3 One-Hit Wonders From the 1980s I Vividly Remember Listening to on the School Bus

In the 1980s, the school bus and the Walkman went hand in hand. It was easy to find students taking a ride on the big, yellow vehicle who were also wearing their classic headphones and listening to tunes.

That’s just what we wanted to dive into here below. These are three songs from back in the day that were often played in those new headphones. Indeed, these are three one-hit wonders from the 1980s I remember vividly listening to on the school bus.

“Whip It” by Devo from ‘Freedom Of Choice’ (1980)

At the dawn of the 1980s, Devo was essential listening. The group pushed boundaries, both in their songs and in their music videos. Were they human beings? Were they robots? Was the band some sort of performance art project? Whatever the answers were to these questions certainly mattered. But what mattered more was just how catchy the band was. Turn on any radio station in 1980, and you’d hear Devo’s big hit. And that’s just what kids did on the bus—they turned on “Whip It” and the track put a smile on their faces.

“I Want Candy” by Bow Wow Wow from ‘The Last Of The Mohicans’ (1982)

What kid doesn’t want more candy? Indeed, love of the sugary confections is often what drives kids’ decisions early on in their lives. Well, the band Bow Wow Wow took that impulse to heart and put it in a hit single in the early 1980s. Like the subject of the song, “I Want Candy” is sticky and catchy. Shoot, it’s even a little addictive. Bow Wow Wow knows how to hook you in with a fun chorus. Even after the song is finished, listeners often keep singing the lyrics, reminding themselves just how much they’d like something sweet for a snack.

“Rock Me Amadeus” by Falco from ‘Falco 3’ (1985)

While “I Want Candy” is catchy for all the reasons listed above, “Rock Me Amadeus” is memorable for other, odder details. The song is totally strange, weird. It’s also bilingual. But ultimately, it bombards your senses with lyrics, melody, and rhythms. In many ways, the tune is nothing like its subject—the composer Amadeus Mozart. And yet, music fans in the 1980s struggled to get this song and its refrain out of their heads. In fact, many kept returning to it over and over again—especially on those long bus rides to school.

Photo by Chris Walter/WireImage