Six brilliant one-hit wonders from the 1980s

Edie Brickell and The New Bohemians - "What I Am"

A nice but slightly quirky number now. Unusual and tongue-in-cheek vocals plus an unusual guitar tone make for a plucky effort at the charts. And another one-hit wonder as the result.

The pairing of Brickell and the band hail from Dallas, Texas, and released this song back in November 1988. It was from their debut album, delightfully named Shooting Rubber Bands At The Stars. The album was really successful and claimed double platinum, perhaps on the back of this single which got plenty of airplay and attention.

“What I Am” is a great song and well deserving of its number seven in the US charts though only reaching number 31 in the UK. It was a top twenty chart hit across Australia, New Zealand, and Canada. From the opening seconds, you recognize the tune from the guitar picking, and then Brickell’s bouncy vocals come in. There's a great guitar solo with an envelope filter near the end too.  Everything comes together well in a slightly odd style but in a good way.

Brickell and the band parted ways in 1990 after their second album Ghost Of A Dog, which didn’t achieve nearly the same level of success. She married Paul Simon shortly afterwards. Brickell has had a respected musical career since, including Broadway success, but without another hit single.