One Hit Wonders

Glenn Alan Medeiros (born June 24, 1970) is a singer and songwriter of Portuguese ancestry from the state of Hawai’i. From humble beginnings performing on a tour bus on the island of Kauai, Medeiros’s musical career soared. He is best known for his rendition of George Benson’s “Nothing’s Gonna Change My Love For You,” which was #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 of 1987 and #1 in the UK as well as in France and Germany (one of his three worldwide #1 hit singles).

His British chart success was brought to an abrupt end following a disastrous appearance on the TV show Juke Box Jury. Unbeknown to the show’s panellists, who gave his single a unanimously scathing review, he appeared at the end of the programme as the regular “mystery guest”. To this day he still blames his manager for accepting the booking and bringing about the death of his career in the UK.

Today, Medeiros performs at the Hale Koa Hotel in Waikiki, and also teaches music at St. Joseph’s School in Waipahu, and teaches 5th grade at Island Pacific Academy in Kapolei.

Men Without Hats are a Canadian pop group from Montreal, Quebec who were popular in the early 1980s. They were characterized by the deep, expressive vocals of their lead singer Ivan and their elaborate use of synthesizers and electronic processing. Their most-remembered single was entitled “The Safety Dance“.
Contents

A popular but unconfirmed tale is that the name originated from a misread announcement to one of their early gigs as “Men Without Hate” by a francophone MC in Montréal.

The band erupted onto the international scene a couple of years later with their hit single “The Safety Dance” from their debut album Rhythm of Youth.
Their 1991 album Sideways, dominated by processed electric guitars instead of keyboards, revealed a dramatically different sound for the band. The album failed to attract an American label, and the band broke up.

Following the break-up, Ivan released a solo album, The Spell, in 1997. Stefan and Mack MacKenzie (of 3 O’Clock Train) released Ride of Glory, a post-modern Western-themed CD.

Stefan and Ivan regrouped to release “No Hats Beyond This Point” in 2003.

Source: Wikipedia

Information Society (also known as InSoc) is a U.S. band originally from Minneapolis, Minnesota, primarily consisting of Kurt Larson (aka Kurt Valaquen/Kurt Harland), Paul Robb, and James Cassidy; the latter two reconvened the band in 2006. Their breakout hit was 1988’s “What’s On Your Mind? (Pure Energy)”, a dance hit which included a sample of Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) from Star Trek, saying “pure energy,” and opened with a sample of Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley), also from Star Trek, saying, “It’s worked so far, but we’re not out yet!”

The disc was one of the few to use CD+G, which included digital graphics on the compact disc version in addition to the music. The audio samples from Star Trek were authorized for use on the album partially thanks to the efforts of Adam Nimoy, fan of the band and son of Star Trek’s Leonard. The album sold out it’s initial print in 2 weeks in the US alone and was impossible to find for a month. The album would soon reach gold status after 5 months of it’s release and would eventually turn platinum.

During this time the band released an anonymous single (comprised of 2 tracks from their forthcoming second album) under the name Think Tank. They also had a song - the instrumental track “Hit Me” - placed on the soundtrack to the movie Earth Girls Are Easy.

During the course of the four albums and about a dozen remix singles from them, Information Society’s sound went from more electronic pop music to a darker industrial type, though they will always be remembered for their first hit song and the cardboard guitars they wielded in its music video.

In 2006, it was announced that Paul Robb and James Cassidy are putting the band back together sans Kurt Harland. Kurt Harland will not be participating in the new line-up due to family and work obligations. The new lineup includes Christopher Anton replacing Harland as the lead singer and keyboardist Sonja Myers.

Source: Wikipedia

Reel 2 Real was a house music duo with rap music and reggae influences. The act’s core member is producer and DJ Erick Morillo from New York City, who spent a portion of his childhood living in Colombia. Reel 2 Real is best known for the ragga-influenced house track I Like to Move It, which featured Trinidad and Tobago native and rapper Mark Quashie, also known as The Mad Stuntman. The song was an international smash and crossed over to the Hot 100 in 1994, peaking at #89. The song would later be used in DreamWorks’ CGI animated film Madagascar (2005), making it a hit once again in 2005. In all, The Mad Stuntman was featured on four of Reel 2 Real’s top 10 dance hits. Later singles featured Barbara Tucker, Charlotte Small and Proyecto Uno. The Reel 2 Real alias was abandoned in 1996, after which Morillo spent a few years establishing himself as an underground DJ.