3 Country One-Hit Wonders from the 80s That Everyone Forgot About (But You Should Remember)

Interested in revisiting a few country one-hit wonders from the 80s? Few country stars have made it to the coveted Billboard Hot 100 chart, and many of those that did only made it to the Top 40 one time, cementing them in one-hit-wonder territory. Though, many of these artists and bands are far from one-hit wonders on the country charts. Let’s take a look!

“Elvira” by The Oak Ridge Boys

Most would consider The Oak Ridge Boys to be two-hit wonders. Few of their songs have made it to the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US, though they’ve made it to the country charts countless times. They did, though, technically have two Top 40 singles on the Hot 100 as lead artists: “Elvira” from 1981 and “Bobbie Sue” from 1982. However, “Elvira” was their only song with a lead artist credit to reach the Top 10, so I’ll go ahead and include them on this list.

No self-respecting country fan could forget about The Oak Ridge Boys, but some may have forgotten this particular 80s song. I suggest revisiting it; “Elvira” is a well-aged banger!

“Ashes By Now” by Rodney Crowell

Remember Rodney Crowell? This country star from Texas produced five No. 1 singles on the Hot Country Songs chart in the 80s, but only one tune managed to make it to the Hot 100 chart. That song was the 1980 tune “Ashes By Now”, which peaked at No. 37 on the coveted chart. And you might remember hearing a slightly different version of the song from Emmylou Harris’ hit 1981 record, Evangeline. That’s because these two icons were frequent collaborators. Lee Ann Womack covered this song in 200 as well.

“Seven Year Ache” by Roseanne Cash

Roseanne Cash, the famously talented daughter of legend Johnny Cash, technically makes it to our list of country one-hit wonders, as her song “Seven Year Ache” from 1981 is her only hit to make it to the Hot 100 chart at all. That’s wild, considering the talented country crooner has enjoyed over a dozen Top 40 hits, many of which are No. 1 hits, on the country charts. Still, she only had one song cross over to the Hot 100, and what a song to make it that far. “Seven Year Ache” is a gorgeous country pop tune that really showcases Cash’s pipes.

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