Oleta Adams, Get Here | 1 Hit WONDERful

In the 35^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2024), we highlight “Get Here” performed by Oleta Adams. 

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.  It is possible that the artists appearing on this list earned a minor hit or two, BUT for the most part, that ONE hit earned them recognition. So, in the 35^th edition of 1 Hit WONDERful (2024), we dive into “Get Here”,  the one-hit wonder by Oleta Adams.

“You can reach me by railway / You can reach me by trailway / You can reach me on an airplane…” Oleta Adams broke through in 1990 with her once-in-a-lifetime ballad, “Get Here”.  It appears as the second track on her third studio album, Circle of One.  Notably, “Get Here” was written and originally performed by Brenda Russell, best known for her top 10 hit, “Piano in the Dark” from her 1988s album, Get Here.  The original “Get Here” appeared as the closing cut on that album.  Not a hit for Russell, Adams transformed it into her sole pop hit. It peaked at no. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.  Notably, it was nominated for a Grammy for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female at the 34^th Annual GRAMMY Awards.  It lost to a bigger song: “Something To Talk About”by Bonnie Raitt.

“Get Here” was produced by Roland Orzabal (of Tears For Fears) and David Bascombe.  The backdrop is lovely – fuel for the fire for Adams.  Oleta sings sincerely as she lists all the ways he can “get here” to reach her.  “You can reach me by sailboat / Clime a tree and swing rope to rope,” she sings in the second verse, continuing, “Take a sled and slide downslope / Into these arms of mine.” In the chorus, she sums up, “I don’t care how you get here / Just get here if you can.” Oleta needs him, so, however he can reach her, she encourages him to do so.  Did Adams deserve to have more hits? Yes. She’s talented, with a robust, nuanced, and soulful voice.  But, if you can only have one hit in your catalog of songs, the tuneful, relatable, “Get Here” is a superb one. 

Oleta Adams // Circle Of One // The Island Def Jam Music Group // 1990

Oleta Adams, Get Here: 1 Hit WONDERful No. 35 (2024) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; The Island Def Jam Music Group; Elias Souza from Pexels; OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay]