3 One-Hit Wonders From 1981 That Changed Modern Music Forever

In the early 1980s, music was evolving and reshaping in significant ways. If you go back to 1981, for example, you’ll see the year made a major impact on the songs, bands, and albums that soon followed.

And that’s just what we wanted to explore below. We wanted to highlight three songs from back in the day that had a major impact on the future. Indeed, these are three one-hit wonders from 1981 that changed modern music forever.

“Genius Of Love” by Tom Tom Club from ‘Tom Tom Club’ (1981)

This song comes from the band Tom Tom Club, which was comprised of husband and wife duo Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth. Those two were also members of the standout rock outfit at the time, the Talking Heads. But via their side project, the married drummer and bassist created a hit single that would last throughout the decades. In the wake of its release, “Genius Of Love” has not only shaped popular music with its blend of rock and disco, but it has since been sampled by myriad artists, including the 1990s diva herself, Mariah Carey, on her 1995 hit tune “Fantasy”. It’s a tune that echoes throughout the eras.

“Tainted Love” by Soft Cell from ‘Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret’ (1981)

The 1980s might just be the most unique time period for music in the past 100 years. Never before or since has the synthesizer been so prominently involved in songwriting. But that trend had to start somewhere, and in many ways, it was popularized by Soft Cell and their 1981 rendition of “Tainted Love”. The song, which is still heard on the radio today, is a classic 1980s pop hit. The offering is somehow brooding and catchy. And it’s held together with synths—you know, those instruments that would dominate the decade.

“867-5309/Jenny” by Tommy Tutone from ‘Tommy Tutone 2’ (1981)

This song will continue to change music forever because it will continue to boggle the minds of music fans in the year 3026 that people used to know telephone numbers by heart. Indeed, back in the 1990s, most people knew dozens of phone numbers—ironically, including the fake one attributed to Jenny here on this single. Today? You’re lucky if you remember your own. But for the rest of time, when this track plays on the local jukebox, music fans will laugh and wonder out loud, “Did people really know each other’s telephone numbers?”

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