Between late 1979 and the end of 1989, there were nearly 500 (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s that reached the BILLBOARD Hot 100 just one time, a list that includes Soft Cell, Gary Numan, Timbuk 3, The Church, Bronski Beat, Nik Kershaw, The Buggles, The Waitresses, Ultravox and two different bands named The Silencers. Once a week, I’ll highlight a (real) one-hit wonder for you.
Frozen Ghost was a band out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, and two of its members, including lead singer Arnold Lanni, had previously been in the band, Sheriff. That band was one of five (real) one-hit wonders of the 80s which hit No. 1 on the BILLBOARD Hot 100 between 1979 and 1989. Sheriff’s No. 1 hit in 1989 was “When I’m With You,” a Top 10 hit in Canada in 1983 but which initially stalled on the Hot 100 at No. 61.
When I first heard Frozen Ghost’s single “Should I See” – a song against censorship – I actually thought it might be a new song by The Fixx. The vocals of Frozen Ghost lead singer Arnold Lanni reminded me of the vocals of The Fixx’s Cy Curnin, and the music echoed The Fixx as well (at least for me). I was intrigued.
“Should I See” debuted on the Hot 100 in April 1987, spent 3 weeks at No. 69 in May and was gone after 10 weeks. On BILLBOARD’s Rock chart, it fared much better, reaching No. 4. Despite a Juno Award for “Most Promising Group of the Year” and a “Video Of The Year” nomination for “Should I See,” plus four other Top 40 hits in their native Canada, Frozen Ghost wouldn’t grace the Hot 100 again.
Even though members of Frozen Ghost had much more success under the monikers Sheriff and Alias (who had a No. 2 hit in 1990 with the song, “More Than Words Can Say”), I’ll always enjoy the small hit with the big anti-censorship message in “Should I See…”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a50u6lcLsMY
FOREVER YOUNG 