Turning Japanese

Todd plays "You're Beautiful" on the piano

JAMES BLUNT - YOU'RE BEAUTIFUL A one-hit wonder retrospective

Todd: Welcome back to One Hit Wonderland, where we take a look at bands and artists known for only one song. And today, I get to the final request of the four I sold on Patreon. It's been fun doing these. I might do this again. Next time, I'm gonna auction them off or something; these things sold out quick. Now, as you might recall...


 * Clip of "Killing in the Name" by...

Todd (VO): ...our last requester wanted me to cover Rage Against the Machine because they actually are sort of one-hit wonders in the UK. But as an American, I told him I couldn't work with that.

Todd: So eventually, he sent me a better request.


 * Video for "You're Beautiful"
 * James: My life is brilliant

Todd (VO): That's right. Today, we are looking at one of the newest one-hit wonders I've ever covered. Yes, we're going back to the recent past to cover the biggest one-hit wonder of 2006, writer of one of the all-time wispy, willowy WIGWAG acoustic hits—one James Blunt, who burst onto the scene... [Cut off by text chime]

Todd: [checking phone] Hold on, he just messaged me something. [Reads the message, the gist of it being...] "Hope you didn't decide James Blunt...blah, blah, blah...change my request...blah, blah, blah...Turning Japanese by the Vapours. [sic]" Oh, thank Christ!

Todd plays the Oriental riff from...

THE VAPORS - TURNING JAPANESE A one-hit wonder retrospective


 * Video for "Turning Japanese"
 * Vapors: Turning Japanese
 * I think I'm turning Japanese
 * I really think so
 * [Todd plays the actual song]
 * Turning Japanese
 * I think I'm turning Japanese
 * I really think so

Todd: Welcome back back to One Hit Wonderland, and friends, it's been too long since we had a good old '80s New Wave act on this show.

Todd (VO): While I have affection for all such one-hit wonders, this is one of the best of the lot, and also one of the silliest. It's frankly the definition of a novelty song. It's almost like they knew they'd have a short career.

Todd: They named themselves [album cover] the Vapors. They were like wisps of air that briefly registered, then vanished without a trace.

Todd (VO): But even if they quickly evaporated, their song has not. "Turning Japanese", alongside [clips of Gary Numan's...] "Cars" and [...and the Buggles'...] "Video Killed the Radio Star", was one of the first of the big one-hit wonders of the '80s.

Todd: Or the '80. 1980 specifically.

Todd (VO): And keep in mind, 1980 is actually a terrible year for pop music.


 * Clip of Air Supply - "All Out of Love"
 * Russell Hitchcock: I'm all out of love
 * I'm so lost without you

Todd: There wasn't much room for Vapors in all the Air Supply we had.

Todd (VO): But that year also produced a number of goofy fluke singles which would set the stage for the entire decade to come. I mean, seriously, this video is basically what you think of when you imagine a generic '80s music video.

Todd: So come with me, won't you, as we explore this odd little number and its connection to the dawn of a genre, to vaguely understood Eastern culture, and to oblique references to touching yourself. Let's begin. [beat] Man, I did not want to do that James Blunt one.


 * Vapors: Turning Japanese
 * I think I'm turning Japanese
 * I really think so

Transcript in progress