In the mood for some sticky sweet bubblegum pop one-hit wonders? These three bands released some of the most memorable bubblegum pop songs in the year 1969, and you might just recognize at least one of these long-lasting hits. Let’s take a look!
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1. “Love (Can Make You Happy)” by Mercy
This famous and quite upbeat bubblegum pop song is one of the most definitive one-hit wonders of the 1960s. Released in 1969, this hit managed to make it to no. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and in Canada.
“Love (Can Make You Happy)” by Mercy is a delightful sunshine pop tune. Sadly, this Floridian girl pop group never had as big of a hit again. Their follow-up single “Forever” only made it to no. 79 in the US, and they stopped releasing new music after 1969.
2. “Sugar, Sugar” by The Archies
This entry on our list of bubblegum pop one-hit wonders is one of few to come from an entirely fictional band. Another 1969 hit, “Sugar, Sugar” by The Archies topped the charts in 1969 and became one of the most memorable songs of its era. Oddly enough, it was released by a fictional band called The Archies from Archie Comics.
Written by Jeff Barry and Andy Kim, this unexpected hit peaked at no. 1 globally. However, subsequent singles (like “Jingle Jangle” and “Who’s Your Baby?”), failed to make it to the Top 5, though some songs throughout the early 1970s managed to chart somewhat well in South Africa and Canada.
3. “Gimme Gimme Good Lovin’” by Crazy Elephant
This is one of several bubblegum pop one-hit wonders out there that was formed by Jerry Kasenetz and Jeff Katz. Crazy Elephant promoted themselves as a group of Welsh coal miners (though they were very clearly not Welsh coal miners), and much of their music leaned toward rock. However, “Gimme Gimme Good Lovin’” was their one bubblegum pop hit.
“Gimme Gimme Good Lovin’” peaked at no. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the US as well as the UK Singles chart. Unfortunately for Crazy Elephant, their subsequent singles failed to chart well at all. They officially disbanded in 1970.
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
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