Ahh..... Nothing Says Early 80's Like Red Leather Suits.....
One Hit Wonder. There have been tons of them - where you somehow manage to make 4 minutes of magic that, for just a little while, everyone must have. Four minutes of magic sounds like my sex life, give or take a minute!
Actually , The Romantics had two hits, but that's irrelevant for today's post. With the Marketing World substituting music to create the excitement that their products cannot, some songs just keep seem to be getting retreaded over and over - even for multiple products at the same time.
Right now, The Romantics 1980 hit, "What I Like About You" is currently being used for both Hampton Inn and Esurance. Guess that pink-headed cartoon chick only goes so far..... For bunch of dudes from Detroit, they must be raking in millions on royalties, laughing all the way to the bank! Where else has that song been used? Try Budweiser, TGI Fridays, The LA Dodgers, Barbie dolls, Shrek 2, Freaky Friday, The Simpsons Movie and even on a TV named after the song - jeez!!! A true cash bonanza. That's how rock stars end up quitting , but still manage to afford a house in Malibu, and all the smack they can do...
Don't believe me? Let's talk about a real One Hit Wonder - Norman Greenbaum. WHO ??? Norman Greenbaum. Don't know the name? You might know his song better - 'Spirit in the Sky'. The super fuzzy guitar that sounds a lot like ZZ Top's 'LaGrange', just slower. Almost the theme song of the late-60's Acid Generation, the song has steadily been in commercials and movies ever since. Guaranteed it took the guy 5 minutes to write tht song - and he was high when he wrote it........
To get an idea how much cash these songs rake in, Greenbaum was on Howard Stern once, and he admitted that the one song has steadily earned him between $100k and $1M per year ever since he wrote it. WOW - a four minute pension plan, or more correctly, annuity. I'd talk more about it, but I gotta go - I've got a song to write.
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