When it comes to bands that changed the world, you could list a number of them off the top of your head. There are The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Rolling Stones, and others. Then there are artists like Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, and Bob Dylan who also made huge impacts. But what about those groups that helped to change the future of popular music that aren’t necessarily household names today? Well, that’s just who we wanted to shine a light on here. Indeed, these are three one-hit wonders from the 1970s that secretly changed music forever.
“Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang from ‘Sugarhill Gang’ (1979)
Rap music was invented in New York City in the mid-1970s. From there, the style grew. What began in small house parties blossomed into community gatherings in the parks. Soon, a movement spread. And by 1979, the genre had its first commercial radio hits. “Rapper’s Delight” by The Sugarhill Gang helped to change not only the fate of hip-hop but of the entire world. Over the next handful of decades, the creative style would become the dominant cultural force on Earth. And that has a lot to do with this sticky song.
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“The Hustle” by Van McCoy from ‘Disco Baby’ (1975)
Right around the time that hip-hop music was invented, another style was getting off the ground. In the mid-1970s, disco music was taking nightclubs by storm. People danced the night away to upbeat, hypnotizing songs. And at the top of the list was the 1975 track “The Hustle” by Van McCoy. When you want to get people to dance, it’s important to give them a song that directs them on how. And that’s what this offering did, helping to bring disco to the forefront of culture (for a time).
“Autobahn” by Kraftwerk from ‘Autobahn’ (1975)
Today, when you think about electronic music, it’s all very common. The idea that someone would take a computer and make a song has almost become cliché. But in the 1970s, that was all very novel. And the German-born band Kraftwerk was at the forefront. The group’s at times eerie, at times thrilling electronic songs both helped to inspire future generations of music composers, but some of Kraftwerk’s songs were also sampled in rap tracks from the 1990s.
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These 1970s parody songs beat all the "real" music on the charts. They blurred the lines between fake song and true hit. -
AUSTRALIA – JANUARY 01: Photo of AC DC and Angus YOUNG and AC/DC and Mark EVANS and Bon SCOTT; Mark Evans, Angus Young (playing Gibson SG guitar), Bon Scott – performing live onstage, c.1975/1976 (Photo by Bob King/Redferns) -
UNSPECIFIED – CIRCA 1970: Photo of Don Gibson Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images -
SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — Episode 2 — Pictured: Musical guest Boz Scaggs performs on September 25, 1976 — Photo by: NBCU Photo Bank -
Barry Manilow in concert at the Bottom Line, NYC during Barry Manilow Achive Images – 1975 in New York City, New York, United States. (Photo by Bobby Bank/WireImage) -
(Original Caption) Charlie Daniels (3rd from left), the entertainer who dedicated his last album to "gun-rotting whiskey and hellatious fights" says he will not play gentle music just to please "damn Yankees drinking martinis" 1/20 at Jimmy Carter's inaugural reception. Daniels said he plans to play the same brand of foot-stomping Southern music he and his band have always produced. They are (from left), Charlie Hayward, Tom Crain, Daniels, Joel Digregorio, Don Murray and Fred Edwards.
