Gnarls Barkley, Crazy | 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏

In the 16^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏, we highlight “Crazy” performed by Grammy-winning duo, Gnarls Barkley. 

It only takes ONE hit to solidify a musical legacy 💯! On 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏, we highlight songs that were the SOLE hit by a given musician.  To be fair, it is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, it’s that ONE hit that earned them recognition. So, in the 16^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏, we dive into 🎵 “Crazy”,  the one hit wonder by 🎙 Gnarls Barkley.

“I remember when / I remember, I remember when I lost my mind / There was something so pleasant about that place / Even your emotions have an echo, in so much space.” Those memorable lyrics commence 🎵 “Crazy”, the sole pop hit by duo 🎙 Gnarls Barkley – 🎙 CeeLo Green and 🎙 Danger Mouse (Brian Burton).  To be fair, the Gnarls Barkley did chart another single on the Billboard Hot 100, “Going On,” but it peaked at no. 88 and tallied only one week. As for “Crazy,” it was ubiquitous in 2006, peaking at no. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100.  Honestly, it is shocking that this multiplatinum single, from the platinum album, 💿 St. Elsewhere, didn’t reach no. 1.

What made this 🏆 Grammy-winning so awesome? Well, several things.  For one, CeeLo Green has a stellar voice.  He sounds incredibly soulful carrying the lead, PERIOD.  Think about it, who else would’ve been perfectly suited to sing about this craziness? Furthermore, the songwriting (Green, Burton, 🎼 ✍ Gian Piero Reverberi and Gianfranco Reverberi) is crazy good.  The chorus is infectious – among the most tuneful of the aughts.  Sure, it’s simple, but it’s nothing short of awesome.  And, of course, there’s the production by Danger Mouse, which perfectly suits CeeLo. Notably, that’s where the Reverberi brothers come into play – “Crazy” samples 🎵 “Last Men Standing” from 1968.  While 🎵 “Crazy” was the sole hit for Gnarls Barkley, the duo have a number of great songs on both of the albums they released.

🎙 Gnarls Barkley • 💿 St. Elsewhere • 🏷 Gnarls Barkley / Downtown Music, LLC / Atlantic • 🗓 2006

Gnarls Barkley, Crazy: 1 Hit WONDERful 👏👏👏 No. 16 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Gnarls Barkley / Downtown Music, LLC / Atlantic; Julia Larsen, Kurchakto, RDNE Stock project, Victor Terrell from Pexels; Andrew Martin from Pixabay]