3 of the Best Opening Lines in One-Hit Wonder Songs From the 1990s

When you don’t have a background with an audience, it can be hard to get any attention. Think of it this way: Jerry Seinfeld can get your attention on stage as a standup comedian a lot quicker than the person opening for him when the club’s doors open. But that doesn’t mean the opener has no chance. If their set starts off with a bang, they might just become your favorite new discovery.

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Here below, we wanted to explore the songwriting equivalent of that phenomenon. Because when you’re a one-hit wonder by definition that means the people don’t have a strong familiarity with your work. There is a degree of difficulty to getting their attention. But these one-hit wonders knew the assignment and thus wrote their hits with incredible opening lines.

[RELATED: 3 Two-Hit Wonder, Foreign-Born Bands that Ruled the 1970s]

“I Touch Myself” by Divinyls from Divinyls (1991)

This song, which hit No. 4 on the Billboard Hot 100, comes from the Australian band Divinyls via their 1991 self-titled LP. The song is about sex, power, connection, and desire. Not only can most people relate to those themes but they draw you in immediately. Love and sex—who isn’t interested when they hear those two words? So, when trying to connect with fans new and old, it can be smart to jump into the deep end with those ideas. And that’s exactly what this group did, singing:

I love myself, I want you to love me
When I feel down I want you above me

“What Is Love” by Haddaway from The Album (1993)

This track, which peaked at No. 11 on the Billboard Hot 100, took advantage of the same strategy as the Australian group above. The Trinidadian-German singer Haddaway released it in 1993 and the lesson of “I Touch Myself” was not lost on him. Except instead of whisper-singing his offering, he belted it out as if from the rooftops. Pain and love, vulnerability and power coalesce on this song as Haddaway sings:

What is love?
Oh, baby, don’t hurt me
Don’t hurt me, no more

“No Rain” by Blind Melon from Blind Melon (1993)

This offering, which hit No. 20 on the Billboard Hot 100, took a much different approach. In the 1990s there was a growing audience of music fans who appreciated the sentiment of apathy. It can be almost mind-melting to think how indifference could garner mass attention but that is the case with grunge bands and groups like Blind Melon. In that way, it’s almost a songwriting experiment to see how they did it. But it all began with an opening line that was simple, relatable, and ordinary—so much so that it caused millions of ears to perk up:

All I can say is that my life is pretty plain
I like watching the puddles gather rain

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