what shaped real music and switched tastes from genres like producer influenced disco to sound and meaning driven styles of music. I would not consider any of that punk music but still it meant something and it's nice to get it right.
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