One-Hit Wonders and Their Albums: Telling Stories Beyond ‘Brother Louie’

The history of the charts is full of one-hit wonders. These are artists who had — or are only remembered for — one huge hit. In many cases, the average music lover knows the hit, and can probably sing some or all of it from memory, but they haven’t a clue who the artist is or know anything else about their output.

In some cases, this is a deserved fate. Some folks get lucky and have that singular spark of genius or whatever you want to call it. Nothing else they release comes even close to the quality of the hit and they eventually fade away.

In other cases, however, the hit is the literal tip of the iceberg. That one song is all that floats above the surface of music that swirls around your ears like an aural ocean, but underneath there lies so much more. My goal is to periodically bring these lost treasures to light. Here’s one of them.

“Brother Louie,” Stories

The story of Stories — no “the” in their name, for whatever reason — began when Michael Brown met Ian Lloyd in 1971. Lloyd was a classically trained musician, and Brown had been the mastermind behind hits for the Left Banke such as “Walk Away Renee” and “Pretty Ballerina.” These two guys got to writing, formed a group, and in early 1972 released their first album, Stories. Apparently the album itself got some good reviews and cracked the Billboard top 200 album chart, and the single “I’m Coming Home” just barely missed the Billboard top 40.

Bolstered by this success — and that’s not being cheeky, because that ain’t bad for a debut — Brown and Lloyd started writing and recording Stories’ second album, which would eventually be named About Us. Personality clashes popped up, as is so often the case in these kinds of stories (no pun intended), and when things settled down, Brown had left the group. Nine tracks had already been written by Brown and Lloyd, along with an instrumental penned by Brown alone, and most if not all of those songs were recorded before Brown jumped ship. The remaining Stories recorded two more tunes, and About Us made its way into the record shops in 1973.

Here’s where it gets a little crazy. After the album was released, the group (sans Brown) covered “Brother Louie,” which had been a UK hit for Hot Chocolate. In Stories’ hands, the song turned into a monster hit, eventually topping the US charts. Once their record label realized they had a huge hit on their hands, they added “Brother Louie” to the About Us album, which helped nudge the album into the top 30.

After “Brother Louie” ran out of steam, Stories recorded one more album and released a handful of singles, but nothing came remotely close to the success of their one hit, and the group disbanded. Michael Brown moved on to other projects as well, and at this point, Stories’ story comes to an end.

Ah, but what about that album with the hit?

Here’s the funny thing. If you love “Brother Louie,” that ain’t a guarantee that you’ll love the album. Considering that the song was added on well after the fact, it feels and sounds like a bonus track. Aside from Lloyd’s vocals, the sound is nothing like the rest of the album.

Don’t let this scare you off, because the album itself is a minor masterpiece. The 10 tracks that involved Michael Brown range from pleasant to downright brilliant. Brown was big on vocal arrangements and folding classical elements into the rock ‘n’ roll sound. Having the classically trained Lloyd along as someone to bounce ideas off of could only result in some amazing music.

Check out “Darling,” which kicks off the album:

These guys come out of the gate with all guns blazing! Lloyd’s vocals, which kind of remind me of a more melodic Rod Stewart, ride along with the brilliant instrumentation provided by the band. The song goes along at a pretty quick pace, and yet you don’t realize it immediately. The drummer keeps a steady beat that somehow — despite everything else going on in the track — gives the impression that it’s a slower song.

When you look at the lyrics, it all makes sense:

Darling, can you see something inside
Can’t be denied, it’s the way that you feel
If you want it, you gotta try
Taking the best of the lesson you know
When the night has turned to dawn, I will be gone
Where’s the reason and the strength to carry on

Here’s a guy who wants some physical action with his lady, and while he’s trying to act cool about it, there’s a desperation there that’s barely hidden. The song’s arrangement plays that contrast off perfectly. Granted, I may be reading too much into the whole enchilada. My point is it’s a great tune. It also sets an honest sonic expectation for most of the album.

The best song on the album, which is saying a lot, is “Please, Please.” When I first purchased About Us years ago, this is the song that knocked my socks off. I’m not gonna try to describe it. Just give it a listen:

If I ever stage a hostile takeover of an album-rock radio station, I’m gonna toss their Zeppelin and Skynyrd albums back into the music library, seal it off with bricks and cement, and demand that “Please, Please” get some airtime. A song that combines a hard-rock sound with a beautiful melody deserves much more exposure than it’s received throughout the years.

Ah, but lest you think this is a straightforward rock album with nary a sense of tenderness, check out “Love Is in Motion”:

This kind of music makes a strong case for why the ’70s needed to exist. It’s a lovely little song that has just enough of an edge without being swallowed up in saccharine.

To be honest, the two songs recorded after Brown left the group, along with “Brother Louie,” don’t quite fit into the rest of the album. “Changes Have Begun,” written by Stories’ guitarist Steve Love, is a good song but an odd fit on the album. “Down Time Blooze” is 78 seconds or so of silliness that detracts from the album’s overall impact.

Having said that, About Us is an album well worth picking up. It has a good early ’70s rock sound to it, but with plenty of melody and classical sprinkles here and there. If the only copy you can find doesn’t have “Brother Louie,” you should still snag it. Not to knock their hit, but the original album is a whole different beast unto itself, and if it all sounded like “Brother Louie,” it probably wouldn’t have been anywhere near as good as it is.

Luckily, if you don’t want to go scrounging around in record stores or flea markets looking for About Us, it is available on CD. Raven Records released it on a twofer disc with Stories’ first LP, which is a fine album on its own.

Please, please procure this album one way or another. If it makes your day like it did for me years ago, I’ll be sincerely happy for both of us, and I won’t be as agitated the next time I hear “Brother Louie” on the radio for the umpteenth time.

George Brandon

George Brandon is the office manager of a large bookstore in Tennessee. In his spare time, he lives, breathes, reads about, writes about, and listens to rock, pop, and soul music from the 1950s through the 1970s. He has more records and CDs than he probably needs, but he’s always looking for more musical treasures.