4 One-Hit Wonders That Are Secretly Masterpieces of Songwriting

Some one-hit wonders really should have made it bigger than they did. In fact, some one-hit wonders clearly had incredible songwriting chops based on their one major song. Sadly, the music industry can just be way too hard to work against. Let’s take a look at a few one-hit wonders that were secretly masters of songwriting!

1. “Come On Eileen” by Dexys Midnight Runners

The melody, the instrumentation, the harmonies… nothing beats this 1982 new wave Celtic folk hit. On the surface, “Come On Eileen” seems like a very clear-cut song about a woman named Eileen. However, there’s much more to this Dexys Midnight Runners hit. 

Kevin Rowland once revealed that “Eileen” was not a real person at all. Rather, “Eileen” was “composite” and used to make a very serious point about Catholic repression across the pond.

2. “A Million Miles Away” by The Plimsouls

“A Million Miles Away” by The Plimsouls is one of many one-hit post-punk wonders that featured incredible songwriting. This power pop hit featured more punk-leaning vibes compared to The Plimsouls’ contemporaries, which makes sense considering they were very much born from the punk scene. 

There’s a lot of soul in this song, made even better by Peter Case’s incredible lyrics. Case is by far one of the most underrated songwriters of the early 1980s.

3. “Spirit In The Sky” by Norman Greenbaum

This fuzzy tune was a huge hit in the late 1960s, but Norman Greenbaum never had as big of a hit again. It doesn’t make much sense, honestly. This psychedelic rock/gospel song is the perfect amalgamation of two very different genres, and few musicians have been able to create something quite so original and timeless at the same time. 

“Spirit In The Sky” got another breath of life and some time on the charts in the 1980s when Doctor & The Medics delivered a glam punk cover of it.

4. “Concrete And Clay” by Unit 4+2

The musicality of this one-hit wonder is what makes it such a beautiful example of excellent songwriting. That Caribbean arrangement, that powerful yet toned-down acoustic guitar, those glittering lyrics… “Concrete And Clay” by Unit 4+2 has been largely forgotten by the mainstream, and it really shouldn’t be. 

Though, we kind of understand why it hasn’t gotten as much love as it deserves. This tune from 1965 was released during the British Invasion, and plenty of other incredible songs got buried under the weight of The Beatles and other major players at the time.

Photo by Brian Cooke/Redferns

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