Hear Today, Gone Tomorrow Trivia Quiz

Answer: Into the Night

"Into the Night" has one very odd distinction for a one-hit wonder, in that it made the top 20 of the Billboard Hot 100 twice, first in 1980 and again in 1989. One-hit wonder status actually led to this, as an Arizona disc jockey started playing the song as part of a "Where are they Now" segment, causing people to rediscover this classic.

Answer: Rapper's Delight

"Rapper's Delight" and Blondie's "Rapture" actually share common roots. Deborah Harry, of Blondie, was a fan of New York City rapper Fab Five Freddy, and invited her bandmate Chris Stein and Chic's Nile Rodgers to a hip hop event. Shortly thereafter, Blondie and Chic were playing a gig together.

While Chic was playing their hit "Good Times", Fab Five Freddy and The Sugarhill Gang began a freestyle rap to Good Times. When the Sugar Hill Gang recorded the rap with the sample, Rodgers threatened a lawsuit, but after he was given co-writer's status and royalties, he eventually grew to enjoy the song. Harry and Stein wrote "Rapture" shortly thereafter, blending disco, new wave, and rap.

Answer: Pac Man

Buckner and Garcia had great success in the novelty genre, and actually opposed the idea of doing an entire album of songs based on video games. Other songs they recorded for that album included "Goin' Berserk" and "Do the Donkey Kong", while before and after "Pac Man Fever" they had songs like "E.T. I Love You" and "Christmas in the NFL".

They also wrote commercial jingles and serious music for other musicians.

Answer: Major Tom

Peter Schilling was an Austrian musician with a love for all things sci-fi. "Space Oddity" by David Bowie was a perfect song for him but instead of covering it, as most musicians would have, he decided to retell the story in his own style. He originally recorded it in German, then when that was successful, he redid it in English, leading to a major international hit.

Answer: Nena

Nena (Gabrielle Kerner) hit #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 with "99 Luftballons", making it the first German song since 1961 to make the top 10. The premise of the song is the question of what would happen if 99 balloons were released over the Berlin Wall. With so much tension between the east and the west at that time, an overreaction could seem natural--a seemingly innocuous act starting World War III.

Answer: I Wanna be a Cowboy

"I Wanna be a Cowboy" is a musical rendition of a Spaghetti Western as presented by a British band. After failing to make an impact with any other music, they faded into obscurity... until they attempted to sue Paula Cole over her song "Where Have all the Cowboys Gone", due to the repeated use of the phrase "I Wanna be a Cowboy" in a remix version.

It is unknown whether the British Band The The have considered suing Cole over the repeated use of the word "The".

Answer: Heart and Soul

"Heart and Soul" did not originally chart, but after being used in a blue jeans advertisement, it shot to #4 on the Billboard Hot 100. Subsequent efforts did not fare well, but "Heart and Soul" drew enough attention that Carol Decker still tours and plays the song as well as many other T'Pau singles. The name T'Pau, incidentally, comes from the name of a Vulcan priestess in "Star Trek".

Answer: Nobody in the band is named Danny Wilson

The original name of this British band was "Spencer Tracy", but the actor objected, so they became "Danny Wilson" after the Frank Sinatra film "Meet Danny Wilson". The actual band consisted of Gary Clark, Kit Clark, and Ged Grimes. "Mary's Prayer" originally did nothing in the UK, but success in the US led to British Success. Gary Clark has since become a songwriter for other artists, while Kit Clark carries on with another band stealing a famous name, now touring with his group "The Swiss Family Orbison".

Answer: Due to the sudden success, Sheriff reformed and went on a worldwide tour

"When I'm with You" was the only song by Sheriff to chart, peaking at #61 in 1983, leading the group to disband. In 1988, a Las Vegas DJ heard and liked the song, and so decided to start playing it. Soon other stations followed suit, and Capitol Records reissued the single. It hit #1 in the US on February 4, 1989, and lead singer Freddy Curci decided to reunite the band. However, keyboardist Arnold Lanni (who wrote the song) and bassist Wolf Hassell were already in a band called Frozen Ghost, and they declined to participate. Curci and guitarist Steve DeMarchi formed the band Alias, which then had another hit, "More than Words Can Say".

The final note is held for 23 seconds, causing it to be listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest held note in a pop song.

Answer: She jumped up on stage and started singing during their show

New Bohemians (do not call them "The New Bohemians") was originally a Dallas-area ska band originating out of The Booker T. Washington High School for the Visual and Performing Arts. They did not know their classmate Edie Brickell at the time, but met her when she decided to go on stage and sing with them at a bar. Coincidentally, that same night a booking agent for another, better paying club was in attendance and decided to sign them to a contract with Brickell.